To the Editor:
These are excerpts of an article that appeared in the press:
"Lieberman gets off river and finds a synagogue," by Brigitte
Greenberg, (AP). Vice presidential candidate Joseph Lieberman
and his family veered off the campaign trail Saturday to
attend services at the only Jewish synagogue within 90 miles
. . . They boarded a riverboat in La Crosse on Friday morning
to campaign down the Mississippi. The Liebermans got off the
boat in Genoa and took a motorcade back to La Crosse, the
only town with a synagogue in the area, so they could keep
the Sabbath, which stretches from Friday sundown to Saturday
sundown. About 45 to 50 families belong to the temple . . .
Both Lieberman and his 31-year- old daughter, Rebecca, were
summoned to the front of the temple to sing from the Torah .
. .
This is not the only thing done in public by this family that
should call in to question how much of a kiddush Hashem
are we talking about? Should he be called frum
(Orthodox)?
Rabbi A. Muken
Is Lieberman a Kiddush Hashem?
I was appalled to read "Joe Lieberman -- a True Kiddush
Hashem." He now supports partial birth abortion, which is
no less than murder with achzarios, he is pro-
homosexuality, and he is now against vouchers which would
alleviate a tremendous financial burden on thousands of
heimishe families sending their children to yeshivas .
. . need I go on?
His acceptance will prove to be a huge mistake. He does not
represent true Torah-values, and all those who do and are
working, will now be under great burden and pressure to
explain to our colleagues why we need to be more religious
than the "Orthodox" Joe Lieberman.
You should not be promoting him.
Jake Goldstein
Columbia, MD USA
The Editor Replies:
It is important to keep all this in mind. But it is also
important to realize, as Rabbi Avi Shafran of Aguda put it,
"He's running for Vice-President, not for Chief Rabbi."
Objectively, his presence in the public eye will bring up a
lot of issues and bombard the public, including the Jewish
public, with a lot of information. As Rabbi Yitzchok
Adlerstein writes, "He will, however, be a lodestone towards
tradition, with individual elements of his life-style
attracting, intriguing, and inviting comment. . . . We have a
window of opportunity . . . " He suggests making billboards
in favor of Shabbos that read, "If it works for Joe
Lieberman, it can work for you."
