Jewish Law - Commentary/Opinion - Jew On A Tightrope

Jew On A Tightrope
Rabbi Avi Shafran

Jew On A Tightrope

Rabbi Avi Shafran

Orthodox Jews have been rooting heartily for Senator Joseph Lieberman. No, not necessarily in his quest for the vice-presidency. As far as that is concerned, some in my famously issues-oriented community will support him; others decidedly will not.

What we have all been rooting for, though, is that the Senator will prove a worthy example of classical Jewish belief and practice, and thus serve as an impetus for Jews alienated from (or unaware of) their religious heritage to reconsider (or to finally consider) its pertinence to them.

On his shoulders, in other words, lies a burden much weightier, in our perspective, than the mere possibility of becoming vice president. Because he is a self-described observant Jew, his prominence carries the potential to influence countless Jews to take the Torah seriously. Potential, though, is pareve (or neutral, in kashrut-language: neither meat nor milk); just as he can influence Jews in a positive manner, he can, intentionally or not, do just the opposite.

There can be no doubting that the Senator's commitment to basic Jewish religious laws like guarding the Sabbath or keeping kosher has drawn interest and respect from both Jews and non-Jews alike. A good amount of what Orthodox schools, adult education programs and "outreach" groups labor daily and mightily to achieve materialized from thin airwaves within hours after Vice President Gore chose his running mate, as the media provided details about Senator Lieberman's religious commitments.

And aside from his unabashed observance, the Senator has sent a powerful, if unspoken, message to the Jewish community. For, instead of opting to call himself a "(your adjective of choice here) Jew", he opts to call himself simply "observant." By pointedly choosing not to redefine observance, as so many American Jews so nonchalantly do, he demonstrates a respect for the integrity of the Jewish religion.

Recently, though, the Senator gravely disappointed all who are rooting for his Jewish example. By disparaging a Jewish blessing he does not personally accept or understand, as he did on a recent radio program, and proclaiming "a certain amount of latitude" in rejecting part of the traditional Jewish liturgy, he in effect taught an audience of millions that the Jewish religious heritage is a "pick and choose" proposition. And by denying, a moment later, that Jewish religious law bans marriages between Jews and non-Jews - suggesting instead that marriage within the faith is merely a social or ethnic "natural tendency" - he astoundingly misrepresented a Jewish religious law in an area of fundamental importance to the future of the Jewish community.

Some interpret the morning blessing "Blessed are You, G-d, for not having made me a woman" (women recite "for having made me according to Your will") as an acknowledgment of the fact that men are bound by more Torah commandments than are women. Others see it as reflecting the fact that women endure more discomfort and disadvantage, both physical and sociological, than men, a fact that remains true even in our liberated times. One thing, however, is certain: Not comprehending a blessing that has been part of the Jewish liturgy for thousands of years is not - at least for an observant Jew - license to reject it.

And, regarding his comments on intermarriage, there is a clear, immutable and grave prohibition in Jewish religious law, or halacha, against a Jew marrying anyone but another Jew. To intimate otherwise is simply to mislead. And the prohibition against intermarriage is a particularly severe and ominous one in our times, when the Jewish demographic picture in the United States is considerably darkened by a high and rising intermarriage rate that threatens to undermine the American Jewish future. Senator Lieberman's recent comments echo disturbing ones he made when he was interviewed by Larry King in August. In the context of a discussion of abortion, he pointed out that there are different opinions within Jewish religious literature regarding certain aspects of the issue. He did not, however, make clear that no normative Jewish religious source permits abortion in cases like the overwhelming majority of those that take place daily in America, and compounded the misleading statement by contending, astoundingly, that "like everything else in Judaism, ultimately, it's up to each of us to decide what we think is right."

Judaism, however, is not about deciding what we think is right. It is about doing what G-d says is right.

The issue is not Senator Lieberman's personal observance. No Jew should arrogate to judge another's success in aiming at the ideal of perfect observance. What is of concern is that the Senator has spoken, in effect, on behalf of Judaism. Whether or not he has usurped rabbinical territory, he has certainly touched upon it. That is fine, if one speaks from deep knowledge of and deep sensitivity toward the Jewish religious tradition. But only then.

Any observant Jew who heard or read Senator Lieberman's recent comments could not but feel deep anguish. As the public affairs director of a national Orthodox Jewish organization, I certainly did.

In recent months, even as I have worried over the possibility that the vice presidential-hopeful might intentionally or otherwise mislead anyone about Jewish belief or practice, I have publicly and consistently maintained that he should not be held responsible to present the image of perfect Jewish observance. He is running, I was quoted in the press as saying, for vice president and not chief rabbi.

Knowing those facts, a number of Agudath Israel's constituents contacted me in the wake of the Senator's recent comments. One e-mailed the following message: "Gosh: I don't envy the tightrope that you have to walk every day!"

My response was immediate: It isn't I who is walking any perilous tightrope here.

It's Senator Lieberman.

AM ECHAD RESOURCES

[Rabbi Avi Shafran serves as director of public affairs for Agudath Israel of America and as American director of Am Echad]