CWY [on the Kolko affair]:
When will people learn that trying to sweep something under the rug to avoid a Chilul Hashem will only result in a later and much larger Chilul Hashem?
What sounds worse? "Police today arrested a Brooklyn Rabbi on charges that he molested a student", or "Police today arrested a Brooklyn Rabbi on charges that he molested a student. Similar allegations going back 30 years have been made before, and the school administration has been accused of covering up the abuse?"
It's better to have a small Chilul Hashem today then a giant one tomorrow.
Wolf [on the story of the woman being beaten up for refusing to move to the back of a non-"medhadrin" bus]:
And yet, could you see this story happening because she was eating treif on the bus? Could you see it happening because she was eating chometz on Pesach? Could you see it happening because she was returning from having been on the Temple Mount? Could you even see this happening because she had a tattoo?
Personally, I cannot. If someone were to tell me that she were beaten up for violating a mitzvah d'oreissa, I'd have a hard time believing it - but for this, it sadly sounds plausable.
Funny which "violations" will cause people to react violently.
Read their whole posts. They've nailed it right on the head.
Definitions...
ReplyDeleteChilul Hashem - desecration of God's name. Often used when an identifiably Jewish person does something wrong in public.
"Mehadrin" bus - A bus that has designated separate areas for men and women. Some Charedi communities in Israel have these, and bus lines in between predominantly Charedi areas sometimes do as well.
Treif - Non-kosher food.
Chometz - Leavened bread, which is not allowed during Passover.
Pesach - Passover.
Mitzvah D'Oraisa - A commandment written in the Torah. As opposed to a stringency, such as sitting separately from women.
I cannot even read about this stuff anymore. Whatever my denomination's issues, I cannot stomach this. I'll take having to handle congregants with Xmas trees any day over violence of Jews against Jews for a FREAKING SEAT ON THE BUS. NOT EVEN A MEHADRIN BUS. Not that violence is justified in any case. I don't normally comment this strongly, but this really turns me inside out. Sorry for the intensity of the comment.
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