Shalom from very sunny and warm Jerusalem. A valentine's day treat of 75 degree weather... Not too shabby.
Mark your calendars... yesterday, February 13th, 2010, was my first D'var Torah (sermon) at HUC. Below are my words. Thoughts, issues, praises, let me know what you think.
All the best,
ERBP
Mishpatim 2010—Ethan Prosnit
There is an old joke that a rabbi is hired for a new job at a synagogue and on the first day of the Rabbi’s work, the temple president walks into his office and says rabbi, we are so happy that you are here. I just wanted let you know the minhag hamakom of our synagogue. The Board of Directors and I made a decision along time ago that you can talk about any subject on the pulpit, as along as it isn’t about politics or religion. [Pause] Shabbat Shalom…. [Pretend to leave the lectern]
So this Shabbat, I’m going to break those two rules and discuss Judaism and politics. I know mixing them is controversial, but the interplay between our religion and political activism is one that I have been contemplating, one that I have been discussing with many of my classmates, and one that I believe is extremely important as future Jewish professionals. Do we? Can we? Should we? Preach politics from the pulpit?
My answer is an unequivocal yes!
David Klingoffer, a former columnist for the Forward, writes, "we deserve rabbis who will serve as guides to understanding the worlds of personal and public life--the spiritual, the mystical, the ethical, the sexual, the familial, the legal and, yes, the political - in a word, everything.” This is a tall order. Yet, as Reform Jewish leaders we have a responsibility to look at our Jewish traditions within the context of our modernized world. We cannot be afraid of tackling issues like abortion, health care, or gun control. Of course we shouldn't base all of our sermons or lessons on New York Times or Wall Street Journal articles. It is important to speak about God, spirituality, and Shabbat practice. However, this does not preclude us from addressing these hot-button issues and sharing how our ancient texts address them. In order to be effective Rabbis we need to know, understand and appreciate the political issues and cultural mores of our society and offer a nuanced Jewish angle on those hot-button issues.
Reform synagogues have always taken positions on both Jewish and universal human rights issues, active in the fight for civil rights, health care for all, and economic injustices. Judaism imparts this civic duty. Our role as future Jewish professionals is to promote this within our communities. However, when we do preach politics, it needs to be in a thoughtful and balanced way. We may not be experts in economics, health care policy, or national security, but we do have expertise (or at least we will) in our Jewish tradition and text. When we preach about these political and moral issues, we must do it through a Jewish lens. We should look at the Torah to find the interplay between the ancient words and our lives. We should explain where modern Jewish thinkers stand on issues. And we should even connect our communities to political Jewish organizations like the Republican Jewish Coalition and the National Jewish Democratic Council. Regardless of our political orientation, our tradition teaches us " Tzedek tzedek tirdoph.” “Justice, justice, you shall pursue." As Jews, we are advocates for justice and we must seek it.
In this week's Torah portion, Mishpatim, in which we read the first Biblical civil code, one of these crucial issues emerges. Last week, the Israelites received the Ten Commandments. This week, God expands upon them and gives Moses additional rules that the children of Israel should follow. This biblical civil code was used during the time of Moses, and today, some continue to use these laws as proof texts to support their political agendas. The abortion debate is one such political issue that is raised through this code, and one that serves as an example this morning of how we can use our text as an entry point into political discourse: . Exodus 21:22 reads…
“If men fight, and they push a pregnant woman and she miscarries, but no other injury occurs, the one responsible shall be fined. But if other injuries ensue, the penalty shall be life for a life, eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, hand for a hand…
When reading Mishpatim, I was expecting to find pro-life groups using this civil code but was surprised to find that pro-choice groups use these verses to support their position. In this verse, we learn that a woman who miscarries as a result of being accidentally injured by two fighting men, is given monetary compensation for her pregnancy. Yet, if the injury is fatal to the woman, the punishment is much more severe: a life for a life. Rabbis during the Rabbinic time period, as well as today's Pro-Choice advocates interpret this passage as a fetus in not worthy of the "life for a life" punishment required if the woman herself is killed. A fetus is not accorded the same legal status as the woman herself.
But like many political issues, this section of the Torah seems ambiguous. Pro-life groups look at our ancient words and question the silence of our tradition on the issue of abortion. With the exception of this verse in Exodus, the Tanakh is mute on the issue of abortion. Rabbi Daniel Schiff, the author of Abortion in Judaism, attributes this silence to the orientation of the Israelite tradition, which places a great emphasis on the mitzvah of procreation. פְּרוּ וּרְבוּ, “Be fruitful and multiply,” the very first commandment of the Torah. Pro-Life activists question, how could we ever look at the Torah and come to the conclusion that it supports abortion when it always promotes procreation?
So there we have it – a major complex political issue. Vastly different opinions from our tradition. Sounds very Jewish.
Personally, I cannot attribute my beliefs on reproductive rights to either the words from our parasha or the commandment "To Be fruitful and multiply." My opinions have been shaped by other forces including my upbringing, my education, and my reform Jewish values. Abortion, like many political issues, is a tricky subject, replete with passion on both sides of the debate. Pro-choice and pro-life activists can both use words from the Torah to support and argue their sides. Given that our text often allows us the ability to support or condemn an action based on our interpretation of the text, how can I use the Torah responsibly in response to modern day hot button issues when I am leading a community?
Of course, preaching from the pulpit in Israel is different than preaching from the pulpit in the United States. I realize that in Israel, it is acceptable, if not expected to discuss politics from the bima but the church-state separation clause found in the US Constitution presents a different set of challenges for US clergy. The key legal limitation on synagogues set by the separation clause, is that synagogues cannot spend one penny, or one second of staff time, supporting or opposing a candidate or party. I believe that this is a good law: as the last thing that we need is to tear our communities apart over which candidate or issue they should oppose or support.
Yet, Rabbi Saperstein, the director of the Religious Action Center in Washington, does not believe that this negates congregations and communities from being involved with politics. When Saperstein was asked whether politics belongs on the Bima, he answered, “Issues, not individuals, Policies not partisanship, Concerns, not candidates. These guidelines should direct synagogues as they chart their critical roles in political activism… By sticking to issues and not candidates, synagogues can fulfill our obligation of prophetic witness without violating the law.”
So, my hope is that when I am hired at my first congregation, that the temple president comes to my office and says, "Rabbi, we are so happy that you are here. We just wanted to let you know the Minhag HaMakom of the synagogue. The board of directors and I decided along time ago that you can discuss any subject on the pulpit, and don’t be afraid to broach religion and politics. We believe that the synagogue is a place for respectful debate, and a place where we can look at the Torah and see how to incorporate it into our lives.
Shabbat Shalom
