in
The
Beginning
bers of the Orthodox com-
munity, as well as a number
of Christian leaders, planned
to voice their opposition.
Rabbi Levin says he wit-
nessed at the meeting, and
many times since, abusive
treatment of rabbis, priests
and ministers. And all be-
cause they espouse following
God's will.
It was a turning point in
his life.
Today, Rabbi Levin is a
kind of commander in what
he calls the "civil war for
morality going on in this
country." He's active; he's out-
spoken; he's visible.
And he certainly has
learned the meaning of the
word abortion. Rabbi Levin
is founder and head of the
New York-based Jewish
Anti-Abortion League.
"All these groups like the
Don Feder
(/)
C.)
CC
F-
LU
C=1
LL,
20
American Jewish Congress,
and these rabbis who support
abortion on demand — that's
religious consumer fraud," he
says. "You want to do that,
fine. Start your own religion.
Just don't call it traditional
Judaism."
Ever since the landmark
Roe vs. Wade decision, which
20 years ago today granted
women the legal right to
abortion, the majority of Jew-
ish groups nationwide have
been pro-choice — and active-
ly so. Just a few among them:
the National Council of Jew-
ish Women, Na'amat, B'nai
B'rith Women, Hadassah,
Women's American ORT, the
Union of American Hebrew
Congregations, the Women's
League for Conservative Ju-
daism, the National Federa-
tion of Temple Sisterhoods.
These groups stress that
they do not advocate abor-
tion, but rather stand behind
a woman's right to make the
choice whether to have a
child. They cite individual
freedom, Judaism's call for
compassion, and opposition
to legislating religious views
as reasons for their pro-choice
positions.
At the same time, there is
a Jewish presence within the
pro-life movement. National-
ly syndicated columnist Don
Feder, based at the Boston
Herald, believes it's increas-
ing.
"I'm seeing more individ-
ual Jews speaking out for
pro-life," he says. "And
they're not just Orthodox."
Probably the most cele-
brated Jewish pro-lifer is Dr.
Bernard Nathanson. Dr.
Nathanson, of New York, is
author of The Abortion Pa-
pers: Inside the Abortion
Mentality and Aborting
America, and narrator of
"The Silent Scream," show-
ing a first-trimester abortion
from the fetus' point of view.
A Jewish woman sits on
the board of the National
Right to Life Committee,
with more than 3,000 chap-
ters nationwide, and Jews
hold leadership positions in
such groups as Americans
United for Life and Feminists
for Life.
The board of the Detroit
chapter of National Right to
Life also includes a Jewish
member, Ronald Siegel, and
a number of Orthodox rabbis
have expressed sympathy for
the group's anti-abortion po-
sition.
D
on Feder was for
many years a typical
Jewish liberal, which
included being what
he now teims "pro abortion."
His pro-choice position was
motivated by a desire for
maximum individual free-
dom, he says.
Then he became interest-
ed in religion. For the first
time, he began to consider
what Halachah, Jewish law,
has to say about issues. He
also started to think about
"the unborn child and the
stages of development, the
arms and legs growing, a
heartbeat" His focus changed
from "What do / think is ap-
propriate?" to "What does
God want me to do?"
This week, Mr. Feder pub-
lished a new book, A Jewish
Conservative Looks at Pagan
America, which covers topics
including pornography, eu-
thanasia, AIDS and abortion.
He takes issue with "pro-
abortion" Jewish groups,
troubled by their eagerness
to present the pro-choice po-
sition as Jewish.
"A lot of Jewish spokesmen
aren't observant and they
don't know what Judaism
has to say," he says. "Secular,
assimilated Jews believe that
Judaism and liberalism are
synonymous. Their Torah is
the Torah of the ACLU.
(American Civil Liberties
Union).
"Yet they have to believe
that what they advocate is at
least compatible with tradi-
tion, so they talk about Ju-
daism's emphasis on com-
passion and individual rights.
But responsibili-
ties go hand-in-
hand with those
rights."
Mr. Feder's op-
position to abor-
tion stems from his
religious perspec-
tive. Halachah, he
says, "unalterably
opposes abortion
on demand."
Since Roe vs.
Wade, about 30
percent of all preg-
nancies in the
United States
have ended in
abortion, according
to a study by the
Man Guttmacher
Institute (AGI), an
independent, nonprofit think
tank based in New York.
Sixty-seven percent of
those surveyed by AGI said
one of the main reasons they