From: faigin@aero.org (Daniel P. Faigin)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.jewish
Subject: Re: On Orthodox Monopoly (was can of worms...)
Date: 15 Sep 92 09:57:16
Organization: The Aerospace Corporation, El Segundo, CA
NNTP-Posting-Host: soldan.aero.org
In-reply-to: gertler@ptms_dev.sbi.com's message of 15 Sep 92 00:45:33 GMT

On 15 Sep 92 00:45:33 GMT, gertler@ptms_dev.sbi.com (User - Don Gertler) said: 

> If Reform is merely writing what amounts to its membership criteria, then
> fine.  These "converts" will be called Reformjudaists, or whatever moniker
> we've agreed on above.

Ah, but Reform isn't doing this. What is the criteria for membership? The only
one I can think of is that you are human (and even that might not hold). I
don't think any sincere applicant -- whatever race, color, or deformity --
would be rejected from applying. *ALL* movements require some course of study;
*ALL* movements require public statements of commitment to the religion and
the mitzvot (the definitions of these terms may vary, but the basis of the
religion and the mitzvot don't). 

Where the movements differ is not in the "criteria" for membership, but in the
"procedure" or "ritual" involved with the conversion. Issues of appropriate
witnesses, necessity of mikvah, and what is meant by the set of required
mitzvot is where the differences occur. Not in the "criteria". 

I can understand the view that treats the various Judaic movements as separate
religions, as adherents to one might not be acceptable to the more
fundamentalist of the others. The more liberal movements accept the
fundamentalists; but not vice-versa. This is like the christian world: the
liberal-in-practice christians (such as the 7-day adventists) accept the
born-agains; but the other direction often requires spiritual rebirth.

However (and this is the important part), all christian sects regard their
members as culturally christian (even if not of their particular "religion").
If a jihad came down against the christians, all would suffer, regardless of
sect; hence, all must band together. So it is with the Jews. Even if you don't
consider a converted Reform Jew as "religiously" Jewish, you can consider them
as culturally Jewish. If (G-d forbid) another Hitler arose, the conversion
distinction wouldn't matter -- all Jews (even Reform) would suffer.

We must not allow to happen with Judaism what has happened in Bosnia. There,
the non-arab muslims, that have adopted many "secular" practices (such as
no chaddor, praying less than 5 times a day, etc) are being subject to "ethnic
cleansing". The arabic fundamentalist muslims are refusing to help them unless
they adopt the more Orthopractic beliefs. They view the "cleansing" as G-d's
punishment for their behaviour.

This petty infighting may be the death of Judaism if we don't stop it.
Fighting cannot occur without a minimum of two parties to fight. Let's focus
on our commonalities and work together, while admitting and accepting our
differences. 

Daniel
--
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   "You can't be a rationalist in an irrational world. It isn't rational!"
	       Dr. Rance, in Joe Orton's "What the Butler Saw"