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A California delegation at The Agudath Israel of America's national leadership mission to Washington, with
Senator Alan Cranston (holding files) and Agudath Leader Rabbi Moshe Sherer, fourth from right.
Supreme Court.
"This was highly unusual for us,"
Zwiebel says. "We had never before taken
a position on a Supreme Court nomination.
We supported the nomination—unlike
almost every other Jewish organization.
The reason we decided to go public was
precisely because so many other Jewish
groups had spoken out, and were convey-
ing an impression that, for instance, Jews
support abortion, and that Jews are in
favor of an airtight separation between
church and state. It's true that some
segments of the community support these
positions, but it's not universally true."
Led By Torah Scholars
Ultimately, the factor that most sets
Agudath Israel apart from any other group
on the Jewish political scene is its rabbinic
orientation.
David Zwiebel gives an example of how
the process works. "Right now, the issue
on the agenda for our Council of Ibrah
Sages—the highest rabbinic board here—
is something called the 'health care proxy
legislation'in New York. Proxy legislation
would allow people to designate an agent
to make health care decisions for the prin-
cipal when the principal becomes incapaci-
tated.
"On balance, we like that concept; we
think it will afford our community a
measure of protection that currently isn't
available. On the other hand, it's the sort
of law that is capable of abuse; when pro-
xies who have ulterior motives are called
on to decide whether or not to keep the per-
son on the life-sustaining treatment, it
could lead to forms of mercy killing, which
is offensive to us.
"So the question we will present to our
rabbis is this: here you have a situation
where there's no black-and-white answer.
This bill comes with some attractive
features—and some features we're not
positively disposed to. We have some dif-
ficult questions: should we make common
cause with the civil libertarians? Or with
the right-to-lifers?
" So the ideal of the organization is that
policy decisions are made by the rabbis.
There's a long process before it gets to
them. It's a cumbersome process, but we
believe it lends legitimacy to our positions."
The result of this process is an organiza-
tion of vivid contrasts. In one section of
the Agudah offices, activists like Zwiebel
thrash out issues in a language filled with
the special vocabulary of lawyers and
lobbyists. Zwiebel is, in fact, a lawyer who
formerly worked for a top New York firm.
But down the hall, panels of elderly,
Yiddish-speaking rabbis meet regularly to
consider the same questions through the
wide-angle lens of Jewish law and tradi-
tion, who make decisions on issues like sur-
rogate parenting and AIDS in much the
same way that the Orthodox sages of
another century decided the Jewish
response to the critical issues of their day.
Critics suggest that this cloistered pro-
cess smacks of a "ghetto mentality?'
According to this view, the dependence on
rabbinic decision-making might have made
sense when Jews lived behind barred
gates—but not in a pluralistic land where
Jews have entered the cultural and political
mainstream.
Rabbinic decision-making, the critics
argue, leads to a kind of separatism that
could undo the tremendous gains Ameri-
can Jews have made in recent decades.
Agudah supporters do not exactly deny
the separatism charges. An unspoken tenet
of the group is the idea that there is
strength in separation, in pure Jewish iden-
tification. Jewish strength is diluted when
it's absorbed into political battles not
centered on the specific needs of the
community.
"Some of the Jewish groups concentrate
on abstract principles," Zwiebel says.
"When we go to Washington on an educa-
tion issue, we're representing real, live peo-
ple who will be directly affected. And what
we find is that sometimes, politically,
representing people is more effective than
representing principles. It's a voice that
demands attention." El
-
THE BRIGHT IDEA
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Health News...
Some Hints For Avoiding
The Aching Back Club
BY DR. STANLEY LEVINE, D.C.
Dr. of Chiropractic,
Minor aches and pains seem to
increase with advancing years.
Headaches, backaches, stiff joints
and sore muscles account for
many of the complaints voiced by
Chiropractic patients who are in
the middle or later years.
It is a fact that you slow down
as you grow older. Strenuous ac-
tivities that could be undertaken
easily in your youth become in-
creasingly difficult. You tend to
exercise less and sit more.
Back, stomach and side muscles
that formerly helped maintain
proper spinal alignment become
weak and flabby. The spine loses
its elasticity as the discs that
separate the vertebrae stiffen and
become drier.
When this happens, you
become a prime candidate for
membership in the Aching Back
Club. Everything can seem
perfectly normal until you bend
over to pick up a child or work in
the garden. Then pain strikes in
your lower back. You may not
even be able to straighten up by
yourself. Welcome to the Aching
Back Club!
But with proper back care,
membership in the club can be
canceled or even avoided. If you
are already a member, I urge you
to see a Doctor of Chiropractic im-
mediately. If you are not yet a
member, then a few simple
precautions may help you to avoid
becoming one.
Exercise is essential to develop-
ing and maintaining muscular
strength. Walking is one of the
best exercises there is. Try to walk
at least a mile a day. If you have
the time and feel like walking even
more, so much the better.
Pass up that soft, overstuffed
easy chair in favor of a fairly hard
chair with a back that is straight
but that tilts backward at a slight
angle. Bend
your legs at
the knees
while sit-
ting. If you
normally sit
for long
periods at a
time, get up
and walk
around eve-
ry so often.
&
If
you
DR. LEVINE
sleep on a mattress that is soft and
lumpy, either buy a new one that
is firm or place a sheet of plywood
between the mattress and box
springs to give added support to
your spine. You should sleep on
your side with your knees slight-
ly bent or on your back with a
pillow under your knees to ease
back strain. Sleeping on your
stomach is to be avoided as it
strains the neck when you have
your head turned to one side so
you can breathe.
Walk tall, stand tall, sit tall.
Good posture is not only more at-
tractive than a slouch, it helps
maintain a proper spinal align-
ment which is one of the keys to
avoiding back problems.
Don't live with pain
LEVINE CHIROPRACTIC CLINIC
We can help
31390 Northwestern Hwy.
Farmington Hills 48018
855-2666
Dr. Stanley B. Levine
Dr. Stephen M. Tepper
Dr. Robert W. Levine
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
27