Reply to "Best Comments" of UOJ Blogspot
by Rabbi Dovid Eidensohn
Mr. Emes is the first post, and he in general says what I have been saying that the system stinks, but that we don't have to throw out the baby with the bathwater and discard Kabbala and Hassiduce. I would like, however, to add some thoughts to Mr. Emes's ideas. First of all, we have a problem, say, child molesters. Why? Well, I think we have child molesters because some people are born with this desire and can't control themselves. Just as we have 2 percent of the population homosexuals, we have other percentages that lust for children and they cannot control themselves. If someone does not have this problem and covers it up so that children are ruined, that person is a scum, a filth, a rosho and murderer. But the molester I can't call these names. I know if I had the problem I would probably do what he does. So, although I will surely notify people to stay away and to keep their children away, I do this not with a feeling of "I stuck it to that scum" but rather I feel really bad for the sick person. I worked with people who struggled, and I felt a shame that I was so remote from their spiritual level. But they are a menace, and we have to save the children. If a person has an infectious disease we feel sorry and try to help pay for the medicine, but we don't let him infect others. Anyone who does allow this is a grievous sinner.
I also disagree with Mr. Emes when he says that we have child molesters today because of the present corruption in our Torah system. The Gaon Reb Refoel Soloveitchik son of the Brisker Rov told me we always had these problems. He laughed when I suggested that child molesters are a problem in America. He showed me a sefer about a Rov hundreds of years ago who sat all day in Talis and Tephilin and at night... So these are not because of our corruption. But the corruption is real and we must fight it, and I agree with much of Mr. Emes's discussion, although I disagree with what he says about the Chofetz Chaim and Reb Elchonon. I have already posted a response to him on this on my torahtimes.com site. I feel that our anger at some in the present leadership which is well deserved must stop there, and not be used to taint the names of earlier rabbis whose piety are without contention.
Steve
writes a blog about kashruse. I have been telling rabbis and others
for years that very soon the time will come when true kashruse is
unavailable to anyone because of genetic modifications and global
industries where there is no reliable person watching how things are
done. We have cattle ranches where the bull's sperm comes from
China, goes to Fort Collins, CO, is processed, and it makes calves, and
nobody from our community has any way to find out what they did over
there. Salmon has already been genetically modified with a fish that
is a cousin to the eel, and may not be kosher. Why is nobody
concerned about this? Simply because, as a prominent kashrut rabbi
told me, nobody wants to pay higher prices. In such a climate,
anything can go. Money rules.
We come next to the post of ZA.
ZA blames the cover up on three pillars: The sin of mesira, the sin of loshon hora, and Rabbi Schwab's request that we right not write bad facts but nice things in our Jewish histories.
Does ZA actually believe that the people who covered up child molesting were pious people who feared the ISURE MESIRA or Loshon Hora? This is a joke. They were wicked people, not machmirim.
Let's call a spade a spade. There are rabbis who are wicked. They may be scholars, they have spent years serving the community, but they can still be wicked. Don't blame the Chofetz Chaim's teaching about loshon hora for child molesting and its promoters. The Chofetz Chaim himself would speak loshon hora when he felt it was necessary, he even put ads in the newspaper telling people about wicked people. So don't blame the Chofetz Chaim, and don't blame the Isure Mesira. Every day people go to court to save a few dollars, with rabbinical permission. Everybody knows this. So why is child molesting different?
Rabbi Schwab, I believe, was concerned about recent Jewish history in Russia where the Communists were Jews. Hitler came to power, and even to hate Jews, because of Communist Jews like Eisner who seized Bavaria and had his people try to kill Hitler. Now that everyone knows these things anyway, or knows enough facts that these things are not so shocking, we may not understand what Rabbi Schwab feared. But in his time, he had reason to fear it.
I am very sad that bloggers jump from the wicked of our time to insult the great saints like the Chofetz Chaim and Reb Elchonon. It pains me to see attacks such a fine and learned man like Rabbi Schwab. He guided me in my battles on the radio for Torah. He once told me something that made absolutely no sense. I feared to question him, but not long afterwards, I saw he had spoken with Ruach Hakodesh, and saved me from much aggravation.
You know, one day, we will all stand up there, and see who we are insulting. Let us take care. Also, I have posted a response to these critics on torahtimes.com.
I am also disappointed that of all the people who have time to make remarks about our leadership, etc., and there are many of them, I have almost never seen anyone who wants to organize and spend some time supplying Torah Jews with a Torah-oriented Daas Torah. I am going around from place to place speaking about these things, and some people are enthused, but I don't see people willing to come forward and do something constructive, although I have asked. A few people came to me filled with enthusiasm, and I never heard from them again. So, we get what we deserve.