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Orthodox Rabbi Challenged For Ordaining Woman

New York/JTA

T

he Agudath Israel Council of
Torah Sages has issued a state-
ment suggesting that a New York
rabbi should no longer be considered
Orthodox because of his decision to
ordain a woman.
Last month, Rabbi Avi Weiss
announced that one of his female stu-
dents would now be known as rabba — a
feminized version of rabbi — replacing
her previous title of maharat. He declared
in a statement that the name change
"makes it clear that Sara Hurwitz is a
full member of our rabbinic staff" at
Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, a Modern
Orthodox synagogue in the Bronx where
he is the spiritual leader.

Farrakhan: Jews
Plague Obama

Chicago/JTA — Louis
Farrakhan blamed the
Jews, among others, for
President Obama's dif-
ficulties.
In a 31/2-hour speech
Louis
marking Saviours' Day,
Farrakhan
a Nation of Islam holi-
day, the movement's leader told 20,000
followers in Chicago's United Center that
Obama's political difficulties came after
he stood up to the Jewish lobby at an Oval
Office meeting.
"When they left the White House, his
problems began:' the Chicago Sun-Times
quoted Farrakhan as saying.
Obama's meeting last summer with
leaders of Jewish groups was mostly
friendly, but there were differences over
his administration's tone in dealing with
Israel's Netanyahu government. All sides
since then — the White House, the orga-
nized Jewish leadership and the Israeli
government — have tried to tamp down
public criticism.
"The Zionists are in control of
Congress:' Farrakhan said Sunday as he
listed off a slew of Jewish economic advis-
ers, adding that the "bloodsuckers of the
poor" were rewarded with a bailout.
Abraham Foxman, national director of
the Anti-Defamation League, responded to
Farrakhan's inflammatory remarks.
"It's the same Farrakhan: ugly and
anti-Semitic;' Foxman said. "With age he
doesn't get milder, he gets uglier!'
In the same speech, Farrakhan said, "the
white right is trying to set Barack up to be
assassinated;' and reiterated his conviction

22 March 4 • 2010

The Agudath Israel council, comprised
of leading haredi rabbis, declared in its
Feb. 25 statement that "these develop-
ments represent a radical and dangerous
departure from Jewish tradition and
the mesoras haTorah and must be con-
demned in the strongest terms."
The statement, which was signed by 10
members of the council, added: "Any con-
gregation with a woman in a rabbinical
position of any sort cannot be considered
Orthodox!'
Hurwitz, who has served at the Hebrew
Institute for nearly seven years, performs
some rabbinic duties, but cannot perform
others because of her gender, including
acting as a witness, leading religious ser-
vices and being counted in a minyan.
In recent years, a handful of prominent

mainstream Modern Orthodox synagogues
have hired women for roles like Hurwitz's,
in which they carry out certain functions
that historically were the sole domain of
male rabbis, from offering guidance in
spiritual or Jewish legal matters to teach-
ing classes and delivering lectures.
Agudath Israel spokesman Rabbi Avi
Shafran said that the council's objection
to Hurwitz's situation is that she is con-
sidered a "full member" of the rabbinic
staff, in violation of the Orthodox value of
tzniut, or modesty, for women.
"Some of the roles intended for the
`rabba' are in fact roles that women even
in the haredi community have played for
centuries, such as counseling and offering
wise advice he said. "Others, though, are
not, especially those that thrust a woman

into a public venue."
The council also objects, Shafran
added, because any change in Orthodox
norms must be backed by a "world-class
Torah decisor," and no such authority has
lent his name to Weiss's actions.
Meanwhile, the New York Jewish Week is
citing an unnamed source close to Weiss
as saying that the Rabbinical Council of
America, the Modern Orthodox rabbinical
group, is considering kicking Weiss out of
its organization. Like many members of the
RCA, Weiss received his ordination from
the Yeshiva University-affiliated Rabbi Isaac
Elchanan Theological Seminary.
The RCA has refused to grant automat-
ic membership to graduates of the liberal
Orthodox seminary, Yeshivat Chovevei
Torah, founded by Weiss.

that 9-11 was an "inside job."
During the presidential campaign,
Obama distanced himself from Farrakhan
for his history of anti-Semitism.

dispute that is holding up a shipment of
nine containers of American-caught fish
destined for Israeli plates this Passover as
gefilte fish.
Getting the Asian carp filets, used to
make gefilte fish, from an Illinois fishery
to an Israeli processing plant "sounds to
me like one of those issues that should
rise to the highest levels of our govern-
ment:' Clinton said last week in testimony
to the U.S. House of Representatives
Foreign Affairs Committee.
Rep. Don Manzullo, R-Ill., said Israel
had slapped a 120 percent import duty on
the fish and he requested Clinton's help in
resolving the matter before the first seder
on March 29.

world, it doesn't change the scene dra-
matically.
"From a closer distance, in Israel it
looks like a tipping point of the whole
regional order with a quite assured, quite
certain consequences to the wider world,
global world order."
Israeli officials say 2010 may be the last
opportunity to keep Iran from obtaining a
nuclear weapon, and want to press forward
on "crippling" sanctions that would target
Iran's energy sector. The Obama adminis-
tration still favors multilateral sanctions
that have an international consensus and
target Iranian individuals and entities.
Barak, who was in Washington to gauge
the U.S. posture on Iran, said that despite
such differences, solid U.S. support and
mutual respect was the basis of the rela-
tionship.
"I think that beyond that there is, of
course, a certain difference in perspective
and difference in judgment, difference in
the internal clocks and difference in capa-
bilities," he said.
"And I don't think that there is a need
to coordinate in this regard. That should
be understood; it should be exchange of
views — we do not need to coordinate
every step."

Jewish Olympians' Medals

Vancouver/JTA — Two Jewish athletes
took home medals at the 2010 Winter
Olympic Games in Vancouver.
Steve Meisler won a gold medal for the
United States in the four-man bobsled,
pushing his team to a combined time of
3:24:46 in the four-heat race.
Jewish ice dancer Charlie White claimed
a silver medal in ice dancing along with
partner Meryl Davis.
White's victory edged a fellow ice danc-
er and American Jew, Ben Agosto, off the
medal podium. Agosto and his partner,
Tanith Belbin, finished fourth. The pair
won a silver medal at the 2006 games.
Other Jewish competitors in ice dancing,
the Israeli brother-sister duo Roman and
Alexandra Zaretsky, finished 10th. Their
routines included music from Schindler's
List and the song "Hava Nagila," and in one
performance, Roman wore a yarmulke.
Israel's third Olympic athlete, skier
Mikail Renzhin, finished 35th in the sla-
lom and 55th in the giant slalom.
Laura Spector, a Jewish biathlete from
Massachusetts, finished 65th and 77th in
the two races in which she competed.

Gefilte Fish Dilemma

Washington/JTA — In time for the
Passover season, U.S. Secretary of State
Hilary Rodham Clinton is looking into
the question of loads of fish to make
gefilte fish.
Clinton pledged to resolve a trade

U.S, Israel Differ On Iran

Washington/JTA — Israel and the United
States have differences of perspective and
judgment on Iran and the Middle East,
but the overall relationship is sound, Ehud
Barak said.
The Israeli defense
minister, speaking last
Friday at the Washington
Institute for Near East
Policy after a series of
meetings with top U.S.
officials, said that the
United States necessarily
Ehud Barak
viewed the Iran threat
differently from Israel.
"From America, when you look at a
nuclear Iran, you already have, just besides
allies like France and UK, you have a
nuclear Russia, nuclear China, nuclear
India, nuclear Pakistan, North Korea is
going toward turning nuclear:' Barak
said. "So probably from this corner of the

❑

U.N. Probe Gaza War

Jerusalem/JTA — Israel and the
Palestinian Authority must investigate
their actions in the Gaza war, the United
Nations General Assembly voted.
The new resolution adopted last Friday
passed 98-7 with 31 abstentions. It comes
despite a report submitted earlier this

Roundup on page 24