Why in the World Is Chabad at Muhlenberg College?

  Muhlenberg College is a small liberal arts college in Allentown, Pennsylvania, embodying the Lutheran ideals of its namesake, Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, the founder of the Lutheran Church in America. The school promotes intellectual curiosity and growth, creativity, and an ethical responsibility to humankind the world over. The school boasts a small student to faculty ratio with over a hundred clubs and organizations--including a campus Hillel that addresses the needs of an array of Jewish students who make up 33% of the student body. So why is Chabad--a well-known utlra-orthodox kiruv/outreach group--attempting to establish roots on this small private college's campus? It looks like the college newspaper wants to know the same.
  According to The Muhlenberg Weekly's article Analyzing Chabad's Role on Campus: New Option Geared for Jewish Students Proves Controversial, Chabad first appeared on campus this school year  and the reaction has been mixed.

“Many students have shared with me that they feel sad that, with the arrival of Chabad, they see the shifts in what had been a unified Jewish community,” said Rabbi Simon, and added that students have also shared that Chabad’s proximity to the campus “has been really divisive.”
Aaron Brandt ‘17, the president of Muhlenberg College Hillel and a former attendee of an Orthodox day school, agrees, and offered a potential explanation for the divisiveness. “Chabad has been attempting to attract students who are already active members of the Hillel community, rather than students who have not yet found their place in Jewish life since coming to college.”1

  Chabad's modus operandi is to send shluchim, or missionaries, to set up outposts on college campuses, and in towns and cities all over the globe in order to attract Jews to greater Jewish observance. The group is decidedly not pluralistic, and teaches Judaism solely from an orthodox perspective. They do not recognize non-orthodox denominations as legitimate, and the late rebbe Menachem Schneerson--the last Lubavitcher rebbe, had stated in a letter that "My considered opinion . . . is [that] the doctrines and ideology of the Conservative and Reform movements can only be classed in the category of heretical movements which have plagued our people at one time or another, only to disappear again, having no basis in our everlasting Torah."2

Rebbe Schneerson: Other expressions of Judaism are heretical.
Click to enlarge.

  In the handbook for Chabad emissaries, Shlichus: Meeting the Outreach Challenge, Rabbi Eliyahu Cohen gives advice to campus missionaries in his article "The Campus Approach." In addition to addressing the point that existing Jewish groups such as Hillel may have issues with Chabad trying to establish themselves on campus, Cohen urges missionaries to "become a resource for questions on Jewish life"3 and provides information on how to appeal to college students for maximum impact. He stresses the importance of becoming a chartered club and states that:

Apart from providing the organization with legitimacy, [a charter] may also provide privileges such as access to campus rooms, media equipment and reduced rates in the school newspaper. In private colleges where issues of church and state do not come into play, financial aid may be offered. Ask administrators about including a flyer with the registration, housing or dining information sent to the student's home. It may be appropriate to ask parents to enroll their children as members of Chabad House for $10 or $18 a year.4

  Setting up outposts on college campuses provides Chabad missionaries with the perfect environment in which to proselytize. Not only is there a sizable and changing Jewish student population that they can groom for present or future observance and/or yeshiva study, but there are campus resources which can be harnessed to further their agenda, as well as students and parents who will serve as a source of funding--sometimes long past graduation. Chabad isn't innocently coming to Muhlenberg College to provide something that's missing from Hillel's diverse offerings--unless you consider indoctrination to be innocent.

For more about Chabad on this blog: and use the Search this Blog function for more:
Is Chabad Ultra-Orthodox?
Chabad's Double Standard: Outrage Over Being Duped
Who *are* the People in Chabad.org's Fundraising Letter?
What BuzzFeed Forgot to Tell You About the Lubavitcher Rebbe and Chabad
Use the Search This Blog function to find more.

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1. Kantor, Gregory. Analyzing Chabad's Role on Campus: New Option Geared for Jewish Students Proves Controversial. The Mulhlenberg Weekly. March 3, 2016.
2. Schneerson, Menachem M. The Conservative and Reform Ideology. Correspondence by Rabbi Menachen M. Schneerson, The Lubavitcher Rebbe. July 21, 1959. qtd. on Chabad.org.
3. Cohen, Rabbi Eliyahu. "The Campus Approach."Shlichus: Meeting the Outreach Challenge. Nshei Ubnos Chabad, 1991. p117. 
4. ibid.

Hosting The Not (Yet) Religious

  Nothing says our goal is to make you orthodox like advertising a lecture called "Hosting the Not (Yet) Religious." On Sunday morning, March 6, 2016, Far Rockaway's Congregation Kneseth Israel, a.k.a The White Shul, will be hosting this lecture for men right after morning prayers.
  Wait, what? For men?
  Why, yes. For men. Specifically.
  Why is that? Isn't it already insulting that they're defining non-orthodox Jews as "not (yet) religious," as if their only interest is to make us orthodox? Who defines someone by what they are not? Is that all we are to them--not (yet) religious?
 Just so you know--by "religious" they mean orthodox. It doesn't matter how many aliyahs you've had at your Reform synagogue, Mr. Abramowitz, or how many times you've read the Torah in your Conservative temple, Ms. Roth. By Rabbi Motti Neuburger's standards, you're still not (yet) religious. But to answer the question. Yes, it's extremely insulting to view people who, for whatever reason, are not orthodox as "not (yet) religious." The parenthesis make the phrase sound like it's being said with a wink, as if the White Shul representatives are saying "we know they're not orthodox, but we'll take care of that!" They're not hiding their intent, at least not as far as their own congregants are concerned.
  Oh. I see. Now, about this "for men" thing. Are women invited?
  Well, the advertisement states that this is a "special shiur (lecture) for men." Women usually don't attend morning prayers in orthodox synagogues, although technically they probably could--depending on the culture of the shul and if there was a mechitza present (required divider separating the men from the women.) Since this lecture takes place immediately after shacharis (morning prayers) women probably won't be there. You see, in orthodoxy, women aren't required to pray with a minyan three times a day. Women are not permitted to say kaddish (prayers for the dead) so they don't need a quorum of ten. (In orthodoxy, women are not counted in this quorum, known as a minyan.) It is not accepted within orthodoxy for women to wear tefillin, the phylacteries that men wear during morning prayers. As I write this, I'm struck by how much this seems like a cliquish men's club which purposely excludes women.
  So, are women invited to this lecture? 
 Good question. Here's their number: (718) 327-0500 It can't hurt to ask.

Visit our new Facebook page!

Find Jewish Outreach: What Your Rabbi Isn't Telling You on Facebook!

  Yes folks, it's true. After several requests from readers, I've finally put together a Facebook page for this blog. You can find it here. Feel free to visit--although keep in mind that it's barely hours old and I haven't posted anything on there yet. The goal of the Facebook page is to raise awareness about deceptive kiruv aimed at college students, young professionals, and others within the non-orthodox sphere while creating a space where we can meet, share, and find others who have had similar experiences. I look forward to expanding our discussion of Jewish outreach and to blogging more in 2016. Thanks to all of my readers. You folks are the inspiration behind this blog. -bec

Lying and Omission: Permissible to Make Jews Religious

  Yosef Mizrachi, the ultra-orthodox kiruv rabbi known throughout the orthodox world for his use of inflammatory rhetoric in his shiurim, or lectures, states in the above video that deception is permissible in order save someone's soul for the purpose of kiruv, or Jewish outreach. While he doesn't want people to think that it's okay to lie, he does claim that if in the desire to point to truth, it causes Jews to stop observing, then maybe it's better to lie (so they'll maintain observance)--which he then says is never okay and is forbidden in the Torah. Mizrachi then mentions that when the Chazon Ish  (a famous Haredi leader who died in 1953) was asked if a person was allowed to lie in order to make a non-religious Jew religious, the Chazon Ish said that it should be done to save his soul. Mizrachi finishes by explaining that it's always better to omit information so that people won't be discouraged from becoming orthodox. (Transcript available at the end of the article.)

  Justifying the use of deception for the purpose of Jewish outreach doesn't win Mizrachi any awards in my book, but sadly, this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to offensive utterances within the body of his lectures.

  Mizrachi, who also preaches that: people who don't observe Shabbat according to orthodox practice shouldn't say kaddish for dead relatives,1 that "Down Syndrome, autistic(sic), and any other problem is a punishment as a result of [gossiping during] a previous life",2 and that God specifically afflicts women with breast, brain, and uterine cancers and men with prostate cancer and brain cancer as punishment for not observing the laws of Shabbat and modesty,3 is most recently the subject of a petition requesting that his lectures be removed from the Torah Anytime website, after an irresponsible speech in which he claimed that only one million Jews were killed in the Holocaust and that "the other 5 million people included in the numbers of Jews killed by the Nazis were intermarried and not Jewish."4 While Mizrachi has since issued an apology for this particular incident, his hurtful words have already circulated around the internet, drawing even more negative attention to the incendiary speeches he is known for giving. This is also not the first time he's said disparaging things about Holocaust victims. In a video entitled Manners--The Right Way to Behave, Mizrachi rants about the immodesty of secular Jewish women during the Holocaust just moments before their deaths. He explains that minutes before the women were going to be taken to the gas chambers, the religious women huddled together for modesty, while secular women "they stand like this, completely in front of the photographer [Mizrachi pantomimes frontal view on video] crying that they're going to die. So they're thinking that I don't want to die, who cares? Put my picture all over the world."5

 Mr. Mizrachi's irresponsible speech is reminiscent of the story illustrating how spreading lashon hara, or gossip, is akin to cutting open a feather bed and scattering the feathers to the wind. This story is often taught to potential ba'al teshuvahs and newly religious Jews as an example of the far-reaching effects of gossip and how one can never take back all of his/her words. In our modern world, one can easily substitute racism, sexism, ageism, heterosexism, classism--and too many others to mention--with "gossip" and realize that irresponsible speech, especially now with easy access to information, has the power to do damage not just to those who are targeted by hurtful language, but to those who spread such ugliness from the start.


Transcript of Above Video

:08 First of all: why would you say something? Let's start like this: what did we gain by this? What did we gain by this? Does your desire to, if it were, point to the truth immediately justify that you bring down tens of thousands of Jews that started to keep Shabbat and behave like those who keep mitzvot so you brought them down in the name of truth? Was that so urgent? I didn't, God forbid, say that it is allowed to lie. It's forbidden to lie, God said so explicitly.

:35 "By the way, they asked the Chazon Ish if it's allowed to lie to make a Jew newly religious. Rabbi Shwadron, one of the greatest speakers, asked this to the Chazon Ish. What's the answer?
:47 "He told him: "For sure, kal vachomer ("all the more so" argument.) If an irreligious person was about to die now, would you be allowed to desecrate Shabbat for him? To save him is allowed, this is the halacha [Jewish law]. He says: If now, to break the Shabbat, it's the sign with the creator of the world, it's the greatest mitzvah with the most extreme punishment, you may desecrate it in order to perhaps save someone's life. Perhaps he will die regardless, despite having desecrated the Shabbat--there are no guarantees. Even if there's a percentage of a percentage chance that it may save his life we desecrate the Shabbat for him. Even if you save his life for [another] ten minutes, he would perhaps die anyway because he's got, let's say twenty bullets in his stomach, and now you desecrate the Shabbat and you give him, let's say, oxygen, and now he will live another ten minutes, what did you gain by this? He will die anyway--they pumped twenty bullets in him! You are allowed to desecrate Shabbat for him even for one more minute that he may still live. That's how important a minute of life is. (1:42) So, the Chazon Ish told him: All the more so, to lie to an irreligious person in order to save his soul which is much more important than his body--if to desecrate Shabbat so that he may live--What does 'to live' mean? He will continue to sin!

1:58 "It's allowed to save his soul though a lie. Everyone knows that a lie is less [severe] than the desecration of Shabbat. There is no capital punishment of stoning or "cutting off" but on desecrating the Shabbat there is a heavy punishment and it [still] is allowed, all the more so [are you allowed to lie] he answered him simply. Nevertheless this is not our way. We don't need to lie and to distort and not even to exaggerate, we don't sit and lie, there's enough words of the truth and the Torah--we don't need to lie and to distort and not even to exaggerate--but if there is something subject to dispute . . .

2:26 "Let's say it's something subject to dispute . . . some say yes and some say no, why would you need to say anything? What did you gain by this? Tell me one thing that you gained by this. That now another 10,000 or 1,000 or 100 or 20 that already started to [strengthen their observance] and they are on fire and they're starting to listen to Torah lessons, suddenly they write that all was rubbish, all was bluff (sic), and they will leave the path--what did you gain by this?6

1. Mizrachi, Yosef. You Should Not Say Kaddish for Dead Relative if Not Shomer Shabbat. Yosef Mizrachi. Shademanvendetta. YouTube. Dec. 31, 2014.
2. Mizrachi, Yosef. Rabbi Yosef Mizrachi on Down Syndrome and Autistics. Dan Cohen. YouTube. Jan. 1, 2014.
3. Mizrachi, Yosef. Mizrahi explains why women and men get cancer. TubeChop.
4. Sharon, Jeremy. Orthodox rabbi: Only One Million Jews Killed in Holocaust. Jerusalem Post. Dec. 30, 2015.
5. Mizrachi, Yosef. Manners--The Right Way to Behave. YouTube. Jan. 8, 2014. Holocaust discussion begins at 1:41:26.
6. Mizrachi, Yosef. It is Permissible to Lie to Make People Religious. Undercover Kofer. YouTube. Jan. 6, 2016.

Game of Kiruv: Monseyopoly

With adorable cover art by Chani Judowitz, Monseyopoly looks like a very exciting and colorful game. Created for JEP (Jewish Education Program) of Rockland, the Monseyopoly board game is meant to bring the familiarity of Monsey to the table. According to Monsey.com

In keeping with its pursuit of uniting Jews of all backgrounds, JEP Rockland presents a game that sparks renewed interest and pride in our local community. MONSEYOPOLY is now available, ready to provide friends and family with hours of kosher entertainment. More importantly, your purchase of this fun-filled game will also go a long way to support the inspiring and informative outreach efforts of a true Monsey mainstay – JEP ROCKLAND.1

Monseyopoly was created to enhance JEP's kiruv/outreach efforts to non-orthodox Jews. Indoctrinate the kids while they're still young and willing to sit around and play board games. It's not a bad strategy, after all, games are often used to supplement education in the classroom (Scrabble Slam and Scrabble, Jr.) and promote positive values (Chutes and Ladders.) The benefit is double for JEP because while the game promotes their values as part of the indoctrination process, the funds generated by sales go to help this kiruv organization. Monsey.com reports

This innovative project is the result of the outreach efforts of one of Rockland County’s premier, longstanding kiruv organizations: JEP Rockland. JEP Rockland was founded back in 1979 by Rabbi Yehuda Schwab, zt”l, and for nearly 35 years he oversaw every aspect of JEP’s growth and development, personally and positively influencing the lives of thousands along the way.
JEP is thriving with a full gamut of ongoing classes and programs to fulfill its mission to reach, teach, and inspire unaffiliated Jewish children and adults by introducing them to the value of Torah and Mitzvos.2

What gave me pause was actually something about copyright infringement. As a writer working on several projects, I often have to look up exact laws on what is and what isn't copyright infringement. An internet search recently brought me to the Memory Book Company, a company that produces school yearbooks. On their site, they make a point about getting permission to use names, titles, artwork, etc. without permission. They write:

Games such as Monopoly, Trivial Pursuit, etc., are subject to copyright and trademark protection and cannot be reproduced without permission.
One school decided to use a Monopoly theme in their yearbook. Unfortunately, they failed to get permission from Parker Brothers before they sent the yearbook to the printers. As soon as Parker Brothers became aware of the situation, they flew in a lawyer to supervise the destruction of every copy of the yearbook.3

While I'm opposed to kiruv, I have to admit that I'm curious as to the legality of this game. I sent off an email to Hasbro, the parent company of the original Monopoly board game, giving them a link the Monseyopoly article but have not received a response as of the publishing of this post.


1. Horowitz, Baruch. "Lets Play Monsey!... Monseyopoly--A Familiar Game with Even More Familiar Landmarks"[sic] Monsey.com. December 6, 2015.
2. Ibid.
3. http://www.memorybook.com/documents/Copyright.pdf

In Honor of Faigy Mayer

     In the wee hours of the morning, the Off the Derech Facebook community learned of the tragic suicide of Faigy Mayer, a bright young woman who, with extraordinary courage, had left the ultra-orthodox community to pursue her dreams. She was kind and caring, and understanding the difficulties in leaving the ultra-orthodox world, was working on technology to better the experiences of those going off the derech (path) of orthodox Judaism. She had many friends. I consider myself fortunate to have made her acquaintance in online forums. I know many others who knew her personally. We are all feeling the pain that this loss brings.

     In the wake of such an awful event, it is easy to lay blame. Rather than hurl accusations, it is important to remember several things.

• Remember that family and friends should never ostracize someone for choosing a different path in life than the one in which she/he was raised. It is fine to disagree, but religion should never be more important than people. 
• Remember that depression is an illness that can be treated, but not everyone who needs help gets it in time or, sadly, at all. Read NIMH's website for more information on depression. 
• Remember that people who leave orthodox communities do not "have something wrong with them." This is a popular refrain often repeated within certain groups, in order to maintain the illusion that all is perfect within their communities. People leave orthodoxy for a variety of reasons, both emotional and intellectual.
• Remember the importance of reaching out to people. If you are depressed or having a tough time, or if you know someone who may be going through a rough patch, offer support. A phone call, a cup of coffee, a few moments of your day may make all the difference in the world.
• Remember, if you need help or know someone who does, reach out.

     May all who mourn be consoled. May you find inner peace and strength to get through the hard days ahead, and may you ultimately take comfort in your positive memories.

     If you feel you are in a crisis please call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) where you will be connected to a skilled, trained counselor at a crisis center in your area, anytime 24/7. You can also call the hope line for similar services: 1-800-442-HOPE. For people outside of the USA, please refer to http://www.suicide.org/international-suicide-hotlines.html.

Read more.
Ex-Hasid Dies in Fall from Rooftop -Failed Messiah
We Don't Get It -Kol B'Isha Erva
Four Hours -My Derech, On and Off

A Kiruv Organization Tells All: Recruiting Women, College Students

     I recently found Rabbi Yitschak Rudomim's website for the Jewish Professionals Institute: Adult Education and Outreach organization. At first I assumed, incorrectly, that I'd have to spend a lot of time trying to prove that they were using certain tactics to appeal to non-orthodox Jews in order to draw them in. Well, I was wrong. JPI's statement of purpose specifically mentions that Rabbi Yitschak Rudomim and his organization are fighting an "unconventional war on Jewish ignorance" and that they are "called upon to adopt the methods of marketing, salesmanship, and advertising in order to "sell" Judaism to Jews, because of my love for my fellow Jews."1 Whether this is an effort to be transparent to all who are interested in his work, or simply a way to gain additional financial support, or perhaps an oversight (maybe he doesn't expect that people will be criticizing his tactics) on his part, Rudomim is telling you exactly what he and all kiruv organizations do.
     Rudomim clearly states that there is no place that is off-limits to outreach rabbis, including (but not limited to) "the home, work, college, or any informal domain,"2 and that it is his goal "to penetrate these other areas."3 Rudomim's end goal is "to touch the lives of so many of our ignorant (Jewishly) brethren and inspire them through deed and thought to undertake the quest for self-betterment through increased commitment to study and observance of Judaism."4

Jewish Professionals Institute: Statement of Purpose
click to enlarge

         I've included a letter of recommendation for Rabbi Rudomim and JPI written by Rabbi Yehudah Fine, director of The Jewish Family Institute which, according to Seattle, Washington's Jewish Transcript, is both an orthodox rabbi and a family therapist whose "Jewish Family Institute provides outreach to families in crisis, including individual and family counseling, crisis intervention, outreach for individuals and families in need, lectures and seminars for Jewish communities and youth groups."5 Back when the article was written "Fine said that he was probably best known for his work in counseling Jewish families dealing with a family member who has joined a cult."6 Yes, you read that correctly.
     Within Fine's letter of recommendation he uses emotional manipulation as part of his request for financial support. He refers to the "silent Holocaust of American Jewry," using the Holocaust as a marketing tool in order to gain monetary contributions and appeal to people's emotions. He then lists several statistics without citing his sources, which makes me wonder if these statistics are even legitimate.

Letter of Recommendation for JPI by Rabbi Yehudah Fine
click to enlarge

Recruiting Women

     Director of JPI, Rabbi Rudomim, includes a piece on his site entitled "Women of Valor" in which he details kiruv's expectations of the women who are recruited to an ultra-orthodox lifestyle. He appears to understand that "it is not a simple matter for today's liberated Jewish woman to accept separation of the sexes, the laws of Family Purity, bearing many children, covering her hair and many of the other observances by women leading Torah lifestyles."7 and then he states that due to kiruv efforts, these women now "run to accept more, not less, of what Yiddishkeit proclaims to be the role of the true woman of valor: A devoted and loyal mother and wife."8 Through outreach, these formerly non-orthodox women "then go on to marry and establish Torah homes."9 Rudomim briefly mentions a few seminaries, including the well-known Neve Yerushalayim women's seminary, that were created in order to deal with the "special needs" in terms of recruiting young, non-orthodox women. He mentions Rabbi Manis Friedman of Chabad, "one of the most charismatic teachers of previously secular Jewish women in America." Rudomim appears to celebrate such charismatic leaders. In this case, they are expected to convince people to change their perspective, their views, and even their lives.
     Rudomim mentions The Jewish Women's Journal, put out by the Jewish Renaissance Center in Manhattan and clearly states "this special newspaper . . . whose motive is outreach" uses a "sophisticated style and accessibility [to] appeal to even estranged Jews. It provides a non-threatening glimpse into Jewish life."10

     What Rudomim fails to mention is what these women are giving up in order to embrace an ultra-orthodox lifestyle. He doesn't mention the careers that may be put on hold, the family discord that is often caused but less-often talked about, and the relationships that suffer as a result. But he is honest, at least, about what he believes to be the role of the Jewish woman--that of wife and mother of many.

"Women of Valor" Rabbi Yitschak Rudomim
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Women of Valor, Part One
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Women of Valor, Part Two
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Recruiting College Students

     Rabbi Rudomim's article about college students traveling in Israel describes in alarming accuracy the tactics employed by kiruv professionals in Israel to recruit impressionable college students to an ultra-orthodox lifestyle. He mentions that the phenomenon of traveling college students has been a boon to kiruv because "many young assimilated college students go off to explore Europe and Israel . . . [and so] and entire outreach apparatus has evolved to provide yet another option for these wandering happy-go-lucky young people."11 Rudomim brazenly states that "Indeed, at the Kotel, (Western Wall), there is a polished network of outreach professionals who specialize in offering hospitality, and an opportunity to learn Torah, to the previously disinterested Jewish traveler."12 It's true--I was once one of those "previously disinterested Jewish travelers," Rudomim's words, not mine. What I failed to understand at the time was that I was falling for pickup lines, marketing strategies, and salesmanship that were, and still are, used on "on [the] thousands, yes thousands, of young Jews [who] have been enrolled in famous Baal Teshuvah Yeshivot in this fashion."13

     Rudomim admits that Aish HaTorah's famous Discovery Seminar is meant to sweep people off their feet. He writes:

Fascinating lectures proving the validity of the Torah, existence of G-d, and the relevance of Judaism to modern life are presented, and more importantly, accepted by many listeners. Enough to convince them to stay on for a few weeks, or months, or years, and even make Aliyah.14

Rudomim is not hiding the fact that Aish is offering a program meant to convince unsuspecting young tourists that they ought to stay in Israel--attending kiruv programs meant to push them into ultra-orthodoxy--for lengthy amounts of time that weren't originally in their plans. Again, I recall sitting in the office of a prominent Jerusalem rabbi as he tried to convince my husband and I (we were newlyweds in our early twenties) that we should stay in Israel and attend yeshiva and seminary programs. Our response was that it was irresponsible, since we both had jobs and school, but this didn't deter him from his hard-sell tactics. Instead, we agreed to allow a prominent New York kiruv rabbi to contact us upon our arrival home. While our curiosity was piqued, we were definitely turned off by the exorbitant amount of pressure put on us to stay and change our plans. To be honest, I remember feeling intimidated by this rabbi,  but strengthened by the fact that my husabnd (and best friend) and I were in this together. Had I been alone, I might have been afraid to say no to someone I perceived to be a spiritual leader. But I digress.
     Rudomim also mentions that Aish's Jerusalem Fellowships are supported by the Israeli government because they see this as an opportunity that could lead to more people making aliyah, a permanent move to Israel. Politically, this is good for Israel, as it keeps the population growing.

Traveling in Israel, Part One
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Traveling in Israel, Part Two
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Traveling in Israel, Part Three
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      To be completely honest, I was completely thrown off by Rudomim's Jewish Professionals Institute's site. Rudomim's blatant explanation of what kiruv organizations do and how they do it was shocking and unexpected. I'm sure that my readers who are pro-kiruv are smiling and saying "happy now?" because one of my criticisms of ultra-orthodox Jewish outreach is that there is a lack of this type of information. (In truth, this information is lacking and still inaccessible to people unfamiliar with the lingo needed to plug in appropriate search terms, but that should be understandable.) Let me take a second and address the question as to whether or not I'm happy to have found this information.
     On a personal level, I realized that my experiences in Israel were contrived and that the warmth and hospitality I experienced as a student, and then as part of a newly married couple, were contrived. In many ways, this makes me second-guess the integrity of those I encountered who tried to sell me experiences that were not real or unique--I was just another warm Jewish body.
     Speaking on a professional level as a critic of kiruv, I'm curious as to why Rudomim gives all of this information away so easily. Who is the expected audience of his website? Surely, it isn't me or those who kiruv professionals are recruiting. If so, why tell people that they're simply clients being manipulated by deft salespeople with polished techniques? Will this help to bring us in?
     As a final thought, the articles on JPI's website reminded me of Edgar Allen Poe's stories, in which the guilty party cannot keep the secrets and details of his crime to himself. Through a series of events--both psychological and physical--Poe's protagonists often lead the police, the other characters, and the reader right to the scene of crime, exposing the gory details because the guilty party can no longer bear his secret.
     As always, I welcome reader comments.


Works Cited
1. Jewish Professionals Institute. www.jpi.org. website.
2. ibid.
3. ibid.
4. ibid.
5. Gordon, Richard. Former Bellevue Resident Heads Jewish Family Institute. The Jewish Transcript. September 11, 1986. p.11.
6. ibid.
7. Rudomim, Yitschak. Women of Valor. Jewish Professionals Institute. www.jpi.org. website.
8. ibid.
9. ibid.
10. ibid.
11. Rudomim, Yitschak. Traveling in Israel. Jewish Professionals Institute. www.jpi.org. website.
12. ibid.
13. ibid.
14. ibid.