NOAH, HOMOSEXUALITY & TOYS
Rabbi Mordechai Z. Hecht
History is in the making
Every day that goes by laws and regulations, allowances and changes take place in our nation’s capital. Congress, the senate, the House and ultimately our president. These are our elected officials who represent our well being for now and the future. These people are also bound to keep the constitution and always have our total well being in mind.
Most of us are probably paying attention to Syria or the Government close down, the question is are you paying attention to what the United States Government, “One Nation Under G-d” is doing to the sanctity and morality of Marriage.
Are you aware of the fact the Unites states constitution requires that we maintain an environment which fosters humanity, morality and familial well being.
Whittier, Indians and Noah
In an autobiography of the famous poet Whittier, that is John Greenleaf Whittier (December 17, 1807 – September 7, 1892) who was an influential American Quaker poet and ardent advocate of the abolition of slavery in the United States, he relates a story his father once told him. There was once an Indian tribe that periodically became drunk and each and every member of the tribe would join this lunacy. Only one Indian had to remain sober all the time – to stand above and see clearly. That was the Noah of the Generation of the flood.
These are the Noah’s we must look for and strive for, today.
Pubic servants are all too often politicians, as we also generally refer to them as.
Sadly the lobbyist’s in our nation’s capital are strong and when you want to be heard speak up and this is how many laws moral or often not so moral end up passing.
The Hobby Horse toy
Back in the 50’s there was a great decline in the manufacturing of these famous, and now once again famous toys – the Hobby Horse. The reason why researchers said these toys had a decrease in sales back when was because they are anti social toys, as the rider would general go off on their own, singularly.
We too have the inner Hobby Horse mentality we tend to become fixated and hyper focus on something rather then address the early cause and reasoning for our challenge. We attempt to apply a bigger band aid to a small wound. When really what is needed is for the wound to be addressed professionally, calmly and collectedly as well as from a religious and religious-rights stand point.
Let it be known - for the record
On December 4, 1973 “The APA- American Psychiatric Association - voted to eliminate the classification “homosexuality” from the list of ‘non psychotic sexual deviations’ in future editions of the widely used: Diagnostic Statistical Manual (vol.3, due about January 1980). This decision had been lobbied for over period of time. The APA supported its decision with documentation that homosexuals do not show evidence of other psychopathology and do not, as a group, exhibit any greater amount of personality disturbances than do heterosexuals as a group. [1]
Opposing Views were expressed through a referendum signed by some 3,700 psychiatrists.[2] In effect, the APA ignored the many studies that have carefully concluded that homosexuality is inherently pathological, or, at least that homosexuals do exhibit some degree of additional personality disturbance related to their sexual orientation.[3]
Furthermore, on July 6, 2006, the Court of Appeals in Hernandez v. Robles decided that New York law does not permit same-sex marriage and that there is no state constitutional right to same-sex marriage[4].
WHAT WILL BE LEFT OF SOCIETY
If there was anything, that I can I say the Torah has taught me in all my years in Yeshivah and Rabbinical school and all my years in the rabbinate it is this: Morals, guarantee a moral society, for they are the underpinnings of our society, for ourselves and our generations after us.
G-d does not hold one for devious desires, but rather for devious acts.
JUDAISM AND ACCEPTANCE AND UNDERSTANDING
Judaism has nothing against in any shape form or fashion, in what society has come to deem them as gays and or lesbians. In fact there is no such name for such people in Torah literature. If we were to title people based on their sexual orientations we would have hundreds of “kinds”. Titleism is a form of sanctification and acceptance. We have a tendency to romanticize titles and names for things. Rather, they, we, are normal people, with the same general physical makeup, but rather a great mental and physiological variable and challenge. Comparable with countless other Psychological challenges known to mankind.
In the story of Noah there was a great debate amongst the ages if he was weren’t righteous. All agree he was good and upright moral person , the basis of the argument was rather whether or not he did enough for his generation – his fellow man?!
WE TOO MUST SPEAK UP
We can easily sit back and allow man to go corrupt, we are not the first and we sadly will not be the last, and we can seem like the nice person in the room, maybe like nice new red carpet not looking to be stepped on, rather complimented and applauded. Or, we can be the red runner of the Holy matrimony ceremony, guiding our fellow man and youth in the right direction – to holy sanctification.
Can we have every one be drunk, and no one watching the morals – why that’s un American- Un-Native American that is.
Slavery has ended in America and so has the Civil war and so has Paganism and Idolatry for the most part – we are One Nation Under G-d, as we would not want someone to harm themselves in other aspects of life, we must speak up here as wello and not allow others to harm themselves in this aspect of life.
As our Rebbe once spoke in a talk:
“As King Solomon the wise wrote: “He that spares his rod hates his son: but he that loves him chastises him early. (Mishlei 13:23)
This means that effective education and childhood training must incorporate a strong approach to form the positive personality of the individual, and to rid the child of "unsavory" dispositions. Laxity in this area would represent hatred for our children, and experience has shown that those children who were not properly and strictly brought up, but were raised with a liberal, "free" upbringing, came back to their parents later with serious complaints. Eventually they blame their "rod-sparing" parents and teachers for their personal behavior and unmodified, negative inclinations and traits.”
I, as a person and as I rabbi, don’t want it to be debated if I did what I could for my generation. I want it go down in the records that I poke up against immoral behavior of the likes which is disingenuous to the human species.
The Rebbe continues and says:
“Educators, therapists and counselors should keep in mind that the possibility exists to eventually correct the problems, even though the troubled client might vehemently claim (which might actually be quite true) that his deviations are inborn and part of his nature. They can be helped; and experience has shown that in the end they will express their eternal gratitude for the firm direction and support they received from family, counselors and friends.
Maimonides teaches:
“Free will is bestowed on every human being. If one desires to turn towards the good way and be righteous he has the power to do so. If one wishes to turn towards the evil way and be wicked, he is at liberty to do so. (Laws of Repentance 5:1)
Consequently this true, free will, described by Maimonides, is decisively all-powerful. Yet, in the laws relating to Moral Disposition and Ethical Conduct, Maimonides admits that:
“Every human being is characterized by numerous moral dispositions...exceedingly divergent. One man is choleric, always hot tempered; another sedate, never angry...one is a sensualist whose lusts are never gratified; another is so pure that he does not even long for the few things that our physical nature needs... stingy, generous, cruel, merciful, and so forth. (Laws of Ethical Conduct 1:1)
Maimonides adds:
Of all the various dispositions, some belong to one from the beginning of his existence and correspond to his physical constitution. (Ibid:2)
In other words, some people are born with the nature of stinginess etc., and others are born with different natures! Does everyone really have free will to freely choose right from wrong even if it seems to be against his/her nature?! The commentaries on Maimonides explain that Maimonides means to say that although one may truly have an inclination and leaning by his very nature, and although he may show a propensity for certain conduct, none of these factors can "force'' him to act in a particular way. He still has an absolutely free will!
So if your family member or friend tells you that they have various innate feelings which the Torah says is deviant, they are not deviant people, but rather they are challenged, as all people are, each in our own way. We respect and honor everyone, and we work with all we got to purify and elevate and develop our holy and innate Soul-character with the guidance and strength and the wisdom of the Torah.
Our world is not a free for all, it is not a jungle where all goes – but rather it is a garden that must be tended to with love , care and sensitivity.