Letters to the Editor

There Is More to Say About Rav Shmuel Auerbach, zt’l

Dear Editor,

I believe the author lost all credibility in his “eulogy” of Rabbi Auerbach (“Rav Shmuel Auerbach, zt’l: An Appreciation,” March 9) by not mentioning the one item that he’s most famous for in the past year. As the head of the Peleg movement, he was singlehandedly responsible for the violent demonstrations in Jerusalem and Bnei Brak, in which his talmidim sit in the streets during rush hour and block cars, buses, and even ambulances all “l’shem Shamayim.”

One decree from Rabbi Auerbach for them to terminate their disrespectful behavior and it all would have stopped. But he never did. I find it to be disrespectful of the readership of the 5TJT for you to write a five page eulogy on him and not mention this at all.

Thank you,

Joel Rothman

Buyer Beware

Dear Editor,

The longstanding custom among Ashkenazic Jews is to refrain from eating kitniyos, loosely termed “legumes,” on Pesach. This category of foods includes, but is not limited to, beans, peas, corn, and certain seeds such as mustard seeds.

The custom among Sephardic Jews varies from community to community; some are relatively lenient, others are stricter. In recent years, some kosher certifying agencies (including the largest, the Orthodox Union) have begun to certify kitniyos as kosher for Pesach.

While logic dictates that there is nothing wrong with kitniyos being approved for Sephardim, I wish to point to a serious michshol (stumbling block). I was in the Pesach aisle at my local Stop & Shop and saw mustard, by a company called Shneider’s, bearing the StarK symbol without an indication of Passover approval. There is a corresponding certification, in Hebrew, from Rabbi Eliezer Schneebalg of London. Underneath these hechsherim, in English and Hebrew, is a certification from the Badatz Beit Yosef of Israel. This certification includes the words “Kosher for Passover kitniyoth.”

While a learned person may grasp the kitniyos limitation, one not so discerning may reasonably conclude that this product is permitted to all Jews for Pesach and that it is endorsed as such by the StarK, one of our country’s most respected kashrus symbols.

Yet such is not the case: the Star K’s certification does not include Pesach! The potential for error is large.

A more egregious example is a tahini product that is imported by Lieber’s Chocolates, a leading brand in the heimishe foods segment. This product carries no major certification. It does, however, have a large sticker that states, in English, “Kosher for Passover.” Nowhere on the package does it state, in English, that the product is kitniyos. One must know how to read the Hebrew (or be aware that sesame is kitniyos) to make that determination. Needless to say, it is highly misleading for Lieber’s to market this product.

I ask kosher consumers to pay extra attention this season while doing their Pesach shopping.

Avi Goldstein
Far Rockaway, New York

Another Perspective on AIPAC

Dear Editor,

The premise of your article (“AIPAC and Two States,” March 9) that one cannot support a so-called two-state solution with Jerusalem as Israel’s capital is not only simplistic, but wrong on its face.

These viewpoints are not mutually exclusive, and approaching peace as a zero sum game will not only delay it, but has and will prevent it.

What is disingenuous is the implication in your article that those who objected to AIPAC’s support for the two-state solution, contrary to the position of a majority of Israelis and I daresay a majority of Orthodox Jews (but perhaps not of your readers), would under any circumstances ever support a two-state solution.

While most supporters of Israel (not only your paper’s readers) agree with President Trump finally moving the U.S. Embassy, I am less sanguine of what will happen to Israel’s interests when the pillars of bipartisanship historically supporting Israel come crashing down with this president.

Respectfully submitted,

Jacob (Jake) Steiner
Woodmere, New York

Educating Against Abuse

Dear Editor,

Thank you for your excellent and timely article on spousal abuse (“Spousal Abuse and Halachah,” March 9). We are very lucky to have someone like Rabbi Yair Hoffman teaching in a girls’ school in our community, writing articles that bring current events into a Torah perspective, and continually addressing many other community projects and klal needs.

If I may add, I think that one of the reasons people don’t realize that ona’as devarim — verbal abuse, and even physical abuse — applies in a marriage is because our children are inculcated daily from preschool to have wonderful middos, such as being mevater (giving in to preserve the peace), being dan l’kaf z’chut (giving the benefit of the doubt), and not speaking lashon ha’ra (negative speech).

When they get older they are taught that mesirut nefesh (sacrificing for shalom) and “isha kesheirah osah retzon ba’alah” (a good woman does the will of her husband) are ideals that they should strive to reach.

As my teacher and supervisor Mrs. Lisa Twerski, LMSW, has stated, these middot without the proper boundaries and limits are like a blank check — everyone knows that can be very dangerous. We need to teach our children clearly that their beautiful middot are not there to support someone else’s bad middot, and putting up with dangerous behavior is not mesirut nefesh.

Many Jewish abusers will use religion to intimidate their victims and keep them in place. We need to empower our girls and boys with clear guidelines of what’s right and what’s wrong, and teach them to trust themselves that when something feels wrong it probably is.

In these situations the Shalom Task Force can be contacted for advice, referrals, or just to answer questions of whether or not what they are experiencing is dangerous.

The examples Rabbi Hoffman gave in his article listing certain statements often said by (too) many spouses were clear and specific. Unfortunately, many people who would recoil in horror if one of their own would eat a hotdog with a glass of milk but would look askance at Rabbi Hoffman’s examples and minimize them by saying, “Oh, it’s not so bad,” “He or she was just having a bad day,” or “You have to be more [fill in the blank] or better at [fill in the blank], and your spouse won’t get so upset.”

I am well aware that it goes both ways, and men and women alike can suffer abuse from their spouses or financially supporting in-laws. We are living in times in which these issues have to be dealt with head-on. Thank you for bringing it up and I hope that the conversation continues.

Mimi Samuels
Lawrence, NY
Presenter for Shalom Task Force Education Program

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