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26
Friday, October 3, 1986
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
COMMENT
Goldman
Continued from preceding page
of our officers and much of
our business was in outstate
Michigan and, indeed, outside
of the state of Michigan, we
simply did riot fall into this
restricted category.
It is true that the council
supervises the manufacture
of kosher food products in
Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Il-
linois, Wisconsin, New York,
Florida, Minnesota, Idaho,
Iowa, and Nebraska. On the
other hand, the Vaad is al-
ways boasting that its mem-
bership consists of rabbis in
Ann Arbor, Toledo, and
Windsor! Why the double
standard? But we decided to
leave the Jewish Community
Council to its own political
motivations and its inconsis-
tencies because the Jewish
Community Council has
nothing to do with kashruth,
and it has no standing what-
soever in Jewish law. Fur-
thermore, membership in the
Jewish Community Council
would not help the council in
any way. It would be tan-
tamount to being recognized
by the Jewish War Veterans.
Rabbi Goldberg further at-
tacks, again armed only with
insufficient facts, our inspec-
tion of the New Orleans
Kosher Meat Market in
Southfield. In 1982, the Vaad
brought false and unsubstan-
tiated charges against the
New Orleans Kosher Meat
Market. Again, for political
reasons that had nothing to
do with kashruth, the Vaad
claimed that it had found
"evidence" that there was
non-kosher meat on the
premises of this shop ...
Some time passed, and the
New Orleans Kosher Meat
Market continued to sell
kosher provisions without
any supervision at all. One
day, Mr. Alan A. Cohen,
proprietor of the shop, came
to see me and confided in me
that his conscience bothered
him. He knew that, as a
kosher butcher, he should
have some kind of supervi-
sion. He asked me if the
council would give him
supervision. I told him that
according to Jewish law, in
his situation, nothing less
than constant supervision
would do, and the council was
in no position to provide this
kind of supervision. He asked
me if there were any alterna-
tives. I told him I would look
into it.
I consulted the responsa of
the late Rabbi Moshe Feins-
tein, and I found that in one
responsum he recommended
that, in a case like this, at
least the rabbis of the corn-
munity should inspect such a
butcher shop periodically to
see to it that the sources of
supply were strictly kosher. I
returned to Mr. Cohen with
that suggestion. We would
provide inspection to check
on his sources, but we could
not provide supervision, to
offer some protection for his
customers. He accepted.
Thereupon, at Mr. Cohen's
expense, I flew to Donora,
Pa., to inspect the facilities of
Weiss Packing Company, and
I flew to Chicago, to inspect
Sinai Packing Company, to
both of which, for political
reasons, the Vaad had given
only very limited approval. I
found both places to be excel-
lently supervised and per-
fectly within conformity of
Jewish law. I posted a sign at
New Orleans Kosher Meat
Market, indicating that these
and the other sources used by
this shop were strictly
Kosher.
I carry with me, in my
glove compartment, keys to
the New Orleans Kosher
Meat Market. I make my in-
spections sometimes two or
three times a week, after
hours, when the shop is
closed. Although this shop
has only inspection and no
supervision, it is under more
constant surveillance than
any other shop under the so-
called "supervision" of the
Vaad
I was astounded to read
Rabbi Goldberg's remark
about the wonderful cohesion
among the 25 members of the
Vaad. Although coming from
diverse backgrounds, and re-
presenting six different con-
gregations, all 25 speak with
one voice:
The Rabbinical Commis-
sion of the Jewish Commu-
nity Council recently de-
manded of the mashgiach at
Sinai Hospital, Rabbi
Leonard Perlstein, that he
should present to them in
written form the guidelines
he uses in selecting kosher
product vendors for the hospi-
tal. This was done in connec-
tion with current litigations
against Sinai Hospital and
the Vaad for their dealings at
Sinai Hospital. Rabbi Perls-
tein indicated in his report
that he looks for his religious
authority not to the Vaad,
but to the Yeshiva Gedolah
in Detroit, the Kollel Insti-
tute, the Telshe Yeshiva in
Chicago and Wickliffe, Ohio,
and the Chicago Community
Kollel, not one of which is a
kosher certifying agency!
This, despite the fact that
Rabbi Perlstein was placed in
his position at Sinai by the
Vaad!
How is that for incredible
unanimity?!
All the -rhetoric about
"united community rabbi-
nate" and other fantasies
notwithstanding, we have on
our hands right now a man
whose health has been se-
verely damaged, whose
livelihood has been ruthlessly
curtailed, and a Jewish corn-
munity that has been startled
by the unorthodox practices
that have taken place. The
rightful place to air these dif-
ferences is before a din To-
rah, a rabbinical court that is
unbiased and is dedicated to
truth, justice, and harmony.
Is the Vaad ready to sub-
mit to an impartial tribunal,
or not?