views
pro
con
Let’s Arm Ourselves No Guns in Shul
O
n Oct. 27, 2018, at 9:54 a.m. in Squirrel
Hill, Pa., our world changed. The place of
our fellowship, our second home, where we
share our faith and heart, was violated; and I swear
I felt the Earth shift beneath my feet.
While such an occurrence has happened in
Europe and Israel, on our soil, it
feels unprecedented. We pretend not
to be shocked, but in spite of our
faith in the greater good, anti-Semi-
tism, racism and hatred do exist. The
question now lies in how to best pro-
tect against it. As the author of New
York Times bestseller The Hunt and
David Farbman
a lifelong hunter, I do have a strong
stance on this matter.
While it is perhaps uncommon in a Jewish
household, I became comfortable with firearms in
our home at a young age. Despite the rarity of my
upbringing, I am only one of
many parents who take great
comfort in the highly trained
armed guards watching over
our children at Hillel Day School on a regular basis.
We can all agree nothing is more important than
protecting our kids.
That same security should extend to all our
brothers, sisters, mothers and grandfathers in this
amazing Jewish community and all Jewish com-
munities. The safety of our community is the most
important priority of all. Without the certainty of
knowing we did our best to protect our past, pres-
ent and future, how can we move forward?
Political parties and gun beliefs aside, I’ve spoken
with several people from our community on this
topic and have yet to find anyone who is opposed
to more protection. In fact, through the years, I
have heard different local philanthropists talk about
wanting to fund safety and security at places of
faith, all faiths. Now is the time for our community
to have this conversation.
Some options may be actual members of the con-
gregation, properly trained with firearms as well as
psychological awareness and preparedness, to carry
concealed weapons at shul. Posting armed guards
and potentially metal detectors at the entrances are
other measures to consider. Hopefully, taking such
action might help us prevent tragic events like the
one in Squirrel Hill from happening here. ■
I
was shaken by the Pittsburgh massacre, as we all were; noth-
ing like it had occurred in an American synagogue in most of
our lifetimes. If we were complacent before Pittsburgh, in its
aftermath we are not. Before we had even processed our sorrow,
synagogue security, always a concern, became a top agenda item
at congregations around the country. How could it not?
Responses at some synagogues have included
police or armed plainclothes security. I even heard
suggestions that congregants with concealed carry
permits be allowed to carry weapons in shul.
But though we are shaken from our compla-
cency, we should be careful not to overreact. The
call for armed security is an overreaction. It’s also
an ineffective solution. As awful as the Pittsburgh
Jeff Silver
massacre was, it is remarkable in part because
such attacks on American synagogues are rare. In
the last 60 years, more than 3,000 American synagogues have held
more than 10 million Shabbat services. In that time, service-goers
were attacked at shul three times: the 1958 bombing of Atlanta’s
Hebrew Benevolent Congregation (no
casualties), the 1960 attack on Temple
Beth Israel in Gadsden, Ala. (2 injuries, no
deaths) and Pittsburgh last month.
While overall anti-Semitic incidents appear to be on the rise in
recent years, violent attacks like Pittsburgh are not. To the extent
that others might have similar designs, like the man arrested in
Toledo last week, law enforcement — as the Toledo arrest showed
— is already a first line of defense.
Synagogues around the country already have many other secu-
rity measures in place. Government grants are available to assist
houses of worship in improving their security. Both the USCJ and
the URJ have resources to assist the congregations with security.
There is no need to turn our synagogues into armed camps.
Nor would doing so really increase our security. As the
Thousand Oaks shooting showed just 10 days after Pittsburgh,
a single security guard carrying a concealed sidearm is a sitting
duck for a well-armed terrorist who knows to shoot the guard first
and would do so without hesitation or compunction. Any sense of
security that such a guard provides is illusory.
Allowing congregants to come to shul armed would be more
problematic still. A synagogue is not in a position to vet the men-
tal health or shooting ability of concealed carry permit holders.
Shooting at a range is no preparation for responding under the
stress of an actual attack, and the risk of innocent victims dying
in crossfire from a fellow congregant’s weapon exacerbates rath-
er than diminishes the overall risk. With armed congregants, it
becomes difficult for police responding to assess which of the
shooters are the good guys.
The Department of Homeland Security guidelines for respond-
ing to an active shooter, recognizing these risks, instruct people
to flee if possible, to hide if flight is impossible and, only as a last
resort, to fight.
We should be vigilant. We should be prudent. But we should
not be armed. It is impossible to build a Shabbat of Peace at the
OK Corral. ■
point/counterpoint
David Farbman is CEO of HealthRise Solutions, founder and chair-
man of Carbon Media Group and a principal in NAI Farbman as
well as a best-selling author.
Jeff Silver is on the Board of Trustees and is a past president at
Congregation Beth Ahm.
8
December 20 • 2018
jn
letters
continued from page 6
Helping Poland
Thank you for having Stacy Gittleman
cover the story of Yad Ezra’s efforts
to help start a kosher food pantry in
Poland. As president of Yad Ezra’s
board of directors, the idea of helping a
re-emerging Jewish community was an
opportunity that spoke to me directly
and one that I felt was very important
for our board to consider.
It is estimated that there are 200
Jewish families currently living in
and around Warsaw who struggle
financially to put kosher food on their
tables. The executive committee mem-
bers and I considered this opportunity
and decided to bring it to the attention
of the board of directors. After several
thoughtful discussions, the board
voted unanimously to approve moving
forward with the project.
For those who wish to join us in
support of this initiative, call Yad Ezra’s
office (248) 548-3663 or go to our
website: www.yadezra.org/helping-
hand-of-warsaw or crowdrise.com/
yadezrahelpingpoland.
— Jeffrey Supowit,
Yad Ezra President
You Can’t Have
it Both Ways
Regarding Dr. Mark Kinzer’s response
to Rabbi Jason Miller. While Dr
Kinzer’s comments were articulate and
sincere, I would simply submit that if
he believes in the virgin birth of Jesus
of Nazareth, that Jesus was the son
of God, that he died on the cross for
humankind’s sins, that he rose from
the dead, and that there will be his
second coming, then Dr Kinzer is, by
all definitions, a Christian!
It seems to me that “Messianic Jews”
or “Jews for Jesus” want the best of
both worlds: to maintain a semblance
of Jewish identity and a belief in Chris-
tian doctrine. By doing so, it trivializes,
denigrates and is insensitive to both
Christianity and Judaism. Ultimately, if
one wishes to be considered a Messi-
anic Jew, “truth in advertising” would
require admission to actually being a
Christian, though embracing Jewish
traditions as well. One cannot be a
little bit pregnant.
— Michael Schulman
Bloomfield Hills