In his latest column, Shmuley Boteach comments on the Rabbis in New Jersey accused of wrongdoing.
I won’t reproduce the whole thing here, but rather some interesting excerpts:
2. Our community needs a moral and spiritual renaissance. We are good, law-abiding, generous people, but money is becoming too important to us.
You mean like “Rabbis” chasing after celebrity and even selling Bobblehead dolls of themselves?
7. My dear friend Mark Charendoff, an exemplary leader who heads the Jewish Funders Network, wrote of the rabbis: “There is a special place in hell reserved for these individuals. Not only did they play the part of pious clergy while pursuing their criminal paths, but they made religious and charitable institutions into (one hopes unwitting) accomplices.”
Before disagreeing with Mark, in the interests of full disclosure I should reveal that I feel a residue of bitterness at his having bested me in Newsweek’s list of America’s most influential rabbis. As it is, my fragile ego is hanging by a thread.
Yes, he said fragile.
I HAVE spent my life trying to bring Jewish values to the public. I know how much damage is done to that cause when rabbis are led away in handcuffs. Indeed, when I contemplate my own imperfections, I question whether I always do justice to the title myself.
Let me save you some time answering that, Shmuley.
No you don’t. Unless I have mistaken the idea of a Rabbi being a humble and learned teacher of Torah instead of a celebrity-chasing, fame and fortune seeking exploiter of Torah.
And for the record, your comments trying to justify the men’s alleged actions are also way off base.
