We Must All Vote
In last week’s issue, chief editor Elliot Resnick objected to the content of the Jerusalem Program, which must be affirmed by everyone voting in the World Zionist Congress elections.
He didn’t tell the whole story, however. In the 2015 World Zionist Congress elections, liberal Jewish groups won the majority of the American votes. With their influence, they tried to create a mixed section at the Kotel; allocated serious funding to liberal and anti-Torah causes; launched a program to teach pluralism in Israeli public schools; limited funding to Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria… I could go on.
Today, these groups are counting on tens of thousands of votes to once again advance their agenda. There is too much at stake for the Orthodox Jewish community to be silent. We must all vote in these elections. The outcome of the 2020 World Zionist Congress elections is critical to the Torah atmosphere in Eretz Yisrael.
Yes, im yirtzeh Hashem, when we win, we will work to amend the Jerusalem Program. But first, we have to win. And for that to happen, everyone must vote.
Rabbi Pesach Lerner
Co-Chairman and Delegate
The Eretz HaKodesh slate
Pass a Wealth Tax
It might surprise you, but in 1999 Donald Trump proposed passing a “National Wealth Tax” of 14.25 percent on all Americans with a net worth of $10 million or more. He wanted the revenue generated from this tax to pay off the national debt, with the remainder going into the Social Security Trust Fund to make it solvent for longer.
Taxing the accumulated wealth of the super-rich is not something national conservatives or Republicans believe in. But USA Today opinion editor Darrell M. West loves the idea – and so do I. And so should all liberal/progressive Democrats, as well as many moderates, centrists, and independents.
Why, therefore, are Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, and Tom Steyer the only national Democrats to support any version of it? Why is a political nobody like me virtually the only one speaking about it? Why are the so-called compassionate Democrats silent about it? Is it because it was Trump’s idea?
Stewart B. Epstein
Rochester, NY
Register As a Democrat
Dangerous times are upon us. Anti-Semitism is rampant with more than 200 hate crimes targeting Jews in 2019. Progressive liberals are winning elections all around us, and passing the laws that are making it unsafe for us to be Jewish in America. Just last year, lawmakers in Albany passed a law that allows criminals to walk free without bail – even in cases of violent crimes.
Who are the lawmakers who pushed for this bail reform? A young, newly-elected crop of public officials who identify with the likes of extreme progressives. How did they get elected? They ran in primary elections against moderate Democrats.
Why did they win? Because people who have been disillusioned by the Democratic Party have registered as Republicans. These voters gave up their voices by removing themselves as potential voters in primary elections.
You have to be in it to win it. If you are registered as a Republican, you cannot vote in vital primary elections. Fight back – by changing your voter registration. Let’s seize back the Democratic Party from the clutches of the most extreme, leftist voices. The deadline to change your party registration is fast approaching: February 14.
Councilman Chaim Deutsch
Brooklyn, NY
Trump Vs. Democrats
Thanks to Obama, who gave billions of dollars to Iran, we have Iran in Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen all threatening our little country of Israel.
Trump is currently destroying Obama’s legacy, which is why the Democratic party and media are trying to destroy Trump.
May Hashem punish the leadership of the Democratic Party. Daven for Trump and his family. And convince Jews not to vote Democratic – the party of hate and anti-Semitism.
Leah
Rabbi Chananya Weissman Responds to Last Week’s Letters
I applaud the Jewish Press for publishing my controversial article questioning the propriety of the women’s Daf Yomi movement and for allowing me to respond to the numerous letters to the editor published last week, all of which attacked the article. I will try to address all of them briefly.
* Bonnie Eizikovitz writes that I have “a problem with women learning Daf Yomi, and Talmud in general,” and wonders if I would relegate women to remaining generally unlearned. Of course not. If she read my article more carefully, she would have noted that I emphasized that I was not declaring it forbidden for women to learn Gemara altogether, as I am not a posek and am unqualified to make such a determination.
I expressed concern specifically with the origins of the women’s Daf Yomi movement, the manner in which it is being celebrated and marketed, and the implications of this movement infiltrating the mainstream Orthodox world without dispassionate, sober consideration of the pros and cons.
She mentioned that Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik, zt”l, and Rav Aaron Lichtenstein, zt”l, “supported the study of Gemara by women” – which is true, but even these Torah giants expressed reservations and limitations about the scope of what should be encouraged. It is disingenuous to cherry-pick the most lenient opinions after deciding what you want the conclusion to be and then pretend that even these opinions would support any and every change to the previous norms, just because times have changed. I invite Ms. Eizikovitz to read the pertinent articles on Yeshiva Har Etzion’s website discussing their opinions in depth.
* Steven Steinhart is disappointed that The Jewish Press did not censor my article, which he claims was “dripping in deep-seated anger towards women” and “gratuitous attacks on women.” His claims of anger are mere projection. He continues that he will “leave it to the gedolei Torah to decide whether women learning the daf is permitted or worthwhile.” Halevai. It doesn’t seem as if they have been consulted, nor does it seem as if those driving the movement will slow down one iota if they don’t get the response they are looking for.
As for his implication that there aren’t numerous Torah sources supporting my concerns simply because I didn’t cite them, he can find a healthy list on Sefaria.com on the topic of women and talmud Torah by Ezra Cohen – and this is just scratching the surface. I would be happy to provide more sources in a separate article, as space will not permit me to do so here. One must be extremely creative and agenda-driven to find corresponding classical sources that would encourage women’s Daf Yomi.
* Ronald Neal Goldman accuses me of being “disingenuous,” though he doesn’t explain why, and argues repeatedly that “it’s a woman’s choice” to study Gemara. We live in a time of hefker when anyone can choose to do whatever they want; I have neither the power nor the will to prevent women from making choices. However, it is disingenuous to portray my plea for women to step back from the hype and soberly consider the pros and cons of the Daf Yomi movement, both of which are real, as taking away anyone’s choice.
On the contrary, I am urging women to make more informed and better choices, instead of being swept up in a movement with dubious origins and agendas. As for his remark that Daf Yomi is “mankind’s domain,” I wonder if that includes gentiles as well, and if not, why not? Who are we to interfere with their choices and deny them growth?
* Elliot Press argues that by my logic I would have opposed the Bais Yaakov movement. That’s a straw man argument. There is a big difference between providing young Jewish women a Torah education that is relevant to their basic personal needs and ability to succeed as wives and mothers, and pushing for women to study Daf Yomi.
The implication of the propaganda is that women who don’t study all of Shas are somehow being left behind, denied their place in society, stunted from growing spiritually and being close to Hashem. Do people really believe that for 3,000 years this was the state of Jewish women, and this is only now being rectified by the women’s Daf Yomi movement?
I would love to hear from the wives and daughters of the gedolim of yesteryear, the nobility of Jewish women, if they believe they were “kept down” and stunted because they didn’t study all of Shas.
* Dr. Yaakov Stern states that my claim that the women’s Daf Yomi movement is a manifestation of the leftist, feminist agenda is a “conspiracy theory.” Nothing of the sort. It’s a fact, and a simple Internet search will demonstrate that, as I noted in the article. The fact that many sincere women have been swept up in the movement only underscores how successful their tactics have been.
Again, the slogan for the women’s siyum was “Be a part of history.” It was not “Get closer to Hashem, grow spiritually, study Daf Yomi.” Had that been the case, our valorous women would likely have rejected the marketing for they are plenty close to Hashem and have no problems growing spiritually without studying Zevachim and Menachos. But who doesn’t want to be a part of history?
I also don’t suggest that learning Talmud is at odds with halacha (see above), though the Torah literature on the subject is definitely more con than pro, and recent changes are more a reluctant concession than a supposed righting of historical wrongs.
* “Anonymous” claims the bnot Zelaphchad crafted a halachic argument that “Moshe could not refute.” That’s definitely a slanted perspective. Moshe was the most humble of all men and the greatest of our teachers, and he had no interest in refuting women. The point of my example was that these wise women (and all women should be wise) were deferential and respectful of the halachic process and were willing to take no for an answer.
They even dutifully married men based on restrictions that were strongly recommended to them and greatly limited their choice – especially noteworthy considering that they were all over the age of 40 when they finally wed. These were not rebellious women or trailblazers; their fear of Heaven preceded their wisdom.
* Bracha Leah Atlas was “beyond offended” by my article and claims the women’s Daf Yomi movement is “not some crazy slippery slope.” But it is. The leftist Times of Israel has published numerous articles celebrating the movement, and many of these authors have made no secret about their intentions to continue pushing the envelope.
One Conservative “rabbi” wrote that the Orthodox world will be forced to “confront” equality for women, and expressed his wish that, among other things, women will one day teach Talmud to large groups of men.
In sum, the attacks against my article consist of straw men, claims that I want to deny women something wonderful that they deserve, emotional reactions, ad hominem attacks, and misunderstandings of Torah sources. They only support my concerns about the women’s Daf Yomi movement and the ignorance, hype, and propaganda that are pushing it forward.
As I concluded in my article, my wish is simply that the women in our community will think twice – at least once – before breathlessly jumping aboard this runaway train to who-knows-where. What’s the rush? If changes to the curriculum are appropriate for some individuals, and even for the entire community, let’s have an honest, respectful, dispassionate, Torah-based discussion and seek guidance from our Torah giants.
And like the daughters of Zelaphchad, let’s ask questions and seek answers without bias, and with the willingness to accept the truth, whatever it may be, even if it is not the answer we might otherwise prefer. That is the Talmudic way.