Orthodox Conundrum

Accepting "Daat Torah" nowadays usually means believing that the greatest Torah scholars have unusual insight in areas outside of Jewish law and thought; for this reason, a person should or even must ask their opinion before doing… well, perhaps anything. Minimally, even communal matters that are not halachic issues per se require consultation with the authorities before moving forward. Scott discusses this concept and explains why he thinks that even people who can accept it in theory should reject its modern incarnation. This is not a halachic analysis, and it is not intended to be comprehensive. Rather, it is a series of reflections on the ways that Daat Torah has gone wrong, and how the way it is understood today causes terrible damage to Jews and Torah Judaism. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Apart from the horror that was engendered by the Chaim Walder revelations and his subsequent suicide, there has been significant discussion about the Chareidi media's varied responses to the terrible situation. Some media outlets lauded Walder after his death, which apparently helped trigger the suicide of one of Walder's victims. Ignoring truth for the sake of a supposed higher value has consequences, some potentially catastrophic. To better understand ultra-Orthodox media, Scott spoke to Dr. Yoel Finkelman, Curator of the Haim and Hanna Salomon Judaica Collection at the National Library of Israel. (Please note that in this podcast, Dr. Finkelman is speaking as an interested observer of Chareidi media and not in any official work capacity. The opinions expressed are his own.) Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com Head shot of Dr. Finkelman by Yorai Lieberman

The news that convulsed the Jewish world last week about Chaim Walder's suicide, following many credible accusations against him of sexual abuse and harassment, highlighted Orthodoxy's leadership crisis. Some prominent rabbis in different sectors of Orthodoxy said and did the right things; but many did not. Some of what these other leaders publicly asserted was ignorant, hurtful, and damaging. Some leaders even implicitly or explicitly showed honor to Walder... and last week, a victim of Walder's abuse died by suicide, apparently triggered by the honor shown to Walder after his death. Yes, we have a leadership crisis. The occasion of Walder's suicide didn't create that crisis, but it may have caused that crisis to reach a boiling point. The question now is, what do we do about it? To talk about this crisis Scott spoke with Rabbi Yosef Blau, the senior mashgiach ruchani at Yeshiva University. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

On December 27, celebrated children's author Chaim Walder was found dead after apparently shooting himself in a Petach Tikva cemetery. In November, Walder had been credibly accused of sexual assault and sexual harassment in an expose published by Haaretz; this was followed by the revelation that these particular accusations were only the tip of the iceberg. Walder, it turned out, was a monster. The news of Walder's suicide has rocked the Orthodox world. Scott asked Shana Aaronson, the executive director of Magen, to join him again on the podcast to answer questions that she has been receiving over the past two days. Although Shana discussed Chaim Walder last month in episode 87, she now answers some of the new questions that have arisen, as well as questions that people asked after listening to the earlier discussion. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Corruption. No transparency. Cover-ups. This, tragically, is too often the reality in the world of Orthodox Jewish charitable organizations. While some tzedaka funds are well-run, honest, and transparent, others are unprincipled and untrustworthy... and sometimes even worse. (Remember when you gave to help someone get a desperately needed kidney transplant? Are you sure the patient even exists?) Avital Chizhik-Goldschmidt highlighted this issue in a twitter thread a couple of months ago, and Scott discussed this with her further in this interview. They also talked about her dual role as a journalist and a rebbetzin, the conflicts that are engendered by that dual role, the fine line between journalism and activism, and more. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Jews who live in majority-Christian countries are used to being inundated with Christmas imagery during the month of December. But while that might be innocuous per se, it also raises a more serious question of whether Orthodox Jews need to be concerned about the attempts of some Christian missionaries to convert Jews to Christianity. Many of us likely believe that while we need to combat the conversion of any Jew, Orthodox or otherwise, the danger to Orthodox Jews is minimal, at worst. Rabbi Tovia Singer of Outreach Judaism suggests that the threat to Orthodox Jews is stronger than many assume. Scott spoke to Rabbi Singer in the wake of the Michael Elkohen situation in Episode 67, and this week they discuss the more general risk posed by missionaries targeting Orthodox Jews. Rabbi Singer explains what every Orthodox Jew needs to know, and how Jews can combat the conversion techniques of missionaries. More controversially, he bluntly explains why, in contrast to the opinions of many people working in the area of interfaith dialogue, Christianity is not good for Christians and does not have a real redemptive purpose, and that Evangelical Fundamentalists of all stripes are interested in Jewish evangelism, even if they don't say so out loud. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Last week, Sam Sokol of Haaretz reported that, "Israel's ultra-Orthodox parties on Monday declared war on the 'Hellenists' in the government looking to upend the country's religious status quo, promising to launch a joint national struggle to preserve the state's Jewish character." What changes are being suggested - and why do these changes make the Orthodox parties so angry? In order to discuss what the government would like to do, what the religious parties want instead, and what might actually happen and what probably won't, Scott spoke to Sam Sokol to find out what's really going on. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

When many people think about Chanukah, they think about heroism. And that makes sense: the Maccabees were real heroes, defying the might of their Syrian Greek overlords and fighting for Jewish practice in the Land of Israel. At the same time, much of the Jewish world gets the meaning of heroism wrong... or gets it right and chooses to ignore it. What is heroism, where are we failing, and what can we do to start demonstrating real heroism in our Orthodox communities? Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Thursday was the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, making this an especially appropriate time to reflect on the issue of domestic violence in the Orthodox world. Many assume that domestic violence is an issue with minimal relevance in Orthodox communities; Rachel Stomel of the Center for Women's Justice, however, argues that this attitude is, sadly, very mistaken. She asserts that not only does domestic violence take place in our communities, but also that some of the systems we have in place - whether we mean the government sponsored Rabbinate, individual batei din, or perhaps even halacha itself - can be contributing factors. This interview presents some disturbing realities. For anyone who cares about Torah and halacha, we need to face these questions head on. You may disagree with Rachel, but as she said on the podcast, raising the issue, even if we don't know how to create airtight solutions, is a necessary first step. Please listen to and share this podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. Also visit https://www.jchpodcasts.com/ to learn all about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com

Just over a week ago, we heard the very disturbing news that the well known and influential children's author, Chaim Walder, was accused by multiple people of sexually abusing several girls between the ages of 13 and 20. Apart from his celebrity as an author, Walder has worked as a therapist, and is the founder of the Center for the Child and Family in Bnei Brak, a talk show host, and a columnist. After these allegations were published in Haaretz and other media outlets, his newspaper and radio station have discontinued working with him, while numerous stores have stopped selling all of his books. Shana Aaronson, the executive director of Magen, had heard of these allegations before they became public, and Scott spoke with her both about the Chaim Walder situation, as well as about how parents can protect children from sexual abuse. They talked about what parents should and should not do, what are the yellow and red flags they should notice, and if they notice such warning signs, what they should do next. To learn more about Magen, visit their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/magen.lotishtok. Please listen to and share the podcast, and let us know what you think on the Orthodox Conundrum Discussion Group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/432020081498108). Thanks to all of our Patreon subscribers, who have access to bonus JCH podcasts, merch, and more - we appreciate your help, and hope you really enjoy the extras! Visit the JCH Patreon site at https://www.patreon.com/jewishcoffeehouse. Check out https://jewishcoffeehouse.com/ for the Orthodox Conundrum and other great podcasts, and remember to subscribe to them on your favorite podcast provider. The site will also help you learn about creating your own podcast. Music: "Happy Rock" by bensound.com