Letters

Eager to join the literary revisionism plaguing Harper Lee’s classic novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird,” in its 50th anniversary year, Eric Herschthal (“Did Harper Lee Whitewash the Jewish Past?” July 16) misinterprets two of the book’s passages as contrasting the South’s acceptance of its Jews with its persecution of blacks.

At first, the implication one perceives running through Gary Rosenblatt’s column (“New Torah-Based Outreach Seen Energizing Hillel,” July 2) is that Hillel’s new model of reaching Jewish students through text-based learning and personal engagement is innovative and indeed even radical on campuses. 

The conversion problem could be solved very simply if someone would remind the haredim of two things. One, that the Knesset is not a halachic body. The Knesset’s definition of a Jew is a political definition for the purposes of the Law of Return. It is, simply, if you are considered a Jew in your country of origin, you will be considered a Jew for the purposes of the Law of Return. In other words, if Hitler would kill you, the Jewish state will take you in.

The article, “Can Day Schools Survive?” (July 23), raises important questions about day school finances, and as the close of the article notes, progress is beginning to be made in some places. Aside from the MetroWest, N.J. endowment discussed in the article, another example is the Chicago federation having been able to raise over $30 million for its Jewish Day School Guarantee Trust Fund, even in this economic climate.

Abigail Pickus in her column, “A Kiss is Just a Kiss” (the Matchup, July 2) ends by questioning whether if she had just made a huge mistake. I opine she certainly did.

There have been many articles written in recent years, in The Jewish Week and elsewhere, regarding the plight of unmarried Jewish women. In this firsthand account, the author describes a dinner at her apartment with a young man on their first date. 

The front-page article on older olim, “Older Olim Face Ageism Hurdles” (July 16), was long overdue. The employment problem faced by the over-50s has deterred the relocation/settlement of many potential olim. For example, I am a board-certified, American-educated obstetrician/gynecologist with many years of experience. I speak fluent Hebrew and English. My credentials have been certified by the Israel Ministry of Health and the Specialty Board.  

According to your article, “Young Israel Movement In Turmoil” (July 2), National Council of Young Israel refused to accept the resignation of a member shul in Syracuse that elected a female president, and now the National Council wants to take legal action aimed at seizing the congregation’s assets. Then, when Young Israel delegates requested clarification of this serious matter in a conference call, the NCYI leadership hung up on them.  

I read the “Shabbat” issue (June) of Text/Context, your monthly supplement, together with other students in the class of Rabbi Judith Hauptman from the Jewish Theological Seminary, who was giving an introduction to Talmud course at the Russian State University for the Humanities in Moscow.

Notwithstanding The Jewish Week’s attack on the Second Amendment by attacking the National Rifle Association, (“Disturbing Decision on Guns,” Editorial, July 2), the central thrust of the Supreme Court’s recent decision in McDonald vs. City of Chicago was constitutionally sound.  

Although I understand the points made in Gary Rosenblatt’s column, (“Fresh Anger From Diaspora Over Conversion Bill,” July 15), there are two important points to consider:

First, there is no such thing as a “second-class Jew.” Either you are a Jew or are not.

Those non-Jews who choose to convert “not according to halacha” for social or convenience reasons, are still first-class non-Jews, not second-class Jews.

Only Judaism can define who is a Jew. What’s wrong with calling them Jewish sympathizers?