The following is from the Cleveland Jewish News website: Debbie Isaak-Shapiro is the newest member of Cleveland’s “kosher nostra.” The first female mashgichah (kosher supervisor) in town can often be found checking food labels, perusing the inside of cupboards, scanning refrigerators, emptying dishwashers, and ensuring the rules of kashrut are exactly followed at Congregation B’nai Jeshurun.
Isaak-Shapiro, who is shomer Shabbos (Sabbath observant) and has always kept kosher, comes by her position as a mashgichah naturally. Her father was the shammes (sexton) at the family’s shul in San Francisco, and her mother was the premier kosher caterer in town. “I grew up in a busy kosher kitchen, and Judaism and performing mitzvot have always been an integral part of my life,” says Isaak-Shapiro, the wife of Agnon’s Head of School Jerry Isaak-Shapiro.
Kashrut is one of the few areas of Orthodox Jewish life where women have the same legal status as men. Unlike with rabbis or cantors, Jewish law holds that an observant woman has the authority to supervise kosher standards in a kitchen.
“I have a thorough working knowledge of what keeping kosher entails and how to organize a kitchen according to the laws of kashrut and Shabbat,” says Isaak-Shapiro. “One of my greatest joys is explaining why Jews keep kosher. I help people understand how keeping kosher raises a person’s conscious level of God’s presence in all we do.”
Isaak-Shapiro’s workweek depends on the activity in the synagogue kitchen. “Whenever there is an event, no matter the size, I must check every single food item that comes into the kitchen and guarantee it has an approved heksher (kosher seal of approval),” she says. “At B’nai Jeshurun, there is a meat and dairy kitchen and so I’m extra vigilant that all cooking utensils and non-pareve food products are completely separated.”
The mashgichah’s eagle eyes must determine that chicken eggs do not have blood spots before they are used in cooking, and she must leaf through vegetables making sure there are no forbidden insects.
Click HERE to read the full story at Cleveland Jewish News website.
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24 Responses
Every woman who takes care of her strictly kosher kitchen is a “mashgiach”.
Congreagtion Benei Jeshurun is not an orthodox shul in cleveland, it is conservative. The article at The cleveland jewish news, equates this and the star-k precedent. They have no shaychus. Star-k is a recognized kashrus organazation with oversight. this is a conservative shul that hired a lady to be mashgicha.
YW editor, this is an embarrasement to YW readers in Cleveland, as if this is accepted practice.
Many out of town kashruth organizations [Chicago, Baltimore, Atlanta, etc. ] use women mashgiachot. It is accepted and there is no reason why not as long as the women learns the relevant halachos and it is an appropriate environment.
Many women know more about hilchos kashrus from cooking than the average kollel avreich or yeshiva bochur who learn very little halacha.
to cleve (2); do you find it “bad’ that a conservative shul wants to keep kashrus “kehalocho” and engages an orthodox woman for this purpose? Or are you only interested in kashrus for a narrow circle of “heimishe’ people. I would have thought you would applaud this move by a non-orthodox shul, who, thereby, ackowledges that hilchis kashrut must still be followed “kehalocho”.
There is no such thing as a Conservstive “shul”. He must’ve meant a Conservative church.
Debbby shapiro is a descent Jewish name, but rabbi Stephen Weiss is a cursed name in the Jewish world.Why does that tumah need KASHRUS IF TORAH SHBALPEH IS NOT MIN HASHAMAYIM.#3 HOW COULD YOU TRUST HER IF SHE CANT SEE THE DIFFERENCE?
I wouldn’t trust a conservative with a cup of water!!!!
The need for mashgichim is growing. May the best man/woman do the job.
Comments 5, 6, and 7 are utterly appalling. It’s no wonder we are running into as many problems these days as we are…
I’m ashamed to be associated with some people…some of you are no more “frum” than the people that you’re talking about, because you have no idea how to speak of your brethren.
#6 – Please don’t use the title rabbi before the Reform Stephen Wise’s accursed name. He is singlehandedly responsible for untold deaths during the holocaust.
Rav Moshe Feinstein published a teshuvah in his Igros Moshe that one may not pray, even in an “orthodox” minyan if it is housed in a non-orthodox “shul.”
Likewise, I believe, he prohibits a shamash to work in such a “shul.”
Are you ashamed of Rav Moshe as well? Was he also not frum? Did he also not know how to talk to people?
You must come to the realization that halachah determines what is proper and what is not, not Miss Manners or Ann Landers.
Weiss was who he was. It’s all on the record.
A chashud is not believed in matters of kashrus. A chashud.
So 5, 6, and 7 are correct.
Most conservative shuls do keep a kosher kitchen, and would thus need a mashgiach. So it’s good that they have an orthodox one. And of course there’s no reason why this woman shouldn’t have taken the job. Since she is a kosher Jew, her word is enough to assure even the frummest Jew that the food in that place is kosher, even if the davening isn’t. #6 is right that the “rabbi” of that place is posul le’edus, and his word can not be accepted; that’s precisely why it’s so good that this woman is there.
Comments 5, 6, and 7 are 100% correct.
Conservative “Judaism” is not Judaism, as it violates the Torah, and a Conservative “Synagogue” is not a Synagogue.
#5: It’s a shame that you don’t see a difference between Yidden who are “Conservative” and non-Jews.
They are still are brothers and sisters. Many of the younger one’s are leaving the Conservative movement and becoming frum while others are leaving it and becoming lost to intermarriage.
One day, you will cross paths with a Conservative Jew: will you impress them with your Derech Eretz and Chesed? Or will you turn them off from the world of Torah? Your call.
EXCUSE ME MR. CASUAL OBSERVER, T DON’T KNOW WHERE YOU COME FROM,BUT MAYBE NO ONE TOLD YOU THAT CONSERVATIVE DON’T STRIVE TO BE JEWISH THEY WANT TO UPROOT REAL JUDAISM, SO CHOOSE YOUR “BROTHERS” WISLEY!!!!
#9 ‘achicha’ (your brother)is only when its ‘bemitzvos’ repeated in the torah many timesand elaboraten n talmud. since you and those groups dont believe in oral law and only what suits them in written law, #5,6,7 are right al pi halacha
A typical New Yorker who reads this doesnt understand this has nothing to do with Clevelands frum community.Why does the yeshiva world put this stuff up? It makes Cleveland sound nuts?!!!
casualobserver: there’s absolutely no justification whatsoever of conservative movement doing anything in the Torah spectrum.
If they want to do teshuva, this is a wonderful thing. But if their “kashrut” shtick is just a facade to gain some political ground, then it’s as treif as their entire movement. (Remember Eisav and the chazir…)
All I think #2 (cleve) was saying was, that let YWN be clear and say what type of place Bnai Jeshurin is, so people don’t think it has ties to the orthodox community in Clevand. While it might be (very) nice they are trying to keep kosher, w/o the site saying what this place is, might make other people who don’t live in Cleveland think that’s this place has ties to orthodox jews in cleveland, especially since it made it to YWN, they also would have no idea what type of news papper the CJN.
A frelichin Chanuka to all!
When you think about it, a female mashgiach make alot of sense. I remember as a young man when learning Basar v’cholev a fellow talmis remarked “when I have a question about kashrus at home, I ask my wife.” ALthough not the best source for halachic rulings, at least she has the practical experience every day.
I’m not saying that anyone should assent to what the conservative do or believe. But to speak of them as if they were no better than goyim or even C”V animals? It is absolutely DISGUSTING.
#14 has it right. One day, HKBH will ask you why you were hostile instead of inviting, and you will be held accountable for the Jews who might have returned if not for your acrimonious and brutish words. I wouldn’t want to be you on that day.
Also, why do I get the feeling that this is a thread in which Joseph has conversations with himself under different names? Hmm.
#19 that’s exactly what i meant. I almost wrote in this morning to calrify it, but i figured if i start i’ll get caught up in the back and forth. Instaed i decided to wait and read evrybody else’s comments.
And #17 said it correct as well.
To #6 & #10
Aside from the debate whether to כאף התפעלות be impressed or to report
Do not make fools of yourselves get your history straight.
Stephen Wise the leader of efoem who was President Rooosevelts buddy and blocked Rescue efforts during WWII is long dead שר”י
“B’nai Jeshurun’s Rabbi Stephen Weiss” may he meerit to do Teshuva is somebody else entirely