Body Versus Soul

Last week, I returned from Israel and have some thoughts about what I saw and the direction in which the country is going.  It was a trip of great contrasts.  I traveled with 17 ministers and rabbis on a JCRC study tour.  (If you want to learn more about the trip you can read its blog at http://www.jcrcinisrael.blogspot.com/) We toured the Christian holy sites, examine the political and historical aspects of the country and talked a lot about the competing narratives that impede the development of the state of Israel.  Not that it's not developing but imagine what state would be like if it were able to achieve peace with its neighbors.

This post is dedicated to my friend Ari Alexenberg who left JCRC on Friday.  Ari worked since 2008 as the director of the Israel Action Center.  We often discussed trends in the Jewish community as well as Israel.  Last week as he was wrapping up our time together we talked about the root causes of the internal conflict within the Jewish community between our right and left wings.  He described this as a conflict between body and soul – the right being so concerned with our physical security, "the body", that it is willing to sacrifice the ethics of the "soul".  On other hand, the left is so concerned about ethical dilemmas that it overlooks the fact that one cannot have an ethical state when security is constantly at risk.  This of course, is a simplistic view of this complex internal conflict.  If you talk with people on our right or on our left they would argue that one must emphasize one of these concerns or otherwise you wind up with nothing.

While in Israel 2 weeks ago, I had a lot of opportunity to think about this.  We talked with people who represent these 2 approaches – albeit not from the extreme sides of the equation.  What I heard, for the most part, was a basic understanding of the trade-offs that are being made.

I believe that Israel will never have peace until it solves this very important existential conflict within its own community.  That having been said, I believe that there always will be – and should be – tension between these viewpoints.  Without it, I believe the intellectual and moral dilemmas that are being faced will not be adequately addressed.

However something else is of great concern these days.  Throughout the trip, one of our rabbis continually raised the issue of the recognition of Conservative and Reform Judaism in Israel.  While, in my view, it probably wasn't the best time to raise this issue – given that we were on a trip with non-Jewish clergy – it was on my mind as well as we listened to Israelis, read the press and absorbed what was going around us.  In the time period close to when we were there a woman was arrested at the Western Wall for carrying a Torah.  In addition, I heard several stories about people who are having difficulty marrying in Israel because of issues of personal status including being questioned about their parents and grandparents wedding ceremonies.  Some were even asked for the marriage contract of their parents and grandparents and were told that without them they would not be permitted to be married by Israel's chief rabbinate. 

However last night really took the cake.  I had a wonderful dinner with some close friends who were celebrating their wedding anniversary.  Around the Shabbat table we sang a great deal.  And for those of you who know me personally, you know that this is one of my great joys in life – singing the Shabbat songs on a Friday night on a Saturday afternoon.  I believe that it is one of the reasons that I've stay connected to Jewish life for all of these years.  Clearly, I have many questions about ritual and adherence to Jewish law.  However my connection to the music and the ancient songs touches me in a way that I can't really describe.  I guess it is about as close as I get to a spiritual experience – as hard as it is for me to admit that.

During dinner I discovered that the twentysomething son of my friends' guests attended the same yeshiva in.  Israel that I did.  Even though he attended 20 years later than I did, I felt a kinship with the young man. As alumni of the same institution we knew many of the same songs and I listened to him saying and in some ways heard my own voice.  After dinner we had a chance to talk and I found out that his experience in the school was not as good as mine had been.  While I've heard that it moved significantly to the right after I left, I never imagined that I would hear what I heard.  Apparently, during the time that he was there some of the students found a box of prayer books from the conservative movement at the Western Wall.  They took them and asked their Rabbi if it was permissible to dispose of the books since they included the name of God.  To my horror he told them that it would be permissible to burn the books, and they did.

Something in me died at that moment.  Having just visited Yad Vashem and seeing the video of Nazis burning Jewish books I couldn't help but be disgusted and shocked and deeply saddened.  The Rabbi that made this ruling was someone that I had almost a transcendent respect for – even all these years later.  In my view he was a pious man.  During my 2 years at the school I spent many hours sitting in the front row absorbing his teaching, hours at his table in extracurricular study and was even invited to his Passover Seder.  Ironically, I chose not to attend that Seder because at that time, unbeknownst to my teachers, I was dating a conservative girl and chose to go to the Seder with her and a number of her friends.

I was very happy to hear that this young man left the school a short time after this incident happened.  Having been raised correctly – in my humble view – he could not abide being in a place where people so brazenly used their religion in an immoral way, devoid of open-mindedness, and appreciation for what's right and, even if they felt that it was somehow justifiable to act in this way, willing the ignore our tragic history.

To me, this embodies the ultimate desecration of the soul for the body. Or, as my Christian friends might say, the substitution of the letter of the law for the spirit of the law.  These people apparently believe that adherence to ideological purity is so important that it justifies the denigration of others and the most horrific of actions.  To me, burning a book is pretty much tantamount to burning a person.  I believe that there is some aphorism or quote from a famous person that says something to that effect.

Sometimes when I'm in Israel I struggle about whether or not to wear my kippah.  I don't want to be lumped in with these folks.  I don't want people to think of me as intolerant, or boorish, or extremist.  But yet, this is where I come from.

I'm not sure where to go with this at this point. But as I approach the high holidays with my own sense of introspection I can't help but hope that some of these people – particularly the Rabbi – thought about their actions in advance of the holidays that year and knew somewhere in their hearts that what they had done was terribly wrong - a desecration of God's name.

Because of stories like this, the arrest of the woman at the wall, the refusal of Israel's rabbinic establishment to recognize liberal branches of Judaism, and this terrifying anecdote about horrible and amoral actions, I return to my search for the sensible center. 

On Tisha b'Av – the Jewish day of national mourning – we read a poem that begins: "for these things I cry out" – these are the things I cry out about.  I hope someone is listening.

Disgusted and Disgusting

This morning I am reflecting on the most recent scandal in the Jewish community. It seems that in the NJ and Brooklyn area the FBI arrested several rabbis and other "Orthodox" Jews for being part of a massive money laundering and corruption ring. Among them was one Levi Yitzchak Rosenbaum -- who is accused of being "the main U.S. broker for an international trafficking network" - http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_crime/2009/07/24/2009-07-24_seven_year_quest_to_end_rosenbaum_evil_work_pays_off.html#ixzz0MBtEZESX. Trafficking in organs!

Its been a bad year for the Jews -- in my view, particularly the Orthodox -- Rubashkin, continued evidence of sexual abuse (without recourse, by the way), riots in Jerusalem including the burning of a welfare office to defend a woman accused of attempted murder of her child, "Jewish residents of Judea and Samaria" -- i.e. settlers riding on horseback to burn Palestinian olive tree groves -- and now these guys. Add this to Madoff, and its been a pretty rotten year. With just about 7 weeks before the introspective period of the high holidays, a few thoughts. And a rant.

What galls me about this is, for one, the basic inhumanity of all of these people. Come on, organ trafficking at a huge profit? Extortion? Terrorizing farmers? Give me a break.

However, I think there is a deeper, more disturbing observation here. It has to do with religion and religious fundamentalism.

There used to be a tendency to look at religious fanatics and write them off as "crazy or bad apples." Now, it is fashionable to look at people -- Muslims in particular -- and say -- "Well so much for the religion of peace. Look what the Koran says about such and such... the religion is at fault and anyone who is a religious Muslim must be a fanatic and that the only good Muslims are secular or those who outwardly reject parts of their traditions (the Hadith, etc.)"

We don't say the same thing about Christian fundamentalists -- the Kansas people who protest at soliders' funerals or kill doctors who perform women's health services. We look at them as outlyers -- but I think that somewhere we also look at their theology as being corrupt or at least suspect.

So, what about the Jews? I am tired of people circling the wagons on this issue. I expressed my concern to a couple of prominent rabbis in my community -- people that I respect. One, who shall remain nameless because of my real respect for his scholarship and community involvement said (and I paraphrase): "I hope that people don't use this as a partisan issue in the community" -- in other words, don't blame the Orthodox for the sins of these people.

Another community leader said something similar when I wrote about this on Facebook. She attributed this chillul Hashem - desecration of God's name -- to free will. This implies that is has nothing to do with our teachings and our tradition.

I would propose that our tradition and the way that it is taught -- particularly among those who consider themselves to be the most learned and pious -- is at the core of this problem. Rather that this being deviant behavior, it is the logical conclusion of those who read the texts and surround themselves with those who agree with them.

If you look at our tradition, there is a very disturbing theme that runs throughout the Torah and the Talmud -- exclusivism. It is at the core of being the "chosen people". That in and of itself is not a bad thing. For a people to have a certain "self esteem" is not unusual. And, it's healthy. How else does one perpetuate a way of life in a competitive environment.

However, at the root of our tradition is also a strain that says that other people -- whether its non-Jews (referred to in religious literature as "ACUM" -- the worshippers of stars and constellations -- or Jews who do not observe the stricture of Jewish law (more on that later) are not "friends" and in some cases not considered human beings. This extends in some small measure to women -- who are excluded from rituals and delegated to a second class status for reasons that are explained away.

How is this expressed?

"And you shall love your neighbor as yourself". The Talmud says that this is one of the centerpieces of the tradition -- the proverbial golden rule. However, the accepted interpretation of this verse (quoted by Rashi) is that your neighbor is only one who observes the Jewish commandments.

This has profound implications for Jewish law.

I will provide a few concrete examples:

There are many activities considered to be work that are forbidden on the Sabbath. One of the discussions that arose in Talmudic literature involves doctors saving lives and people going into burning burnings etc. The rabbinic ruling is that one is permitted to enter a burning building or to provide life saving treatment to Jews only. But not to non-Jews. In a later period, it was determined that "in order to keep the peace" (in other words to avoid persecution at the hands of the non-Jewish majority) one can (if they have to) provide medical treatment or rescue non-Jews.

In addition, a Kohen (one of the priestly caste -- children of Aaron) who serve in the Temple and are to remain religiously pure can not attend funerals with the exception of their closest relatives. (Mother, Father, Sister, Brother, Spouse, Son or Daugther)... no grandparents, step-childen, friends etc. However, they are permitted to attend the funeral of non-Jews. Since non-Jews are apparently not people.

I could go on and on. I won't even begin to discuss the second class status of women who are grouped with children, the mentally handicapped and the slave as ineligible to provide testimony at trial, lead religious rituals and the like.

And don't get me started about homosexuals.

So, the deciet and and lawlessness observed in the fundamentalist communities is perfectly explainable. If you treat others with disrespect and disdain why should you worry about child labor in Iowa, burning welfare offices in Jerusalem, physically attacking women in Beit Shemesh, extorting and laundering money in New Jersey and selling kidneys all over the world?

After all, as long as you eat glatt kosher, wear a big yarlmuke and use some of that filthy money to support religious instituions that promote your values, you are a good Jew.

Poppycock.

As we approach Tisha B'av, where we traditionally think of the destroyed Temple from two thousand years ago and some pray for the restoration of a messianic religious theocracy in the Holy Land, let's consider the filth in our own midst and the ugly parts of our tradition that must be rejected and expunged. Otherwise, the exile will go on and on. If not in our bodies, then in our spiritual fabric.