Regarding two important issues, R. Hirsch differs from much of Modern Orthodox thought. He was not a Zionist and taught that the Jews should not actively try to end their exile (letter 16 in The Nineteen Letters). He emphasized the Torah as far more fundamental than the land. The bond of Israel's unity was at no time land and soil but only the common task of keeping the Torah” (letter 16). In fact, the ark of the covenant's poles were never removed in order to indicate that the Torah can always successfully transfer to another location (see commentary on Shemot 25:15). In all fairness, it must be noted that the shulchan and menora, representing the fullness of material and spiritual flowering according to R. Hirsch, have their poles removed since those goals are rooted in the land of Israel. R. Hirsch certainly did not deny the significance of our Holy Land, but it was not a major theme in his thought and he did not endorse the Zionist project.
Monday, September 23, 2024
Why Feminist Orthdox Rabbis are evil and possibly heretics
I just finished speaking with another young man whose life has been destroyed because of a divorce in which his wife was guided by a well known Chareidi Feminist Gadol. This Gadol after listening only to the wife advised her how to make her husband miserable and alienate the children from him.
Why does this problem of destructive Rabbinic advice - continue to occur as readers of this Blog have seen many times over the years. Why do these rabbis who are well respected as scholars etc. etc. feel comfortable with facilitating a hostile and cruel breakup of a once loving family. As well as the psychological harm to the children and husband.
This Gadol was asked why he gave advise to the wife after hearing only her side of the story? He responded by saying this is the way psak works - you given an answer according to the facts that are presented. If the husband got to him first he would simply accept everything that he was told. In other words he is not responsible for the wife's destructive behavior since he was simply following Standard Procedure. It is not his job to find out the truth
It is like going to a brain surgeon and telling him not only the diagnosis but how and where he needs to operate.
One possible answer other than saying they are too busy to care about the horrible consequences of their intervention is to say they are ashamed that the halacha favors the husband. Since they are chareidi they can't change the halacha so they counterbalance it with legal and psychological solutions in order to make the sides more equivalent. However the result is Frankenstein's monster which benefits no one
Thus the concern is not truth or justice but rather viewing the husband as an evil male bully who needs to be taught a lesson - even if it means sacrificing the psychological and spiritual well being of the children
It is time for all rabbis (and therapists) to accept that what is needed and required is what is best for the children and not view themselves as champions for the damsel in distress or the nebach husband. It is time to acknowledge that once a hostile family breakup has happened it is often impossible to undo the harm.
Trump is getting wilder and wilder, but the White House race remains a toss-up
https://edition.cnn.com/2024/09/23/politics/trump-harris-tight-race-analysis/index.html
Trump’s comeback attempt is, after all, a stunning story considering he left office in disgrace after inciting an attack by his supporters on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, and after refusing to accept he lost the election. Trump, who was twice impeached, is a convicted felon who is facing more grave criminal charges. It’s inconceivable that any other politician could have survived such a torrent of scandal and still be within reach of the Oval Office again.
Sunday, September 22, 2024
Scholars are Respected Even if Poor
Esther Rabbah (02:04) You scholars command respect through your learning, but we--if we have not the money, no one respects us.
Netanyahu planning to remove 200 NIS bill from circulation
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/396470
Knesset's Subcommittee on Advancing the Fight Against Crime in the Arab Sector recommends canceling 200 NIS bill, as part of efforts to eradicate black money.
Lindsey Graham Gives Donald Trump Advice About Jewish Voters
https://www.newsweek.com/lindsey-graham-donald-trump-jewish-voters-election-1957482
On Meet the Press, Graham, a staunch Trump ally, encouraged the former president to focus on persuading Jewish voters on the issues.
"I'm sure Jewish American voters are concerned about the same things as all voters are. To the Jewish American, I'm sure they do care about Israel. there's been no better friend of Israel [than the U.S.]," Graham told host Kristen Welker.
He continued, "Talk about crime, talk about inflation, talk about border. That's the way you persuade people in this country. We have an obligation to persuade people to vote for us."
Tucker’s Problem and Ours
https://mishpacha.com/tuckers-problem-and-ours/
WHY DOES THIS MATTER? For one thing, Tucker Carlson is widely considered one of the most influential right-wing voices in America, particularly among young listeners whose knowledge of history in general, and of World War II in particular, can be assumed to be minimal.
He sat in the same box with Donald Trump and J.D. Vance at the Republican convention. Finally, J.D. Vance is slated to participate in the Tucker Carlson Live tour in Hershey, Pennsylvania on September 23.
That participation by Vance is political malpractice of a type increasingly common in the Trump campaign. Another of Tucker’s guests on that tour is the infamous conspiracy theorist Alex Jones. That alone should have been enough to alert Vance to stay far away from such a freak show.
But Carlson did not just associate with Cooper; he promoted his views with his effusive praise of Cooper as a historian and by failing to push back against him at any point.
Were Vance just appearing with someone with a different stance on tariffs than that of the Trump campaign, no one would object. But by appearing with Tucker Carlson, he risks legitimizing what the great historian of anti-Semitism once called “the lethal obsession.”
That should not happen.
Police arrest doctor from Haifa for allegedly starting wave of forest fires in the Carmel
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/crime-in-israel/article-821071
The police suspect that Bashir is behind more arson attacks, including a series of arson attacks at several hotspots that caused fires in a park in Carmel on Sunday and possibly previously.
Hadassah University Medical Center solves biblical mystery with ancient seed
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-821144
“The dates produced by Hannah, a female tree, are especially sweet – like honey,” Sallon enthused.
Republican Party Kamikazes
The larger GOP problem is that many on the right care more about their political brands than accomplishing something. Their seats are safe, and if Republicans lose the House because colleagues lose swing seats, so what? The kamikazes get more air time on cable in opposition. They also don’t have to vote for messy compromises that make incremental progress.
Top US Jewish groups, Biden and Harris slam Trump for saying Jews to blame if he loses
“Setting up anyone to say ‘we lost because of the Jews’ is outrageous and dangerous. Thousands of years of history have shown that scapegoating Jews can lead to antisemitic hate and violence,” the group said, while decrying his description Democrats as “the enemy.”
Friday, September 20, 2024
Israel planned pager explosions for 15 years
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/396457
Israel had a hand in the manufacturing of pagers that exploded on Hezbollah terrorists this week, with this type of "supply chain interdiction" operation having been planned for at least 15 years, a US intelligence source told ABC News on Thursday.
N.C. Republican vows to continue campaign for governor amid fallout of CNN story
https://www.washingtonpost.com/elections/2024/09/19/mark-robinson-north-carolina-governor/
Separately, after the CNN report, Politico published a story that said the same email address that Robinson used for the porn website was found registered on Ashley Madison, a website used to arrange extramarital affairs. A Robinson campaign spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment, Politico said.