R’ Aryeh Strikovsky, Round 2
In light of talk over my earlier item, I tried to call back Strikovsky on the number he gave me, but got error messages from the phone company on repeated tries. I’ve sent him an e-mail indicating where and when he can reach me.
To be blunt, I’m quite surprised at Ner-David’s anger, and the suggestions of many that she actually received semicha. So here’s a summary of what Strikovsky’s said so far:
- The original story said Ner-David was a rabbi, but explicitly quoted Strikovsky saying she was not. He called his certification of her “more of an official recognition of her achievements in her studies…Practically, it is the same, since there is no objection to Ner-David providing answers and religious rulings to women who would come to ask her halachic questions, but in the Orthodox world and society it is not acceptable yet to ordain a woman.”
- In a phone conversation, he told me she was not given semicha, and that she is not a rabbi, but rather a “high-class instructor.”
- In a letter to the JPost, noted by Hirhurim, he wrote:
CORRECTION
In the article the term “ordination” was used throughout, whereas I clearly state that the document I signed read “… is more of an official recognition of her [Haviva Ner-David’s] studies[”] and was not intended to be construed as an ordination.
Dr. Arie Strikovsky
Jerusalem
- In a message on my voicemail, he said, “She did pass the exams for semicha, and if she would have been a boy she would have gotten semicha.”
Now, perhaps many would want to argue that what Strikovsky gave to Ner-David is so similar to semicha that to argue he didn’t is engaging overly in semantics, and they’re certainly free to do so. My job is to find out what Strikovsky says it is, and unless he tells me something radically different in our next conversation than what he’s told everyone else so far, he does not consider Ner-David a rabbi and does not consider what he gave her as semicha.
May 17th, 2006 at 2:39 pm
Ner-David’s statements are quie bizarre:
“I am not sure what Rabbi Strikovsky actually told you, but I am sure you must have misquoted him or misunderstood him. Either that, or you scared him away from saying the truth.”
It sounds to me like she is engaging in some sort of misrepresentation.
At the end of the day, will she claim that you’ve scared Rabbi Strikovsky into changing his story?
Sounds like a scam to me.
May 17th, 2006 at 5:01 pm
“Boy”????
May 17th, 2006 at 7:32 pm
This whole story is starting to sound pretty creepy to me.
May 18th, 2006 at 6:57 am
“She did pass the exams for semicha, and if she would have been a boy she would have gotten [normal] semicha.�
It’s like saying the following:
He passed all his tests and passed his boards. I’m very impressed by his work and his surgical skill. He’s saved many lives. If only he were white, he’d be a real doctor.”
He did not give Haviva Yoreh Yoreh. He gave her what seems to be like Rav u’Manhig with the clarification that the only thing stopping her from having regular smicha is her gender, and the added clarification that, for shailot specific to women, she may act as a Rav.
In effect, she is and she isn’t, and he did and he didn’t.
The really sad thing is, she’s probably far more qualified that the average Yoreh Yoreh recipient.
May 18th, 2006 at 6:13 pm
She may be qualified in book knowledge, but the totally unprofessional tone and ill-considered approach of her email does not inspire confidence in her judgement…
Did she really not think there would be any need to field questions from journalists like SIW? Did she not plan for this? Discuss it with Dr. Strikovsky? Her response betrays a lack of foresight and insight.
May 22nd, 2006 at 4:03 pm
While I am more traditional by nature and feel more comfortable in the role of having male rabbis, that is a separate issue from *truth*. The truth seems to be that Ner-David qualifies for semicha, according to the requirements that are given to men, and the only thing that prevents her from receiving the title is that she is a woman. I.e., she is qualified. Unless the Torah itself disqualifies women from semicha just on the basis of gender, she is qualified. The rabbi made it clear that he only withheld the *title* because “in the Orthodox world and society it is not acceptable YET to ordain a woman.â€? (caps mine). It is for social reasons that the title (and perhaps position that goes along with it) has not been granted. Does that have anything to do with truth?
While I may not be comfortable with the idea of women rabbis, it doesn’t mean she isn’t qualified, able and actually entitled. It is important that we recognize where our resistance comes from, and that we separate our personal feelings, inclinations and comfort zones from what is truth. If we cannot do that, we may feel all fiery and fierce to oppose or defend things for the sake of of truth and ‘what is right’ when really we are beginning with our emotional preferences and then seeking intellectual or religious statements to ‘back it up’. That is like shooting the arrow, and then drawing a bullseye around it-’you see? I hit the target’. No, mate, you hit where you wanted, and then called that a target. In any case, we as humans need much evolution, and in judaism as well.
Women are entitled to offer judgement in other areas, so why not this one? For example, the women who work in the mikvah have to check all the women to make sure that she is ‘tahor’. We trust women for that. It is on that basis that a wife is considered ‘kosher’ to be intimate. Her husband, a man, is forced to rely upon a woman (the mikveh lady’s) decision. If women were not able to offer judgement, then why have we for centuries relied upon women to offer some sort of judgement if the wife is qualified and ‘tahor’ to sleep with her husband? Both men and women receive benefit and rely on women’s unerring judgement on the matter. It does require attention to detail.
So…you think that if a woman, the mikvah lady, is adept. skilled and qualified enough to look over the woman about to immerse, and check if both preparation and immersion are ok, that this woman is also not capable of checking a chicken??
I hope you’re laughing.
That would be preposterous.
If there is a real issur associated with a woman being able to paskin, that’s one thing. If it is not an out-and-out issur but perhaps a breach of modesty, that is another issue, and would probably not be clear-cut or easy to resolve. But if it is a matter of social issues alone, we must recognize that that is what it’s about, and that despite our reservations, we must advance our own selves to be in line with what truth is. I may be uneasy. I may think it’s weird, or not my taste or style. I may even*feel* it is not right. But on the purely objective plane that may or may not be correct. I am still uncomfortable with it. I think there are a lot of social ramifications that go along with introducing women as rabbis that need be examined carefully. But is she capable? Yes. Qualified? Pretty much. Does that mean she should be in the exact same position as a male? Needs to be explored. Don’t take away from her the qualification and achievement she does have.