LETTERS

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Rev. Semp's Imprint

I am a founding member of
Congregation Beth Shalom and have
served on the executive committee of 11
past presidents. Your Cover Story
"Sacred Space" (Oct. 1, page 65) con-
cerning our synagogue left out the sig-
nificant duties of our ritual director,
Rev. Sammy Semp.
Rev. Semp is the heart and soul of
Congregation Beth Shalom. He is the
first one that you see in the morning
and the last one you see at night. Our
daily minyan has grown from having to
call the surrounding neighborhood fam-
ilies to overflowing the chapel.
Rev. Semp makes sure everyone is
attended to with hope and inspired by
the morning and evening prayers. He
visits the sick and healing no matter
where they are: hospitals, nursing
homes, hospice or with family. He has
done many educational forums for sis-
terhood, men's club and the congrega-
tion.
When you enter the sanctuary on
Saturday morning, the first voice you
hear is that of Rev. Semp. In addition,
one of his many duties is that of
mashiagch; he is a zealot about our
kitchen being kosher at all times.
I can't imagine where we of the con-
gregation would be without his pres-
ence.

Rhoda E Krauss
Farmington Hilts

No Objectivity

Recently; Peter Hansen, the commis-
sioner-general of the United Nations
Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA),
was interviewed by the Canadian
Broadcasting Corporation. In the inter-
view, published on Oct. 4, he made
rather startling admission about
UNRWA employees, that, "I am sure
that there are Hamas members on the
UNRWA payroll and I don't see that as
a crime ..."
This statement did a number of
things. First, it confirms what many
believe about the bias of the U.N. in the
Middle East conflict.
More importantly, it calls into ques-
tion the ability of the U.N. to act as an
impartial arbiter in the region. It also
gives credence to the belief that the
U.N. is operating as a source of funding
and supporter of an organization, the
avowed purpose of which is the destruc-
tion of the State of Israel.
All Americans should be incensed at
this, since approximately $100 million
of U.S. funds are being funneled into

10/22

2004

6

UNRWA's operations.
This should likewise be significant to
any donor country, given the Nov. 30
Conference in Norway of U.N. donor
countries that supply aid to the
Palestinian Authority.

Robert Rollinger
West Bloomfield

Support Proposal 2

A group of 25 rabbis signed a letter to
the editor of the Jewish News ("Equal
Rights, Equal Access," Oct. 15, page 6),
decrying the discriminatory, bigoted and
hateful character of Proposal 2 as it is
scheduled to appear on the Michigan
ballot this year.
Among the 25 signatories were 15
Reform rabbis, nine Conservative rabbis
and one Secular Humanistic rabbi.
Some of the most prominent
Conservative rabbis' names do not
appear there, and I am gratified that not
a single Orthodox rabbi's name appears
there.
Proposal 2 demands that the
Michigan Constitution be amended to
state unequivocally that "marriage" be
determined as the union between a man
and a woman. That is what those rabbis
find so hateful and discriminatory. I am
proud that the Orthodox rabbinate
takes a firm stand of unconditional
commitment to Torah and mitzvot. The
few Conservative rabbis who abstained
from signing this letter are commended
for upholding Jewish tradition.
Just last week, we read in the weekly
Torah portion (Genesis 2:24), "Therefore
shall a man leave his father and his
mother and cling to his wife, and they
twain shall be as one flesh." I think that
is beautiful.
Ask any 4-year-old what a marriage is,
and he will say, "It is a Mommy and a
Daddy and a little child!" Is that family
so shameful, so discriminatory?
A vote for Proposal 2 is a vote for
God and for Torah for the American
way of life! God bless America.

Rabbi Jack Goldman
West Bloomfield

Rabbis' Action Praised

We commend the 25 rabbis' public
declaration of their support for equal
rights ("Equal Rights, Equal Access,"
Oct. 15, page 6).
Their willingness to take a political-
ly unpopular stance in order to pro-
tect a minority population from dis-
crimination and bigotry shows that
they are true ethical leaders in the

metro Detroit community. It would
have been easier for them to have kept
their opinions private; their choice of
moral action over silence is inspiring.
We thank them for their leadership.
We hope that they will inspire others
to oppose unwarranted discrimina-
tion, to vote "no" on Proposal 2 and
to fulfill the mitzvah of tikkun olam
[repair of the world] by standing up
to injustice.

Dr. Abi and Doug Schildcrout
Huntington Woods

Rabbis' Letter Raises Issues

I, too, after much analysis and discus-
sion, support the decision of the Jewish
News to publish same-gender union cer-
emony announcements. However, I am
deeply disturbed to see that the majority
of Conservative pulpit rabbis within the
Detroit area have done so in a letter to
the editor that would give the impres-
sion that Conservative Judaism unequiv-
ocally supports same-gender unions
("Equal Rights, Equal Access," Oct. 15,
page 6). The Conservative rabbis who
did not sign the letter — pulpit and
non-pulpit — have been duly noted.
The letter makes no mention of any
related halachic [Jewish Law] issues and
gives no indication of whether signers
personally support same-sex ceremonies
(i.e., "I may disagree with your position,
but I defend to the death your right to
express it"). This would give JN readers
the impression that the Conservative
movement, through the message of its
religious leaders, supports such cere-
monies.
The Committee on Jewish Law and
Standards' "Consensus Statement of
Policy Regarding Homosexual Jews in
the Conservative Movement," approved
March 25, 1992, specifically prohibits
the performance of commitment cere-
monies for gays and lesbians. Neverthe-
less, the policy statement affirms the
movement's commitment respecting the
rights of gays and lesbians; that commit-
ment includes welcoming them into
congregations, youth groups, camps and
schools.
The Conservative movement's posi-
tion on the halachic prohibition of
homosexuality continues to be hotly
debated. This highlights the fact that
there is a wide spectrum of views on the
topic within the movement. However, it
seems that many of our Conservative
rabbis are all too eager to espouse the
concepts of tolerance, inclusiveness and
respect — all of which are noble and
desirable concepts
in a manner that

minimizes some of our halachic tenets
to the point where one might conclude
that these tenets are insignificant. It's not
the first time that we've seen this hap-
pen, and unfortunately, it probably
won't be the last.

Fred Shuback
West Bloomfield

Ban Adultery, Too

I am writing this as a straight married
man with two children. I want to com-
mend Citizens for the Protection of
Marriage for its determination to enact
Proposal 2 as written, proposing a con-
stitutional amendment forbidding
homosexual marriage in Michigan.
These moral and political leaders rec-
ognize that in today's simple and care-
free world, Michigan's citizens have lots
and lots of spare time to preserve the
institution of marriage from the dangers
that homosexuality presents. However,
in my opinion, this proposed amend-
ment doesn't go far enough to really
accomplish the group's declared goal;
and, therefore, I suggest that it should
also have included a constitutional ban
on adultery.
Unlike homosexuality, adultery almost
always destroys a marriage, and often
two, along with children and grandpar-
ents. Unlike homosexuality, adultery is
entirely by choice and is preventable.
Unlike homosexuality, adultery can be,
and is, learned by others, including by
the affected children, friends, business
associates, etc., of the adulterer.
Think of the huge financial savings
that an adultery ban would bring — in
child psychologists, lawyers, courts,
accountants, clergy, marriage counselors,
maybe even in future catering bills as
adulterers couldn't marry!
And the religiously motivated Citizens
for the Protection of Marriage would
have the satisfaction of knowing that the
oft-quoted biblical ban on homosexuali-
ty also bans adultery in the very same
verses! (Leviticus, Chapter 18).
About the only ways that Proposal 2
— as an adultery as opposed to merely a
homosexual marriage ban — falls short
is that it doesn't allow the opportunity
for misplaced anger and discrimination.
It doesn't create the opportunity to
greatly weaken two of our greatest con-
stitutional safeguards: separation of
church and state, and equality under the
law.

Andrew Marks
West Bloomfield

More letters on page 9

