Rabbi Avi Weiss ordained a woman to be the first ever Orthodox Rabbi, and now may be facing problems from the RCA, according to a Jewish Week article.
Rabbi Avi Weiss had ordained Sara Hurwitz, giving her the title “Mahara’t” – an acronym for Manhiga Hilchatit Ruchanit Toranit. That title didn’t work out for Weiss as well as he planned, so after a year of “Mahara’t, Sara Hurwitz was given another title: “Rabbah.”
According to the article, the RCA (Rabbinical Council of America) is getting ready to perhaps expel Rabbi Weiss “primarily for ordaining a woman rabbi”.
The RCA considers women rabbis a violation of Orthodoxy, but apparently not according to Hurwitz, and her mentor Rabbi Weiss. In a recent Jewish Star article he told the paper “This will make it clear to everyone that Sara Hurwitz is a full member of our rabbinic staff, a rabbi with the additional quality of a distinct woman’s voice.”
Interestingly, The Jewish Week quoted an anonymous source in Rabbi Weiss’ yeshiva known as Yeshivat Chovevei Torah, which claimed that the ordaining of “Rabba” Hurwitz has created a situation in which “we are being absolutely killed on the Internet,” in Orthodox blogs. “Where are the moderate and moderating voices in the Orthodox community?” the source asked.
While deploring Rabbi Weiss’ new low, Rabbi Avi Shafran, a spokesman for Agudath Israel of America breaths a sigh of relief that the veil was finally removed from Weiss’s long-suspected agenda.
“It is laudable that the disingenuous title has been abandoned, the new one better reflects the intention of its conferrers. Now it would be good for them to come clean, too, about what the entire venture really is: an essential break with the mesorah of Klal Yisrael,” Rabbi Shafran said.
To read more about Rabbi Weiss and his activities, please Read: Yeshivat Chovevei Torah: Is It Orthodox? http://www.theyeshivaworld.com/article.php?p=5269
(Dov Gordon – YWN / With reporting by The Jewish Week & The Jewish Star)
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46 Responses
The RCA expelling “Rabbi” Avi Weiss? That’s a great idea!
Will Rabbi Balkany be removed from his involvement with BY, or any other community org. Which is a bigger chillul hashem, Rabbi Wiess promoting a woman to a place of prominence in his shul or the had of a large Bais Yaakov being arrested, again, this time by the FBI for this time allegedly shaking down a hedge fund? I think it’s time for some perspective.
—-NEWSFLASH—–
We are always doing email campaigns on behalf of people, just yesterday in the UK with the coroner not released a baby to be buried for 3 days, Martin Grossman etc.
How about we start an email campaign to demand the RCA throw Avi Weiss out of the RCA? The man is a Reformed Rabbi, no questions asked. he is distorting Orthodox Judaism.
Here is the contact info taken from the RCA website (public information).
Let us all “jam their lines” and crash their servers with tons of email — just as we did to the Governor of Florida!
ACTION, NOW!!!!
Rabbi Basil Herring
Executive Vice President
Phone: 212-807-9000 x 5
[email protected]
Rabbi Moshe Kletenik
President
[email protected]
Rabbi Barry Kornblau
Director of member services
Phone: 212-807-9000 x 4
[email protected]
Rabbi Michael Zylberman
Administrator, Regional Courts for Conversion
Phone: 212-807-9000 x 3
[email protected]
Shoshana Katz
Administrative Assistant
Phone: 212-807-9000 x 1
[email protected]
Shaul Hen
Director of Operations
Phone: 212-807-9000 x 7
[email protected]
Dov Levine
Controller
Phone: 212-807-9000 x 2
[email protected]
GENERAL CONTACT INFO:
305 Seventh Avenue, 12th Floor
New York, New York 10001
Phone: 212-807-9000
Fax: 212-727-8452
[email protected]
When a Rabbi unfortunetley falls prey to his Yetzer Hora it is a terrible thing, often times it may cause a Chilul Hashem.
Yet while it is indeed terrible it is an aveira and everyone understands as such it does not attack the foundations of Klal Yisroel.
True Perspective behooves us to realize the differnece between a sin no matter how great and a systematic attempt to redefine Torah True Judaism.
We do not need Organazations to stand up and tell us Chilul Hahsem is wrong we do need them to stand guard and declare the Torah is not subject to the prevalent social attitudes of the day.
Anyone that knows Ivrit knows the correct title Weiss conferred on this woman should not be Rabbah,
…it should be Rabbit!
Comment #2 honestlyfrum. Are you really? You obviously don’t know the basis of yiddishkeit concepts or laws. Shaking down a hedge fund is truly terrible. I can’t imagine anybody condoning such beahvior. And it’s a chilul hashem. But ordaining or naming a female rabbi or manhiga or rabba, whatever the symantics happen to be, is tearing at the fabric of Torah yiddishkeit and Torah values. If a thief sneaks into your home and steals things, he will be punished. But it’s a whole different story if someone breaks your windows and breaks down your doors and your gates. Every society has much stricter punishments for those who tear apart the fabric of the society. Weiss has long pushed the envelope in attempting to fray the edges of yiddishkeit. This time he has gone too far.
#2 honestly frum-
thank you for putting things in perspective. tragically, over the past year we are confronted regularly with stories of ‘frum’ ‘erlich’ yiddin/rabbonim accused/found guilty of VERY serious crimes, aveiros, etc, resulting in massive chilulei hashem to a degree probably unparalleled throughout jewish history.
when these crimes/aveiros perpetrated by ‘frum’ ‘erliche’ yiddin/rabbonim come to light, i have never heard the agudah or any other organization come out with a statement that they are “an essential break with the mesorah of Klal Yisrael.”
i guess ‘lo tigzol’ in the aseres hadibros is not considered an essential part of the ‘mesorah of klal yisrael’ (R”L).
however, when a rov of a kehilla who has NOTHING to do with the yeshivishe’/chasidishe’ velt decides to institute something which, though controversial and unusual, is not a black and white issue (a number of opinions of rishonim do seem to allow a woman to pasken shai’los, and there have been several cases of this occurring throughout jewish history, though of course it has not been common), everyone can’t move fast enough to ridicule, condemn, and write them out of klal yisrael.
what has become of our priorities?? have we forgotten ‘k’shot atzm’cha v’achar kach k’shot acheirim’ (correct yourself and only then correct others)? what about ‘kol ha’posel, b’mumo posel’ (whoever invalidates someone is really projecting his own shortcomings)?
i wonder whether we (the yeshivish community) are so quick to condemn/look down on others specifically because it allows us to overlook/forget our own community’s (very serious) problems.
#5 Bubby
Of course there is a difference – the actual corruption is much, much worse.
One the one hand, you have a “Rabbi,” director of a Bais Yaakov, involved with wire fraud, extortion, blackmail and causing a huge chillul Hashem in the public view.
On the other hand, you have a woman teaching Torah.
And you want to start a campaign about the woman?
What has happened to the Yeshiva World’s values????
What’s the Sheila?–Chadash Assur Min haTorah!
Bravo # 3!
Let’s get emails out to the rabbis (no need to write to the administrator, controller etc.) and show them that we are united in this cause. “Rabbi” Weiss is causing the future churban for klal Yisroel, and we need to do whatever we can to limit his actions, or least voice our dissatisfaction with it.
some people want to compare promoting women rabbis to monetary corruption. they may forget that while stealing might be inherently a worse aveira, rabbi balkany did not publicly steal and try to get others to steal. ordaining a female rabbi is sliding down a dangerous slope of kefira and reform.
#7- But ordaining or naming a female rabbi or manhiga or rabba, whatever the symantics happen to be, is tearing at the fabric of Torah yiddishkeit and Torah values.
Public displays of chillulei hashem like watching men in long black coats and yarmulkehs being carted away by the police and FBI on a regular basis, and reading accusations of financial and other wrong doing in the Orthodox community on a daily basis, “tear at the fabric of torah” far more than an individual rabbi who has a small following promoting a woman to a place of prominence in her shul and giving her a silly name.
Good grief. #5,#7 are you intending to make a Purim joke? #8 is correct. Disagree with R’ Weiss’ action (as I do)but recognize that there are at least opinions that could be relied on by him and halachik discussion to be had and that this fear of discussion and quickness to demonize and fellow yidden with a differing perspective, while are the real problem in our community-where’s the dan lekaf zechus in the case of Rabbi Weiss? Is that only reserved for Rabbonim accused of corruption?
As usual, Flatbush Bubby is on track.
Let’s not be distracted by current events which may only be sensationalist journalism; pure motzei shem rah!
The issue is clear and he must be defrocked (Weiss that is ) and ostracized.
The lack of response makes me think that perhaps we’re not as united on this as you think. Or maybe people see that this is NOT the most pressing issue in Orthodox Judaism, and you should save your mail campaigns for things that really affect you.
In all the hullaballoo on this issue and the pontification of so many people, juts one simple question: what halacha or aveirah has rabbi Weiss contravened? befiore any of you go off the deep end on this matter, please look at the issues involved and you will see that you are actually in the wrong on this matter. But then, who cares about right and wrong- as long as one can huff and puff and denounce anything not of the ‘chareidi” customs…
Hey RCA up till now he was ok? Lets all throw out the RCA =Rotten Clergy Association
#12 runningdeer says: “…ordaining a female rabbi is sliding down a dangerous slope of kefira and reform.”
what this has to do with kefira is simply beyond me. the fact that you invoke ‘kefira’ in this discussion does more harm than good in your attempt to make your point.
with regards to calling what rabbi weiss is doing “reform”, i assume you refer to the fact that reform (and conservative) have been ordaining women rabbis for some time now.
let me ask you a question – have you (or anyone you know) ever made kiddush on grape juice (as opposed to wine)?? well i have a secret for you – the original teshuva allowing one to make kiddush on grape juice was written by a conservative rabbi! does this make anyone who follows this p’sak conservative? certainly not! (i hope!). other (frum) rabbonim agreed with his t’shuva, and we know the principle ‘kabel es ho’emes mi’mi she’amro’ (accept the truth from whoever says it.).
similarly, the fact that this practice may have started in conservative/reform does not – in and of itself – make it ‘assur.’ we have to consider the mekoros and decide. in this case, anyone who is somewhat ‘holding’ will tell you that there are several opinions in rishonim which at the very least entertain the idea of a women paskening shai’los. we need to confront this FACT, even if we (myself included) are a bit uncomfortable with the idea of a woman rabbi.
to simply write knee-jerk reactions using insulting terms like ‘kefira’, etc., are not only misplaced, but only serve to discredit your own position. yiddeshkeit prides itself on the pursuit of wisdom, not ignorance. if you have a substantive argument against what rabbi weiss is doing, i would love to hear it.
# 17, I suggest you read R. Fingerer’s op-ed (page 4) in last week’s Jewish Press.
#8, I just reread the Aseres Hadibros, and “lo tigzol” is definately not there.
If you are refering to “Lo Tignov”, that means kidnapping, as Rashi explains.
As for your comparison, you seem to be naive. It’s not that Mr. Weiss is being lenient, he is trying to corrupt orthodox judaism, and that is treason, which is much worse than any crime or sin. It’s exactly how the Reform movement originaly started to operate.
I believe Avi Weiss is a wonderful human and lover of the people of Israel. But he should acknowledge that he has broken with 2000 years (or more) of Orthodox tradition.
He should resign from the RCA.
319 L’Kovod Hatorah I must speak up the question whether or not kiddush can be made on grape juice stems from a gemora in Bava Basra which seemingly allows it Rav Shlomo Zalman and others discuss why that is and the shaila became more complex because of the concentrate process which causes the grape juice to be made in way that it can never become wine.
Please refrain from saying the absurd that a conservative rabbi who holds one may drive on Shabbos troubled himself to discern in an honest thourgough approach whether or not we may make Kiddush on Grape Juice.
Another article in the same issue of the Jewish Week describes the damage to the political power of Orthodox Jews because of all the recent scandals. And yet the RCA decides that declaring that a woman is sufficiently learned to teach and answer questions in areas of Jewish law in which she is obligated is the thing that deserves an investigation!
Thank you Ben Levi for your wonderful responses.
As for your Rishonim, zalmy, why don’t you first check up what the Rishonot have to say. Get it?
In case you don’t, no Rishon discussed having a female Rav. They spoke about a woman Paskening.
to #23 (ben levi), l’maah ha’emeas, i must respond to you.
R’ Levi (Louis) Ginzburg of JTS (who learned in Telz in europe and was highly regarded by Rav Elya Meir Bloch as well as by Rav Gifter) wrote a very comprehensive and authoritative 70+ page teshuva on the topic of using grape juice for kiddush in 1922 (during prohibition in the US when alcohol was illegal). R’ Shlomo Zalman was 12 years old at the time.
Additionally, your assertion that R’ Ginzberg (who R’ Elya Meir Bloch referred to as ‘HaGaon R’ Levi Ginzburg’ in the beginning of his sefer) held that one may drive on shabbos is equally absurd. R’ Ginzberg died in 1953, which was (i beleive) before the conservatives were “matir” driving on shabbos.
i encourage you to double check what i said via wikipedia if you like.
while you are welcome (if not encouraged) to disagree with myself and/or others, your arguments will likely be more persuasive if you back them up with actual facts, as opposed to revisionist history.
Charliehall; what determines political power does not detemine what is most important towards protecting the torah.
Assuming the RCA wants R. Weiss out of its ranks, they will not expel him, or even empower their Va’ad haKavod to expel him before trying to work the issue out with him in private. Assuming that doesn’t breat fruitful results, he would first be asked to resign from the organization. Only as a last resort will they expel him. I believe R. Weiss is a popular rabbi among certain groups in the RCA. His drive to ordain women rabbis is more a function of his intense ahavat Yisrael and great respect for the Jewishly serious women he has encountered as a professor at Stern College, than it is about a political agenda. His love of all Jews along with his superlative skills as a pulpit rabbi make him a beloved figure among his colleagues. Expelling him from the RCA might have considerable political backlash.
#7 theprof1 said:
“Weiss has long pushed the envelope in attempting to fray the edges of yiddishkeit…”
Saying that Avi Weiss’s agenda is to fray the edges of Yiddishkeit is wrong, offensive and pure lashon hara. He definitely has a history of unconventional and out-of-the-box activities. However, I would suggest you take a trip to his shul in Riverdale and see first hand the warmth, d’veykus and pure avodas Hashem and ahavas Yisrael that envelops his kehillah on a weekly basis.
His congregation – men and women alike – have a sincere desire to serve Hashem through t’fillah and avodah. What R’ Weiss is doing is creating a way -albeit non-conventional – for the modern orthodox woman to feel more connected to davening, Torah and halacha. The idea is not for Ms. Hurwitz to pasken halacha for men and families, but rather to be an accessible conduit for women to speak comfortably with someone who knows halacha and has a framework of yedios in Torah and halacha.
I think you should all relax, work on yourselves, and let people connect to Hashem in the way that speaks to them best.
I think the Agudah does wonderful work for klal Yisrael, but there are other, more substantial issues (see above) that should take precedence on the front burner…
I’m not a Rabbi or a talmid chacham by any stretch, but my pintele yid tells me that achdus and tolerance for our brothers and sisters will surely bring the geulah sooner than misguided kanaus.
Thanks, a freilichen Purim!
to zalmy i think i’ll reword my comment. i meant that reform started with things that were technically mutar with enough thumb turnings, but have never been done in klal yisrael for good reasons (al pi halacha). once reform broke off they were able to get away with outright kefira. i don’t know rabbi weiss’s intentions whether good or bad but condoning it can lead down a slippery slope
I am still intrigued to know why this is kefira. Nobody has given any solid answer other than mention it looks conservative.
For those of you who learn Nach, you might remember that Devorah was the Shofet of Yisrael. So a woman judging the nation and teaching Torah are definitely not new concepts.
Soroh Schneirer also initailly came up against opposition, but now it’s taken for granted that girls should have an education.
Perhaps someone can actually show what is wrong with this, perhaps it’s simply too much for some men to know that a woman can be greater than them.
To State that Rav Elya Meir Bloch would call a conservative clergyman “HaGaon” is foolish. And if you think the Rav you quote is conservative then by virtue of the fact he was part of JTS you are further mistaken. The majority of JTSat the time Rav Ginsburg was there were orthodox (historical fact check it up on sources other then wikipidia).
It’s interesting that you quote Rav Gifter who’s most famous speech is quite arguably his scathing criticism of Norman Lamm and YU I wonder what he would say to Avi Weiss?
to #31 runningdeer –
i would encourage you to take a step back and try to analyze how many things we do today in the yeshivishe’ velt are truly the way “things have always been done in klal yisroel.”
consider making kiddush on grape juice. never happened prior to the 1920’s (as i mentioned before).
what about (as mentioned previously) teaching torah to girls/women a la soroh schneirer/beis yaakov. this goes against a m’furosh mishna in sotah, and is also less than 100 years old.
what about dressing in black & white w/ a borsalino (or the chassidishe “levush”). today its practically ‘halacha l’moshe m’sinai’, but the tradition is only about 60-70 years old.
most of all, consider our contemporary institutionalized kollel system (whereby most/practically all able bodied married men are encouraged – if not pressured – to learn full time in kollel, often indefinitely). much as we may not want to believe it, this (widespread) practice is probably only 20-30 years old (in terms of it being institutionalized for all the way it is today).
bottom line: change (within the boundaries of halacha, of course) has ALWAYS been a part of yiddishkeit throughout the ages. things today (and people today) are different than they were in Europe, Spain, Bavel, Eretz Yisrael, etc., throughout the centuries.
perhaps even more importantly, different kehillos and communities have always had their own leaders who dictate the halacha for their followers. that is why chassidim, litvaks, yekkes, s’fardim, teimanim, etc. all talk, dress, and most importantly practice halacha differently. no m’halach is more or less correct or ‘frum’ than another, so long as each one’s practices are rooted in halacha.
as such, i still fail to understand the outcry form the yeshivishe’ velt on this issue. rabbi weiss is not attempting to appoint a woman rabbi at your corner shteeble in boro park. what he is doing is for his kehilla in riverdale (and perhaps for others similar to it), which is an entirely different type of shul. for them, this is what works and what helps them get closer to HKB”H. and, as has been mentioned earlier, no matter what you say, he does have support in halacha for what he is doing, even if it seems unusual to most of us.
as i mentioned above, it seems to me that many of us here could benefit from a lesson or two in jewish history. we might be surprised to discover that 1) many elements of 21st century yiddishkeit in america are most definitely NOT the “way things have always been throughout generations of klal yisroel”, and 2) just because something is not necessary/appropriate for our own kehilla does not inherently make it assur/objectionable for another kehilla (as long as it has support within halacha).
#32,
Without getting involved in whether female “Rabbis” is ok or not, I want to respond to the glib and common response thrown out that Devorah Haneviah was a “Rabbi”.
First of all there were hundreds of thousands of female nevios, and she was the ONLY one to hold an official position, (coincidence? I think not), secondly she held court under a tree instead of indoors to make the point that this was NOT how things were supposed to be, but when the only man for the job is a woman…..
I have seen this thrown out, out of almost complete ignorance, by so many people over the years who were just trying to push their political agenda, its nauseating.
Rabbi Weiss, who is an Ohev Yisrael par excellance, has taken a position which, at worst, is controversial. His sin, if any, pales to utter insignificance when compared to the ignorant and self-righteous invective, the unmitigated Lashon Harah and R’chilut, contained in the comments posted above. For shame!
DadDeutsch
Bigsol, I’m gonna go out on a limb and say that I can easily believe that the YCT students have big hearts and want to be public servants to the klal. I have grave reservations that they (and I include Sara Hurwitz) have the level of immersion and scholarship I want in a posek.
There are people, e.g. shatnez testers, who have certification and acceptance in their levels of expertise. That’s quite different from what’s being proposed here.
Like or not, the time arrived for women orthodox rabbis. All this Lashon Hara and sinat chinam keeps Moshiach from coming.
I really do not see a problem with her getting semicha. It might not be normative Orthodoxy but she did earn it on her own.
this is what i wrote to the rabbis of the rca in protest of their removal of rabbi avi weiss after having made a woman into an ordained ‘rabbanit’
Rabosei,
We have to look at this issue through the eyes of halacha, and not with a neo-chareidi, anti-modernist view of Judaism.
The truth is that all we need do is open the Choshen Mishpat, Hilchos Dayanim and see that we MAY have a woman leader of a community, although she cannot serve as a Dayan in a traditional Beis Din, we may accept upon ourselves to do as she says, and we may even ask this ‘Isha Chachema’ for certain ‘psakim’, which is not very different than Rabbi Weiss’s Rabbanit.
In the 17th century there was a woman Rabbi, named Tanaa’it Asaneth Barzani, who was the head of the Kurdi-Iraqi community, and there were true Gadolei Olam in those days that did not find any problem with it at all.
In the 1800’s, Hannah Rochel Verbermacher, the daughter of the Chernobler Maggid, functioned as a leader of a community, even to the point of being referred to as “Rebbe”.
There is a precedent for a woman leader within Halacha, and within Jewish history, this should not be ignored.
The zealots who are pressuring you are not upset that this woman has the title of Rabbi at all, what upsets them is that there are people within the Orthodox world who feel that it is time for the advancement of the Jewish people into the contemporary world within the guidelines of Halacha. I cannot tell you the future, but what I can tell you with almost absolute certainty is that, as with any society, if the Orthodox community does not advance along with the outside world, if they choose to remain unchanged, then they will create a society that is not sustainable, and when faced with a new technological or social revolution, will not be able to adapt and will fall to the wayside. This concept, that cultures, economies and even individual people must advance in a natural and organic process is called ‘stage theory’ and is ubiquitous in areas ranging from economics to cognitive development. We see this today in many countries in the Middle East and Africa, where colonial empires introduced the industrial age to people who had not advanced out of the iron age, with disastrous results. You are not faced with this as an isolated issue, this is part of a much bigger and broader picture in which your decisions will be the brushstrokes that will either paint the picture of the Jewish people as a great and successful community, or of a backward and uneducated community which will inevitably fade into the pages of history, because they could not adapt.
If we live our lives cowering in fear of what the members of a fanatic segment of the Jewish people might do or say, than we are no different than puppets, standing lifeless in wait of the playful hands of our unseen masters.
It seems strange that it seems no one can quote the halacha forbidding women rabbis.
It would however seem even more strange if there was no such halacha since this is far from the first time this issue ever came up and the rabbonim must have said something about it and why it was assur, when it came up what was probably many years ago, and not just once or twice, but likely many times.
to #35 Quoting “I have seen this thrown out, out of almost complete ignorance, by so many people over the years who were just trying to push their political agenda, its nauseating.”
Please quote the source for Devorah holding court under a tree was to show that this was not how things were supposed to be.
You are also making the assumption that because it wasn’t common there was some other reason for women not holding this position.
As I see it, unless you can answer this, both are your own assumptions. To be pushing against something with no backing because you’re not comfortable with it sounds suspiciously like a political agenda, which apparently is nauseating.
The only reasons I have found for Devorah holding court under a palm tree involves yichud.
And as I understand it the gemara (kidushin 2b) ‘it is not the derech of a woman to be a warrior’ so as the job of the leader of Yisrael, besides for teaching Torah would also lead the nation into war this is why it was uncommon for female leaders. But I see no reason why women can’t teach Torah.
In fact that gemara says war is lashon zachor, that’s why only men are warriors but Torah is lashon nekeiva!
Moreover the gemara (brochos 20b) that deals with a woman being moitzi her husband with chiyuvim such as benching, he should be cursed is because HE has the chiyuv for talmud Torah and if he can’t even do the basics, then he should be cursed.
I have no agendas and if somebody would kindly explain where the problem is I would quite happily agree with you to ban women teaching Torah. But after several requests, by several people, to hear the halachik backing that has been ignored, I’m guessing it simply is a political agenda.
to #40 hanavon, thank you. That was brilliant
for some of the bloggers, please get your facts straight before spouting mistakes..for ex. to 35 (ytziyy): there were NOT “hundreds of thousands of neviot”. the gemoro in megillah says that there were NEVIIM -twice as the “jotzei mitzrayim”, not “neviot”- women prophets of whichh there were very few (seven if i remember correctly). secondly, the reason why devorah conducted her ministrations as a judge (shofet) under a palm tree has nothing to do with your assertion and everything to do with the halochos of yichud. she did not want to be alone in a room with a man (she was married-in case anyone quotes david and his beth din on yichud of a single woman)so , what you wrote makes no sense.
lastly, all of the above huffing and puffing is beside the point. in jewish law, there is no real official position of “rabbi”. it is an honorary title and since we don’t have the “real semicha’ today,it does not make an iota of difference who carries thsi title.
Lest anyone here thinks i am for the ordaining of women, i am not, but mainly because it is a sharp departure from our customs and i am always wary of doing this. On the other hand, i support many other changes, such a women saying kaddish, becuae it has been done before and it is within mainstream orthodoxy.
#37 tzippi:
“I have grave reservations that they (and I include Sara Hurwitz) have the level of immersion and scholarship I want in a posek. ”
Tzippi, the Chovevei Torah semicha students are not being trained to be YOUR posek.
If you go to their website, you can read every one of their graduates’ bios. They are graduating and serving rural / congregations comprised of members at varied levels of Torah observance – ranging from barely observant to flourishing modern orthodox congregations – all of whom have one thing in common: thirst for connection to Torah and Hashem, within the framework of a modern, 21st century perspective, where the average (of course there are exceptions) Lakewood or Ner Yisrael musmach would not resonate well at all.
Firstly Please tyr avoiding Lashon Harah. It is an Issur Deorita.
Secondly THIS IS NOT OKAY!
Look in the Gemmorah or anywhere else you so please for thousands of years there where no women Rabbi’s you cannot just go against Jewish Tradition and start ordaining them. Furthermore, women have a different role in the jewish community. A women for example is not alowed to get an aliya in shul, make a mezuman in whith other men, or lain for men. Perhas if she was just with women and not a rabbi Just someone who could people could talk to like a social worker, kind of. Furhthermore men are obligated to learn in all of there free time while women are not. So men should be doing what they are obligated to do while they do other things wich arn’t specifically designated for men.
MOETZES GEDOLEI HATORAH OF AMERICA
Rabbi Simcha Bunim Ehrenfeld
Rabbi Yitzchok Feigelstock
Rabbi Dovid Feinstein
Rabbi Aharon Feldman
Rabbi Yosef Harari-Raful
Rabbi Shmuel Kamenetsky
Rabbi Aryeh Malkiel Kotler
Rabbi Avrohom Chaim Levin
Rabbi Yaakov Perlow
Rabbi Aaron Schechter
THEY have written it is not to be done
We have no right to differ with them. We can discuss but we can not differ. Yiddishkeit is not everybody does what is right [yetzor horah] in their eyes
We accept the gedoleim opinion as emes
Tosfos Gittin 88b quotes a few gemaros which state that a woman CANNOT be a dayan. He then says that u cannot ask from Devorah, because she reported earlier psakim, and did not herself pasken.
Whether that’s why she sat outside under a tree, is something for which I don’t know the source offhand, but I heard in a shiur from a rabbi at Ohr Somayach. (The hundreds of thousands of neviot, I also heard in an OS shiur by someone who says NOTHING without a source, although I do not remember the exact source)