Mail.Liberal-Judaism

• mdcsc!ah@uunet.uu.net (Alexander Herrera)

• CARIAN@american.edu

• Michael J. Snider <@mrgate.utc.com:MJS%A1@UTRC>

• levene@aplpy.jhuapl.edu (Robert A. Levene)
• mdcsc!ah@uunet.uu.net (Alexander Herrera)

• CARIAN@american.edu

Date: Wed, 9 Sep 92 13:21:58 PDT
From: mdcsc!ah@uunet.uu.net (Alexander Herrera)
Subject: Jews in Japan

I was fortunate enough to be in Tokyo, Japan on business. Although I spent a
week and a half there, I had only one day for sight-seeing. So what was the
first place I visited while in Japan? My wife and her mother had a bet as to
where I would go. My wife won the bet. I went to the synagogue. It is actually
called the Jewish Community of Japan (Nippon Judea Kyotan). I spent Sunday
morning there, but I was lucky enough to attend Shabbat morning services the
next week.

It's a three story building with the sanctuary on the third floor.
Unfortunately there is no morning minyon, but it is open every day and I think
some do meet for afternoon prayers. Kosher food is available through them and
they also have a list of hotels within reasonable walking distance for
Shabbat. Friday evening services are at 7:30 pm.  They seem to be set up for
visitors. In fact, half of the minyon Saturday morning were visitors. Services
were to start at 9:30 but actually didn't get going until 10:00. Everyone
speaks English.

It is a Conservative synagogue of about 150 families, but they have many
Orthodox members so the services are Orthodox so as to not exclude them. There
is a women's section, men's section and mixed. Most women sat behind the
divider.  One Israeli woman sat in the mixed section.  The men all sat in the
men's section. There was one man there who had traveled over 300 miles to
attend services. (Luckily there were more than enough for a minyon so I didn't
have to face the problem of "am I a Jew?" since I am a convert under Reform. I
refused an alliah out of respect to the Orthodox present.)

There were two questions pressing in my mind. First, which way did they pray?
With a big smile the Shamash said, "West!"  They pray in that direction
because it is the smallest distance to Jerusalem.

My other question was if there were Jewish Japanese nationals?  Apparently
there are no men although I saw one or two Japanese women behind the divider
and I heard a man speak of some Japanese women who attend services. The one
Japanese man praying with us was actually a Christian minister who was
studying Judaism. Most of the men at the minyon were Israelis and I assume
some South Africans or Australians.  They had a British-like accent but I may
be mistaken. I know one visitor was from London.

At the time I visited, there was no rabbi, but the members were quite capable
of running the service and they had hired a rabbi from Australia who was due
very soon (I assume for the High Holidays).

A kosher lunch was served (Tuna, egg salad, fruit...) and we went back for
afternoon services. All in all, I enjoyed my visit.

  Mailing address:

  Jewish Community of Japan
  8-8, 3 Chome, Hiro-o
  Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan

  Phone:

  3-3400-2559	    (calling within Japan)
  011-81-3-3400-2559  (calling from USA)

  Directions from subway (approx. 20 minute walk):

  Take the gray subway line (Hibiya Line) to the Hiro-o substation. In
  the station there is a map of the area. Look for the Nippon Judea
  Kyotan. It's near the Japan Red Cross Hospital (Don't ask me why they
  have the hospital's name in English and the synagogue's in Japanese).

  When you come to the surface you'll see a Famous Amos Cookie store and
  a sign for Heinekin Beer and Shakey's Pizza on the corner of a narrow
  street.  That's the street you want. Walk until a small street appears
  on the right. Go for it. It curves to the left. You'll be in a
  residential area. Traffic is coming from behind you so try not to get
  run over. :-)

  Turn right on the next cross street. You'll know it because there is a
  small cemetery on the left and the cross street is brightly colored
  because it curves. Walk until you see the Japan Red Cross Hospital on
  the right.  (It's white with a big red cross on it.) You are close. If
  you pass the hospital you've gone too far.

  You'll see a lot of cars and buses turning left down a street. There
  is a police box on the corner (but I wouldn't know one unless it hit
  me).  Turn left, and it is on the left. There is a large Mogan David on
  the building. It has a locked security gate. Press the door bell and
  someone will let you in. Enjoy!


Alex Herrera
uunet!mdcsc!ah

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Date: Thu, 10 Sep 92 12:38:47 EDT
From: CARIAN@american.edu
Subject: Re: Mitzvot, Kashrus and Reward

Regarding the kashrut of a piece of pork mixed in with two glatt kosher
steaks:

There is a majority principle at work in Jewish law. The Talmud rules, for
example, that if a piece of meat is found on the street and the majority of
butcher shops on that street are kosher the meat is kosher, because we may
assume that it came from one of the kosher stores. (This assumes there are no
identifying marks, i.e., it wasn't found in a bag from Ralph's Pork Shop or
something like that.

Similarly, if a foundling is found in an area where the majority of people are
Jewish we assume the baby to be Jewish. If it is found in a majority Gentile
area the baby is presumed Gentile.

Note that kashrut is not concerned here with "objective facts." The found meat
*is* kosher because the rabbis have said it to be so. It's not "treated as
kosher"; it's *kosher*.

Similarly it's possible for something to be both kosher and treif at the same
time, depending on who it belongs to. Certain defects in chickens would, in
the shtetl, cause the chicken to be declared treif if it belonged to a wealthy
person but kosher if it belonged to a poor person.

In the recent Rich's eclair debacle a similar situation developed. Rich's was
secretly adding a dairy ingredient to their supposedly parve eclairs.  It was
less than one-sixtieth, but since it is forbidden to *purposely* add less than
one-sixtieth the eclairs were dairy as they came from the factory; but for the
end-user they could have still be considered parve because of the one-sixtieth
rule, since the end-user didn't know the problematic ingredient had been
added. For this reason, most rabbis did not instruct people who had used the
eclairs as parve on their meat dishes to re-kasher them.

And yes, a woman can be a kosher butcher or even a shochet (slaughterer) or
mashgiach (kashrut supervisor). One can be an agent for a mitzva for which one
is obligated, and since women are obligated to keep kosher (at least in O and
C) they can be agents for kashrut.

Rabbi Charles Arian
CARIAN@american.edu

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Date: 10 Sep 1992 11:03:00 -0400 (EDT)
From: Michael J. Snider <@mrgate.utc.com:MJS%A1@UTRC>
Subject: Rov (majority) and Kavua (fixed)

I am sorry to have caused anyone confusion on account of my entry on Kashrus
laws - I apologize and will attempt to explain to the best of my ability.

Definitions:

 Bitul  nullified = a forbidden substance unintentionally *mixed* into another
        substance at least 60 times greater in volume, and which after the
        mixture, the two are indistinguishable (ie, I can't see the smaller
        amount, like if a piece of cheese dropped into my cholent [a meat
        dish, sort of a stew, eaten on Shabbes by many Jews] as opposed to a
        drop of milk).

 Rov    majority

 Kavua  fixed = will be explained

The Torah tells Jews to follow certain dietary restrictions.  These laws are
spiritual in nature, although the Rambam [Rabbi Moses ben Maimon, or
Maimonedes - a Medieval commentator] says that it was for health reasons and
everyone else argues with him.  In other words, it won't hurt me physically to
eat a cheeseburger (although I might throw up because my Yiddishe Momma, a
Conservative, drilled it into me that this is a disgusting concoction) but in
the spiritual realm, there are dire consequences of my actions.  This is
assuming that I know that I should not be mixing milk and meat, or eat pork,
etc.

The Torah is not so clear, however, on which birds are allowed, nor does it
elaborate on the milk/meat issue beyond "do not mix a kid in its mother's
milk."  It is begging for explanation, and I (along with many others) believe
that the Torah is the lecture notes and the Oral Law is the rest of THE
LECTURE (given at Mount Sinai).  Therefore, we turn to the Talmud for the
"meat" (excuse the pun) of the story.

As in nearly every other facet of Jewish life, the Gemorah discusses Kashrus
in depth and we learn from it how to conduct ourselves, how to get married and
divorced, when to circumsize a baby, etc. and what to do in 'grey' areas of
law, such as when a great financial loss will be involved in following the
strict letter of the law, or a stringincy accepted by the people as law.  For
instance, fowl - according to Torah law - is parave.  In other words, a
chicken and cheese sandwich would be allowable if I weren't bound (also by
Torah law) to follow the Rabbis, who made it meat because it resembles meat so
much that people would become confused...

Anyways, this is all essential background to the pork/glatt steak issue.
Because we learn in the Babylonian Talmud, Tractate Pesachim, (I believe
believe Page 8 or 9 b) that if there are 10 butcher shops, 9 are kosher and 1
is not, and I find a piece of meat in the street between them, I "go after the
majority" and, by higher mathematics, the meat is kosher.  If, however, I
bought the meat in one of the shops and simply *forgot* which shop it was,
behold: the options (shops) are "fixed" thereby the chances that the meat is
from a kosher shop are 50/50 and therefore the meat is not kosher (safek
d'oraissa l'chumra [a doubt in the case of a Torah law requires to take the
stringent option]).

Another: I am sitting on a bench and 10 people walk by.  9 are carrying
"regular" money, and one is carrying "maisser" money (the 1/10 which is
designated for charity/the temple and cannot be used except for that purpose).
If I find money on the ground after all ten walk by, the majority is OK and I
can spend it (assuming I attempt to find out whose it is and try to return it,
etc.).  If, however, I *saw* it fall out of someones pocket but forgot which
person it was, then the chances are 50/50 that it is maisser and therefore I
cannot spend it (safek d'oiraissa l'chumra [a doubt in the case of a Torah law
requires to take the stringent option]).

I hope that this helped.  With sincere thanks to all of you for a wonderful
summer, I regret to inform you that I will be unable to receive this net
anymore because I am going to Israel to learn for another year in Ohr Somayach
Yeshiva in Jerusalem.  I will try to get postings indirectly, through friends
and relatives who have computer accounts in Israel, but no promises.  I hope
to be back on next summer upon my return to Golus.

Mike Snider

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Date: Thu, 10 Sep 92 08:44:14 -0400
From: levene@aplpy.jhuapl.edu (Robert A. Levene)
Subject: Re: Yugoslavian dilemma

Daniel describes an incident in Russia in which Chabad worked to prevent
Reform acquisition of a building for a synagogue.

This incident was not at all about saving Liberal *Jews*, it was about saving
Liberal *Judaism*.

This has *nothing* to do with the innuendo at hand, namely that modern
ideological differences would cause inter-group bloodshed and intentionally
standing by as other Jews die.

Rob

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Date: Thu, 10 Sep 92 09:40:13 PDT
From: mdcsc!ah@uunet.uu.net (Alexander Herrera)
Subject: Re: Yugoslavian dilemma

levene@aplpy.jhuapl.edu (Robert A. Levene) writes: 

> It is unfair to criticize the orthodox for behavior which you think we
> *might* do, especially when history (such as the rescue of many Ethiopian
> Jews, whose halachic status was questionable according to some) demonstrates
> adherence to the principle that you "rescue first, ask questions later" when
> there's a chance that those in danger are Jewish.

The subject was what the Orthodox MIGHT do. Upon further reflection, I agree
that it is unfair, and I agree your example proves your point that the
Orthodox would come to the rescue of ANY Jews if possible.  Thank you for
setting me straight. I still stand on the criticism that the Orthodox seem
more interested in ritual than ethics to the same degree that Liberal Jews are
interested in ethics over ritual. Both need to meet in the middle.

Daniel Faigin <faigin@aero.org> writes that not ALL the Orthodox would come to
the rescue and cited a case of Lubavitchers preventing the transfer of a
building to be used as a Reform synagogue. This seems unrelated to the first
question since it is not life-threatening. The Lubavitchers' actions sound
more like jealousy and a little political backbiting though it is
disconcerting.

I often disagree with Chabad theologically, but they are not the
personification of Evil. Often in talking to a Reform Jew, I will mention
Chabad, and a change will overcome him. His face will tighten, his hands will
clench up into fists and his eyes will turn to slits.  After that all
meaningful conversation will cease. It's an odd reaction from people who
profess to be open to all ideas and to be inclusive rather than exclusive.

I have found Chabad to be an enthusiastic, loving, caring people on the whole.
They act when others just talk, and they have a passion and spirituality that
Reform Jews would do well to emulate. I sometimes think a Reform Chabad would
capture the imagination of young Liberal Jews and would sweep the Reform
movement. I think passion and spirituality is what most young Jews long for if
only they could get over their self-consciousness.

I am a member of a Reform congregation although last Sunday one of my friends
called it the most Conservative Reform synagogue in the United States.:-) He
may be right. The time I visited Rabbi Artson's Conservative synagogue I
thought his services were a little Liberal.  When I called our Rabbi to tell
him I was no longer a Reform Jew, his reply was, "Neither am I." Yet our
synagogue appeals to Reform Jews. Go figure.

[Note: I was not trying to say that Chabad would not come to the result of
Liberal Jews in trouble. All I was trying to say was (a) the hatred between
movements is not a good thing, and we should work for better relations; and
(b) although Jews as a whole would come to the rescue of any other Jew, there
are some who would not agree with the action. -- Daniel]

Alex Herrera
uunet!mdcsc!ah

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Date: Thu, 10 Sep 92 12:51:23 EDT
From: CARIAN@american.edu
Subject: Re: Yugoslavian dilemma (Lubavitch)

The alleged attempt of Lubavitch to prevent a Liberal congregation from
being given the use of a building doesn't surprise me at all.

During Prohibition in the United States religious authorities could get
"sacramental wine permits" for religious usage. In order to do so they
needed certification as legitimate clergy from their denomination.

The head of the Union of Orthodox Rabbis rushed to Washington to attempt
to make sure that only Orthodox rabbis could get sacramental wine permits.
Fortunately, he failed.

The whole issue is documented in the latest issue of American Jewish Archives,
one of the premier scholarly journals in American Jewish history.

Rabbi Charles Arian
CARIAN@american.edu

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"It is not our task as liberal Jews to complain about the Orthodox attitude or to be bullied by it, but rather to choose our legitimate path according to the inner logic and development of liberal Judaism" (Rabbi Walter Jacob)

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