Haredi Judge Who Voided Thousands Of Conversions: Even The Greatest Sefardic Rabbis Need To Defer To Ashkenazim

Rabbi Avraham Sherman, the haredi rabbinic court judge who voided thousands of conversions done by Conversion Authority head Rabbi Haim Druckman, now says…

…even the greatest Sefardi rabbi like Ovadia Yosef must defer their halakhic opinions to the "leaders"of this generation, Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv and Rabbi Shmuel HaLevi Wosner:

…"On questions that deal with the future of the entire Jewish people, the great halachic sages of the generation must be consulted," Rabbi Avraham Sherman said. "I call on religious Zionist rabbis to meet with the great rabbis of our day to reach an agreement on the issue of conversions."

Sherman said the major Torah sages of this generation were Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv of Jerusalem and Rabbi Shmuel Halevi Vosner of Bnei Brak, and that religious Zionist rabbis were obliged to abide by their opinions.

Sherman said that even highly respected Sephardi rabbis such as former chief rabbis Ovadia Yosef and Mordechai Eliahu should defer to Elyashiv's halachic decisions regarding conversions.…

…Sherman pointed out that there were two opposing views in Jewish thought to converting non-Jews to Judaism. One approach sees conversion as a very positive act that should be encouraged because it brings people closer to the true monotheistic faith.

Sherman said the Talmud expresses a contradictory opinion that views converts as a plague because they introduce foreign influences into the Jewish people.

Sherman said that in the past 100 years with the rise of intermarriage and assimilation the second opinion had taken precedence among all the great rabbinical sages.

"In the modern era the great rabbis see converts as a potential danger to the spiritual purity of the Jewish people," he said.

Sherman said that he and other rabbis were concerned about the way conversions were performed in the Conversion Authority.

"Too often in the rabbinical courts we come across supposed converts who never had the intention of observing an Orthodox way of life. This should concern all Jews, haredi and religious Zionist alike. We must unite and make sure that no considerations foreign to Halacha taint the conversion process."

There is no basis in halakha for insisting Sefardim need to follow Ashkenazi halakha (or vice versa) or for deeming one rabbi's halakhic judgments to be superior and therefore mandatory for all Jews.

Further, Sherman argues circularly. He first defines "great rabbis" as those who agree with his leader, Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv. He then defines all other rabbis as lesser and disregards their halakhic opinions.

Sherman is a disgrace and he should be impeached immediately.

Background: 1 & 2.

[Hat Tip: Yankel.]

Comments

[michelle]

B"H

In arguing that the halakah must change because of modern circumstances, how he is different from those in the Reform movement?

Is he not arguing that he doesn’t have to follow Torah as it is written, that he can have his new “modern” interpretation that does not include kindness to the stranger?

Often times, one becomes what they most wish to avoid.

It appears he has met the apostate, and he is him.

[rebitzman]

++In arguing that the halakah must change because of modern circumstances, how he is different from those in the Reform movement?++

Better beard. MUCH better beard.

Been having this conversation with a charedi acquaintance because (apparently, like you) I am confused as to why when the lest does it - it is evil, when the right does it it is an interpretation of hallacah.

Perhaps there IS a full teshuva supporting his statement - either written, or in the works. Can't wait to sit down and reading it over a nice piece of roasted glatt kosher salmon.

[steve]

He is looking to monoplize the conversion business. Why should Rav Ovadya have to defer to anyone? If a sincere convert wants a Sephardi conversion, why does he have to go to Sherman or Tropper? The conversion racket is as corrupt as the kashrus racket.

[steve]

a nice piece of roasted glatt kosher salmon.

It's coming soon. I hear Dagim is using a new chumra by using mehadrin fishing nets and using fish that only eat kosher fish. They may also use sharper knives to filet the fish. Getzel sees no problem with calling it "glatt".

[hancock park]

The Taliban strikes again. There is another example of fanaticism on Haaretz.com for 8-5-08. See Rabbinical Court threatens mother who wants to raise secular children. The Rabbinical Court is ignoring the ruling of the Family Court that allowed the mother to raise the kids secular. For some reason the very secular Israeli Supreme Court is backing the Rabbinical Court.This is another case where two secular Israelis got married and got divorced when the Husband became ultra-orthodox and the custody battle began.

[Juan]

Is no one bothered by the outrageous claims that converts are a "potential danger to the spiritual purity of the Jewish people"? I am frankly speechless. How did he get away with saying such a blatantly stupid thing in Mossad Harav Kook?!! I knew the Huns were riding into town but how did the MO Israeli rabbis open the door and surrender the city?

More than ever I feel proud of being a Conservative Jew.

[Ben]

Modern reformer/ultra orthodox A.Sherman says: "In the modern era the great rabbis see converts as a potential danger to the spiritual purity of the Jewish people,".

We can see that Sherman (why such a non-Jewish last name?)isn't striving for a better conversion process, because in his opinion, ALL Converts, including the best and sincerest ones represent "danger for spiritual purity of Jewish people". Thus he should drop all pretences and say openly - I, A.Sherman, want to stop ALL future conversions and annule all prior conversions. All Jews of "impure blood" should be out. Heil Sherman!

[Harold F]

The Talmudic opinion that converts are a danger to the Jewish people has been cited by antisemites from time immemorial as proof text of the racist nature of Jews.

It belongs in the trash can, period!

[Harold F]

The Talmudic opinion that converts are a danger to the Jewish people has been cited by antisemites from time immemorial as proof text of the racist nature of Jews.

It belongs in the trash can, period!

[reader]

"Further, Sherman argues circularly. He first defines "great rabbis" as those who agree with his leader, Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv. He then defines all other rabbis as lesser and disregards their halakhic opinions"

Exactly. This is the key point Shmarya. Don't obfuscate the issue by calling it racism or taking the ashkenaz vs sephard angle. It has nothing to do with that and you take away from opposition to this insanity by very obviously trying to twist it into some sort of pity-party agenda.

Say it for what it is. Circular logic of exclusivism. "all the gedolim say _____" 'Well, what about so-and-so and so-and-so who don't say that' "Oh well, he's not a gadol" (Why? Because he doesn't say _____ so that makes him not a gadol!) -----THIS HAS TO STOP
It is not about race, it's about hashkafa, they cannot be allowed to monopolize it!!!

[norm]

Jews is the disapora need to insist that our Federation contributions are not used to produce more of these monsters from schools like Bais Yaakov. These people are Jews. They are nuts.

[Yochanan Lavie]

Rather than debase the purity of the Jewish religion, converts enhance it. They have said "na'aseh v'nishmah" at a time when most Jews say "no thank you!" In my shul, a family of African American converts have helped us renovate our 100 year old bldg, work with the city council regarding an eruv, they are always in shul on time while born Jews sleep in or go to the beach instead.

And yes, just like the Spanish Catholic church, in the face of actual Catholic doctrine disintinguished between "old" and "new" Christians, and developed a policy of "limpienza de sangre" later emulated by the Nuremberg Laws, this Sherman seems to be fighting for the Confederacy. And as a renegade Ashkenazi, I deplore the idea that Sephardic Jews are somehow deficient in torah- they gave us Rav Karo and the Rambam, amoung many others.

We should ingnore the evil penguins, and do Judaism our own way. Don't fund them, don't listen to them, develop people who have their skill sets.

[Yosef ben Matitia]

me thinks, the best thing for the sherman to do, is wrap himself in wax paper, coat himself in vaseline and slide himself in supository fashion into the butt of his master weirdo elioshiv.
looking at elioshiv face, me thinks the elioshiv will derive more pleasure from this invasive act, than from sefardis merely kowtowing to him.
as they say in brasil:
os filhos da puta!

[shmuel]

"In the modern era the great rabbis see converts as a potential danger to the spiritual purity of the Jewish people," he said.
I see nasty, mean-spirited and insulting rabbis as a source of potential danger to the "spiritual purity" ---whatever that is---of the Jewish people.
Let's ask this oisvorf if he's willing to delete Ruth the convert, Onkelos the convert, Antignos the convert, the forebears of Rabbi Akiva and so many other outstanding exemplars of piety, faith and scholarship from the Jewish story. If he is, he's wiped out the Messiah, the Oral law, the translation into Aramaic that made the Torah understandable to the masses...everything.
The nerve. As if the "modern era" means anything to him. He ignores all of the "modern era." Let him ignore this, too.

[Mediterraneo]

Haredi Judge Who Voided Thousands Of Conversions: Even The Greatest Sefardic Rabbis Need To Defer To Ashkenazim

Just in case the Sephardic Rabbis ever need to know how to misprounounce the letter "taf" or find out the pressing reasons why kitnyot should *still* be avoided on Pesach, they should put some Ashkenazic Sages on their speed dials.

[Yochanan Lavie]

Mediteraneo: Ashkenazi rabbis never objected to "kitniyot" on Pesach. It's "kitniyois" they banned ;-)

[Mediterraneo]

YL -

Good one!

Shabbat Shalom!

[Joel davidi]

By the way, Sherman himself is not exactly charedi in the classical sense of the term. This is not a clear cut charedi vs. religious Zionist issue; there are major divisions among relig. Zionists too regarding the validity of Rabbi Druckman's conversions (for example, prominent Relig. Zionist Rabbi Yisroel Rozen publicly criticized R' Drukman's conversions). The facts remain that there are scores of people who converted under R' Drukman's auspices who never intended to keep any mitzvot. This is a touchy issue and I am unsure myself how to go about this.

[Yochanan Lavie]

Med: Thanks. Shabbat shalom.

Joel D: I think the point of this post is the Ashkenazi vs. Sephardi thing. Many Ashkenazic rabbis do not respect Sephardim, unfortunately. They demand Sephardim practice deference to their "betters."

[yehudha]

Instead of telling Jews to convert again this "rabbi" needs to go back to his "cheider" and start again with aleph beth, as evidently the first time he hasn't learned a thing.