Update...Some bad news, some good news.

Well, I didn't get a direct answer to my email, but this short article shows that the Sanhedrin sees things differently. They did not say anything about violence, merely calling for prayer, and protest. But when it says they determined that Israel is "sinking into the defilements of the land of Canaan," it shows that they are not looking to what I have claimed are the root causes.

On the other hand, this article is about a call by many hareidi Rabbis NOT to riot. They said a lot of the same things I have been saying about destruction of property and the ends not justifying the means. They called for peaceful demonstrations and prayer. I was very pleasantly surprised by this, even if they, too, did not talk about root causes.

It seems to have worked. The demonstrations, the riots, and the trash burnings were MUCH more subdued than last time. The parade is over now, so hopefully things will quiet down for a while. (The rest of the year, if there are hareidi riots over various issues they at least confine them to MeaSha'arim and Geula.)

But if we don't face the root problems, the REAL reason that God sends us these events, it will just keep happening again and again.

The real Toeva, continued

I apologize to my handful of readers for the latest hiatus; unfortunately the struggle to feed my family here in Israel still continues, and that has to take precedence.

But once again the issue of a Gay Pride parade in Yerushalaim has reared it's ugly head; the papers carry stories about organized resistance, and the street rioting has already begun.

I felt I needed to do more than just 'preach to the converted' readers of this blog...so I went to a higher authority. As you may know, there is an attempt being made to re-establish the Sanhedrin as it was of old. The people involved readily admit that it is not yet THE Sanhedrin, but that they hope it will grow and develop towards that end.

So I went to the top. Following, in it's entirety, is a letter I sent to Rav Adin Steinzaltz, Talmid Chacham par excellence, creator of the well-known Steinzaltz edition of the Gemara, and Nasi (President) of this Sanhedrin under construction:

Dear Rabbi Steinsaltz,

I am writing to appeal to you and the other members of the Sanhedrin to do whatever you can to put a stop to a major Chillul HaShem B'farhesia. I am referring to the planned and unplanned disruptions in Yerushalaim to protest the upcoming Gay Pride parade.

As I explain myself I apologize if I seem to be disrespectful; I have nothing but respect for you, but I have very strong feelings about the error of the path the dati community is taking in regard to this and similar issues.

I understand that homosexuality is a toeva and that it is shameful to have it paraded in the streets of Ir HaKodesh. But rioting, wanton destruction, and violence on the part of dati people is also shameful; and the world sees it and says, "This is how the Torah teaches people to act."

In addition, there is always more than one way to look at a situation. Everyone is blaming the homosexuals and the chilonim for this problem, and saying that they are BRINGING this impurity to the city. But, if dati people are righteous, how could Hashem allow that to happen? Isn't it possible it's a punishment instead? Indeed, the way I see it it could be a mida k'neged mida punishment for the way we, the Torah community, are behaving!

There are deep problems within the dati community, and until we deal with them we cannot expect the rest of the world to listen to us, let alone respect us. There are other toevot as well...cheating at business, for example (Devarim 25:13-16.) Rashi says on the spot that such behavior is the cause for the coming of Amalek...but it goes on every day in the Torah world.

And if that is not enough, if, as someone once told me, the toeva of homosexuality is worse than the toeva of stealing, then we STILL do not have a leg to stand on. We ignore it, we cover it up when it surfaces, but deep down we can't deny that there is homosexuality in the dati world! No one wants to address it, but there it is. How can we, who openly say how much of a sin it is and still don't deal with it, expect chilonim and non-Jews to listen to our preaching?

I also hear a lot in regards to this parade about S'dom. I'm sure I don't have to remind you that the preponderance of stories about S'dom related by Chazal speak NOT of homosexuality but of VIOLENCE AND THEFT. That other toeva, cheating in business, is more Midat S'dom than is homosexuality. And if a dati man stabs a parade marcher, without benefit of Beit Din and without even being sure it the person is homosexual or just a "liberal" supporter, he, too, is the one that can be compared to S'dom.

I have stated in the past, and I continue to maintain, that if the only crime of Anshei S'dom was homosexuality and there were no crimes of violence and theft, then at the very least, like Ninveh, they would have been offered the chance to to T'shuva before being destroyed.

Dati people have to be made aware of all this.

There are many other problems among our own that we need to deal with before we can truly be an Ohr La'Goyim. Sinat Chinam is also rampant between segments of our community. Eilu v'eilu divrei Elokim Chaim has been replaced by, "If you don't hold like me, you're an apikoros!" Even, it sometimes seems, among the public pronouncements of the new Sanhedrin, and even more so among the private pronouncements by members of the Sanhedrin.

And there is a poison in our midst; the same poison, it seems to some, as that which caused Chazal to add a nineteenth blessing to the Shmone Esrei. Again, for the most part it is being ignored.

Faced with all this, how can we expect a bunch of tinokim sh'nishbeu to really understand that homosexuality is wrong?

So I ask you again, help stop this madness. The Sanhedrin should be leading us to clean up our own acts; then, based on our shining example and the help that we will EARN from HaKadosh Baruch Hu, parades such as this will be permanently stopped and we will be ready for Biat HaMashiach.

Once again, I apologize for any seeming lack of Kavod.

Sincerely,

Tzvi S. Anolick
Kochav Yaakov

I do not know if I will get any response; for all I know the mail is filtered and Rav Steinzaltz will never see it. But I will do my best to let you know if I do hear something; and once again I will try to find time to make other posts on this blog.