While I commend those rabbis who have finally taken a stand by signing this Statement of Principles, the Statement reminds me of the kashruth label that has been added to packages over the last several years with the symbol "DE", signifying dairy equipment. Does this label on the package mean that the product is dairy? Or is it pareve? Can I eat it with meat? How long must I wait?
It leaves more questions unanswered and it doesn't really address the issue fully, completely and unequivocally.
It's not quite pareve, but neither is it milchig or fleishig.
In spite of the issue, it should be relatively easy for the rabbis to tackle. According to my son and his friends at JQYouth, all they want is to be included and recognized as members of Clal Yisroel, without bias or discrimination.
This should have been an easy issue to address, yet it took six months to publish and it involved hundreds of emails to reach a consensus.
I wouldn't be proud of such a feat. It took the rashei yeshiva of YU less than 24 hours to make a statement condemning the symposium and it took Rabbi Twerski less than a week to appear on YouTube after the symposium. But it took 6 months for these rabbis to respond!
What we got was a label that expressed its kashruth, but it remains muddy and unclear.
Too little and too late.
It is quite clear how Rabbi Twerski holds.
I'm really not so sure about the signatories.
Be well and keep on supporting your children. We're the only ones they can truly trust.
Saul David
2 comments:
Let me get this straight - your issue is not with the content of the statement, but with how long it took to come up with it? Anything well-said takes care and effort to put together, especially on as sensitive an issue as this.
Actually I have an issue with the content as well as how long it took to come up with it.
In my next post I will do a critique on the document.
As I stated in the blog, it took the Rashei Yeshiva only 1 day to respond to the symposium and Rabbi Twerski went on YouTube within a week. While the signatories were patting each other on the back for a job well done, this past weekend, R. Moshe Tendler was allowing the director of JONAH to speak under the umbrella of the AOJS convention.
So I do have a problem with the length of time that it takes these well-meaning people to react and I also have a problem with a wishy washy statement while there are forces at work who actually mean harm to my son and his friends.
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