"Fiendish Fables": Lies People Spread About Orthodox Jews
Today's Jerusalem Post contains a beautiful piece from Agudath Israel's Avi Shafran. In it, he details some of the ways, from educational materials to magazines, haredi Orthodox Jews are smeared and basically lied on:
A major American publisher of educational texts recently showed impressive responsibility and resolve by pledging to destroy its inventory of a book because of its false characterization of Orthodox Jews' beliefs.The problematic passage - in a volume of Scholastic Library's Enchantment of the World (second series, published under Scholastic's "Children's Press" imprint) - asserts that, in Israel, "some ultra-Orthodox Jews want to limit the definition of who actually qualifies [for automatic citizenship as a Jew, under the country's Law of Return]. They believe that Reform and Conservative Jews are not really Jews at all because they are not strict in their observance of all the religious laws."
When the passage was called to the attention of Agudath Israel of America by a school librarian in Brooklyn, we immediately contacted Scholastic to point out the falsity of the contention that Orthodox Jews reject any Jew's Jewishness because of a less strict level, or even complete lack, of observance.
In light of this I understand a lot of Jews' saying "you probably don't consider me Jewish" to me and other Orthodox Jews. Who would propagate this lie that Jewishness is dependent on observance level?
Where did the defamatory error originate? According to a Scholastic official, the publisher had relied on "a high-ranking member of American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprises" for the original formulation. AICE is, in its own words, "a leading content provider for students and organizations interested in Jewish history, culture and politics."AICE probably does much good work and likely provides a good deal of accurate information. But that only makes the issue all the more troubling.
And Mr. Shafran continues, beginning with a Jewish publication:
Equally troubling is the fact that, entirely under-the-radar, many Jews are being taught other fiendish fables about Orthodox Jews.A NUMBER of such reports have come to my attention, but I recall one with a particular wince.
It was several years ago, when a letter to the editor appeared in the magazine Reform Judaism. The letter had been written by a Jewish teenager in response to an article in an earlier issue of the periodical contending that Orthodox Jews have contempt for Jews who are not like themselves.
Yep, a "they hate us" argument. This is been used by so many groups and sub-groups, I fail to see how it still works.
...After identifying myself and apologizing profusely for calling her out of the blue, I spoke my piece: "God forbid! Orthodox Jews don't hate you! Our argument is with Reform Judaism - not Reform Jews. We have serious disagreements with the philosophy of the movement with which your family is affiliated. As you get older and learn more, you can evaluate those concerns for yourself. But you and your family are our precious Jewish brothers and sisters!"A pause, and then she responded.
"You sound like a nice person," she said, "but I can't accept what you're saying."
I was stunned. "Why not?"
"Because I've been taught otherwise, for years."
"But it isn't true!"
"Maybe," responded Michelle, "but we've spent many classes in my Temple school discussing Orthodox attitudes, and I can't just suddenly take your word against all that I've been taught."
No self-respecting Orthodox Rabbi I have ever seen has ever en masse hated Reform Jews. Ever.
The Orthodox Jew has the privilege of having a book of law -- the Shulchan Aruch, the Divinely-guided Code of Jewish Law -- which dictates the standards of how we are to behave. Advocating divisions between Jews, intra-Semitic hatred, doubting Jewish lineage without any proof further than which "type of Jew" the person self-identifies as -- these things are unquestionably assur and violate the Scriptural commandment of loving fellow Jews (and if they were non-Jews there would be whole other issues). The Orthodox Jew saying such things can -- and should -- be called up for violating Scriptural Law.
But the Reform movement doesn't officially recognize Jewish Law as binding. Of course, the movement recognizes nebulous, uncodified concepts like "image of G-d" and "fixing up the world" but they have no binding code. I don't know how one would begin the process of mass eradication of prejudice in a religious school without saying something to the effect of "G-d doesn't like X behavior, and He said so at such-and-such." And, if the "Temple school" truly subscribes to the ideal of "personal autonomy" Reform Judaism subscribes to, then I'd wager that her teacher was freestyling.
In which case I'd wager he was only projecting his own feelings, or else repeating that which he heard 20 years prior or from someone Orthodox and uneducated. Regardless, he was not giving the take of the Jewish Tradition on the subject.
And when an Orthodox leader tries to set the story straight, he is not believed.
The truth is love and unity.
Comments
"but we've spent many classes in my Temple school discussing Orthodox attitudes, and I can't just suddenly take your word against all that I've been taught." I do think this have a deep impact on the discrimination.
Chloe Jones
JRomances.com
Posted by: chloe Jones | March 28, 2007 01:35 AM