Questions for a Tzohar rabbi, and astounding answers
A written summary and the unedited 18-minute conversation
I don’t think Tzohar’s hotline is getting many phone calls in response to their Seder “guidelines”. It seems the faithful sheep just follow orders, and the more seriously religious people are ignoring them altogether. That leaves yours truly as perhaps the only person to call them with critical questions and report back. The things I do for you.
I had to call them several times, with the same unfortunate woman being routed the call by their system each time, but finally I got to speak with Rabbi Yehoshua Grunstein. We spoke for 18 minutes!
I will start by giving credit where credit is due:
1) He was very forthcoming, generous with his time, affable, and seems to genuinely believe in his ideology, as opposed to other rabbis who are sold-out creeps. I think people like him are some of the best of the Religious Zionist community, who are intelligent and learned, and naturally achieve positions in their organizations. It’s a shame their gifts and potential are wasted on perpetuating this false ideology.
2) He said at the end that he researched fundraisers for IDF soldiers, indicated that some of them are scams, and said one should be very careful before giving them money. I was not expecting that!
Here are some of the questions I asked, with his answers paraphrased:
Q: How do we reconcile celebrating our holiday of freedom from slavery by running to bomb shelters and cutting out most of the Haggadah?
A: Unlike our ancestors, we have the zechus [merit] to have safe rooms (!!), and our freedom is expressed by the ability to make choices.
Q: What should elderly people do if they are guests at a Seder, and will not be able to make it to a safe room in time? Are they exempt from the Seder?
A: He recommends they conduct the entire Seder in a safe room and cut out most of Maggid, just do the essentials.
Q: What about the danger involved in running to safe rooms? Maybe they should just stay in safe rooms altogether?
A: They should do what they normally do. If they are normally up and about, they should continue to do that. (I don’t understand how that fits with his general understanding of pikuach nefesh and safek pikuach nefesh, but I didn’t push.)
Q: What should you do if a siren sounds while you are saying a bracha?
A: He gets into the details of general halacha, but it’s all predicated on the requirement to stop immediately and run to the shelter.
Q: If a siren sounded while a bakery was making matzah, and the workers didn’t stop to run for shelter, can one eat the matzah, or is it a mitzvah haba’ah b’aveira?
A: (He loved the question. Someone recommended it, and I loved it too!) The matzah can be eaten, but the workers did a sin.
Q: What if someone is in the shower and a siren sounds? What if it’s an elderly person or someone who otherwise won’t be able to get dressed in time, and they must go to a public shelter?
A: Pikuach nefesh! Sometimes one has to go naked, and they shouldn’t worry about how they look. You do what you need to do. (O...M...G.)
Q: Is it just me, or has the definition of pikuach nefesh drastically changed or greatly expanded from what it used to be?
A: There is a difference between pikuach nefesh for the individual and for the public. (Cited an array of sources that do not really connect to the matters at hand, but, like running naked to a public shelter, sometimes you do what you need to do to justify what you need to justify.)
Q: Why don’t we say that a person can work on Shabbos to raise money to buy an ambulance, since that will save a life?
A: An individual can’t do that, but if the government decided they needed more money for ambulances, and the only way was for the public to do this, this question would need to be seriously considered. (Wow.)
I asked him at the end if I can share his responses, since others are interested, and he enthusiastically agreed. So I encourage you to listen for yourself, to ask critical questions as well, and make informed, educated decisions accordingly.
After all, isn’t that what the Seder is all about? (At least if we’re not abbreviating it...)
A regime that cannot permit Jews to safely go to the Kotel, Har Habayis, and other holy sites on Pesach, or travel freely, or gather, has lost the right to call itself Jewish or Zionist, and should get out of the way. I don’t understand how religious Jews with an ounce of self-respect can think otherwise, let alone be so passionately devoted to them, even if they believe the official narrative at face value.
No comments:
Post a Comment