Comments on: Intermarriage in Egypt, Moms, Etc.

By: Rabbi David S. Gruber

Rabbi David S. Gruber — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 03:15:52 +0000

Thanks for picking up the Fried piece. It is indeed mind boggling. Here is how it started: The TJP’s cover story two weeks before this was about my journey from Orthodox rabbi to secular Jew, and how I help interfaith couples in Texas and the surrounding states, and officiate at their weddings. (It also had a big picture of Rabbi Lev Ba’esh!) Then, apparently, there was quite a storm in the Conservative and Orthodox communities here, followed by a good number of letters to the editor, the biggest one being a letter signed by 50 Orthodox rabbis in the area condemning the TJP and me for legitimizing interfaith marriage. (I didn’t think 50 Orthodox rabbis could agree on any one thing, but apparently I was wrong…)

I digress, but Fried’s piece is typical of his other very one sided columns. For instance, when asked about abortion, he gave only the very conservative approach that exists in Orthodox Jewish law, as if it was the only one. That is par for the course in today’s Ultra Orthodox Judaism, where a “my way or the highway” attitude coupled with ignoring mainstream legitimate opinions in Jewish law is the norm.

The Ask the Rabbi column was the icing on the cake. As I said before in comments here, the Ultra Orthodox must resort in many instances to circular reasoning, and other mental gymnastics to maintain their pronounced cognitive dissonance. This was another good example of this.

By: Alicia Brito

Alicia Brito — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 20:35:06 +0000

by not looking up to people who have intermarried - unless there is a conversion of Judaism or a healthy respect for Judaism with the kids really being raised in the Jewish faith.

By: h.

h. — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 19:17:40 +0000

after reading some of the comments posted in regards to Forman’s article (as well as the one Shmuley Boteach wrote about a possible Birthright trip for non-Jews), i felt like i was going to throw up. do these people honestly think they’re going to save the Jewish people with vitriolic comments towards others? if so, they must be out of their minds.

the idea that Forman and Boteach are proposing contains endless possibilities for promoting Judaism and Israel to both Jews and non-Jews. Israel trips are known for having considerable influence on young people. even if they don’t wind up marrying other Jews, they still have lasting memories of a unique experience to share with the ones they love. isn’t this what we want, to draw people in rather than chase them away? of course it is! yet there are still those who are caught in this massive fog that in-marriage is the ONLY way to ensure Jewish survival and that converts are not good enough. i disagree with that statement. but i also do not agree that intermarriage contributes to the survival of Jews (although it does often re-ignite long dormant sparks in the Jewish partner to re-acquaint themselves with Jewish life). both of these viewpoints are flawed. so what is the solution? i don’t know. but i do know that hostility isn’t involved in it.

like the astrological sign Gemini, Judaism is known for its stubborn nature. this trait can be a positive and a negative (i am a Gemini, so i know how it is). on the positive end, we have survived all these years because of our stubborn behavior and resistance of our enemies. on the negative end, we are failing to move into the future because of the contempt that Jews have for each other. plain and simple, no two Jews are ever alike.
we need to respect that, even if we don’t agree with it. we can’t completely stop intermarriage. therefore, we must do our best to retain everyone whether they are in-married or intermarried, converting or simply raising Jewish children.