Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Part II - Our disappointment in the Chief Rabbinate of Israel

In Part I here, I explained: I've been recruited to speak in a panel discussion this coming Shabbos, on Rabbinic Jurisdiction in Israel. Since I'm the North American on the panel (beside Rav Dovid Stav and Rabbanit Pnina Neuwirth), my responsibility is to talk about how North American, "Modern Orthodox" Jews feel about Israel's Chief Rabbinate.

In that first part, I talked about why North American Modern Orthodoxy loves the Chief Rabbinate – because of our love for its history, because of our hopefor a Judaism-guided administration in the State, and because of our desire for structure in our religious organizations.

At the same time, we are disappointed. Beyond the specific controversies, I see four reasons for our disappointment:

1. Reality
A real-world Chief Rabbinate, just like the rabbi in your shul, must choose between reasonable views and alienate those who adopt the opposing view. Sometimes the motivations are intellectual, sometimes subjective, sometimes political. And whereas one who is in a shul can argue with the rabbi, or daven at a different minyan, or leave the shul, we can't switch Israels.

2. Life in Galut
Modern Orthodox Jews living outside of Israel want to be ambassadors for Israel – and so headlines about conversion difficulties, or the troubles of the non-observant in navigating the Chief Rabbinate's bureaucracy, or acceptance of shackle-and-hoist schechitah, frustrate us. Further, for many Jews there is a concern for מה יאמרו הגויים, "What will the neighbors say".

3. Delegitimization
Modern Orthodoxy is very good about accepting those who are different – but when others come to discredit them in the name of Torah, whether from the Right or from the Left, they become quite hostile. This applies to the conversion crisis, but also to the discomfort some have over a lack of a Modern Orthodox presence in the Rabbinate and among its appointness.

4. Imposed authority
Although North American Modern Orthodoxy appreciates structure, they are heirs to the North American political tradtion and the concept of democracy over republic, the power of the individual over the presumed rightness of government. Witness, for example, the furor last year regarding the authority of Young Israel over its branches.

The result of this disappointment is alienation, and the opposite of the love that would otherwise thrive. Issues of Jewish identity, of beit din bureaucracy, of kashrut and heter mechirah and shechitah, become flashpoints. There is a definite need for a solution here.

15 comments:

  1. Why should any candidate even be considered who is not widely regarded as the Gadol HaDor (or at least one of several Gedolei HaDor)?

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  2. See Pesachim 112a - You should not live in a city which is headed by the gadol hador...

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  3. Please explain the reasoning.

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  4. (Note: The word in the gemara is actually "talmid chacham" rather than "gadol hador".) According to Rashi: Talmidei chachamim will be too involved in their learning, and will not do a good job with administration.

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  5. This only shows that the Chief Rabbi needs a seasoned administrator to implement his agenda.

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  6. Very nice summation of the issues, rabbi. I think a lot of them apply to more liberal Jews, as well.

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  7. The term gadol hador is used in the gemara in a manner not consistent with the current usage.
    KT
    Joel Rich

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  8. Tzipporah-
    I can hear that, although I think the points I outlined in Part I are more Orthospecific.

    Joel-
    True, but here it's "talmid chacham". [Which is also used differently in the gemara...]

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  9. Could either of you expand on how the usage/meaning of TH or Gadol Hador has changed since the gemara?

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  10. Eliyahu-
    Not much time, but re: talmid chacham - The gemara itself uses it in (at least) two different ways, sometimes to mean "student who serves sages" and sometimes to mean a "wise student". Re: Gadol haDor, it's more about leadership; cf Pesachim 49b.

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  11. I also believe that the Rabbinate has been a disappointment, but not for the same reasons.

    Time and time again, they have demonstrated that they are nothing less than puppets of a government which couldn't give a darn about a rabbinate or Torah, let alone their authority.

    The Chief Rabbinate has hidden behind the non-Torah excuse of "we don't get involved in political issues" when backing away from involvement in Torah matters, such as whether to kick Jews out of their homes and to hand over land to goyim or not.

    How could they, given who's paying their salaries?

    The IDF Rabbinate under Yisrael Weiss was silent not only on issues of the Land, but also in risking of soldiers' lives to save those of enemies, and the increased promiscuity in the IDF with the increasing roles and integration of women.

    Yet, which is worse? Puppets of a government? Or the RCA which does not like having its business but into, even by a Beth Din in Israel gadol yoter b'minyan uv'hachma, yet won't hesitate to express its opinions of rabbinic rulings in Israel?

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  12. Esser agaroth-
    I agree with you re: rabbis outside of Israel weighing in on Israeli rabbinic decisions without knowing the reality. It's foolish.

    But I'm confused: Temporarily accepting your stipulation that a certain beit din in Israel is greater than rabbanei chu"l, why do you feel free to challenge that beit din's rulings based on your own perspective?

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  13. My disappointment is not with the RR as an institution of the state. After all Harav Kook ZTZL taught us that the state of Israel is the basis of hasra'at Haschina in the world. Iam however very disappointed with certain Chief rabbis including yhe present Ashkenazi chief rabbi. The problem is that the chief rabbis are chosen by a political committee where the political constellation is such that the choice of the Gadol haDor will always be elected. Thus R Metzger is chosen by R Elyashiv and R Amar is chosen by R Ovadia. The Cheif rabbis are in fact the Yada Arichta of the "Real cheif rabbis"

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  14. My disappointment is not with the RR as an institution of the state. After all Harav Kook ZTZL taught us that the state of Israel is the basis of hasra'at Haschina in the world. Iam however very disappointed with certain Chief rabbis including yhe present Ashkenazi chief rabbi. The problem is that the chief rabbis are chosen by a political committee where the political constellation is such that the choice of the Gadol haDor will always be elected. Thus R Metzger is chosen by R Elyashiv and R Amar is chosen by R Ovadia. The Cheif rabbis are in fact the Yada Arichta of the "Real cheif rabbis"

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  15. David -
    And how would you have them selected?

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