Letters to the Editor

February 28, 2008

The defenders, more Schwartzie, Sabeel

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Doesn't anyone at The Journal know that public humiliation of a person is like shedding blood? (Talmud).

The Journal needs to make a tikkun for Rabbi Schwartzie. They should publicly apologize for what they did. It is journalistic malpractice in the worst sense.

Joshua Spiegelman
Los Angeles

I grew up in Westdale/Mar Vista. My mother has lived in the neighborhood since 1946. Since 1946, Rabbi Schwartz is the only Jewish clergy person of any denomination to do Jewish outreach in Mar Vista and Westdale. The two congregations in the neighborhood do not reach out to the unaffiliated, almost a crime, as many thousands of Jews are ignored. Schwartzie and his rebbetzin are the only two people who care about them and for them. Your article has caused shockwaves that have reached me in Baltimore. Are you aware of how many Jews who spend Shabbos with the Schwartzes are now going to avoid them? Do you have another Shabbos opportunity to offer them? The Torah forbids lashon hora (gossip) because it can cause tremendous damage. If there was any constructive purpose to the article, it was not apparent. Thank you for considering my opinion.

David Meltzer
Baltimore, Md.

I feel compelled to rise to the defense of my long-time friend, rabbi Schwartz. Clearly, the language of the excerpted e-mails you dug up was inappropriate. I have known this man for over 30 years and can testify to the fact that he is a kind and loving man who embraces people of all faiths and walks of life. He most certainly is not a misogynist, as your article implied. The sad story exemplifies two important principles to me:

1) We can understand why the vast majority of Orthodox rabbis shun outreach. Offending people is an inevitable consequence of reaching out to unaffiliated and often ignorant Jews, while maintaining one's standards.

2) Having said that, e-mail is a particularly vulnerable medium for generating misunderstandings. The rabbi's concerns are valid. He just could have said them nicer. What may come across as funny or rhetorical in speech sounds far more offensive on e-mail. The normal, socially appropriate editing our brains perform during conversation is absent with electronic communication. For the future, I would advise my good friend Schwartzie, and all of your readers, to limit their e-mail messages to, "Have a nice day." Save the important topics for face-to-face discussions.

Michael Feinman
Agoura Hills

Sabeel

In religious and lay Jewish tradition, debate, including the right to dissent, is an essential element of the freedom to seek knowledge ("Butt Out," Jan. 25).

Toward that end, some members of the Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center (PJTC) have voiced publicly their opposition to a conference at All Saints Episcopal Church sponsored by Sabeel, a Jerusalem-based Christian group of Palestinians that is critical of current Israeli policies. Some PJTC members have chastised Rabbi Joshua Levine Grater for failing to criticize All Saints for offering Sabeel a site for its event.

In the midst of the controversy over the conference, Rabbi Grater chose to make this an educational moment by inviting Reverend Ed Bacon, All Saints' rector, to PJTC to meet with and listen to PJTC members. On Feb. 11, about 100 PJTC members showed up, engaged in a lively discussion with the Rev. Bacon, and expressed a wide range of views.

We do not believe that religious leaders should constrict discussion and debate or criticize each other for insufficient censorship. Doing so not only ignores Jewish tradition and teaching, but is also a prescription for mistrust and recrimination, emotions already in oversupply when it comes to suspicion between and among religions, particularly in the Middle East. Sabeel deserves to be criticized for some of its views, but its voice against injustices experienced by the Palestinian people should not be silenced.

The meeting at PJTC underscored the importance of precisely the sort of dialogue that the controversy has generated. As PJTC members, we appreciate Rabbi Grater's leadership on this issue. He has consistently been a voice for peace and justice and the spirit of tikkun olam -- repairing our community -- here in Pasadena and around the world.

Mike Davidson, Peter Dreier, Ed Honowitz,
Bonnie Martinez, Raul Martine, Terry Meng, Ellen Pai, Glenn Rothner,
Michael and Ruth Several, Debby Singer

Special Needs

Thank you so much for recognizing the special-needs community in your Feb. 8 issue ("The Journey to Inclusion"). Please know that the Web site for the Friendship Circle of Los Angeles was incorrectly listed. Our correct Web address is http://www.fcla.org/. We have been helping these beautiful children and their families for the last five years through our many programs. With a group of over 200 teen volunteers, we service approximately 100 special-needs children throughout the year.

Through our Friends at Home program, we have pairs of trained teen volunteers that visit the children at their homes once a week. At our Sunday Circle, kids spend two exciting hours in a fun-filled Judaic atmosphere, where they participate in music, art and sports. Our holiday programs allow the entire family to celebrate in a comfortable setting. Our new Club Kung Fu program is a martial arts program for children who have social challenges.

If you would like to become a teen volunteer or hear about our valuable programs, please contact us at info@fcla.org or call (310) 277-FCLA (3252) for more information.

Rabbi Michael Rav-Noy
Executive Director
The Friendship Circle of Los Angeles

LA Times

It was to me very revealing that in the calculation explained by the L.A. Times Op-Ed editor in Amy Klein's recent interview, he had (1) a category for Arabs (and Arab Americans) who were anti-Israel, (2) for Jews (and Israelis) who were pro-Israel as well as for (3) Jews (and Israelis) who were critical of various political and military actions taken by the Israeli government ("Q & A With Nicholas Goldberg," Feb. 1).

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