Message from R’ Schonfeld: R’ Yoel Schonfeld

I will be taking off to Israel for a family wedding in a few moments. But I wanted to get this thought in before I left.

Do you ever recall an Orthodox organization issuing a strong statement against LGBTQ? I don’t. Truthfully, at this point, I would not be happy to issue such a statement either, unless they try infiltrating our schools. The statement would accomplish nothing and cause an unnecessary provocation.

If, say, 20 years ago, I told you that an Orthodox rabbi is making it his mission to call out Religious Zionist leaders for encouraging murder and terror, you would assume it would be someone from the very right-winged anti-Zionist frum community – most likely from Brisk (of the yeshivah world) or Satmar (from the chasidish world).

This may seem like a frivolous topic, but to me it is not. It may not be up there with the weighty and pivotal issues facing the United States and Israel today, but it is very reflective of our character as a community.

I participate in a rabbinic email chat that is composed largely of right-of-center Orthodox rabbanim. Last week, one of the rabbanim asked the chat if anyone had an idea for a spiritual message as a takeaway from the deadly fires in Maui, Hawaii.

We are all familiar with the oft-quoted Gemara (Yoma 9b) that the Second Beis HaMikdash was destroyed due to baseless hatred amongst the Jews. But it is well worth citing the Gemara’s full statement in that regard.