Subscribe to Print Edition | Fri., July 11, 2008 Tamuz 8, 5768 | | Israel Time: 20:52 (EST+7)
Haaretz israel news English
web haaretz.com
  Back to Homepage
Rosner's Domain
Diplomacy
Defense Jewish World Opinion National
Print Edition
Car Rental
Books Peres Conference Business Real Estate Easy Start Travel Week's End Anglo File
We have had it up to here with the ultra-Orthodox
By Asher Maoz
Tags: ultra-Orthodox

These are painful statements, but they must be said loud and clear: Two peoples live in this land, both Jewish - they and we. They are the ultra-Orthodox, who see themselves as emissaries of God on earth. We are all the rest - secular, traditional and religious. It is not that we have suddenly separated; we never were one people. We tried to delude ourselves that we were. They knew all along that we were not.

What did we not do to preserve unity? We were ready to admit that they personified the true Judaism; we accepted marrying and divorce according to the laws of Moses and Israel based on their version; we accepted - willingly or gritting our teeth - limitations on our lifestyle; we agreed to ignore the status quo agreement that was wrung from us as hush money, so that they would not show up before the United Nations investigative committee and persuade it to prevent the establishment of the Jewish state; we sent our young men and women to defend them, while they spend their time at yeshivas or just wandering the streets; we agreed to support them, since after all they do not have time to work for a living; we even came to terms with their spitting at us, we whose "wagon is empty" while theirs is full.

All these things did us no good. They continued to take the fruits of our goodwill from us, while giving nothing in return. A unilateral treaty was created in which we give and they take.
Advertisement
They sold us the mendacious argument that we must give in to their whims to protect the unity of the people. This is a lie. The family trees are already on record. Have you ever seen an ultra-Orthodox person marry outside their own sub-group? They accept as obvious our willingness to accept limitations that are in opposition to our lifestyle and conscience. In exchange they belittle us, doubt our Judaism, do everything they can to make things hard for us and make Judaism, perhaps the greatest creation on earth, repulsive to us.

And now they have thrust the divorce papers in our faces. In one fell swoop, they have revoked the Judaism of a woman 15 years after she converted. Her children's Judaism was obviously also revoked. Could it have been someone who converted in a Reform rabbinic court, Heaven forbid? No, she was converted in Rabbi Haim Druckman's court, the head of the Bnei Akiva Orthodox youth movement and the head of the conversion court system. The Supreme Rabbinic Court was not satisfied until it had cast aspersions on all the conversions carried out by Rabbi Druckman, and declared them "null and void."

With the stroke of a pen the rabbinic court judges removed thousands of converts from the Jewish fold, they and their children, cursing and abusing Rabbi Druckman in the process. They did all this without looking at each case, and in opposition to every principle of halakha (Jewish law).

Rabbi Druckman does not need my defense. His religious observance is no less strict than that of the three religious court judges who slung mud at him, and his Torah learning is no doubt greater than any of theirs. Rabbi Druckman may have one fault: He has the "deficiency" of loving the Jewish people and a sense of responsibility for the Jewish people. I thought that the Torah commanded us to have such characteristics. It turns out that I was wrong, at least according to the three respected rabbinic court judges.

Therefore we have had it up to here with their insults. We are no worse Jews than they are. On the contrary: Good manners come before Torah. Humanness is not the antithesis of Jewishness, but rather stems from it. A person who bans his brother from their father's funeral just because he stopped observing ultra-Orthodoxy is no better a Jew than his brother, even if the ultra-Orthodox consider him the "father of morality." A person who does not mourn his brother's death has lost all image of humanity, even if he does so on instruction of the individual known as the greatest posek (ruler on Jewish law) of the generation.

A court that does not allow a woman to receive a divorce, leaving her "chained," an aguna, is hard-hearted. A court that dares revoke the Judaism of converts is acting against halakha. It should also be mentioned that these converts and their children have defended those hiding in the tent of Torah learning; those who dare challenge the converts' Judaism. Quite a few of them are buried in the military cemeteries throughout Israel after they gave up their lives to protect the people of Israel, including those who insult them after their death.

And who are we to complain? We made this happen. We appointed two rabbinic court judges, while ignoring the outcry of the women's movements, including Orthodox women's movements. Only recently we completed the roster of religious court judges, with most of the appointments coming from the ultra-Orthodox.

We were in such a hurry that the justice minister pushed through the appointments even though they did not meet the necessary conditions.

Have we learned? Have we come to our senses?
Bookmark to del.icio.us  
 
Photoshopped launch
Did Iran doctor an image of its provocative missile test launch?
'Hitler was a good boss'
Nazi bodyguard describes the fuhrer's last moments in a Berlin bunker.
  1.   One fault? 10:05  |  sh 05/05/08
  2.   You and WHOM???? 10:13  |  Binyamin Dissen 05/05/08
  3.   there are hareidis and there are hareidis 10:14  |  Moshe 05/05/08
  4.   members of meretz are far more hateful than hareidim 10:15  |  moshe 05/05/08
  5.   Unfortanately ... 10:18  |  Edith 05/05/08
  6.   Gut gezogt! (Well said!) 10:20  |  Yonatan 05/05/08
  7.   good points - beware of rascism and hate! 10:26  |  Moshe 05/05/08
  8.   To Number 1 10:30  |  Burned Liberal 05/05/08
  9.   God help you all. 10:35  |  Maureen Ann 05/05/08
  10.   Separation of religion and state 10:39  |  Yonatan 05/05/08
  11.   So, Asher, what do you want? Two states for 2 peoples? 10:41  |  Burned Liberal 05/05/08
  12.   True but, lets not go overboard and use broad 10:59  |  terms. 05/05/08
  13.   My fellow Jews Strive for Achdut/Derech Eretz 11:01  |  Abraham Saks 05/05/08
  14.   Ultra orthodox and secular left extremists 11:03  |  Dror 05/05/08
  15.   the ultra-orthodox make judaism repulsive PERIOD 11:24  |  samos 05/05/08
  16.   Edith said it best 11:33  |  robert 05/05/08
  17.   Chareidim must be reined in by the govt` or else 11:39  |  Rein M. In 05/05/08
  18.   benjamin dissen 2 11:39  |  potobac 05/05/08
  19.   If we want Jews to love their Judaism 11:41  |  Yonatan 05/05/08
  20.   We made this happen http://religionandstateinisrael.blogspot.com/ 11:41  |  Joel Katz 05/05/08
  21.   put an end to the tyranny of the rabbinate 12:07  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 05/05/08
  22.   Here is the solution: Two states 12:10  |  normal 05/05/08
  23.   I agree 12:45  |  hipolito 05/05/08
  24.   to Burned Liberal #8 - on mitzvot 12:56  |  zeev 05/05/08
  25.   MAUREEN .If you have nothing sensible to say 13:07  |  PETER SM 05/05/08
  26.   Flat rate welfare is the answer 13:10  |  arun 05/05/08
  27.   People are individuals: don`t classify them. 13:14  |  x-ray 05/05/08
  28.   Overall they`re good people 13:20  |  Dave 05/05/08
  29.   at last, sense prevails 13:22  |  ruth 05/05/08
  30.   To Zeev #24 13:30  |  Burned Liberal 05/05/08
  31.   arun in London 13:33  |  Dror 05/05/08
  32.   Try again :) to Zeev #24 13:40  |  Burned Liberal 05/05/08
  33.   We are all one big family 13:56  |  David G 05/05/08
  34.   samos 14:14  |  sweis Melbourne 05/05/08
  35.   Maureen 14:19  |  sweis Melbourne 05/05/08
  36.   sh @1 14:21  |  GABE1 05/05/08
  37.   ultraortodox 14:22  |  alberto gottlieb 05/05/08
  38.   Is this the start..... 14:25  |  Danite 05/05/08
  39.   #24 zeev - Let`s get some facts straight 14:27  |  Yonatan 05/05/08
  40.   The Midnight Ride Of Paul Revere 14:34  |  Jim 05/05/08
  41.   "Wonderful people" can have despiccable leaders 14:39  |  Yonatan 05/05/08
  42.   Yonatan at least has his history straight 14:53  |  Dror 05/05/08
  43.   #40 Jim: " the ultra-orthodix are coming!: 14:55  |  Yonatan 05/05/08
  44.   Haredim 15:11  |  Jacques 05/05/08
  45.   racism by Jews against Jews 15:19  |  tulli 05/05/08
  46.   Extremist,obnoxious,holier than thou people in all groups 15:29  |  Sam 05/05/08
  47.   #42 Dror - You ignored the last sentence of my #33 posting 15:31  |  Yonatan 05/05/08
  48.   #44 Jacques 15:34  |  Yonatan 05/05/08
  49.   The Rabbinate is not Judasim 15:34  |  Ofer Maimon 05/05/08
  50.   Cipora 21 & Zeev 24 . The practise of Judaism can be a matter 15:34  |  Akram Zekaria 05/05/08
  51.   tulli 15:44  |  Dror 05/05/08
  52.   take away their fancy robes 15:48  |  sylvia 05/05/08
  53.   Yonatan 15:54  |  Dror 05/05/08
  54.   The basic mistake 15:57  |  Tosefta 05/05/08
  55.   Ultra-Orthodox are a minority 15:58  |  Haldrik 05/05/08
  56.   Orthodoxy abd the Sate 16:20  |  MikeTs 05/05/08
  57.   The god of truth 16:20  |  wallace 05/05/08
  58.   One big family? - NOT 16:28  |  goldstar 05/05/08
  59.   It is not the Rabbis fault, if a convert fails to observe Judaism 16:33  |  AliciaYasmeen 05/05/08
  60.   Disengagement 2008-5768 16:33  |  Barry Schlesinger 05/05/08
  61.   haaaaretz ! it was mistake to love you ULTRAAAAA 16:45  |  ... 05/05/08
  62.   Barry Schlesinger 16:46  |  Ofer Maimon 05/05/08
  63.   LETS MAKE SOMETHING CLEAR, HAAAAAARETZ ! 16:47  |  ... 05/05/08
  64.   Religious Extremism starts 16:56  |  Abby 05/05/08
  65.   "Haredim and Haredim 17:05  |  DovEphraim 05/05/08
  66.   @63 ATILLA, WE LOVE YOU, WEATHER YOU LIK EIT OR NOT :-)` 17:06  |  SOMEONE YOU FORGOT 05/05/08
  67.   #1 sh licking the elephant 17:06  |  peter 05/05/08
  68.   #59, Alicia Yasmeen 17:32  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 05/05/08
  69.   Haredim donr carry bombs 17:34  |  sweis Melbourne 05/05/08
  70.   In addition to what Edith said 17:35  |  Uri 05/05/08
  71.   #67, peter