Not Quite at the Core Yet

(Todava sin tocar fondo)* By / por David Ramrez Not Quite at the Core Yet
By David Ramrez

Todava sin tocar fondo

Por David Ramrez el mundo judo de hoy da, el tema de las conversiones ha llegado a ser muy controvertido en los crculos poltico-religiosos. El desarrollo llevado acabo en ste tema, en los ltimos veinte aos en particular, ha significado un proceso ms restrictivo para la aceptacin de proslitos. ste tema ha tomado su forma ms kafkaiana en el estado moderno de Israel, donde las conversiones ortodoxas rabnicas oficiales (es decir, sancionadas por el estado) son de especial importancia en referencia a la ciudadana israel, y todo lo que ello provee. Importante para entender sta ecuacin es el hecho que el estado moderno de Israel, una nacin que se autoproclama como laica desde sus inicios y que se proyecta a s misma como la nica democracia en el Oriente Medio en aos recientes, le ha otorgado los derechos de administrar conversiones (y por ende la ciudadana de proslitos ortodoxos), casamientos y divorcios (de todos los ciudadanos israles judos) a la ortodoxia juda en Israel. A diferencia de otras naciones democrticas en el mundo libre donde cuestiones de matrimonio y divorcio pertenece al mbito de las autoridades laicas, y las conversiones a las distintas comunidades religiosas, que nada tienen que ver con la ciudadana slo el estado de Israel permite una sola faccin religiosa que controle las vidas de miles de proslitos y sus familias judas en particular, y la de los israeles judos en general. (sta discusin no contempla la ley de retorno israel, la cual reconoce las conversiones de otras denominaciones judas, a pesar del hecho que los rabinatos ortodoxos no reconocen sus conversiones como vlidas, y por ende permanecen como no-judos ante sus ojos.) Adems, esto ha creado una dura competitividad entre los rabinos ortodoxos, donde los haredm utilizado las herramientas del proceso democrtico han llegado ha ser polticamente ms fuertes y astutos, y as han impuesto sus estrangulantes 1

In the Jewish world of today, the issue of conversion En

has become the most disputed issue in religious political circles. The developments taken on this issue, particularly in the last twenty years, have meant a more restrictive process for the acceptance of proselytes. This issue has taken its most Kafkaesque form in the modern state of Israel, where official (i.e., state-sanctioned) rabbinic orthodox conversions are especially important in regards to Israeli citizenship, and all that it provides.

Important to understand this equation is the fact that the modern state of Israel, a self-proclaimed secular nation from its inception and portrayed as the only democracy in the Middle East as of recent, has given the rights of administering conversions (and by consequence the citizenship of orthodox proselytes), marriages and divorces (of all Jewish Israeli citizens) to the flank of Jewish Orthodoxy within Israel. Unlike other democratic nations in the Free World where issues of marriage and divorce belong to the secular-civil authorities, and conversion to the diverse religious communities, having no bearing on citizenship the state of Israel alone allows one religious faction to control the lives of thousands of converts and their Jewish families in particular, and of all Israeli Jews in general. (This discussion does not contemplate the Israeli Law of Return, which recognizes the conversion from other Jewish denominations, despite the fact that the Orthodox rabbinates do not recognize those conversions valid, and hence in their eyes they remain non-Jews). Furthermore, this has created a fierce competition among Orthodox rabbis where the Haredim using the tools of the democratic process have become politically strongest and savvier, and gotten to impose their choking rules, despite existing long-held lenient positions in Jewish tradition. www.betdawid.org

reglas, a pesar de que existen propuestas benvolas de mucha antigedad en la tradicin juda. Rabbi Ssevi Zohar also a Chauncy Stillman Professor of Sephardic Law and Ethics at Bar Ilan University, and a Senior Research Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem has written about this controversy in his book Transforming Identity (Continuum, 2008) from a halakhic point of view, where he together with professor Avi Sagi analyze the rabbinic responsa on the matter, particularly in the last 200 years. Rabbi Zohar is particularly well equipped to speak about the issue from an Ashkenazi and Sephardic perspectives because he was born and raised within Ashkenazi tradition, and later in life he became dedicated to study the existing Sephardic rabbinic responsa for the past 500 years, which is a throve of knowledge of jurisprudential wisdom developing in the Middle-Eastern, North African, and Western European Sephardic communities. Besides rabbi Jos Far, I cannot think of anyone else in the academic or rabbinic world with such level of expertise. Hardly any of this rabbinic jurisprudential wisdom, we must point out, plays or has any major bearing in the religious life of the modern state of Israel, where most if not all Sephardim have assimilated to ultraOrthodox Ashkenazi modes of thinking, learning and behavior. Besides all of the just mentioned, rabbi Zohar is a committed Zionist, and I believe his publishing and being public on the issue is out of the honest concern for the converts, their families, and how all this ultimately affects the future of the state of Israel. In the latest edition of Conversation (Issue 10), the print multi-disciplinary Jewish journal of the Institute for Jewish Ideas and Ideals run by rabbi Marc Angel, rabbi Zohar gives us a follow up on the political side of the equation regarding this controversy. It is also important to point out rabbi Angels involvement in the issue, and how this bears consequences for Diaspora Jewry. A bit of a background is of the essence. El rabino Ssevi Zohar quien es un profesor Chauncy Stillman de Ley y tica Sefaradita en la Universidad de Bar Ilan, y Senior Research Fellow en el Instituto Shalom Hartman en Jerusaln ha escrito acerca de sta controversia en su libro Transforming Identity (Continuum 2008) desde un punto de vista haljico, donde l junto con el profesor Avi Sagi analizan la responsa rabnica sobre el tema, particularmente en los ltimos 200 aos. El rabino Zohar se encuentra bien equipado para hablar del tema desde un punto de vista asquenaz y sefaradita, ya que l naci y creci dentro de la tradicin asquenaz, y ms tarde se dedicara a estudiar la responsa rabnica de los sefarades por los ltimos 500 aos, lo cual es un tesoro de conocimiento de derecho desarrollndose en Oriente Medio, Norfrica, y las comunidades sefaraditas de Occidente. A parte del rabino Jos Far, no puedo pensar en otra persona en el mundo acadmico o rabnico con tal nivel de habilidad. Muy poco de sta sabidura de derecho, debemos de indicar, juega un papel importante en la vida religiosa del estado moderno de Israel, donde casi todos, sino todos, los sefarades se han asimilado a modos de pensar, aprendizaje y comportamiento ultraortodoxo asquenaz. A parte de lo ya mencionado, el rabino Zohar es un sionista comprometido, y creo que el publicar y ser pblico sobre el tema se debe a su preocupacin honesta por los proslitos, sus familias, y cmo todo esto afecta ultimadamente el futuro del estado de Israel. En la ltima edicin de Conversation (No. 10), una revista multi-disciplinaria juda del Institute for Jewish Ideas and Ideals dirigido por el rabino Marc Angel, el rabino Zohar nos provee con un seguimiento del lado poltico de la ecuacin tocante a sta controversia. Tambin es importante indicar las razones por qu el rabino Angel est involucrado en el tema, y cmo esto conlleva a consecuencias para la Dispora juda. Hay que dar un poco de antecedentes.

Diaspora Jewry through history has always treated the La Dispora juda a travs de su historia siempre ha conversion as a communal issue. Since the destruction of tratado la conversin como un tema comunitario.
st

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the Second Temple (1st c. CE) and the dissolving of the Sanhedrn by Rab Ash and Rabbin at the closing of the Talmud (5th c. CE), Judaism has never counted with a central physical authority like the Holy See for Catholics, or the Southern Baptist Convention for southern Baptists to administer what constitutes a convert, but all have relied on their particular interpretations of the classical Jewish texts of halakhh, and respected each others communal decisions on who is a convert. This long held freedom and historic rabbinic conscience have been usurped by insurgent ideological movements within the Haredi world in the last 150 years, and as they have gained ground through the course of the 20th century, they have been imposing their restrictive halakhic views on the rest of traditional Jewries, especially through the agency of the Israeli rabbinical establishment which they now unilaterally control. This much we can gather from the findings of rabbi Zohar. Rabbi Angels involvement in the issue comes from defending the long-standing freedoms of traditional rabbis and communities. Among Diaspora Jews, rabbi Angel is uniquely and symbolically positioned to launch this crusade as a former president of the Rabbinical Council of America (RCA), the largest Jewish Orthodox establishment outside Israel, and rabbi emeritus of Congregation Shearith Israel, one of the oldest and continuously functioning synagogues in the New World. He too is a committed Zionist, and honestly concerned for the future of Diaspora converts, many of whom conform sizeable populations within many Orthodox communities throughout the United States, already integrated through the deep ties of inter-marriage and friendship. Orthodox conversions performed in the Diaspora were never questioned by the state of Israel, and were given an Israeli citizenship without question. This however has changed since the adoption of new rules, where sectors of the Israeli rabbinical establishment arrogates themselves the right to retroactively invalidate any conversion made either within Israel proper or the Diaspora. Corollary to this, the Israeli rabbinical establishment has literally pushed the Orthodox Diaspora rabbinic establishments with bullying and ultimatum warnings to fold to their position as a 3 www.betdawid.org

Desde la destruccin del Segundo Templo (s. I EC) y la disolucin del Sanhedrn por Rab Ash y Rabbin al cierre del Talmud (s. V CE), el judasmo nunca cont con una autoridad central fsica como la Santa Sede para los catlicos, o el Southern Baptist Convention para los bautistas del sur de EEUU para administrar qu es lo que constituye un proslito, pero todos se han basado en sus interpretaciones particulares de los textos clsicos de la halaj juda, y se han respetado entre s sobre quin es un proslito. Esta aeja libertad y la conciencia histrica rabnica ha sido usurpada por los movimientos ideolgicos insurgentes dentro del mundo Hared en los ltimos 150 aos, y a medida que han ido ganando terreno en el curso del siglo XX, han ido imponiendo sus opiniones haljicas restrictivas al resto de las comunidades judas tradicionales, especialmente a travs de la agencia de la clase dirigente israel rabnica que ahora unilateralmente controlan. Esto es lo que aprendemos de las conclusiones del rabino Zohar. La participacin del rabino Angel en el tema viene a defender las libertades de larga tradicin entre rabinos y las comunidades tradicionales. Entre los judos de la dispora, el rabino Angel esta nica y simblicamente en condiciones de iniciar esta cruzada como ex presidente del Rabbinical Council of America (RCA), el mayor establecimiento de judos ortodoxos fuera de Israel, y como rabino emrito de la Congregacin Shearith Israel, una de las ms antiguas sinagogas en el Nuevo Mundo continuamente operando. l tambin es un sionista comprometido, honesto y preocupado por el futuro de los proslitos de la dispora, muchos de los cuales conforman poblaciones importantes en muchas comunidades ortodoxas en los Estados Unidos, ya integrados a travs de los profundos lazos de matrimonio y amistad. Las conversiones ortodoxas realizadas en la Dispora nunca fueron cuestionadas por el estado de Israel, y se les daba la ciudadana israel sin cuestin alguna. Sin embargo, esto ha cambiado desde la adopcin de nuevas normas, en sectores de establecimiento rabnico de Israel se arrogan el derecho de invalidar retroactivamente cualquier conversin hecha ya sea dentro del propio Israel o la Dispora. Corolario a esto, el establecimiento rabnico de Israel ha presionado literalmente a los establecimientos rabnicos ortodoxos de la Dispora con intimidacin y advertencias a

matter of fiduciary nationalistic relationship with the replegarse a su posicin como una cuestin de relacin Zionist state. fiduciaria nacionalista con el estado sionista. The consequence of this new situation has been the establishment of Diaspora rabbinic courts, with rabbis only recognized by the Israeli rabbinic establishment to officially deal with conversions. It is a uniquely blackhats-only exclusive club for performing conversions. The RCA, as well as other Diaspora rabbinic establishments, have begrudgingly obliged. Rabbi Angels is a lone voice in the midst of the storming sea. La consecuencia de esta nueva situacin ha sido el establecimiento de tribunales rabnicos en la Dispora, con rabinos slo reconocidos por el establecimiento rabnico israel para tratar oficialmente con las conversiones. Se trata de un club exclusivo nico para negro-sombreros con el fin de realizar las conversiones. La RCA, as como otros establecimientos de la Dispora rabnica, han cedido a regaadientes. El rabino Angel es una voz solitaria en medio del mar tempestuoso. Al estar yo involucrado en la cuestin de los sefardesanusm por ms de diez aos, he tenido que familiarizarme con las halakht sobre la conversin, principalmente debido a que muchos judeoconversos (descendientes de los sefardes convertidos a la fuerza al cristianismo) de hoy da estaban siendo orillados por los establecimientos rabnicos con la nica opcin de conversin (giyyur), o han sido engaados con uno aunque sin su conocimiento. Esto, por supuesto, como he llegado a saber en mi propia investigacin, no tiene precedentes en la literatura haljica sefarad. Esta familiaridad con las halakht sobre la conversin (giyyur, que es el proceso para no-judos que deseen convertirse en judos) y retorno (teshubh, que es el trmino para aquellos que ya judos por linaje, pero alejado de la religin, quieren observar la Torh) no slo me ha permitido diferenciar los dos, pero tambin darme cuenta del dbil razonamiento de nuestro establecimiento rabnico actual acerca de la conversin. Las investigaciones del rabino Zohar no slo han confirmado mis propias conclusiones sobre el asunto, pero l ha explicado con experta precisin los aspectos mltiples de la poltica religiosa aqu en juego. En Transforming Identity (vea la resea [1]), el rabino Zohar explica expertamente cmo el concepto clave de Kabalat haMisswoth se ha transformado con el fin de darle jaque mate al dicho proceso de conversin, ya sea durante o ex post facto, a pesar de que tal transformacin no tiene precedente alguno en la ley juda.

Myself being involved in the issue of Sephardic-anusm for more than ten years, I had to become familiar with the halakht on conversion, mainly because many modern-day Conversos (descendents of Sephardim forcibly converted to Christianity) were being cornered by current rabbinical establishments to the only-option of conversion (giyyur), or being tricked into one albeit without their knowledge. This of course, as I have come to find out from my own research, has not precedent in Sephardic halakhic literature. This familiarity with the halakht on conversion (giyyur, which is the process for non-Jews wishing to become Jewish) and return (teshubh, which is the term for those already Jewish by lineage, but estranged from the religion, who want to observe the Torh) has not only allowed me to differentiate the two, but also realize the faltering reasoning of our current rabbinical establishment about conversion. Rabbi Zohars research has not only confirmed my own conclusions on the matter, but he has expertly unfolded with uncanny precision the multi-layered aspects of religious politics playing into it all. In Transforming Identity (see review1), rabbi Zohar expertly explains how the key concept of kabbalat haMisswoth has been transformed in order to check mate the said process either during or ex post facto conversion, despite such transformation does not elicit any precedent in Jewish Law.

In the Conversations article, From the Periphery to the Core,2 En el artculo de Conversations, From the Periphery to the rabbi Zohar gives us a recapitulation of this Core[2], el rabino Zohar nos ofrece una recapitulacin 4 www.betdawid.org

transformative development of kabbalat haMisswoth, plus he traces how this transformation was played within the Israeli rabbinic court system through the course of the 20th c. at the hands of the Lithuanian-Haredim, finally firmly implanting their views through the agency of rabbi Gedalya Axelrod in the last couple decades of the last millennium. One of the most watershed findings of this article is that the rabbis effecting and supporting the transformation of giyyur were not themselves learned nor trained in the halakht of giyyur. In his words, it should be noted that serious knowledge of the halakhot relating to giyyur were never part of the classic Lithuanian yeshiva curriculum, nor was such knowledge part of the material that students were required to master in order to receive semikha (rabbinic ordination). Thus, it is perfectly possible to become a dayan (rabbinic judge) and even an Av Bet Din (chief justice of a rabbinic court) without any systematic command of the halakhot relating to giyyur. Mostly happening when a proselyte wishes to register for marriage in an Israeli court, what sets off the invalidation of giyyur Zohar retells has been either the rabbis perception the individual is not observant enough, or the individuals own admission he/she is not as observant as when the giyyur took place. Yet he overlooked to mention that there are halakhic proceedings that involves corrective measures, witnesses, and public communal declarations for someones kasher status to be invalidated (in which case his/her validity as a Jew by birth or conversion is not affected, only his/her ritual status within the community); and that it is forbidden to take self-incriminatory statement as valid proof. The consequence of these two laws is that theoretically the rabbi himself cannot single-handedly invalidate a Jew be he/she a proselyte or not on suspicion alone, nor on statements pronounced by the person in question. Besides all the foregoing, these are two additional flagrant halakhic violations of the rabbinic courts not taken into account in Zohars article.

de este proceso de transformacin de Kabalat haMisswoth, adems de trazar cmo esta transformacin se jug en el sistema de tribunales rabnicos de Israel durante el curso del s. XX a manos de los Haredmlituanos, finalmente implantando firmemente sus opiniones a travs de la agencia del rabino Gedalya Axelrod durante las ltimas dos dcadas del milenio pasado. Uno de los hallazgos ms importantes de ste artculo es que los rabinos desarrollando y apoyando dicha transformacin de giyyur nunca fueron entrenados en las halakht de giyyur. En sus palabras, ... cabe sealar que un conocimiento serio de las halakht relativas a giyyur nunca fue parte del plan de estudios clsicos del Yeshiva lituano, ni tal conocimiento era parte del material que los estudiantes tenan que dominar para recibir semikha (ordenacin rabnica.) Por lo tanto, es perfectamente posible llegar a ser en un dayan (juez rabnico) e incluso un Av Bet Din (jefe de justicia de un tribunal rabnico) sin ningn tipo de conocimiento sistemtico de las halakht relativos a giyyur. Ocurriendo cuando un proslito desea registrarse para contraer matrimonio en un tribunal israel, lo que detona la anulacin de giyyur relata Zohar ha sido o bien la percepcin del rabino que la persona no es lo suficientemente observante, o la propia admisin de la persona que l / ella no es tan observante como cuando el giyyur se llev a cabo. Sin embargo, pas por alto mencionar que hay un proceso haljico que incluye medidas correctivas, testigos y declaraciones pblicas comunales para que su estatus kasher sea invalidado (en cuyo caso la validez como un/a judo/a por nacimiento o por conversin no se ve afectado, slo su condicin ritual dentro de la comunidad), y que est prohibido tomar declaraciones autoinculpatorias como prueba vlida. La consecuencia de stas dos leyes es que, tericamente, el rabino mismo no puede por s solo invalidar a un judo - sea l / ella un proslito/a o no basndose solo en sospechas, ni en las declaraciones pronunciadas por la persona en cuestin. Adems de todo lo anterior, se trata de dos adicionales flagrantes violaciones haljicas de los tribunales rabnicos que no se toman en cuenta en el artculo de Zohar. 5

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For the sake of illustration, I had wished rabbi Zohar would have quoted in his latest article the words of rabbis Yosef Karo and Maimonides regarding the matter, where they both agree that a proselyte who lapses from observance still retains his Jewish status; this contrary to the opinion of Axlerod, who claims to have backed his anti-proselyte decision with the words of the just named sages. Any person vaguely familiar with Karos and Maimonides codifications would know that Axlerod is lying. Then rabbi Zohar mentions a couple cases of invalidation, despite the Israeli courts assurance to the state that no invalidations have happened since 2005. A rabbi of Sephardic stock no less, Avraham Atiyyah, wrote one of those unfortunate cases of invalidation. In addition to this, Atiyyah based his decision on sources composed by Axlerod; a typical case of the blind leading the blind. As if this was not good enough, Atiyyah accuses the Israeli giyyur courts, and their rabbis, to be apostates. An issue that Zohar does not develop even briefly, the invalidation of proselytes via the invalidation of their rabbis kasher status. This was a foreseeable consequence of all the foregoing, which has larger implications in the life of Israeli and Diaspora Jewish communities not covered here. What are the extreme far-reaching possible consequences? And should all Jews be concerned about them? A later similar controversy also disrobed the emperor when caught in the political turmoil. Rabbi Amar the current Chief Sephardic rabbi of Israel did not do anything to stand against this anti-proselyte position, evidencing the Sephardim subservient to the Ashkenazi rabbinical establishment. For his closing remarks, rabbi Zohar traces how an opinion on the fringes of Jewish orthodoxy in the 19th c. has become a quasi-official position of the Israeli rabbinic courts in the 21st c., all the while the rest of Orthodox rabbis and secular Israeli state officials stood still without doing anything to prevent it. In part he attributes these unfortunate developments to the 6 www.betdawid.org

Por motivos de ilustracin, yo hubiera deseado que el rabino Zohar hubiera citado en su ltimo artculo las palabras de los rabinos Yosef Karo y Maimnides sobre la materia, en el que ambos coinciden en que un proslito que lapsa en su observancia an retienen su condicin de judo, contrario a la opinin de Axlerod, que afirma haber apoyado sus opiniones anti-proslitas con las palabras de los sabios que acabamos de mencionar. Cualquier persona vagamente familiarizada con las codificaciones de Karo y Maimnides sabe que Axlerod est mintiendo. Luego el rabino Zohar menciona un par de casos de invalidacin, a pesar de la garanta de los tribunales israeles al estado que ninguna invalidacin haba ocurrido desde 2005. Un rabino de origen sefarad ni ms ni menos, Avraham Atiyyah, escribi uno de esos desafortunados casos de invalidacin. Adems de esto, Atiyyah bas su decisin con las fuentes compuestas por Axlerod, un caso tpico de un ciego guiando a otro ciego. Como si esto no fuera suficientemente, Atiyyah acusa a los tribunales de giyyur israeles, y sus rabinos, de ser apostatas. Otro tema que Zohar no desarrolla en lo ms mnimo es la invalidacin de los proslitos a travs de la anulacin de la condicin kasher de sus rabinos. Esto fue una consecuencia previsible de todo lo anterior, y que tiene grandes implicaciones en la vida de las comunidades judas de Israel y la Dispora no tratadas aqu. Cules son las posibles extremas consecuencias a largo plazo? Y acaso todos los judos no deberan preocuparse por ello? Una posterior controversia similar tambin desnud al emperador cuando se vieron atrapados en el torbellino poltico. El rabino Amar - el actual rabino mayor sefarad de Israel - no hizo nada para oponerse a esta posicin anti-proslita, evidenciando a los sefarades como serviles al establecimiento asquenaz rabnico. Para sus observaciones de cierre, el rabino Zohar traza como una opinin en el permetro de la ortodoxia juda del s. XIX se ha convertido en una posicin cuasioficial de los tribunales rabnicos de Israel en el s. XXI, a la vez que el resto de los rabinos ortodoxos y funcionarios seculares del Estado de Israel se quedaron impvidos sin hacer nada para impedirlo. En parte,

ambivalent relationship between the state and the rabbinic establishment, where basically the state allowed the fringe element to take over because they simply did not want to bother with religious matters. In his words,

atribuye esta evolucin lamentable a la relacin ambivalente entre el Estado y las instituciones rabnicas, donde, bsicamente, el Estado permiti el elemento marginal hacerse cargo porque simplemente no quiere preocuparse por los asuntos religiosos. En sus palabras, Ante los ojos de los israeles seculares convencionales, la religin es un asunto para los datiyyim: Que hagan lo que quieran en el mbito de que se les asigne, siempre y cuando no nos molesten demasiado. Los datiyyim, por su parte, incluyendo el movimiento sionista Mizrahi cuando estaba en ascenso, anim esta actitud: Ustedes los laicos no se mezclen en nuestro territorio. Por lo tanto, los funcionarios de la administracin pblica y lderes polticos laicos hacan lo imposible para evitar tomar una posicin sobre asuntos internos religiosos, y las autoridades estatales eran mucho ms reticentes a disciplinar a los funcionarios estatales que eran rabinos, que en disciplinar a cualquier otro empleado del Estado. (Mi nfasis en negrillas.) En ltima instancia, Zohar culpa la falta de activismo de rabinos ortodoxos moderados para defender a los proslitos a la ignorancia. Los rabinos ortodoxos hoy en da no estn intelectualmente preparados para desnudar la novedosa posicin marginal de los Haredm. sta es una situacin que creo que trata de remediar con su investigacin, que es sin duda alguna la contribucin nica y mejor respecto al tema. Adems del coup-de-etat halajico y las maniobras polticas aqu estudiados, hay cuestiones de idiosincrasia religiosa rabnica en sectores ortodoxos y complacencias generalizadas por parte de los judos laicos que contribuyen a estos prejuicios desafortunados y el control unilateral por parte de unos pocos en relacin con prcticamente todos los temas rituales tocante a la vida de los judos, sean religiosos o no.

In the eyes of the conventional Israeli secularist, religion is a matter for the datiyyim: Let them do their own thing in the realm allocated to them, as long as they don't bother us too much. The datiyyim, for their part, including the Zionist Mizrahi movement when it was in the ascendant, encouraged this attitude: don't you secularists mix in on our turf. Thus, civil service functionaries and secular political leaders bent over backwards to avoid taking a position on internal religious matters, and state authorities were much more reticent in disciplining state functionaries who were rabbis, than in disciplining any other state-employed personnel. (My emphasis in bold).

Ultimately, he blames the lack activism by moderate Orthodox rabbis to defend proselytes on ignorance. Orthodox rabbis today are not intellectually equipped to disrobe the novel claims of the Haredi fringe position. This is a situation I think he tries to remedy with his research, which is by all means the best and only contribution anywhere regarding the subject. Besides the halakhic coup-de-etat and political maneuvering here studied, there are issues of religious idiosyncrasies in rabbinic orthodox sectors and complacencies by the general Jewish laymen that contribute to these unfortunate prejudices and unilateral control by a few regarding practically every ritual subject matter touching the lives of Jews, be they religious or not.

What I mean by religious idiosyncrasies in the Lo que quiero decir con idiosincrasia religiosa particulars of this article refers to the ideological aspects referente a ste artculo toca a los aspectos ideolgicos of perception regarding the goy (gentile/non-Jew) in de percepcin con respecto al goy (gentil/no-judo) 7 www.betdawid.org

Jewish tradition, which when taken to extremes en la tradicin juda, que cuando se lleva a extremos engenders an untold racism, and therefore the genera un racismo sin precedente, y por lo tanto roadblocks and impassive manhandling. bloqueos y maltratos impasibles. By complacencies I mean the general attitude of the average Jew in part because of convenience, in part because of self-ignorance to sign a blank check to the rabbis, thus giving them free reigns in matters that touch upon the ritualistic lives of every Jew. Rabbis go unquestioned and unchecked, and thus we have seen the proliferation of unethical behavior displayed by many rabbis, and to which we get treated ever increasingly in the news. Hovering over this complacency, there is the additional issue of the fiduciary Zionist relationship many Jews hold these days, which exacerbate the problem even more meaning, besides just signing a blank check of trust to rabbis in general, having a blinder trust to Israeli rabbis (just because they are in Israel!!) makes the problematic even the more bizarre. But those are complementary aspects of the whole problematic that Jewish life represents these days, which nonetheless need to be studied further and addressed by someone else not tied to the gehennh of rabbinic politics. Por complacencias me refiero a la actitud general del judo promedio en parte debido a la comodidad, en parte debido a la auto-ignorancia de permitir a los rabinos tener carte blanche en los asuntos que afectan a la vida ritual de cada judo. Rabinos van y vienen sin ser cuestionados y sin control alguno, por lo que hemos visto la proliferacin de comportamientos no ticos mostrado por muchos rabinos, y que salen cada vez ms en las noticias. Cernindose sobre esta complacencia, est la cuestin adicional de la relacin fiduciaria sionista que muchos judos tienen en estos das, lo que agrava el problema an ms lo que significa, adems de slo darle un carte blanche de confianza a los rabinos en general, se tiene una confianza an ms ciega a los rabinos de Israel (slo porque estn en Israel!), y hace la problemtica an ms bizarra. Pero esos son aspectos complementarios de toda la problemtica que representa la vida juda en estos das, que sin embargo es necesario estudiar an ms a fondo y ser abordadas por otras personas no vinculadas a la gehennh de la poltica rabnica. Posdata: A peticin de mi amigo David Shasha, envi un correo electrnico con este artculo al rabino Ssevi Zohar slo para asegurar que no haba tergiversado su artculo. Adems de sus tiles sugerencias, Zohar confirm que los rabinos anti-proslitos en Israel no est usando el procedimiento haljico judicial adecuado para descalificar a judos (ambos proslitos y rabinos), uno porque se niegan en aplicar tal procedimiento descalificador base a un proceso judicial, y dos por que encuentra la manera de argumentar alrededor del tema de la prohibicin del uso de declaraciones autoinculpatorias.

Postscript: At the request of my friend David Shasha, I e-mailed this article to rabbi Ssevi Zohar just to make sure I had not mischaracterized his article. Besides his helpful suggestions, he did confirm that the antiproselyte rabbis in Israel are not using proper halakhic court proceedings to disqualify Jews (both converts and rabbis), one because they refuse to apply the proceedings for court-based disqualifications, and two because they find ways to argue around the issue of the prohibition for the use self-incriminatory statements.

Translated by David Ramrez. Shasha, David. Review Essay: To Convert or not to Convert, that is the Question. Online posting, Jan 19, 2010. Published in SHU 317. Retrieved 12 Jun. 2011 on Google Groups <http://groups.google.com/group/Davidshasha/browse_thread/thread/0b3411f0c56f772b#> . 2 Zohar, Zvi. From the Periphery to the Core. Online posting, undetermined. Published in Conversations, Spring of 2011, Issue 10. Retrieved 10 Jun. 2011 on jewishideas.org < http://www.jewishideas.org/articles/periphery-core>
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