DOCSLIB.ORG

It Is Fitting That We Come Together Today, on the Day the Members Of

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
It Is Fitting That We Come Together Today, on the Day the Members Of I would like to begin by thanking David Berger and the other Keshet organizers for allowing me to submit a paper to be read to you in my absence. I am, regrettably, unable to be in New York today, but am grateful for the honor of having been asked to participate in this way, nevertheless. My talk is entitled: Svara, Queers, and the Future of Rabbinic Judaism According to Masechet Sanhedrin [5a], there are two requirements for one who wants to exercise rabbinic authority—one must be both gamirna and savirna. Now, what do these Aramaic terms mean? Gamirna implies that one has to have amassed sufficient knowledge or learning. Basically, they gotta know their stuff. And savirna implies they have to have the ability to exercise svara. But what is this svara that is so crucial to functioning as a rabbi and to interpreting God’s will? It seems pretty straightforward: svara, the ability to be “savir,” “reasonable.” The capacity to reason. But, actually, svara is much more complicated, and, it turns out, is not only a prerequisite for those aspiring to rabbinic authority, but is probably the most significant source of Jewish law we have. After the destruction of the Second Temple, our founding Rabbis increased the number of places to which they could turn to discover God’s will—that is, the sources of Jewish Law—from one to five. In addition to our old standby—a verse in the Torah, which they called kra (and which legal scholars call midrash)—they added ma’aseh (precedent), minhag (custom), takkanah (legislation) and last but not least, svara. Menachem Elon, the most prominent Jewish legal scholar of our generation and former Justice and Deputy President of the Israeli Supreme Court, defines svara as “legal reasoning that penetrates into the essence of things and reflects a profound understanding of human nature [and involves] an appreciation of the characteristics of human beings in their social relationships, and a careful study of the real world and its manifestations.” [Elon, Jewish Law: Cases and Materials, Mathew Bender, 1999, p. 97] This is just a fancy way of saying: what your kishkes, and your intellect, and your experience of human nature and the world around you (which should be extensive), tell you about what’s right and what’s wrong. 1 That a person’s svara is a legitimate place to look to figure out what God wants of you is radical enough. But wait: As we all know, laws which the Rabbis derived from kra, or biblical verses, were given the status of d’oraita—directly from Torah, transmitted directly from God to Moshe on Mount Sinai. And laws deriving from ma’aseh (precedent), minhag (custom), or takkanah (legislation) were acknowledged as being of human derivation—a creation of the Rabbis themselves—and were labeled merely d’rabbanan, a kind of “second-string” as far as laws went. But—get this—a law that the Rabbis created by means of svara was classified as—now put your seatbelts on for this one—d’oraita. What comes from our kishkes, said the Rabbis, is really coming straight from God—from God to Moshe on Mt. Sinai to me. Svara, according the Rabbis, had the same authority as the biblical text itself—and in many instances in the Talmud, svara trumps kra—kishkes trump a biblical verse. According to the late talmudic scholar Rabbi Eliezer Berkovits, alav hashalom, “A svara may be so convincing that it may compel one’s conscience to suppress the plain meaning of a biblical injunction and force upon a verse in the Bible a meaning that it can hardly bear textually. [In addition,] svara may show that in certain areas the consequences of a generally prevailing law would be unacceptable and, therefore, that those cases must be exempted from the authority of that law.” [Berkovits, The Nature and Function of Jewish Law, in Essential Essays on Judaism, by Eliezer Berkovits, edited by David Hazony, Shalem Press, Jerusalem, 2002, pg. 45] These audacious claims, made by our Rabbis two thousand years ago, set the tone of rabbinic courage and activism that is our spiritual legacy to this day. They constitute the core principles responsible for the mechanisms that have allowed Jewish Law to become the most exalted blueprint for human dignity and world perfection in history—and the mandate to alleviate human suffering, particularly that caused by the Jewish tradition itself, in every generation. The centrality of svara in how Jews have done Jewish law ever since is the cornerstone of Rabbinic Judaism and the highest ideal of the Conservative Movement that proudly claims to be its rightful heir. 2 But svara is a human capacity its purported possessors do not always actually possess. In fact, it is quite fitting that we come together today for this Day of Learning precisely on the day the rabbis of the Law Committee meet, and on the eve of their official decision to reopen the question of the halachic status of gay and lesbian Jews in the Conservative Movement—or, more simply put, on the eve of the Law Committee’s deliberations to determine if, in their svara, it is God’s will that I—and hundreds of thousands of queer Jews like myself—should be understood to be deserving of the status of full and equal human beings. While many of us are hopeful that some svara closer to God’s will might finally prevail in the teshuvot passed by the Law Committee, let us also take a moment to acknowledge that the mere process itself is one which is both violent and deeply painful for every queer person whose very humanity and Jewish authenticity will be debated—like the kashrut of hard cheese—within these walls over the coming months by rabbis, some of whom still cannot claim to know a single gay or lesbian Jew. Eleven years ago, this month, I flew here, to New York City, from Los Angeles, where I was a first-year rabbinical student at the University of Judaism. I came to witness, first-hand, the proceedings of the Law Committee that would decide my fate, the fate of hundreds of thousands of Jews like myself, and the fate of our entire Movement. These rabbis were going to use their svara to determine God’s will. They were going to determine whether God thought I was an abomination—or not; whether God thought I was as good a Jew as my chevruta—or not; whether God thought I was as worthy a human being as the next Jew—or not. Would I be granted the same rights and privileges as my heterosexual peers? Would I have the same access to Torah? The same right to learn? The same right to teach? The same right to one day use my own svara to determine God’s will? I sat excitedly in the auditorium as a modern-day talmud-in-action unfolded before my eyes. These were the g’dolei hador, the greats of our generation, articulating the “ellu v’ellu”—the sacred, sometimes-conflicting truths—that would all be understood as God’s will. 3 I brought a tape recorder with me that day, and I would like to share with you now some of what passed for svara among the halachic scholars of our generation on the issue of homosexuality: QUOTE: “Maybe they can change. Maybe they can get help. If we vote [that homosexuality is not toevah] we would be discouraging those who might seek help. That would be cruel.” QUOTE: “I’m not condemning the homosexual—just his drive. The homosexual drive is a hedonistic drive!” QUOTE: “I’ll take the advice of science as long as it doesn’t interfere with Torah.” QUOTE: “Why does the homosexual have to come to me?! Why does he have to publicize it?!” QUOTE: “No matter how we vote, the Jewish gay and lesbian community won’t stop being and acting Jewish. Yes, [if we vote against them] they will suffer pain and greater alienation. But [if we don’t], it will be worse for the traditionalists among us.” QUOTE: “There are equals in this world who aren’t equal.” These were the “anti-svara” of a number of rabbis on the Law Committee eleven years ago. Most of those rabbis still serve on that body as poskim today. The Law Committee will not be deciding this year whether gays and lesbians are fully human, but, rather, whether its own twenty-five members are. The Law Committee’s ultimate task will be to determine whether svara is an attribute we will continue to require of our rabbis… …and whether we will have the courage of our rabbinic ancestors to poskin d’oraita based on the true svara of our true leaders. 4 It is not gays and lesbians who will be on trial in the Law Committee this year. It will be Rabbinic Judaism itself. Thank you very much. © 2003 Rabbi Benay Lappe 5 .
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Regulating Communal Space: Mikvaot in Seventeenth-Century Altona
    EMW - Workshops EMW 2010 EARLY MODERN WORKSHOP: Jewish History Resources Volume 7: Jewish Community and Identity in the Early Modern Period, 2010, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT Regulating Communal Space: Mikvaot in Seventeenth-Century Altona Debra Kaplan, Yeshiva University, USA ABSTRACT: Over the course of a few years in the latter half of the seventeenth century, the community of Altona made several changes in the administration of local ritual baths. A series of entries in the communal pinkas, or logbook, elucidates how the community raised funds from mikvaot, how lay and rabbinic leaders worked together, and how communal leaders regulated ritual space both in homes and in communal space. This presentation is for the following text(s): Communal Logbook of Altona (CAHJP AHW 14 [50]) Communal Logbook of Altona (CAHJP AHW 14 [90]) Communal Logbook of Altona (CAHJP AHW 14 [91]) Copyright © 2012 Early Modern Workshop 44 EMW - Workshops EMW 2010 EARLY MODERN WORKSHOP: Jewish History Resources Volume 7: Jewish Community and Identity in the Early Modern Period, 2010, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT Introduction Debra Kaplan, Yeshiva University, USA Introduction The texts presented here are all excerpts from the pinkas of Altona, held at the Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People, AHW 14. The communal pinkas, or record book, contains notes of some of the decisions issues by the parnassim, the lay leaders of the Jewish community. Altona, subject to the Danish king, was part of the triple Jewish community together with neighboring Hamburg and Wandsbeck. These three texts concern the policies of the parnassim towards local ritual baths, mikvaot.
    [Show full text]
  • “Destroy Every Closet Door” -Harvey Milk
    “Destroy Every Closet Door” -Harvey Milk Riya Kalra Junior Division Individual Exhibit Student-composed words: 499 Process paper: 500 Annotated Bibliography Primary Sources: Black, Jason E., and Charles E. Morris, compilers. An Archive of Hope: Harvey Milk's Speeches and Writings. University of California Press, 2013. This book is a compilation of Harvey Milk's speeches and interviews throughout his time in California. These interviews describe his views on the community and provide an idea as to what type of person he was. This book helped me because it gave me direct quotes from him and allowed me to clearly understand exactly what his perspective was on major issues. Board of Supervisors in January 8, 1978. City and County of San Francisco, sfbos.org/inauguration. Accessed 2 Jan. 2019. This image is of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors from the time Harvey Milk was a supervisor. This image shows the people who were on the board with him. This helped my project because it gave a visual of many of the key people in the story of Harvey Milk. Braley, Colin E. Sharice Davids at a Victory Party. NBC, 6 Nov. 2018, www.nbcnews.com/feature/nbc-out/sharice-davids-lesbian-native-american-makes- political-history-kansas-n933211. Accessed 2 May 2019. This is an image of Sharcie Davids at a victory party after she was elected to congress in Kansas. This image helped me because ti provided a face to go with he quote that I used on my impact section of board. California State, Legislature, Senate. Proposition 6.
    [Show full text]
  • Toward a Gender-Inclusive Hevra Kadisha
    Toward A Gender-Inclusive Hevra Kadisha 1 Tahara I’m wondering about you, chevra kadisha, the “holy society,” who will prepare my body, once I’m no longer in it, for the earth. Will you know me already, or see me for the first time as you wash and shroud me, as my father was washed and dressed in simple white tachrichim, for those about to stand before God. Perhaps by then I’ll know if I believe in God. I like the democratic nature of the shroud, an equalizing garment. You may see a body that surprises you. You may not have seen a man’s body like this one before you, which I hope is very old, wrinkled, and (since I’m wishing) fit, muscled as much as an old man can be. You’ll see scars. Ragged dog bit forearm, elbow my father picked gravel from over the sink, then flushed with foaming iodine, and the long double horizons on my chest, which trunked my body like a tree. If I am unexpected, let me not seem grotesque to you, as I have to many people, perhaps even my own parents, and others whose highest kindness was to say nothing. Please let me return to dust in peace, as the others did, and recite those beautiful psalms, remembering, as you go about your holy ritual, how frightening it is to be naked before another, at the mercy of a stranger’s eyes, without even any breath. -Miller Oberman Copyright © 2019 by Miller Oberman Originally published in Poem-a-Day on December 10, 2019, by the Academy of American Poets.
    [Show full text]
  • No Longer Alone a Resource Manual for Rural Sexual Minority Youth and the Adults Who Serve Them
    No Longer Alone A Resource Manual for Rural Sexual Minority Youth and the Adults Who Serve Them. Christopher J. Stapel This resource manual was made possible by the Acknowledgements generous financial support of the Harvard Gay and Lesbian Caucus’s Open Gate Foundation. Additionally, the following organizations provided expertise, resources, access to professional networks, and moral support: Bradley University Common Ground, Coalition for Education on Sexual Orientation, COLAGE, District 202, Family and Children’s Services, Fenway Community Health, Fringe Benefits, Gay and Lesbian Service Organization, GLBT Youth in Iowa Schools Task Force, GLSEN, Harvard College BGLTSA, Harvard Graduate School of Education PRIDE, Harvard School of Public Health, Health Care and Rehabili- tation Services, Health Care of Southeastern Massachusetts Inc., Illinois Federation of Teachers, In Your Face Gorilla Theater, LaCrosse Area Hmong Mutual Assistance Asso- ciation Inc., McLean County AIDS Task Force, National Association of GSA Networks, National Coalition for LBGT Health, NEA GLBT Caucus, Outfront Minnesota, Outright Maine, Outright Vermont, Planned Parenthood of Greater Iowa, Prairie Flame, Safe Schools Coalition, Safe Schools NC, SDA Kinship International, Teaching Tolerance, Youth Alliance for Diversity, Youth and Shelter Services Inc., and Youth Guardian Services. I extend my sincere gratitude to the countless rural students, teachers, health profession- als, religious leaders, program directors, social workers, researchers, and advocates across twenty-five states who shared the personal stories that made this project a success. Finally, I am indebted to Sarah for her creative contribu- tions and Michelle for her wisdom and enthusiasm. Christopher J. Stapel is an openly gay high school math About the Author teacher and advisor at the Boston Community Leadership Academy, a pilot high school of the Boston Public Schools.
    [Show full text]
  • Kol B'mishpachat Elohim
    Kol B’mishpachat Elohim All in God’s Family: A Jewish Guide to Creating Allies for Our LGBT Families Kol B’mishpachat Elohim All in God’s Family: A Jewish Guide to Creating Allies for Our LGBT Families By Suzie Schwartz Jacobson, Rabbi Jane Rachel Litman, and Fintan Moore With Catherine Bell, Ru Cymrot-Wu, Barbara Satin, and Vicki Wunsch Kol B’mishpachat Elohim / All in God’s Family: A Jewish Guide to Creating Allies for Our LGBT Families is a publication National Gay and Lesbian Task Force ’s Institute for Welcoming Resources 122 W. Franklin Avenue, Suite 210 Minneapolis, MN 55404 612.821.4397 www.TheTaskForce.org www.WelcomingResources.org in partnership with Keshet COLAGE Family Equality Council 284 Amory Street 1550 Bryant Street, Suite 830 PO Box 206 Jamaica Plain, MA 02130 San Francisco, CA 94103 Boston, MA 02133 617.524.9227 415.861.5437 617.502.8700 www.keshetonline.org www.colage.org www.familyequality.org © 2014 National Gay and Lesbian Task Force’s Institute for Welcoming Resources Kol B’mishpachat Elohim All in God’s Family: A Jewish Guide to Creating Allies for Our LGBT Families is intended to help make your congregation a welcoming place for LGBT families. In addition to this publication, you will need: Documentary In My Shoes: Stories of Youth with LGBT Parents A film by Jen Gilomen, produced by the COLAGE Youth Leadership and Action Program Phototext Exhibit That’s So Gay: Portraits of Youth with LGBT Parents A do-it-yourself exhibit of phototext portraits of children of LGBT parents from the COLAGE Youth Leadership and Action Program The companion resources above are available as free downloads at: www.WelcomingResources.org/resources In addition, we also recommend that participants purchase the book Families Like Mine by Abigail Garner, available at Amazon and other booksellers.
    [Show full text]
  • Inventing Judicial Review: Israel and America
    INAUGUARL URI AND CAROLINE BAUER MEMORIAL LECTURE INVENTING JUDICIAL REVIEW: ISRAEL AND AMERICA Robert A. Burt* TABLE OF CONTENTS I. THE FIRST GENERATION: TOWARD AN INDEPENDENT JUDICIARY .............................................. 2017 A. The Impact of the 1967 War on Israeli Jurisprudence .................................................... 2027 1. Jurisdiction over the Occupied Territories ....... 2029 2. The Knesset Acts ............................... 2034 B. The Court's Initial Response ......................... 2036 1. Shalit v. Minister of the Interior ................. 2036 2. Bergman v. Minister of Finance .................. 2043 3. Bergman and Marbury .......................... 2047 4. Jurisdiction over the Territories and Marbury .... 2049 II. THE SECOND GENERATION: THE AMERICAN WAY ...... 2051 A. The Definitive Emergence of Judicial Review in A m erica ............................................ 2051 B. The Israeli Supreme Court Charts Its Path ........... 2066 1. Israel's Dred Scott ............................... 2067 2. Judicial Injunctions to Tolerate the Intolerant ... 2077 3. The Promise and Problems of Judicial Independence ................................... 2084 C. The Convergence of Israeli and American Doctrine ... 2091 * Southmayd Professor of Law, Yale University. This Article is an expanded version of the Inaugural Uri and Caroline Bauer Memorial Lecture delivered at the Benjamin N. Car- dozo School of Law of Yeshiva University on October 11, 1988. I am especially indebted to Justice Aharon Barak, Professor Kenneth Mann of the Tel Aviv University Faculty of Law, and Dean Stephen Goldstein of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem Faculty of Law. Although none of them is responsible for the substance of this Article, without their generous assistance it would not have been written. I am also particularly grateful to two Yale Law School students, Stephen Sowle who helped me with the American historical sources and Joel Prager who gave me access to material only available in Hebrew.
    [Show full text]
  • Melilah Agunah Sptib W Heads
    Agunah and the Problem of Authority: Directions for Future Research Bernard S. Jackson Agunah Research Unit Centre for Jewish Studies, University of Manchester [email protected] 1.0 History and Authority 1 2.0 Conditions 7 2.1 Conditions in Practice Documents and Halakhic Restrictions 7 2.2 The Palestinian Tradition on Conditions 8 2.3 The French Proposals of 1907 10 2.4 Modern Proposals for Conditions 12 3.0 Coercion 19 3.1 The Mishnah 19 3.2 The Issues 19 3.3 The talmudic sources 21 3.4 The Gaonim 24 3.5 The Rishonim 28 3.6 Conclusions on coercion of the moredet 34 4.0 Annulment 36 4.1 The talmudic cases 36 4.2 Post-talmudic developments 39 4.3 Annulment in takkanot hakahal 41 4.4 Kiddushe Ta’ut 48 4.5 Takkanot in Israel 56 5.0 Conclusions 57 5.1 Consensus 57 5.2 Other issues regarding sources of law 61 5.3 Interaction of Remedies 65 5.4 Towards a Solution 68 Appendix A: Divorce Procedures in Biblical Times 71 Appendix B: Secular Laws Inhibiting Civil Divorce in the Absence of a Get 72 References (Secondary Literature) 73 1.0 History and Authority 1.1 Not infrequently, the problem of agunah1 (I refer throughout to the victim of a recalcitrant, not a 1 The verb from which the noun agunah derives occurs once in the Hebrew Bible, of the situations of Ruth and Orpah. In Ruth 1:12-13, Naomi tells her widowed daughters-in-law to go home.
    [Show full text]
  • Media Reference Guide
    media reference guide NINTH EDITION | AUGUST 2014 GLAAD MEDIA REFERENCE GUIDE / 1 GLAAD MEDIA CONTACTS National & Local News Media Sports Media [email protected] [email protected] Entertainment Media Religious Media [email protected] [email protected] Spanish-Language Media GLAAD Spokesperson Inquiries [email protected] [email protected] Transgender Media [email protected] glaad.org/mrg 2 / GLAAD MEDIA REFERENCE GUIDE TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION FAIR, ACCURATE & INCLUSIVE 4 GLOSSARY OF TERMS / LANGUAGE LESBIAN / GAY / BISEXUAL 5 TERMS TO AVOID 9 TRANSGENDER 12 AP & NEW YORK TIMES STYLE 21 IN FOCUS COVERING THE BISEXUAL COMMUNITY 25 COVERING THE TRANSGENDER COMMUNITY 27 MARRIAGE 32 LGBT PARENTING 36 RELIGION & FAITH 40 HATE CRIMES 42 COVERING CRIMES WHEN THE ACCUSED IS LGBT 45 HIV, AIDS & THE LGBT COMMUNITY 47 “EX-GAYS” & “CONVERSION THERAPY” 46 LGBT PEOPLE IN SPORTS 51 DIRECTORY OF COMMUNITY RESOURCES 54 GLAAD MEDIA REFERENCE GUIDE / 3 INTRODUCTION Fair, Accurate & Inclusive Fair, accurate and inclusive news media coverage has played an important role in expanding public awareness and understanding of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) lives. However, many reporters, editors and producers continue to face challenges covering these issues in a complex, often rhetorically charged, climate. Media coverage of LGBT people has become increasingly multi-dimensional, reflecting both the diversity of our community and the growing visibility of our families and our relationships. As a result, reporting that remains mired in simplistic, predictable “pro-gay”/”anti-gay” dualisms does a disservice to readers seeking information on the diversity of opinion and experience within our community. Misinformation and misconceptions about our lives can be corrected when journalists diligently research the facts and expose the myths (such as pernicious claims that gay people are more likely to sexually abuse children) that often are used against us.
    [Show full text]
  • Curriculum Vitae
    Yehiel Kaplan CURRICULUM VITAE 1. Personal Details Permanent Home Address: 30/9 Shivtey Israel St., Modiin, 71724 Home Telephone Number: 077-3203979 Office Telephone Number: 04-8249219 Electronic Address: [email protected] Fax Number: 04-8240681 2. Higher Education Period of Study Name of Institution and Degree Date of Degree Department A. Undergraduate and Graduate Studies 1974-1978 Hesder Yeshiva, Har-Etzion, Alon Rabbinical Ordination, 1978 Shevut, Gush Etzion Conferred by Rabbis Eliezer Yehudah Waldenberg, Zalman Nechemia Goldberg and Yehuda Gershuni 1979-1983 Faculty of Law, The Hebrew L.L.B. 1983 University of Jerusalem 1984-1985 Faculty of Law, The Hebrew L.L.M. 1985 University of Jerusalem Thesis Under Direction of Prof. Menachem Elon: “Public in the Legislation of Jewish Medieval Franco- German Communities”. 1987-1988 Visiting Scholar. Focus of Studies: Not Applicable 1988 Medieval Roman and Canon Law, Law School, the University of California, Berkeley 1986-1993 Faculty of Law, The Hebrew Dr. Jur. Thesis Under 1994 University of Jerusalem Direction of Prof. Menachem Elon: “Jewish Public Law of Franco-German Jewry from the Xth through the XVth Century B. Post-Doctoral Studies March- University of Oxford, Centre for Not Applicable August 1996 August 1996 Socio-Legal Studies, Post Dr. research - Family Law. 3. Academic Rank and Tenure 1 Name of Institution and Academic Rank and Tenure Department Faculty of Law, University of Associate Professor With Tenure Haifa 4. Offices of Academic Administration 1. Discipline Committee, University of Haifa, 1997, 1998. 2. Teaching Committee, Faculty of Law, University of Haifa, 1996-Present. 3. Library Committee, Faculty of Law, University of Haifa, 1998.
    [Show full text]
  • Jewish and Western Philosophies of Law
    Jewish and Western Philosophies of Law 1) Reason, Revelation, and Natural Law Maimonides, Mishne Torah, Laws of Kings, Chapter 10. Maimonides, Commentary, Ethics of the Fathers. Aquinas, Summa Theologica, selections. Marvin Fox, “Maimonides and Aquinas on Natural Law.” Yisrael LIfshits, Tifferet Yisrael, Avot Chapter 3 2) Natural Law and Noahide Law Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 57a, 57b. Jason Rosenblatt, Renaissance England’s Chief Rabbi: John Selden, selections. J. David Bleich, “Judaism and Natural Law.” Michael P. Levine, “The Role of Reason in the Ethics of Maimonides: Or Why Maimonides Could have had a Doctrine of Natural Law even if He Did Not,” The Journal of Religious Ethics, 14:2. 3) Modern Versions of Natural Law Theory John Finnis, Natural Law and Natural Rights, chs. II, V-XII. Robert P. George, In Defense of Natural Law, Selections. David Novak, Natural Law in Judaism, selections Russell Hittinger, The First Grace: Rediscovering the Natural Law in a Post Christian World,” selections. 4) Law and Divine Command Theory Maimonides, Book of Commandments, Principle 1. Robert Adams, Finite and Infinite Goods, selections. Robert Adams, The Virtue of Faith, selections. Comments of Nahmanides on Maimonides’ Book of Commandments, Principle 1. Rabbi Elchanan Wasserman, Kuntres Divrei Sofrim. 5) The Nature of Law: Hart vs. Dworkin H.L.A. Hart, The Concept of Law, chs. I-V Ronald Dworkin, Taking Rights Seriously, chs. 2-4 6) Hart vs. Dworkin Halakhically Apllied Nissim of Gerondi, Derashot HaRan, Mishpat HaMelekh Menachem Loberbaum, Politics and the Limits of Law (Stanford: 2001). Isaac Halevi Herzog, 7) Law, Justice and Equity, Part I A.
    [Show full text]
  • Religion and Lgbtq People in Us History
    Published online 2016 www.nps.gov/subjects/tellingallamericansstories/lgbtqthemestudy.htm LGBTQ America: A Theme Study of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer History is a publication of the National Park Foundation and the National Park Service. We are very grateful for the generous support of the Gill Foundation, which has made this publication possible. The views and conclusions contained in the essays are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the opinions or policies of the U.S. Government. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute their endorsement by the U.S. Government. © 2016 National Park Foundation Washington, DC All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reprinted or reproduced without permission from the publishers. Links (URLs) to websites referenced in this document were accurate at the time of publication. THEMES The chapters in this section take themes as their starting points. They explore different aspects of LGBTQ history and heritage, tying them to specific places across the country. They include examinations of LGBTQ community, civil rights, the law, health, art and artists, commerce, the military, sports and leisure, and sex, love, and relationships. STRUGGLES21 IN BODY AND SPIRIT: RELIGION AND LGBTQ PEOPLE IN US HISTORY Drew Bourn Introduction The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once observed that eleven o'clock on Sunday morning is the most segregated hour in the United States.1 But segregation goes beyond a separation between black churches and white churches. There is a tremendous variety of religious communities in the US - Hindus, Muslims, Jews, Christians, Buddhists, Pagans, and others.
    [Show full text]
  • Adaptive Talmud Session #2: Identifying Technical Vs
    Adaptive Talmud Session #2: Identifying Technical vs. Adaptive Challenges The Day They Fired the Head of the Academy Rabba Yaffa Epstein April 1, 2020/ 7 Nissan 5780 Background on Rabban Gamliel and Rebbe Yehosha from Encylopaedia Judaica Gamaliel, Rabban, Encyclopedia Judaica, Second Edition, Volume 7, Pp. 365-366 Gamaliel, Rabban, the name and title of six sages, descendants of *Hillel, who filled the office of nasi in Ereẓ Israel. RABBAN GAMALIEL II, also called Rabban Gamaliel of Jabneh, grandson of (1), succeeded *Johanan b. Zakkai as nasi c. 80 C.E. He saw his life’s work as the strengthening of the new center at Jabneh and the concentration and consolidation of the people around the Torah, constituting an authority that would be capable of filling the place of the Temple and of the Sanhedrin which had met in the Chamber of Hewn Stones. To this end he worked energetically for the elevation of the dignity of the nasi’s office, and for the unification of halakhah. The Talmud reports a heavenly voice “that was heard in Jabneh” establishing the halakhah in accordance with Bet Hillel (Er. 13b; TJ, Ber. 1:7, 3b), corresponding to the aims of much of Gamaliel’s activity. It also describes his vigorous exertions as not directed to increasing his own honor or that of his household, but rather to preserving the unity of the nation and the Torah (BM 59b). In his private life and in his personal relationships he was modest and easygoing, showed love and respect toward his pupils and friends, and even to his slave, and was tolerant of gentiles (Tosef, BK 9:30; Ber.
    [Show full text]