The following article appears in this weeks Brooklyn Paper:
Get this: an Orthodox Jew and five other Council candidates are invited to a Methodist church for a meeting.
But Isaac Abraham, an activist in North Brooklyn’s Satmar community who is vying to succeed Councilman David Yassky (D–Williamsburg), will not attend the Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats’ endorsement forum on April 23 because it will take place in the basement – not the sanctuary – of the Park Slope United Methodist Church.
“I asked my rabbi and [he said] it was better that I not go,” said the devout Democrat, who is one of six candidates for the 33rd Council District, which includes Brooklyn Heights, Greenpoint and parts of Williamsburg, Boerum Hill, and Park Slope.
“Maybe I’ll be attacked for my position and maybe I’ll get some criticism, but that comes with the territory,” said the hardware store owner and tenants’ rights activist.
Abraham was right about one thing: the criticism is already coming.
CBID President Lucy Koteen, who organized the event, said that Abraham’s failure to attend would raise serious questions about his ability to hold office in a secular, multi-cultural city.
“How can someone who has so many restrictions on his life represent us?” she asked. “When you are on City Council, you have to go to funerals — if someone gets shot, are you not going to go because it’s a Catholic church?”
Koteen said that the group chose the basement of the Eighth Street church not because of its religious affiliation, but because it is conveniently located, inexpensive to rent, and her group has held successful events there before.
“It isn’t a religious space to my eyes, but of course I’m not looking from that perspective,” she said. “I’m sure this isn’t the first place where Isaac is going to run into these problems.”
The other five candidates are expected to attend the smoke-free endorsement forum, which is used during the day by a neighborhood pre-school. That secular use, however, did not deter Abraham from practicing his faith his way.
“The meeting is in the same building as the church, so it’s better off that I don’t start bending rules,” said Abraham, who in the past has stood outside of churches during funerals so as not to violate Jewish law. “The most appropriate thing for me to do is not attend.”
Abraham’s rabbi could not be reached for comment, but other rabbis told The Brooklyn Paper that many Orthodox worshippers follow a Jewish law that bars them from entering churches — even for secular events.
Because their candidate cannot attend the forum, some Abraham supporters say that CBID should hold off on endorsements altogether.
“How could they give an endorsement without listening to him?” said Isac Weinberger.
And the man who once held the seat being sought by Abraham’s candidacy should be judged on his politics — not his faith.
“The Constitution provides that there should be no religious test for elected office,” said former Councilman Ken Fisher, now a lobbyist.
Fisher suggested that with good staffing, hard work, and a policy of meeting constituents outside of religious establishments, Abraham’s religious convictions need not interfere with his Council responsibilities.
“That is the least of Isaac’s problems,” he added. “The bigger political obstacle is articulating his views in a way that appeals to anyone outside of a narrow part of the district. … It’s what’s under the yarmulke that counts, and not the yarmulke itself.”
Money might be another hurdle for Abraham.
The Hassidic candidate was the best-funded Council hopeful in January, but his war chest is now the second smallest in the race.
According to campaign papers filed on March 16, Abraham has raised $24,127 and spent $15,377 — leaving him with only $8,750 left in his coffers.
Only Ken Baer, a former head of the New York State chapter of the Sierra Club lags behind Abraham, with $7,820 in his war chest.
Leading the fight for funding is Steve Levin, chief of staff for Assemblyman Vito Lopez, who has $61,041 cash on hand.
Former Yassky staffer Evan Thies — who was snubbed by Yassky this week when his one-time boss told Crain’s that he would not endorse any candidate in the race — has $34,074 in campaign funds remaining.
Behind Thies are Ken Diamondstone, who has $28,279 on hand; and Democratic District Leader Jo Anne Simon, who started her campaign with a December mailing blitz and has $26,371 of cash on hand.
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16 Responses
If Mr. Abraham got that p’sak from his Rav, then he is correct to abide by it
…and Ms. Koteen, in turn, is justified is questioning whether “someone who has so many restrictions on his life [can] represent us?”
Her concerns may not be valid, but the question is valid.
It always amuses me when frum people want to be frum and then expect the surrounding society to be frum as well.
We have a right to run for office, and we have a right to practice our religion, but we do not have a right to tell the CBID where to hold it’s meeting.
It’s really as simple as that.
Mr. Abraham seems to get it. He is sticking to his p’sak and willing to accept the criticism.
Good for him. Why should he have to go in a church to attend a debate? If anything it proves he’s a man who stands by his convictions and Emunas Chachamim (his Rav advised against) he can still be a very effective politician. He has my vote. Think about it, most politicians will do anything, say anything, and go anywhere to get elected, this man takes a stand and his opponents are cynically using this saying “how can he represent all of us if he won’t walk into a church?”
A person who is on council represents his district in particular, but he or she also represents the entire city or borough and this has a responsibility to look out for the good of all, not just frum individuals from his own community, and if he can’t go to where the people are….he should not be a candidate to represent them!
What if Christians, agnostics, and athiests refused to liberate the concentration camps of Germany through out Europe? Hashem created everybody and loves the entirety of his creation. Many people who are not frum jews are not such because they were born of parents of whom they had no choice. They should not be punished or hated for that reason alone.
This is a Kiddush Shem Shamayim of a great magnitude. I would like to stand up for Mr. Abraham and shake his hand. The biggest type of Kiddush Hashem is to publicly demonstrate the correct behavior to other Yidden.
May this be a kapara for that “Orthodox” Jew who blatantly went into a Washington church not to long ago.
Kol hakuvod!! this is a real candidate that sticks to his faith..
To all of those yutzes who criticize me for always pointing the finger and labeling anti-semitism, what is this? Xenophobia maybe?
Why yes, “Flatbush Bubby”. It IS xenophobia when a Christian who would walk into a shul without a second thought criticizes a Jew who won’t walk into a church basement for a political meeting.
If the event is not in the sanctuary of the church,but in the basement,a conference hall,it IS permitted.In many neighborhoods voting takes place in church halls and shul halls,and we go.with the haskomo of our rabbonim. One does not have to be ‘over-frum’.
What a slanted article!
1) The opening: “Get this:” is pure editorializing.
2) Second paragraph: “in the basement – not the sanctuary” If the purpose of the article is to point out that Abraham is not attending the conference, why is it necessary to emphasize that it’s not in the tinuf itself but in its basement?
3) Paragraph 5: “Abraham was right about one thing” slanted
4) It’s only well into the second half of the article, at which point many readers will have stopped reading, that they present the opposing view.
If the psak of the rabbonim iof KAJ in WH is that you may go then go ahead, we will respect your following your Rav’s psak. You should do the same to him when he gets a psak otherwise.
to #& achristian desnt have a shulchu urech to follow…we do. do you know what shuchen urech is?
to 8 who are your rabbonim..my rav said,my rebbe said etc..what is this every 2 min something comes up on discussion you run to your rav,rebbe spititual ..and ask.i dont believe they’ll put up with this. you just say ‘my rave sid..so if you dont name him ….
No one’s pumped up about his being a democrat. I guess that’s NY politics…
“His ability to articulate” how right that is… and how remiss we are in educating our children in the proper language of our country. No surprise that doors don’t open automatically.
#16, you are right on the money!!
#11 YOU AND DASS TORAH ARE 2 OPISITE HEMISPHERES