CALL TO ACTION: Rabbi Moshe Eiseman's Removal From Ner Israel, Baltimore, MD
http://www.theawarenesscenter.org/Eiseman_Moshe.html
There have been serious allegations made against Rabbi Moshe Eiseman over the last several years of molesting boys at Ner Israel of Baltimore, MD.The allegations date back to his years as a rebbe at the Philadelphia yeshiva headed by Rabbi Shmuel Kaminetsky and Rabbi Elya Svei. There are reasons to believe that are under investigation, that Kaminetsky and Svei terminated him for sexual abuse, and knowingly let him be around children again. Tzvi Berkowitz, a rabbi at Ner Israel was apprised of Eiseman's behavior, at the very least, fifteen years ago. Berkowitz is a son in-law of Shmuel Kaminetsky. These allegations were first reported by a blogger by the name of Unorthodox Jew (UOJ), after confirming the allegations with numerous victims.-(theunorthodoxjew.blogspot.com).
These allegations have since been confirmed by various reliable rabbinic sources.
It has been over a month since the Ner Israel administration brought the allegations to Rabbi Yaakov Hopfer who made a decree (psak) that Rabbi Moshe Eiseman MUST leave Ner Israel.
To this day Rabbi Moshe Eiseman is still employed by Ner Israel and continues to live on their campus. Each day that goes by puts another child at risk of harm.
The Awareness Center, his many victims and concerned Jews are demanding that Rabbi Moshe Eiseman be relieved of his duties immediately, move off campus and required to attend treatment at a residential facility for sex offenders. It is also imperative that all communities' members in which Rabbi Eiseman has worked be made aware of the allegations. The goal is to prevent one more child from being harmed and also to make sure that all past victims get the help they need.
Those who have been sexually victimized deserve to be treated with respect and dignity by professionals who have the experience and training to work with survivors of sex crimes. It is also very helpful if survivors contact local rape crisis centers who have free legal advocates available to go with them to file police reports.
There is a realistic fear that Rabbi Eiseman will return to Russia or return to working with Russian immigrants. These communities also need to be made aware of the past allegations and that if survivors come forward that they be referred to local rape crisis centers.
The goal is to prevent one more child from becoming the next victim and to ensure those who have already been sexually victimize receive help.
Please contact the administration at Ner Israel and Rabbi Hopfer and demand that Rabbi Moshe Eiseman be removed today!
Ner Israel Contact Information:
410-484-7200
Rabbi Aharon Feldman - Rosh Yeshiva (Head of the School)
Rabbi Beryl Weisbord - Dean of Students
Rabbi Sheftel Neuberger - President
Rabbi Yaakov Hopfer
Shearith Yisrael (Glen Ave. Shul)
410-466-3060
410-367-9183 fax
EVERY SIGNATURE MATTERS - THIS BILL MUST PASS!
CLICK - GOAL - 100,000 NEW SIGNATURES! 75,000 SIGNATURES HAVE ALREADY BEEN SUBMITTED TO GOVERNOR CUOMO!
EFF Urges Court to Block Dragnet Subpoenas Targeting Online Commenters
CLICK! For the full motion to quash: http://www.eff.org/files/filenode/hersh_v_cohen/UOJ-motiontoquashmemo.pdf
136 comments:
TO VERIFY THE ALLEGATIONS AND RABBI HOPFER'S PSAK, I SUGGEST YOU CALL HIM.
IN ADDITION CALL RABBI TZI BERKOWITZ, HE IS VERY WELL AWARE THAT THE ALLEGATIONS ARE TRUE. IF HE DENIES THEM POST IT HERE, I'LL DEAL WITH HIM AND HIS FATHER IN-LAW, SHMUEL KAMINETSKY.
THE DAYS OF STONEWALLING ARE OVER, FOREVER!
THE ONLY COMMENTS I'M PUTTING UP ON THIS POST ARE THE ONES THAT ARE FROM THE PEOPLE THAT SPOKE TO RABBI HOPFER. ALL THE OTHER HARRY MARYLES TYPES (ONLY ONE VICTIM)...AND I CAN'T BELIEVE IT...DON'T WASTE MY TIME!
With less than 3 weeks until Rosh Hashana, I think that it is important for all to consider the following:
Teshuvah (Return, or Repentance) is a generous gift from Hashem, which allows us to erase our improper actions.
The Torah tells us that no matter how far we stray or how many times we sin, Hashem will wait for us to return to him through Teshuvah.
There are four basic parts to Teshuvah:
1. Leaving the Sin
2. Regret
3. Confession Before Hashem
4. Acceptance for the Future
1. Leaving the Sin
Leaving the sin consists of stopping the commission of the sinful act. One cannot do Teshuvah if one continues to do the sin, even if he or she were to perform the next three steps perfectly.
2. Regret
Regret consists in sincerely regretting one's wrong action. One must be genuinely ashamed and embarrassed over one's sins.
3. Confession Before Hashem
Acceptance for the future consists of resolving in one's heart never to commit the sin ever again.
4. Acceptance for the Future
Confession before Hashem consists of an oral confession spoken out loud, in which one formulates in words the commitments and attitudes one has reached in his or her heart. One should say, "I have sinned, I have done such and such; I deeply regret my actions, and I declare before Hashem, Who knows my innermost thoughts, that I will never do this sin again."
But...
1. The above steps only work for sins committed against Hashem (ben Adam LaMakom); for sins committed against other people, one must first ask forgiveness from that person before Hashem will accept the Teshuvah.
Perhaps you can tell us a bit about this R Hopfer.
What is his track record on abuse issues?
Is he an 'independent' Rabbi, or a fixture of the community who usually toes the line?
Who suggested that R Hopfer be in charge of the beis din?
Etc...
Ner Israel Chose Rabbi Hopfer as the arbiter. Now they're telling him to go fly a kite.
Nice guys! I warned you about nice guys!
Call to action for the removal of Beryl Weisbord
There are huge amounts of medical evidence that there is no cure for pedophilia.
Any chance that R Hopfer will become the next R Yosef Blau?
Call to action the removal of all of those that are related to the Weinbergs, Tendler's and Neuberger's at Ner Israel.
Also add those related to the Eisgrau's.
To all who critized UOJ:
The gedolim and the Yated Neeman -mouthpiece of the yeshiva world honored Lipa Margoulies (a known protecter of a child molester) this past week.
Who are the reshaim and who are the tzadikkim ???
UOJ is a tzadik and is emulating the ways of Hashem.
Dovid Hamelech says in sefer tehillim - Lev nishbar v'nidca elokim lo sivza (tehillim 51) - Hashem does not despise a broken heart !!!
UOJ,with all due respect, whatever pain that you might be going through is nothing compared to a child that lost his innocence because of a rebbi. And to compound it the silence and the shameless neglect of our supposed leaders to these children,now grown men.
Chazak !!!
Rabboisai
Teshuvah Tefilah U'Tzedakah
That's our only way out.
PLEASE - Klal Yisroel is in desperate need of Zechusim. Try to keep the foul language, the unnecessary Loshon Horah to a minimum.
Vast, multi-community uproar regarding treife chicken from one specific butcher at one specific location----but children molested for years? Who cares!
If this really is a community why do u refuse to acknowledge all the end ronnie posts? he is not the focus of our lives nor should his personal music choices and garments e a staple of this blog. It is becoming a laughingstock,y
But...
1. The above steps only work for sins committed against Hashem (ben Adam LaMakom); for sins committed against other people, one must first ask forgiveness from that person before Hashem will accept the Teshuvah.
What if that person doesn't know about the sin, and revealing it to them will only aggravate the situation and possibly put the sinner at risk to retributive physical harm?
Let's say you stole from Tony Soprano.
Meteorologist Shea Fishman also informs me that the climate is not right.
http://www.thejewishweek.com/news/newscontent.php3?artid=8025
Mesirah is also one of the reasons supplied by Agudath Israel for its opposition to a bill that has passed the state Senate and is currently working its way through the Assembly. The bill would add clergy to other categories of professionals, like educators and health care workers, who are required to report suspected child abuse. A similar bill was killed last year.
The law, if passed, would also require clergy and religious institutions to review records from the preceding 20 years and turn over old allegations to civil authorities.
This would be an “unconstitutional” law, said David Zwiebel, the Agudah’s executive vice president for government and public affairs. The group is working behind the scenes in Albany to defeat it.
“It is a sensitive issue now especially with some of the attention that’s been focused on allegations within our own community,” he said. “The last thing we want to be seen as is obstructing whatever legitimate inquiries may be made among our own rabbinate.
“At the same time,” said Zwiebel, ”it would be unfortunate if the stories that have made their way into the papers and TV programs were to cause the kind of overreaction that this represents by perpetuating the notion that clergy, of all people, are more suspect than any other profession or group in society.”
Briarwood is walking distance from Kew Gardens. Is this also where Bryks davens?
Rabbi Mendel Kaufman Young Israel Of Briarwood (718) 657-2880
Danny Kuighadush, President
adartec@aol.com
National Council of Young Israel
111 John Street, Suite 450
New York, NY 10038
212-929-1525
fax: 212-727-9526
general e-mail address: ncyi@youngisrael.org
Shlomo Z. Mostofsky (president@youngisrael.org)
National President, ext. 500
Rabbi Pesach Lerner (execvp@youngisrael.org)
Executive Vice President, ext. 115
Rabbi Binyamin Hammer (bhammer@youngisrael.org)
Director, Department of Rabbinic Services, ext. 285
Rabbi Yehoshua Sauer (ysauer@youngisrael.org)
Director, Department of Synagogue Services, ext. 112
http://www.boojle.com/forums/archive/index.php?t-1103.html
Come and join our members and friends for an informative and inspiring lecture by Rabbi Ephraim Bryks @ the Young Israel of Briarwood Shul.
Young Israel of Briarwood
84-75 Daniels Street
Briarwood, NY 11435
Our lecture topic: From Sorrow to Joy - Turning Destruction into Redemption
This lecture entails a discussion of the causes which brought about the destruction of the Holy Temple - Beit Hamikdash. Rabbi Bryks will also enlighten us on the behaviors we can employ, today, to bring personal joy.
We look forward to seeing you there.
P.S. Refreshments will be served before and after the lecture.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/kghsingles/message/7914
Thu Aug 17, 2006
We would like to invite you to a very special Women's Only Shiur given
by Rabbi Ephraim Bryks. The Shiur will take place at 5:30 PM, this coming
Shabbos, in the Rosh HaYeshiva's house located at 69-13 172nd Street.
All women are welcome.
http://www.torahcenterofhillcrest.org/
Rabbi Faskowitz is the rov of this shul & the rosh yeshiva of Madraigas HaAdam, both in Hillcrest, Queens. Faskowitz who is Michelle Tendler's first cousin, resigned from the RCA to protest the expulsion of sex fiend Mordechai Tendler.
The Monsey meat scandal is a perfect storm of sorts to divert everyone's attention in this climatically challenged environment.
UJO should become the next rosh yeshiva of Ner Israel!
UOJ:
I know AT LEAST 20 people who have posted about the ronnie stupidity- yet not one gets through- why?
According to friends of mine still in Ner, R' Eisemann HAS NOT BEEN SEEN IN THE B"M SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE ZMAN. Whatever that implies, it does show that the talmidim have no idea whats going on. One would think that they shoild be the first to know....
gross said...
Vast, multi-community uproar regarding treife chicken from one specific butcher at one specific location----but children molested for years? Who cares!
-----------------------------------
This story illustrates the need to overhaul our system and in general, the blind trust we have in people. That trust is usually based upon the way that person dresses and not on any substance. In this case regarding Shevach Meat, the mashgiach was not there for three months! What kind of hasgacha is that? Nevertheless, we take for granted, since the butcher wears a beard and the mashgiach has the title "rabbi", we can blindly place our faith in them. We all know when the sign says "chassidishe schita", all that means is that the shochet wears a beard. The same goes for roshei yeshivot and mechanchim. Parents close their eyes and put their trust in people who sometimes turn out to be evil sexual predators and their enablers, just as wicked and corrupt individuals. Our problem is that we are so caught up in chitzonius-appearances-that we fail to realize who's real and who's a fraud. And even when the truth is exposed, we run to cover it up and deny the allegations, or find weak and lame excuses for the perpetrators.
UOJ,
Yes, by all means, don't post comments from real people using their real names writing about real things in their lives and lessons they learn. Someone might get the idea that Jews trying to follow the Torah do other things besides molest children, protect pedophiles, or take pleasure reading about scandal. I mean, you don't want to lose all those readers coming here for excitement. Better you should let Anonymous Pseudonomymous keep posting repeated comments complaining about someone else cluttering up this blog.
It couldn't possibly be that the substantive issues discussed by the target of their ire are what really irks them. They're not whining about music and clothing as a smokescreen to avoid addressing the issues. No, not at all. Don't be a laughingstock. Just keep publishing salacious things so the Yated readers can get their needed fix of sex scandals. Whatever you do, don't put an end to the scandals or allow discussion of how to find the path to a more righteous community.
The froomie doth protest too much, methinks.
Not Playing: MBD's Greatest Stolen Melodies
http://www.lukeford.net/Images/photos3/shapiro.pdf
What's the story with this guy ?
THIS IS MY MESSAGE TO SHEFTEL NEUBERGER:
COME CLEAN! APOLOGIZE TO THE VICTIMS! MAKE A PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT THAT YOU WERE WRONG AND THAT THESE TYPES OF EPISODES WILL NEVER AGAIN HAPPEN IN NER ISRAEL!
I WILL EXPECT THIS BEFORE ROSH HASHANA! YOU WILL NOT ESCAPE MY WRATH ON BEHALF OF KLAL YISROEL! DON'T CHALLENGE ME.....BE A MAN AND ACT LIKE AN EHRLICHE YID OR I WILL COME AFTER YOU SHEFTEL WITH EVERYTHING IN MY ARSENAL!
YOUR CHOICE; IN DEFERENCE TO YOUR FATHER Z"L, I HELD BACK...AT THIS POINT ALL BETS ARE OFF. THE CLOCK IS TICKING!
Does anyone know what being built on Ocean Parkway a half a block away from YTT? Does margo have anything to do with this?
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/story?id=2343718&page=1
I just left the local affiliate WABC for the weatherman position with the national news on Good Morning America. Maybe Shea Fishman can take over my old shteller.
Tropical Storm Ernesto was nothing. Hurricane UOJ may be headed to Yeshiva Lane in Maryland. Check back for the latest. Now back to Diane Sawyer for the rest of the day's news.
Newsweek
Sept. 4, 2006 issue - The NFL has effectively banned stadiums from playing Gary Glitter's "Rock and Roll Part 2" after the Brit rocker was convicted of molesting underage girls in Vietnam, prompting a search for a substitute celebratory anthem.
___________________________________
We read on Yom Kippur afternoon the story of Yonah. Hashem wanted Yonah to prophesize to the non-Jewish city of Nineveh, that if they do not repent from their evil ways, they will be destroyed. Yonah tried to escape having to give this prophecy, for he knew that if they do repent, then it will be a sad reflection on the Jewish people who at that time, refused to heed the prophet's word. In the end, the people of Nineveh did repent and they were saved. We see history repeating itself with the above story. The NFL is trying to polish up its image after the Janet Jackson wardrobe malfunction fiasco of a few years ago. They are doing tshuva. However, our leaders and rashei yeshivahs fail to do the same. Whether it's YTT, YOB or NIRC, there is no remorse, no contrition, no apologies offered. Meanwhile, we continue to attend concerts, buy CD's, and blast the music of Yeedle Werdyger at simchas. His crimes were a lot worse than Gary Glitter, plying underage girls with drugs and alcohol and raping them. This is not to mention the blatant ripoff of secular musical artists, which has become acceptable in the Jewish music scene. Ronnie has alluded to this many times, and it all comes from this "heiter" they think they have to steal from a goy. Eventually, the truth will come out and there will be lawsuits. Elul is here, it's time for real tshuva. I would prefer it to be tshuva meahava than meyirah.
Anyone know what Kolko is up to these days?
Sheftel Neuberger had better take this seriously. UOJ can unleash enough firepower to make us at the US Army Tank Armaments Command look like a bunch of kids playing with firecrackers.
Ronnie's smokescreen just doesn't cut it. People are tired of him because he's just plain annoying.
NP: The world's smallest violin to drown out the B.S. solo act by Schreiber who is trying to serenade UOJ so he doesn't get the boot off the blog.
"Does anyone know what being built on Ocean Parkway a half a block away from YTT?"
I was recently told by a private banker that he is financing a luxury building on the Pkwy right near YTT. He did mention most of the units are already sold, so perhaps this is another building.
Look up the exact address on the NYC Dept of Finance website.
"Rabbi Bryks will also enlighten us on the behaviors we can employ, today, to bring personal joy."
---------------------------------
Personal joy that will bring misery onto others.
Are these people nuts? How could this guy even step into a shul?. If his shver [Lewis Brenner] comes then they could be like Abbot & Costello or Laurel & Hardy.
WHAT IS WRONG WITH US? ARE WE ZOMBIES?
UOJ, Why are you not going after Bryks?
The above speech is from October 2005.
He also spoke in October 2004.
http://yourmoralleader.blogspot.com/2004/10/rabbi-ephraim-bryks-spiritual-leader.html
He will probably speak in October 2006.
If he would have retreated to a private life is one thing. To give speeches in front of the aron kodesh and to have a mikve in his house? What a lizard!
Help me understand what's going on here. One supermarket's meat department is found to be selling non-kosher chicken and the entire orthodox jewish world is in an uproar. Misirah debates cease and the State is called in to enforce and prosecute possible violations of Kosher Laws. I get all this. What I don't understand is the shocking silence at Lipa Margulies opening a new yeshiva in Lakewood, Yudi Kolko organizing a multi camp trip to a water park and swimming with the children in the park. In February of this year we were all made aware of a shocking ongoing problem in our yeshiva system, where is the outcry? Where are the Rabbonim? Chickens call for an outcry, our childeren don't?
Harry Maryles-you owe an apology to UOJ on your blog.
UOJ,
I know that R. Meir Kahane said that his smicha didn't come with the phone number of a gadol, but he did have a rav he consulted with. Do you have your own rav?
The klal owes you a tremendous debt for getting this issue out in the open. How do you avoid falling into the trap of kochi v'otzem yadi?
...The NFL is trying to polish up its image after the Janet Jackson wardrobe malfunction fiasco of a few years ago. They are doing tshuva. However, our leaders and rashei yeshivahs fail to do the same. Whether it's YTT, YOB or NIRC, there is no remorse, no contrition, no apologies offered. Meanwhile, we continue to attend concerts, buy CD's, and blast the music of Yeedle Werdyger at simchas...
Yaakov,
You make excellent points. I was thinking though, perhaps this is it. Maybe, this is frumkeit. If it walks like a duck...
The unmitigated chutzpah is unbelievable. What the hell is Bryks, for example, doing in the public forum in a quasi-leadership position - in any capacity! He should be hiding in Israel somewhere. Isn't that what molestors tradition-ally (pun intended)do? Sicker than Bryks and Kolko and Margulies and Mondrowitz and Werdyger and that shmuck from Ger, is the actual system that allows it. That these animals can utilize our "wonderful world of frum" to not only get away with murder, but to continue as celebrities and "choshuve rabbonim" is the bigger scandal.
What was the name of that lowlife in Cleveland Heights that ran the only "kosher" fleishige restaurant for years? That is, until it was discovered that he sold nothing but treifos. Can you believe that the shvantz just goes on with his life and no one says boo to him in shul because easy going out-of-towners don't want to upset his children?
Corrupt losers who pretend to be rabbonim will soon be nicknaming UOJ as "Stingray"
How many kids were pulled out of Klohr's yeshiva over the summer?
How many rebbeyim left?
The bungalow putzes all took off early before Neuhoff could conduct his last poll on Labor Day, so we have to do the job for him.
You may want to read this article regarding Shefti Neuberger's view of the internet.
http://www.baltimorejewishtimes.com/scripts/edition.pl?now=5/25/1999&SubSectionID=30&ID=568
"Harry Maryles-you owe an apology to UOJ on your blog."
Why would Harry owe an apology?
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/bryksfiles/
Bryks files defamation lawsuits against the CBC & CNN.
What's next? Rabbi Belsky sues Eli Greenwald?
"Where are the Rabbonim? Chickens call for an outcry, our childeren don't?"
Of course there's an outcry about chickens, silly! Don't you know that Margo can't stand low sodium chicken soup?
Who cares if Hannibal Kolko / Yudi Lecter is cannibalizing little boys in the boiler room?
Shea Fishman,
Are you ready for the next climate adjustment?
You are a bizoyon to the human race, right up there with the other whacko and sheigetz Lipa Margulies.
Sheftel Neuberger, Beryl Weisbrod and Aaron Feldman, you're headed for this list!
Isn't R' Aron Feldman a non-political figure?
And how many people have the power to call the shots in Ner Yisroel anyway?
Can the Baltimore alumni fill us in?
Who is this Shea Fishman character and why is so terrified of UOJ? I received a distressed phone call from him this morning at the National Hurricane Center, demanding that I personally update him with any new developments. He was muttering something under his breath that he may wind up a bigger loser than New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin.
Lipa Margulies opening a yeshiva in Lakewood? That's like Shevach Meats opening a store in Boro Park. This guy must be put out of the yeshiva business altogether. We don't need him to contaminate Lakewood, he has done enough damage in Brooklyn.
Another thing that troubles me about Lakewood is the new BMG buliding. How can they have the name of that convicted, tax evading, witness tampering, pimp Charles Kushner in huge block letters on the wall? TAKE IT DOWN IMMEDIATELY!! When Bernard Kerik
pled guilty to ethics violations, his name was taken off a PRISON-not a school or hospital- in NYC. Meanwhile, this sheketz' name adorns the wall of one of our most prized institutions. I don't care how much money he gave to them, it is wrong. Rav Ahron Kotler zt"l would never approve of such a thing. And please don't tell me that tax evasion al pi halacha is ok. Hiring a hooker to smear a potential witness (a family member no less), is that mutar also? I guess they asked Belsky and Scheinberg.
Childhood Sexual Abuse
Researchers at John Jay College of Criminal Justice are conducting a study to better understand the effects of child sexual abuse in adult men and women. We hope this research will help us to learn more about providing appropriate care for survivors of childhood abuse, particularly for men who have been understudied relative to women survivors of sexual abuse.
The study seeks adult men in the New York City/ Northern New Jersey area who have experienced child sexual abuse for an assessment study. Participants will be asked to complete a set of questionnaires and to meet with a clinical interviewer to talk about ways in which you cope with difficult situations.
Participants will be paid for their time. Referrals for free crisis intervention and counseling resources are available.
All information is kept confidential. Participants’ identities will not be used in any publication from this study
For more information, please call 1-800-523-3075
I URGE EVERYONE THAT CARES ABOUT THE TRAGEDIES IN OUR COMMUNITY COMMITTED BY "RABBIS" ON OUR UNSUSPECTING CHILDREN TO CONTACT TOM DUANE!
PLEASE NEVER FORGET FOR A MOMENT THAT THE NEXT VICTIM OF SEXUAL ABUSE IN OUR YESHIVAS MAY BE YOUR CHILD!
RAISE HELL AS IF YOUR CHILD'S LIFE DEPENDS ON IT, BECAUSE IT DOES!
UOJ
Contact info for Tom Duane:
415 Legislative Office Building
Albany, New York 12247
518-455-2451
---
494 Eighth Ave., Suite 503
New York, NY 10001
212-268-1049
---
Email: DUANE@senate.state.ny.us
http://www.tomduane.com/post_session_albany_update.htm
Public Forum on Sexual Abuse
On April 26, I held a public forum on the issue of clergy sexual abuse and abuse by persons in a position of trust. The purpose of the forum was to discuss the need for a change in the civil and criminal statute of limitations for all sex crimes. In many cases, children and adults who were sexually abused don’t come to terms with what happened to them for many years. Due to the statute of limitations, at that time, it is often too late for them to seek justice in the courts. To makes matters worse, many institutions have covered up or minimized the sexual abuse of those under their supervision. I have introduced a series of bills which address this sexual abuse problem.
Moving testimony at the forum was presented by many survivors and their advocates, including former New York Giant lineman and survivor of childhood sexual abuse Roy Simmons, constitutional expert Professor Marci A. Hamilton, and Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) National President Barbara Blaine.
aCriminal Statute of Limitations Eliminated For Rape Survivors – I have driven home the need to remove our State’s antiquated civil and criminal statute of limitations for sex crimes time and time again on the floor of the State Senate. As was noted at my public forum on sexual abuse, far too often, they prevent survivors of sex crimes from receiving the healing and justice they deserve for the crimes committed against them.
I am pleased to announce that in the waning hours of this year’s Legislative Session, the Senate and Assembly passed legislation that completely eliminates the criminal statute of limitations for first degree rape, first degree criminal sexual acts, first degree aggravated sexual abuse and first degree sexual conduct against a child. Never again will the criminal justice system close its doors on a rape survivor merely due to antiquated laws. Further, the bill extends the civil statue of limitations from one year to five years – giving rape survivors more time to seek civil relief from those who abused them.
While this is a positive step, I believe the civil statute of limitations should be extended even further so that current survivors of past rape and sexual abuse can receive their day in court. I also believe that institutions that covered up years of sexual abuse should be held accountable for their actions. Despite the work that remains to be done, this is a tremendous victory for rape survivors and their advocates.
CALL TO ACTION: Stop Rabbi Ephraim Bryks Lecture To Women
Protect The Women of Queens From Potential Harm
http://theawarenesscenter.org/bryks_ephraim.html
The goal of this call to action to prevent another unsuspecting individual from becoming the next victim of a sex crime.
It has come to the attention of The Awareness Center that Rabbi Ephraim Bryks will be speaking to a group of single women in Kew Garden Hills, NY on September 9, 2006.
Over the last twenty years there has been several allegations made against Rabbi Ephraim Bryks of clergy abuse (childhood sexual abuse and professional sexual misconduct -women made claims of being sexually manipulated by him). To learn more about Ephraim Bryks watch the video produced by the Canadian Broadcasting Company (see link below).
Please contact the following yahoo group list owner and warn them about Rabbi Ephraim Bryks:
kghsingles-owner@yahoogroups.com
ATTN: NIRC ADMINISTRATION
GET RID OF EISEMAN IMMEDIATELY OR WE WILL GET THE POLICE INVOLVED.
CALL TO ACTION
Demand Rabbi Moshe Eisemann Do The Following:
http://www.theawarenesscenter.org/eiseman_moshe.html
The Awareness Center, Inc. is demanding that Rabbi Moshe Eisemann leave his position at Ner Israel and move off campus immediately. He must also go to police in Baltimore and confess to his crimes.
Please note that there is no statue of limitation on sex crimes against children in Maryland.
Rabbi Moshe Eiseman must also pay restitution to his victims and enter into residential treatment for sex offenders.
It is believed that Ner Israel has known about this case for some time, yet has refused to take action. Please demand that they change their policies immediately!
How many more children will need to be sexually victimized before they start to take this issue seriously?
Vicki Polin, MA, ATR, LCPC - Executive Director
The Awareness Center, Inc.
(Jewish Coalition Against Sexual Abuse/Assault)
P.O. Box 65273, Baltimore, MD 21209
www.theawarenesscenter.org
443-857-5560
Case of Rabbi Heshi Nussbaum and the Toronto Boys School Choir
(AKA: Heshi Nussbaum)
Jewish Survivors of Sexual Violence Speaks Out - September 5, 2006
http://jewishsurvivors.blogspot.com/2006/09/case-of-rabbi-heshy-nussbaum-and.html
For more information on this case go to:
http://www.theawarenesscenter.org/Nussbaum_Heshi.html
This site is dedicated to the memory of David Reichman who died at 34.
This is an old case that goes back several decades.
By the mid 1980’s Rabbi Heshi Nussbaum had been exposed as a pedophile in Toronto, Canada. At that time his wife divorced him. It was around the same time that Rabbi Ephraim Bryks brought him into Winnipeg (Canada) to help run a NCSY shabbaton. Several women in the community found out that Heshi was divorced and approached Bryks’ wife Yochevad offering to set up dates for Heshy while he was in Winnipeg. Yochevad told these women that “she was aware of the reasons for Heshy’s divorce and it would not be appropriate to set him up on dates with women.â€
It is believed that Heshi was raised in Toronto. He worked around the late 1980’s or early 1970’s in several camps in New York. One of which was Camp Mogen Avrahom in New York. This was the first location where allegations of child sexual abuse were made.
After that he returned to Toronto (early to mid 1970’s) and became choirmaster of the Toronto Boys choir (a Jewish boys choir). Heshy might have also worked as a teacher at the Eitz Chaim boys school and Camp Agudah summer camp (both were founded by his family), yet this has not been confirmed.
A source has told me that a rabbi in the US had warned the rabbis in Toronto that Heshi should not be working with kids, yet the warnings were ignored.
Apparently, when Heshy was caught in Toronto, major rabbonim in North America (don’t know names) were approached for assistance and he was removed. His reputation became common knowledge in Toronto.
My source told me that Rabbi Heshi Nussbaum was from a very prominent family who quieted things up and that he had been sent to an institution where they send priests caught doing the same thing, and that afterwards his family declared him cured.
It is unknown to what extent or whether the police/child family services were involved. There are rumors that he may have made a deal to avoid jail, yet this has not been confirmed.
There are also rumors that a number of young boys who had contact with Rabbi Heshi Nussbaum committed suicide. Unfortunately, suicide and attempted suicides are not uncommon for survivors of childhood sexual abuse.
As of 2003, Heshy worked as a Mashgiach and spends three to for days a week at a farm outside the city supervising Halav Yisroel milk production (not sure if this is for COR, MK or another). He also delivers flowers for weddings although there are at times specific requests that someone else delivers them.
A source told me that Rabbi Heshy Nussbaum also continues to tutor students, and also travels to Israel on a regular basis.
At this time there it is believed there are no newspaper articles that covered this case. Heshy's father Rabbi Moshe Nussbaum, was one of the founders of the Agudah movement in Toronto, and of Agudath Israel Congregation. He was also an active member on the Vaad Hapoel Agudath Israel, the governing body of the International Agudah organization. He was also active in Eitz Chaim schools, and was a found of Bais Yaakov High School. In addition, he helped found Camp Agudah in Port Carling, and Perspectives, the newspaper of Toronto Agudah.
If you are a survivor of Rabbi Heshy Nussbaum please contact me.
There is also a case made against a man by the name of Harvey Ehrlich, who was a product of the original Toronto Boys Choir. If you have information about him, please contact me.
Ronnie,
I consult with my rav daily.
I always ask myself the following; am I doing enough to save God's children from the vile system that tramples on them, destroys them if they get in their way, and treats them as profit centers?
I beg God daily for forgiveness for not getting involved sooner in saving our children from sexual abuse and rescuing whatever is left of authentic Judaism.
I just spoke to Tom Duans legislative counsel, who said that the legislature is likely to be taking up the SOL issue again in January. He suggested people call their state senators and say they are in favor of an expansion of the SOL for sexual abuse. The volume of calls is important. He believes the legislature is moving in that direction. They will
also likely have another forum in April or May. I think there needs to be an organized effort coming from members of the frum community, to counter the obstructionism of the leadership.
The Truth about Rabbi Ben Zion Sobel
At the risk of being naïve, I’ll assume for a moment that the bloggers who are revealing information about alleged sex offenders mean leshem Shamayim, to protect the community, and want to know the true facts. This assumption may be challenged by the fact that even when someone who really knows sends in corrections, the blogger does not erase the rumor that was previously posted, no matter how damaging or ridiculous it might be, but leaves it there and just adds the correction. This is in spite of the fact that the blogger wants to be believed and considered credible.
A typical case at hand is this. Although someone, who knows Rabbi Sobel personally, wrote that he never learned in Baltimore nor did he ever have any ties with Mattis Weinberg, the headline of the blog remains “Here is another shady character from Baltimore…he had ties ….”
Bearing this in mind, I hesitate to take so much time to “set the record straight” regarding Rabbi Sobel, if all my efforts are going to be futile because the bloggers’ attitude is, “Don’t confuse me with the facts, I’ve already made up my mind!”
However, since we are dealing with the most serious offenses in the Torah, embarrassing a Jew publicly - which under certain conditions applies also to a sinner too – I feel that I am obligated to try my best and hope and pray that my words are not falling on deaf ears, or, in this case, eyes.
However, I am sending you this information on condition that you print all of it (it took me a long time to write it – your readers can take the time to read it) and that you delete all wrong and mistaken information others wrote based on things they heard, think they heard, and/or fabricated.
First of all, in dealing with blogs, one should always remember the Gemara (Bava Metzia 59a; Sanhedrin 107a) which tells us that after King Dovid’s incident with Bas Sheva, there were those who were probably concerned about the Halachic implications of his act and the Chilul Hashem, and if it was legitimized by him etc. and therefore they would ask King Dovid publicly: “One who has relations with a married woman, how should he be killed?” To which King Dovid replied, “He should be killed by choking but he has a part in the World-to-Come; however, one who embarrasses someone in public, has no part in the World-to-Come!”
Another important halachah. When someone sees a rodef – someone who is pursuing someone else in an attempt to kill (or otherwise harm) him, he is obligated to save the victim at all costs; even if he must kill the rodef in order to do so. However, if he could have saved the victim by merely wounding the rodef, yet he chose to kill him, he is considered a murderer and is responsible for the blood of the rodef which he spilt unnecessarily.
Therefore, even if we assume that the blogs are permissible in order to protect victims from harm, and, of course, that is our primary concern, nevertheless, at the same time we are obligated by the Torah to take into consideration the perpetrator too. If we can protect the innocent victim by merely “wounding” the perpetrator we must do so. If we do more than we have to, then we have sinned and may be worse than the person we are attacking.
CERTAINLY WHEN THE PERSON WE ARE ATTACKING POSES NO THREAT TO ANYONE, THERE IS NO HETER (PERMISSION) IN THE WORLD TO DISGRACE HIM PUBLICLY OR EVEN PRIVATELY, FOR THAT MATTER. There is a specific Torah prohibition to say (even privately) to a ba’al teshuvah (a penitent), “Remember your previous acts.”
I am, once again, risking being naïve by assuming that I am addressing Orthodox, observant, Jewish people to whom the mitzvahs of the Torah have meaning and value, and, with the best of intentions, do not want to violate any prohibitions, certainly not Torah ones. If the blogs are just being run and participated in by a bunch of slanderers and gossipers who couldn’t care less about what is permissible and what is prohibited then I really am wasting my time.
Finally, whenever the Chofetz Chaim teaches a rare situation when it is permissible to spread lashon hara, he always lists the conditions. One major condition is always that the one who is speaking has no personal gain and no ulterior motive. He is not the person’s enemy who regales at the opportunity to take “kosher” revenge at the person being attacked. Furthermore, he may never exaggerate or add any more detail to the story than is absolutely true.
One last word. Whereas the Torah commands us not to believe nor relate harmful information unless it has been proven true by at least two kosher witnesses in Beis Din, some bloggers are not ashamed to admit that they will add any rumor ever whispered to their site. That is really a strange way to conduct business when the business involves people’s lives and the lives of their families.
After this rather lengthy introduction, let us deal with the case at hand: Rabbi Ben Zion Sobel.
First of all, I am probably one of the most reliable authorities on him. I have known him for many, many years and I know his attributes as well as his faults. I have thoroughly researched the unfortunate incidents of his very colorful life and I know what is true and what is not. If anyone has unanswered questions about him after reading what I write, you may ask me by e-mail. My address is: Hamashgiach@yahoo.com and I will be glad to respond privately; not in a public forum.
To set the record straight, let us begin at the end. Rabbi Sobel currently resides and works in an office in Jerusalem . It is the office of Rabbi Yitzchak Dovid Grossman shlita, Chief Rabbi of Migdal Ha’Emek, Founder and Dean of Migdal Ohr, which campus is situated in Migdal Ha’Emek, almost a hundred miles away from Jerusalem . Rabbi Sobel’s job is strictly administrative; PR and fund raising. He is not involved in the chinuch of Migdal Ohr IN ANY MANNER, neither directly or indirectly. He has absolutely no contact with the students or campers or even the staff, for that matter. He has nothing to do with the schools. He works with his computer and his telephone to solicit donors. That’s it! He has been working in this position for over 15 years and nothing has changed.
The very documents which apparently made some people nervous and which appear on blogs bear witness to what I just wrote. The articles in the various newspapers clearly identify him as Rabbi Grossman’s assistant who runs his office in Jerusalem . He discusses the camps, solely in an attempt to raise funds for them. In the picture with Pastor Hagee, we see him receiving a check on Migdal Ohr’s behalf. That is his job - and he seems to doing a very good job, baruch Hashem – finito!
Much ado about nothing.
He is not involved in chinuch and has not been since he left Neveh Zion in 1985. As some other, apparently knowledgeable, person wrote, he did not return to chinuch even when given permission to do so (as we will soon discuss). Therefore, he is absolutely no threat to anyone, and parents in Israel do not have to be warned about him.
Rabbi Grossman always says: “When someone has a very bad disease, the doctor can take the easy way out and just kill him on the operating table. Does that mean that he cured him of his illness? Of course not. On the other hand, the learned professor will try to cut away the bad part and save the good so that the sick man can recover and continue to live and function properly without the negative component.
Rabbi Grossman is a very big tzaddik but he is also no fool. His life’s mission is rehabilitating people who fell; but he will never do that by putting someone else at risk. He checked very carefully into Rabbi Sobel’s situation before he took him to work for him 6 years after he had left Neveh Zion. He checked with the doctor who had treated him and was convinced that he is “clean” (more about this later). And after all that, he gave him an office job in Jerusalem , far away from the campus, with nothing to do with chinuch.
Someone claimed that Rabbi Sobel never “fessed up” like someone else did. This, like most of the things written about him, is not true. He always acknowledged and dealt with his unfortunate problem and fully cooperated with the authorities when he was approached by them (more details soon). He did not make a public apology over the internet since that is not called for. He apologized to those victims he was able to approach and accepted full responsibility. Whenever attacked by zealots, his response was always filled with deep humility and remorse (there are many documents to prove this). Recently, his typical reaction when he was told that he is being scandalized on blogs was: “I deserve any and all abuse I may get. I desecrated Hashem’s Holy Name internationally, and, in return, my name is similarly being disgraced. Halevai that it be enough penance for my grave sins. I only feel bad that my wonderful, innocent family must suffer disgrace due to my big mistakes!”
DOES THIS SOUND LIKE THE MONSTER BEING DESCRIBED BY SOME IRRESPONSIBLE PEOPLE ON THE BLOGS?
Let’s discuss now the size of Rabbi Sobel’s sin, before we get to the sin itself. People on the blogs are debating whether or not he is the greatest predator or not. People have claimed that he hurt hundreds of students etc. That he is a pedophile.
Let’s get the record straight. The amount of boys Rabbi Sobel “got involved” with is less than 10 – I know them personally. I AM IN NO WAY UNDERESTIMATING THE SEVERITY OF HURTING EVEN ONE STUDENT – but we must keep things in proper proportion. There is a big difference between a murderer and a serial killer.
None of the boys were minors (he is not a pedophile as someone suggested nor a “serial sodomizer of minors”). Nor were they “troubled kids” as some have written. Neveh Yehoshua and Neveh Zion were not created for “troubled kids” who may not be responsible for their actions. On the contrary, whenever Rabbi Sobel met with the parents of potential students, he told them that if their son has a problem and needs professional help, then Neveh is not the place for him. It was geared to boys who lacked motivation in learning and commitment to Judaism. Today there are many yeshivas for high school boys who were not successful in their yeshivas and were even, perhaps, turned off to learning and often to being religious. Rabbi Sobel is the father of all of these yeshivas. Until he came along, these guys were considered “lost cases” as far as Yiddishkeit was concerned. He designed a learning program and a method of chinuch which successfully turned hundreds of these rebels into religious, G-d fearing people. Many of them even became educators themselves and are to be found all around the world teaching their students.
All of the students he got involved with were capable of making their own decisions. It is true, of course, that he misused the trust they had in him as their Rebby whom they highly respected, and that is very unfortunate. But none of them learned from him to do the same to others (so much for fear about the Torah Ohr “link”). (There is a very good reason for this which I don’t want to get in to since it is too complicated for this post.)
Someone argued that every predator who gets caught says that he’s going into therapy. That may or may not be true but in the case of Rabbi Sobel, he didn’t just say it – he did it – and there are doctor’s records to prove it. He spent thousands of dollars on therapy for half a year and not until three years later – after testing him unknowingly several times – the doctor signed a letter for the Bidatz proclaiming him cured and able to return to chinuch, which, as I’ve already written, he chose not to do, even when the Bidatz, and other prominent Rabbis subsequently signed documents giving him permission to. (By the way, Harav Shach never claimed that he may never teach again. The opposite is true.)
Now, let’s go back to the beginning and refute the vast majority of what people have written about him. Many of the descriptions seem to be written by people with perverted minds who apparently have read many exciting pornographic novels and are trying to write one of their own, using Rabbi Sobel as the main character of their insidious plot. However, most of their “facts” are total fabrications and those few who know the truth defended him. It is not the defenders who should be embarrassed but those who believe every rumor they hear or think they heard.
First of all, get it straight – Rabbi Sobel has absolutely nothing to do with Baltimore except that many of his best students went on to learn there. That reference should immediately be removed from the blogs because it is meant to add shame to the yeshiva and to him and it is totally not true.
He learned in RJJ (and has absolutely no connection to Ner Yisroel Baltimore or to Mattis Weinberg whom he hardly ever met) and was one of the best students in his era. Even as a bachur he was teaching other bachurim and many of them are the finest educators today, thanks to him.
After he was married, he lived in Monsey. He never owned a house and never sold it – as some misinformed person wrote on a blog. There were no major sex scandals about him in the States except for one boy whose family admitted that he is not well adjusted and falsely accused many others before.
In 1977, he moved to Israel . He didn’t run away from the USA . He was offered a prestigious job as a mashgiach of the Americans in Itri – Chadera. He didn’t convince anyone to make a school for him for troubled students in a remote place so that he could molest them. When the hanhala of ITRI noticed how successful he was with American students, they approached him and asked him to establish a school strictly for Americans on a campus they had purchased in Bet Yehoshua, Netanya. This was subsequently called Neveh Yehoshua. After four years, due to Itri’s financial problems, Rabbi Sobel became independent and moved the yeshiva to Telz-Stone and renamed it Neveh Zion.
Rabbi Sobel was always extremely highly respected by Gedolim, Roshei Yeshiva, parents and students alike for his sacrificial dedication to his students and his success with them. Klal Yisroel owes him a lot. His students are scattered around the globe and many of them – whether educators or askanim – are having a very positive effect on the Jewish People. Many called him “The greatest Rosh Yeshiva of the generation.”
Now comes the bad – sad – part. Many wondered how Rabbi Sobel was able to succeed with students with whom so many before him had failed. One of the answers is: with genuine love. He loved each student as if he were his own son and he cared for him as if he were his father. Unfortunately, since Rabbi Sobel had a serious problem (which he was apparently born with) this genuine love sometimes crossed boundaries that are taboo and led him to inappropriate behavior with several students over the years (not hundreds as I’ve already explained – and never with minors – and no one committed suicide because of him nor was anyone institutionalized because of him).
The “fabulous and well known story of how he got caught” (either in California or with his driver) is all total hogwash – as is his “method” of telling boys to lie down on the couch and tell him their problems. These were all apparently fabricated by people who find this kind of writing and reading titillating. That was not his “method.” And he was never “caught” at all. What happened was that one of his students told Rabbi Elya Svei what he had experienced with Rabbi Sobel (sorry if it’s not exciting enough for your warped imagination).
Now we come to another interesting point. Rabbi Sobel was always aware of his problem and recognized it. He tried therapy several times but, unfortunately, it did not help. On his own, he felt that perhaps he should leave chinuch. However, when he asked advice from prominent people they told him not to do so. It’s very possible that at that time (over two decades ago) they did not yet understand the severity of the problem and knew, on the other hand, how much good Rabbi Sobel was doing for the community. So they insisted that he stay.
He, however, decided that he must limit his direct contact with the students on an individual basis, and only deliver his famous, inspiring sichot to a public audience. Therefore he hired a mashgiach and eventually a menahel to do the work that he really was best cut out to do; in order to distance himself from the students. He let himself get more and more involved with fund raising and less and less in chinuch.
When he was finally told by Reb Elya Svei to leave chinuch, he immediately agreed and left quietly and with no battle a few weeks later. He then contacted a professional therapist he had met (by Hashgachah a few weeks earlier) and he proved to be the shaliach who could successfully heal him (as he had healed others before him) after many months of therapy. Rabbi Sobel was not given a clean bill of health overnight. Only three years later, the therapist was totally convinced that his patient was healed and could be trusted to return to chinuch and issued a formal letter to the Bidatz of the Edah Hachareidis who also did not rush to give Rabbi Sobel permission to return to chinuch. When they finally did, Rabbi Sobel decided on his own that he would not rush to return to formal chinuch.
Over twenty years have passed since then and Rabbi Sobel has been watched like hawks by his neighbors and acquaintances. If he had done anything wrong since then, it would be known. But, although he has had many opportunities (some of which were deliberately set up in order to test him), he passed every test. He has earned for himself the honorable status of a sincere ba’al teshuvah and he should be honored and admired, not disgraced. He should be used as an example of what a person who, unfortunately, fell should do. Psychologists say that only a small per cent of people with his problem are sincere and strong enough to straighten out and he is one of them. This is a proven fact – not like all of the other rumors collected by and from irresponsible people who have no idea of the truth. He is no danger to anyone and it is absolutely forbidden to cause his family any more anguish by publicizing what happened over two decades ago.
And, by the way, a note about teshuvah – which some bloggers seem to think is a light matter. Teshuvah is a very difficult process, if done properly. Indeed, when the Rabbeinu Yonah suggests that one who has sinned should do teshuvah as soon as possible, he writes (in Sha’arei Teshuvah, Chapter One, Os Daled) one of the reasons as being that if the yetzer hara tries to tempt him again, “He will remember how the cup of bitterness passed before him and he will not drink of it again.” We see by the fact that he calls it a “cup of bitterness” that teshuvah is no simple matter – certainly no cup of tea.
I am not aware of the particulars of Rabbi Sobel’s teshuvah, but I know that he consulted many Tzaddikim and Mekubalim about it. They prescribed many difficult things which include fasting and other means of suffering which he has been doing for the past twenty years and continues to do so.
Someone wrote how happy he is that justice may finally be served. My dear misguided friend; justice was done over twenty years ago. There isn’t a judge in the world who would not agree that Rabbi Sobel paid for his crime – big time. He was one of the most prominent Roshei Yeshiva in the world and lost it all to public, international disgrace. He fell from grace and lost the empire he had built with his own hands. Today he is a humble office worker (not a “holy rabbi” image), struggling to make a living and marry off his children (the big check was for Migdal Ohr, not for him). We should all just let him be. He has suffered enough.
Since he is a brilliant talmid chacham, many have sought ways that he may continue to teach with no danger involved. Some suggested he write his Torah and you, too, may benefit from his marvelous thoughts on the weekly parashah which are praised and recommended all over the internet. He is invited from time to time to speak for various groups and these are the ads that sometimes appear. But he is not involved in chinuch - and certainly not in Migdal Ohr.
A famous blogger wrote in a letter of June 16, 2004: “At the same time, if you or anyone else wants to provide us with documentations that prove that …(or any other of the alleged or convicted offenders on the site) took steps to not only take responsibility for wrongdoings, asked forgiveness of victims, had entered and completed treatment with a psychotherapist who has recognized experience with treating sexual offenders and who is willing to give a written letter that they are no longer posing a risk to others--we would not only be thrilled for the steps to healing taken by members of our community, but will seriously consider taking the case off the site, or moving it to a link for offenders who made “teshuvah” (not only between them and G-d but also between Adam-Lechavero) and can be models to others who erred.”
All of this applies fully to Rabbi Sobel!
In conclusion, it is Halachically and morally wrong to persecute someone who has paid for his crime and is now living an exemplary life with no danger to anyone. I implore all bloggers to place my FACTUAL report on their blogs, to set the record straight, and immediately remove all of the false rumors they have accumulated. After a while, my report too should be removed and Rabbi Sobel’s name should not be mentioned at all on any blogs. As I mentioned before, the Torah says that it is strictly forbidden to say to a baal teshuvah, “Remember your previous acts.”
Kesivah vechasimah tovah.
Above Re: The Truth about Rabbi Ben Zion Sobel
I would like to thank the author of the above post. I can tell the sincerity involved is real. I hope that Rabbi Ben Zion Sobel has menuchas hanefesh vemenuchas aguf. When someone does sincere Tshuva they are to be forgiven, and I know that Hashem has forgiven him. We really (the bloggers) do have to be concerned with hurting other Jews if they have repented and are no longer a threat to hurt anybody. There is no basis for continuing to knock Rabbi Ben Zion Sobel anymore. The man has clearly paid for his mistakes and deserves to be commended for his agras nefesh in trying and succeeding in getting the help he needed.
I must point how careful we must be with the information we post (myself included). If a person is a Rodef, then let's stop him in his tracks if we can, and that would include everything --- Blogging, injuring, even killing if we must. However, it's crystal clear that Rabbi Ben Zion Sobel is not a Rodef, and we must not talk about his past anymore nor bring it up on the blogs.
Let's focus on the real "rodfim" - those who cover-up the abuse and those who are the perpetrators of these crimes against children.
I am seeking to make contact with people that were victimized by Moshe Eismann at the Talmudical Academy Of Philadelphia, (the Philly Yeshiva) headed by Elya Svei and Shmuel Kaminetsky.
I am in contact presently with victims; my primary interest is to confirm what they have told me about the reasons for Eisemann's termination, and the roles Kaminetsky and Svei played in sending him off to Ner Israel.
Anybody that can add additional light on what is becoming the mother of all nightmares, please contact me at: a_unorthodoxjew@yahoo.com
Thanks!
Re: The Truth about Rabbi Ben Zion Sobel,
UM????? yeah right?
Who is this masked blogger who knows so much about Sobel? Who was the masked therapist who signed this mysterious letter saying that Sobel was no longer a threat to society.
This is nothing more then a bunch of bull.
Information ABout Sex Offenders and Their Victims
The typical child sex offender molests an average of 117 children, most of who do not report the offence.
Source: National Institute of Mental Health, 1988.
Children often fail to report because of the fear that disclosure will bring consequences even worse than being victimized again. The victim may fear consequences from the family, feel guilty for consequences to the perpetrator, and may fear subsequent retaliatory actions from the perpetrator.
Sources: Berlinger & Barbieri, 1984; Groth, 1979; Swanson & Biaggio, 1985.
A child's initial denial of sexual abuse should not be the sole basis of reassurance that abuse did not occur. Virtually all investigative protocols are designed to respond to only those children who have disclosed. Policies and procedures that are geared only to those children who have disclosed fail to recognize the needs of the majority of victims.
Source: Sorensen & Snow, 1991.
* 61% of sexual assaults are not reported to the police.
* 57% of all sexual assaults take place on dates or in the context of relationships
* If the rape is reported to police, there is a 50.8% chance that an arrest will be made.
* If an arrest is made, there is an 80% chance of prosecution.
* If there is a prosecution, there is a 58% chance of a felony conviction.
* If there is a felony conviction, there is a 69% chance the convict will spend time in jail.
* So, even in the 39% of attacks that are reported to police, there is only a 16.3% chance the rapist will end up in prison.
* Factoring in unreported rapes, about 6% of rapists—1 out of 16— will ever spend a day in jail. 15 out of 16 will walk free. According to the US Department of Justice.
[Probability statistics compiled by NCPA from US Department of Justice statistics. See www.ncpa.org/studies/s229/s229.html]
I have been told by sources that I trust that Sobel truly understands his illness and realizes that he can never again be trusted to be around children in a private setting.
I do not have any other information to share other than I have faith in Rabbi Grossman's judgment and I hope he is restricting Sobel's activities to the office.
Sobel has a duty to earn a parnassah and support his family regardless of his past sins.
UOJ,
Your work in uprooting molestors from the community is very much appreciated by all, but your work will be fruitless if you do not attack the root of the problem: the corrupt leaders who enable/harbor these molestors and allow them to do what they do. What ever happened to getting rid of Margo, etc?
Anon 9:38,
It seems like a very long time but Lipa Margulies's end is a process.
The process has begun and will continue until he drops dead, sooner rather than later hopefully.
please remember that there are a few elements of punishment. There is revenge/din and there is deterrence - both for the transgressor and for others who are considering doing the same thing.
Care must be taken that people like Margo get punished in a way that deters others from following in their footsteps. If Margo's only punishment is that he dies sooner rather than later, what lesson will ner yisroel et al. take from that?
kol tuv
I read the posting on Rabbi Sobel very carefully and it was deeply disturbing. The descriptions of what took place at Neve Tzion, of how he was caught, and how he responded to Rav Schach and Rav Svei, were all inaccurate. More critically there is still no understanding of the power imbalance between rebbe and talmid, particularly the students at Neve who were extremely vulnerable, and how seriously they have been traumatized. Contrary to what was written, R.Sobel has tried to get back into chinuch through his parsha sheets and public lectures.
A sincere baal teshuva should have at least a little modesty.
Yosef Blau
Yosef,
It sounds like you're not convinced that Rabbi Sobel has done tshuvah. You question the accuracy and truth of Anon's rehabilitated rebbe defense. You brought up that "A sincere baal teshuva should have at least a little modesty".
You also questioned the author's credibility again. "Contrary to what was written, R.Sobel has tried to get back into chinuch through his parsha sheets and public lectures". The descriptions of what took place at Neve Tzion, of how he was caught, and how he responded to Rav Schach and Rav Svei, were all inaccurate. More critically there is still no understanding of the power imbalance between rebbe and talmid, particularly the students at Neve who were extremely vulnerable, and how seriously they have been traumatized".
I must say you rattled me a bit. I really wanted to be convinced that the letter was accurate and that R'Sobol no longer posed a threat to children. Could you share with us the facts as you know them? Please refute what you feel is inaccurate, and why you feel so. You make good arguments, i just need you to clarify if you can. Don't mean to sound like a lawyer, but i want to be convinced of the truth.
Thank u for posting on Heshy Nussbaum. His family's prominence
in Agudah explains the hushed kiddy
glove treatment he was given and the shameful fact that he still
occasionally delivers Divrei Torah
at the Agudah Congregation with the
blessings of the Board and Rabbi.
May Hashem mete out his punishment.
Un-Orthodox Jew said...
R' Yosef,
What would your opinion be about a "rehabilitated" rebbe? Is there such a thing, and would you permit him around children ever again?
UOJ, once a certain behavior, any behavior, has be exhibited, is there any guarantee it won't be exhibited again? Can trust ever be restored when it has been violated?
I'm not just talking about sexual abuse. Tshuvah is a difficult process for any sin or destructive behavior.
With sexual paraphilias it may in fact be impossible to change. I'm no shrink, but my guess is that with pedophile and other high recidivism risk offenders like serial rapists their basic wiring is messed up. Something happened in their sexual development that can't be rewired.
We know from studies of severely neglected children and feral children that if language is not taught at critical development times, there will be a permanent deficit. This is profound in light of how plastic the brain is and how capable it is to adapt to injury. Just like neglected children have stunted brains, maybe pedophiles cannot overcome how their brain has developed.
PROBLEM PRIESTS
CHILDREN won a double-header in the Illinois and Missouri legislatures last week. Both bodies acknowledged the special circumstances involved in childhood sexual abuse and tried to make it easier for victims to seek justice.
Illinois lawmakers passed and sent to Gov. Rod Blagojevich a bill giving victims and prosecutors more time to bring criminal and civil charges against people suspected of abuse. The bill extended by 10 years the criminal statute of limitations in sex abuse cases. Victims now have until age 38 to bring criminal charges against their abusers.
The bill also gives victims five years from the time they recognize their abuse to bring civil suits against their abusers. If the abuser uses fraud or intimidation to keep civil charges from being filed, the statute of limitations is lifted entirely. Currently, such suits must be filed within two years from the time victims recognize their abuse.
The bill, sponsored by Sen. Jacqueline Y. Collins, D-Chicago, recognizes the special circumstances created when a child is abused by someone he or she trusts, whether it be a parent, priest or caregiver. Experts say children often deny the trauma until adulthood, when they can muster the courage to confront the perpetrator.
Since the first reports of the clergy abuse scandal in the Roman Catholic Church in January 2002, lawyers for accused priests and the church have repeatedly used statutes of limitation to escape prosecution and dodge responsibility. That will be more difficult now, particularly in Illinois.
"The fraud and intimidation clause really gives bishops an incentive to act," said David Clohessy of St. Louis, director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. "They can't run out the clock anymore."
Lawmakers in Jefferson City didn't go quite as far. There, the statute of limitations in criminal cases remains unchanged - 10 years after the victim's 18th birthday. But in civil cases, the legislators gave victims an extra six years - until the victims' 30th birthday - to bring lawsuits. The bill's chief sponsor, Sen. Pat Dougherty, D-St. Louis, should come back next year and finish the job.
If Mr. Blagojevich and Gov. Bob Holden of Missouri sign the bills - and they should - Illinois and Missouri will join a small but growing number of states that have extended statutes of limitations in the past two years. Each time a legislature acts in this way, it improves the odds that victims of childhood abuse and perpetrators of that abuse will get the justice they deserve.
I find it hard to believe that Harvey Ehrlich is guilty of anything. I was at a yeshiva that he frequently stopped by. He was very shmoozy with high school age bochurim who were very normal & balanced but that was the extent of it. If there was any hint of anything improper it would have spread faster than wildfire. There was a molester in the yeshiva, in the form of a Greek janitor named Chris. I know of a couple of cases where he made physical advances but he was fought off. The bochurim handled it their own way by spreading that he was a pervert and subjected him to constant digs. Word got to the hanhala who eventually got rid of him.
The menahel of this yeshiva who has a penchant for tossing boys down flights of stairs is a relative of Heshy Nussbaum.
I know the rumors circulating for years about Heshy's pedophilia. I don't have any first hand knowledge because I went to a different cheder. I do have first hand knowledge however that he is probably gay with consenting adults. His van has been spotted in distant neighborhoods with trashy shkutzim in the back in sleeping bags.
Assuming that any of this is true, of which I have doubts, you may be causing more trouble than you are helping. Might it be the case that those at Ner know about R. Eisemann's problems and have therefore kept him under lock and key for many years, keeping him from harming anyone while at the same time preventing any disgrace to his family?
Take a look in the mirror and see who is the one who is harming innocent people.
To Anonymous who goes by the name of Adam Harishon.....who posted the Sobel comment,
If you have any authentic documentation from prominent rabbonim and mental health professionals giving Sobel a clean bill of health, I will gladly post them.
As I said, I have been told that Sobel understands that he is ill; I have reservations about the heaps of accolades that you have attributed to rabbonim and mental health professionals.
Please forward them to me in a timely manner or I will consider removing your post.
Assuming that any of this is true, of which I have doubts, you may be causing more trouble than you are helping. Might it be the case that those at Ner know about R. Eisemann's problems and have therefore kept him under lock and key for many years, keeping him from harming anyone while at the same time preventing any disgrace to his family?
Take a look in the mirror and see who is the one who is harming innocent people.
----------------------------------
To Anonymous 10:08,
There is a special seat in the nut house for guys like you!
The other shul that Bryks is supposed to be speaking at is in Kew Garden Hills.
Spitalny Mendel Rabbi
14125 70th Ave
Flushing, NY 11367
(718) 544-1967
Reb Moishe Mordche Lowy has been accused of allowing bums with fat wallets to stay in the shul. I always remembered Heshy Nussbaum being very friendly with the kids in the Agudah and next door in Bobov. Bobov also had their own resident molesters.
One of the molesters mentioned on these pages has a really messed up son. Chazal tell us that genes are passed on but yiras shamayim is up to the person. The son started running out at a young age to buy porno magazines. While still in mesivta, he graduated to meeting women through swinger ads. He fancied relating his escapades to younger bochurim in the dorm. Word got back to the rosh yeshiva who call him into the office. The rosh yeshiva seemingly just assumed he was an immature nut with wild fantasies but I have reason to believe they were actually played out. Besides reports of him spotted with strange women, I've never met anyone who exudes such consuming tayvah. I later met him when he was in a college oriented bais medrash. When asked how he was doing, he made sure to mention his pursuit of carnal knowledge.
Speaking of Udem Harishon, I just have von ting to say,
Hashoymer achicha anoychi?
Da UOJ blog can be like da mark of Kain
I'd rather be in the nut house than in hell.
Harvey Erlich is a board member of Hillel.
http://www.hilleltoronto.org/about/board.html
I've been told, Rabbi Shlomo Miller is well aware of his history.
Me and Kolko split up our duties in summer camps. While he molested, others see to it that the kiddies eat treife fleish.
Hey Anon @10:25, you should be the one looking in the mirror. Lock and key? In this case, throwing away the key would be the proper response. Even NIRC could come up with better excuses than that. I think you should keep your silly comments locked up.
Anonymous said...
However, since we are dealing with the most serious offenses in the Torah, embarrassing a Jew publicly - which under certain conditions applies also to a sinner too – I feel that I am obligated to try my best and hope and pray that my words are not falling on deaf ears, or, in this case, eyes.
I reply...
This garbage is how this problem has spread so far and gotten so large. No, embarassing someone is NOT the worst sin. Even suggesting that embarassing someone is a worse sin than fondling their private parts and/or raping them is disgusting. This is not Torah. This is a rule the corrupt rabbinate made up to protect themselves from being exposed to public scrutiny, and it has to stop. This kind of attitude is what has allowed hundreds of JEwish kids to have their lives and faith destroyed by these slimeballs, who proudly smirk and act as if being embarassed is a horrible crime against them. Not one ounce of sympathy is given for their own - real - crimes. A true man would be HAPPY to be embarassed if it would mean innocent children were protected from vile acts of abomination. Their retreat behind this cowardly idea is nothing but C-Y-A behavior, and it shows beyong a reasonable doubt that they are NOT sorry and NOT safe to be around children.
UJO,
You sound like you spoke to Rabbi Ari Kahn who is employed by the same person who employs Sobel.
It's a snow job. Sobel is a danger to children. He's one of the worst sexual predators out there. Don't get caught up in his web of manipulations and lies.
This is exactly what happened with Gafni, Tendler, Weinberg -- the list goes on.
You think Sobel is doing his own PR work now? I bet that he's the one who wrote the crap about how he's done teshuva.
Has anyone asked any of Sobel's victims if he has ever paid restitution to them? Has he ever offered to go to the police and turn himself in for the crimes he committed against children?
Come on, we all know how cunning and manipulative some sex offenders can be. Let's not be taken in by Sobel.
He's trying to pull a Gafni on everyone. He's trying to recreate himself and then gain access to his prey and pounce on them.
Let him get a job at the local prison cleaning toilets. After he's done that for a few years we can talk about him doing teshuva.
Has anyone confronted Paysach Krohn about where he stands on Bryks?
This past Sunday in r reismans shul talking about tzom gedalya
Get the hakhel tape
“ if a parent heard certain things about a camp,a yeshiva, is he going to send his children there?” one should suspect everything you hear even if you don’t believe it.
That’s why the gemara says gedalya was guilty of the deaths and destruction of the remnant of Israel .
Dear Everyone, We would like to invite you to a very special Women's Only Shiur given by Rabbi Ephraim Bryks. The Shiur will take place at 5:30 PM, this coming Shabbos, in the Rosh HaYeshiva's house located at 69-13 172nd Street. All women are welcome. Tzipora and Judy. FREE LAPDANCES AFTER THE SHIUR.
"I've been told, Rabbi Shlomo Miller is well aware of his history."
Which Harvey Ehrlich details exactly is R' Shlomo aware of?
Poor R' Shlomo always gets dragged into garbage. Whatever happened with that lowlife dentist who was fooling around with his Italianishe hygienist who filed a frivolous lawsuit against the rosh kollel after R' Shlomo screamed at him?
Rabbi Bryks will be giving his annual Shavuos Night Shiur:
Midnight - 1:15 AM "THE MAJESTY OF HASHEM'S CREATION"
1:30 AM - 2:30 AM "INSIGHTS INTO MEGILATH RUTH"
2:45 AM - 3:45 AM "MODERN DAY QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS - OPEN DISCUSSION"
PRIVATE ONE ON ONE SESSIONS WITH RABBI BRYKS TO FOLLOW!!!
RERESHMENTS WILL BE SERVED!!!
WHERE: 141-25 70th AVE - TIKVAS YISRAEL SHALOM
"Whatever happened with that lowlife dentist who was fooling around with his Italianishe hygienist who filed a frivolous lawsuit against the rosh kollel after R' Shlomo screamed at him?"
Reichmann hired a top legal team to extricate Rav Miller from that mess.
Harry Maryles be a mensch, you owe UOJ a public apology.
Bryks counseled women, studied with teenage girls, all behind his closed office door. Orthodox Jewish law forbids men from touching or even being alone with a female over the age of three who isn't family. A 14-year-old complained the rabbi often sat on her lap, touched her, tickled her, and talked about sex. Once, she says, he even licked her face. <1>
Additional women came forward, accusing Rabbi Bryks of making unwanted sexual advances
I will try to answer both questions asked me. The professionals that I have consulted all say that treatment of repeated sexual offenders has not been successful. The risk in allowing such an individual to return to teaching is too great. We have a responsibility to protect the students. Only Hashem can measure sincerity of teshuva and the individual has every right to make a living in another area of work.
My knowledge of what occurred at Neve Tzion in 1985 comes from my work at Yeshiva University. I have been visiting yeshivos in Israel for YU since 1979. Among the yeshivos that I spoke at, was Neve Yehoshua which became Neve Tzion. During the crisis I was in contact with a number of people who were involved, including the rabbi who brought the accusations to Rabbi Svei's attention. A number of former students in Neve were in YU and I tried to work with them. Then and later I maintained an ongoing relationship with both rabbeim who taught there and alumni.
Unfortunately, some of the key figures have passed away or are no longer well, and there was no documentation. The story of the scandal was kept out of the media.
Yosef Blau
I came across your blog and was stunned .Does your vendetta against the Rabbonim/Yeshivot/Estalishmant allow you to publicly assail your targets w/o first approaching the alleged offenders directly .If in fact you have information of a serious offense shouldn't you be approaching the offender directly and giving them an ultimatum.(get treatment, leave your position etc. or I will reveal what I know )
By what right can you decide that by challenging an institution on your blog to do something they may know nothing about ( or may not have enough info to act on )is enough to trash them and to treat them so disrespectfully on your blog.
Can you honestly tell yourself and the readers of your blog that your intrests are protecting Klal Yisroel and are Lishmah when you drag the stories on and on ,playing cat and mouse , throwing down challenges and deadlines. It seems to me that you are playing G-d .
Aside from your italicized posted threat to R'Nueberger did YOU try to contact him directly and say I have real info on ABC ? Did you go to R'Eisenman and say I have confirmed ABC ,what are you going to do about it ?
How in the world will you be able to live with yourself if it turns out that the offenses never occurred or were not worthy of the promotion you are giving them ? If your intrests are the victims ,have you stopped to consider the victims of your approach and what it does/is doing to them ?
I do not envy your chelek as we approach this Yom HaDin.
Why is Byrks not in jail? If Sobel is really rehabilitated why doesn't he issue a public apology and own up to his past? If Sobel is really cured, why would he choose to work in an office in a yeshivah, shouldn't he not put himself in a position that even remotely raises the possibility that he's molesting again? Why not find employment such as working in an office in a nursing home, or drive a truck route, but to be Maras Ayin, can be reason enough for Sobel's demise.
Also, why continue to put yourself in the public's eyes with parsha sheets and tapes, the last thing a recovering molester should do is seek publicity. Again, this all does not make sense if you are supposedly recovering from the terrible acts that were done. I would think you should be humble, keep a low profile, and try to stay out of the public's domain.
Anon, 5:35pm
It is not UOJ's responsibility to give personal calls to each and every molester that exists. If you are molesting, then be man enough to admit it and fire yourself from your job. Moreover, you have no idea if UOJ has in fact contacted them, you are assuming he did not. Playing G-D? Perhaps he's playing messenger of G-D, and that's exactly what we need. Lishma? Just another fancy jewish term to rock the boat (add it to mesira, loshin harah, chilul hashem).
"they may know nothing about( or may not have enough info to act on )" Seems like we heard that argument before, besides even if there is a suspicion and enough complaints, it is a requirement that yeshiva's and institutions, put that rabbi on paid or unpaid leave, until we can determine the facts.
"If your intrests are the victims ,have you stopped to consider the victims of your approach and what it does/is doing to them ?" Yeah, it's making them pay for their crimes (just a little bit). It's also saving children.
"I do not envy your chelek as we approach this Yom HaDin." NOR DO WE ENVY YOURS.
Now that UOJ is going after Bryks that the Jewish Press will come out with a vague editorial defending someone that matches Bryks description.
YES!! UOJ does make attempts tto
contact these reckless people!
Anonymous said...
I came across your blog and was stunned .Does your vendetta against the Rabbonim/Yeshivot/Estalishmant allow you to publicly assail your targets w/o first approaching the alleged offenders directly .If in fact you have information of a serious offense shouldn't you be approaching the offender directly and giving them an ultimatum.(get treatment, leave your position etc. or I will reveal what I know )
I came across your post and was stunned. Does your sheeplike worship of the Rabbonim/Yeshivot/Estalishmant allow you to publicly assail your targets w/o first thinking how you would react in a similar situation if your own interests were at issue?
Let's say this wasn't a serial criminal who preys on vulnerable children. Let's say this was someone who you saw breaking into a neighbor's house. Maybe it was the kosher butcher's older good for nothing son. And you saw him carrying out valuables. Would you first approach him directly and give him an ultimatum that if he doesn't give back the valuables you will reveal him as a thief? Of course not. Well, unless you are a simpleton. You'd only be giving him an opportunity to get rid of the evidence and try to lay low, maybe even leave the city.
Let's say it wasn't your neighbor's house, but rather you had good evidence that he'd been stealing from you? Would you be so concerned with your concept of halachic due process?
Don't you guys get it? You'd be the first ones to complain about secular law protecting criminal's rights if some black or PR kid broke into your car.
I once asked a rav how the Jews could function as a society when they were sovereign or autonomous since it was almost impossible to convict a criminal of a capital crime, what with the needed two witnesses warning, the reluctance of a court to issue the death sentance, etc. You can't have murderers walking around. He told me that while the Beit Din might have it's hands tied regarding executing a murderer, it did have police powers and could order a person's arrest, indefinitely if necessary.
In the 1949 Terminiello case decided by the SCOTUS, the majority opinion, led by Justice William O. Douglas overturned the disorderly conduct conviction of a priest whose anti-Semitic, pro-Nazi rantings at a rally had incited a riot. The court held that Chicago's breach of the peace ordinance violated the First Amendment.
Justice Jackson wrote a twenty-four page dissent in response to the Court's four page decision, which concluded: "The choice is not between order and liberty. It is between liberty with order and anarchy without either. There is danger that, if the court does not temper its doctrinaire logic with a little practical wisdom, it will convert the constitutional Bill of Rights into a suicide pact."
Jews have survived in part because we've been able to temper halachic logic with more than a little practical wisdom. It's how we've generally interpreted V'chai bahem. It's how we were able to allow venture capital without violating the prohibition of ribbit (the Muslims are only now figuring it out, 2200 years after Hillel).
Now our rabbinic leaders, in part to protect their own interests, want to use halacha not as suicide pact, but rather as a NAMBLA guide to obstructing the justice system.
Anon Putz 5:35- Neuhoff's twin brother,
Anonymous said...
I came across your blog and was stunned .Does your vendetta against the Rabbonim/Yeshivot/Estalishmant allow you to publicly assail your targets w/o first approaching the alleged offenders directly .If in fact you have information of a serious offense shouldn't you be approaching the offender directly and giving them an ultimatum.(get treatment, leave your position etc. or I will reveal what I know )
-----------------------------------
I'm stunned you came across my blog as well, you obviously can't read!
I spent thousands upon thousands of dollars for mass mailings, legal advice, and rabbinical court advisers to make certain I was not violating any laws of the U.S.A. and was within the parameters of halacha based on the heinous crimes committed by "rabbis."
There was hazmanas and notices and phone calls and notices to Torah Umesorah...you are not from planet Earth..you're e-mailing from a UFO right?
We begged every mosad to deal with their problems...but they were brave...Belsky...real brave guy....issuing hazmanas to innocent caring Jews for motzee shem ra!
Hey buddy...you're a disgrace to my readers....get the heck off my blog and don't come back. Putz was just redefined.
Hey Anon..9:00, you're starting to sound like me...scary! LOL!
This dumb putz, anon 5:35 / Neuhoff's clone is even getting on the nerves of the extra-terrestrials here in Groom Lake, Nevada. Those from another planet have determined that this guy is from a completely different dimension altogether.
Anon 5:35 is on a covert mission to sabotage UOJ, but the putz blew it, which gave away his cover (Neuhoff's twin).
I just checked in again with the National Hurricane Center. Florence is supposed to hit Bermuda but then head out to sea without hitting the mainland.
So far UOJ is all bark and no bite.
Rav Yosef Shlita,
Thanks for your response.
As I suspected UOJ you seem to have contacted everyone but the accused ....
"There was hazmanas and notices and phone calls and notices to Torah Umesorah...
We begged every mosad to deal with their problems.."
You contacted Torah Umesorah and the mosdos but not the people for whom you have become the judge and jury.Perhaps you can/could have save yourself alot of heartache and frustration by going to the heart of the problem before you tie yourself in knots trying to convince the mosdos and TU to believe you and give you credence when logically they are more likley to side with the accused with whom they have a prior relationship.
As to all the anons who think I have my head stuck in the sand and care more about the molester then the victims , how do you know there are victims .. because UOJ told you so ? because someone named someone else on this blog ? This sounds very much like the "sheeplike worship " Ronnie Schrieber 9:26pm is worried about .
Why are you all so eager and able to jump on the lynching bandwagon ? Whose heads are stuck in the sand ? Did each of you do your own investigation that mandates you to be out here raising hell ?
I in fact have been through the yeshiva system have seen it all , both victims and offenders , I have dealt with both and been able to do it successfully w/o resorting to mob madness .
I hope that all of you can be honest enough with yourselves to acknowledge that there may be some truth here.
I in fact have been through the yeshiva system have seen it all , both victims and offenders , I have dealt with both and been able to do it successfully w/o resorting to mob madness .
Were the molesters prosecuted? Or did they just go to another city. Who were the offenders? What was their punishment? If you can't come forward with names of molesters you are part of the coverup. Guys like you want us to trust the establishment but your actions are not trustworthy. You protect molesters by not turning them into the police, by keeping the stories quiet to protect the schools, not the students.
Assuming this is not Neuhoff redux, this is the second froomie I can recall who has come here insisting that the establishment is handling this issue in a responsible manner. Hmmm. This isn't supposed to be a big problem, yet guys are coming out of the woodwork going, "Sha! Still! Ve're vorking on it."
If the froomies put half the effort into trying to reach the bums, lowlifes and losers, that they do into defending misbehaving rabbis, we might have a few more Jews.
"{I in fact have been through the yeshiva system have seen it all , both victims and offenders , I have dealt with both and been able to do it successfully w/o resorting to mob madness .}" hey go sell your bull s**t to someone else and get the hell outa here i guess you didnt go to ger on 16th av. for i was MOLESTED by this SICK PERVERTED PRICK A.M. LEIZEROWITZ and when my parents went to the rabbonim allthey did was quiet down the story so that PERVERTED SCUM was able to do it again even as recent as right before the summer AND ONLY BECAUSE OF MOB TACTICS AND THREATS OF MIXING IN THE DA DID HE RUN TO ISRAEL LIKE THE DOG HE IS. SO DONT YOU TELL ME WE GOT OUR HEADS IN THE SAND, YOU WIMPING LIAR. LEIZEROWITZ VICTIM FOREVER
I will not post your assinine comments Mr. Anonymous Crazy...don't waste your time. Go check yourself into the Fishman Head Up His Ass Mesorah Clinic.
From yesterday's Wall Street Journal
Rough Justice
Remember George Ryan? He's the Republican former Illinois governor who, just before leaving office, commuted the sentences of all 165 prisoners on death row. As we argued at the time, "Ryan's decision harms the innocent, helps the guilty and is a slap in the face of the victims of violent crime and the jurors who made the difficult decision to sentence defendants to death."
Now the Associated Press reports that "Ryan, who was acclaimed by capital punishment foes for emptying out death row, was sentenced Wednesday to 6-1/2 years in prison for the corruption scandal that ruined his political career."
The AP notes that "defense attorneys argued that even 2-1/2 years would deprive Ryan of the last healthy years of his life."
"Hello, Rabbi Kolko? My name is Chaim Yankel Jones and I am calling because it has come to my attention that you have molested and sexually abused boys. Is that true?"
Anon 5:35, you're a putz and three-quarters!
Hey, this is Margo. We now have to put out a made up smear story on Chaim Yankel Jones and get Rabbi Belsky to issue a hazmana for him daring to ask questions.
Of course Rabbi Dovid Cohen has already been warned that if he defends any of these targets, he is next.
To report abuse cases please contact Joan Hertz at Ohel 718 851 6300 or 718 686 3100
We're on it, Emperor Margulies. As you sit back & fress your 20 course breakfast over this morning's NY Times, the sophisticated software you purchased is digging up every last detail about Chaim Yankel Jones. We've already illegally infiltrated his computer hard drive which reveals that he bought some size 44 underwear yesterday by credit card.
As to all the anons who think I have my head stuck in the sand and care more about the molester then the victims , how do you know there are victims .. because UOJ told you so ? because someone named someone else on this blog ?
-----------------------------------
How do we know that there are victims? Let's examine each individual case. We'll start with Yudi Kolko. The accusations span four decades from former students, campers and car-poolers. This is not one isolated allegation by someone with an ulterior motive. Ask yourself, why would so many people, generations apart, conspire to make such serious accusations against an individual? Why would David Framowitz, a 48 year old man with a family living in EY, concoct such a story and pursue it in court? Revenge? He wasn't even Kolko's student! Why would Israel Tsatskis, a sergeant in the US army, based in the Carolinas, come forward decades later to tell his story? What shaychus does he have now to YTT? How does one not cringe and cry when he reads his story? A pure Jewish neshama destroyed by these mamzerim, Kolko and his enablers, Margulies and Belsky. They had their chance to do right when the bais din was called for two years before Tsatskis was molested. This is not to mention the countless victims who have been muzzled through intimidation and fear. Throughout this saga, I have not heard any denials from the apologists, just the same babble..no witnesses, lashon hara, mesira, what about his family.bla, bla, bla. ANSWER ME, DO WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE VICTIMS? YOU BET THERE ARE!!
Who else, Eiseman? Like UOJ said, call Rabbi Hopfer. Nussbaum? The Mandels have all but admitted to his guilt. Leizerowitz? One victim after another coming forward, plus the fact he fled to EY. Brenner? Literally caught in the act with his pants down. Bryks? Has a rap sheet from here to Manitoba..swings both ways, girls and boys. Now he gets off by giving all-night lectures to singles girls in KGH. Can you name one person who was accused on this blog, where the evidence wasn't overwhelming? Furthermore, UOJ is simply asking that these "rabbis" be removed from the yeshivas to prevent anymore incidents.
These are the lowlifes you and other card-carrying ACLU members choose to defend while children are being victimized one after the other. You choose to attack UOJ, who's trying to clean up this mess and protect our children, instead of pursuing the molesters and enablers. You choose to deny and close your eyes and ears, as a chassid shoteh, spouting out halachic terms such as "mesirah, loshon hara and rchilus". As Jews we have a tremendous responsibility under "kol yisrael areivim zeh bazeh", therefore we share the guilt every time a child is molested. How can we answer for ourselves, when we are brought to din, and are asked, what did you do to protect these children? Are you going to answer, "I was afraid to speak lashon hara", or "I was busy going after UOJ"?
As for whether UOJ is doing this lishma or not, look at the fact that he chooses to remain anonymous. He is not looking for any kavod. He has spent countless amount of money and has sacrificed countless hours to this cause. Beezras Hashem he should succeed and bring closure to this sad chapter in our storied history.
Yaakov R.,
Shein geredt. We tip our hats to you sir.
anonymous 10:54 PM, September 07, 2006,
"you contacted Torah Umesorah and the mosdos but not the people for whom you have become the judge and jury.Perhaps you can/could have save yourself alot of heartache and frustration by going to the heart of the problem before you tie yourself in knots trying to convince the mosdos and TU to believe you and give you credence when logically they are more likley to side with the accused with whom they have a prior relationship"
More likely to side with molesters is what you are saying indirectly. Thanks for pointing out the obvious. Typical mafiosa tactics, protect someone with a prior relationship. Just wondering, don't the victims also have a prior relationship?
"As to all the anons who think I have my head stuck in the sand and care more about the molester then the victims , how do you know there are victims .. because UOJ told you so ? because someone named someone else on this blog? This sounds very much like the "sheeplike worship " Ronnie Schrieber 9:26pm is worried about ."
Listen, smart ass, how do we know? Aren't you updated on the facts? You think so many victims suddenly fell from a rocketship and we discovered them? use whatever part of your brain that still works and figure it out.
"Why are you all so eager and able to jump on the lynching bandwagon ? Whose heads are stuck in the sand ? Did each of you do your own investigation that mandates you to be out here raising hell ?"
Again a crock of horse menuere, that's where your head is stuck, and we're better off in society if you keep it there.
"I in fact have been through the yeshiva system have seen it all , both victims and offenders , I have dealt with both and been able to do it successfully w/o resorting to mob madness"
Remind me never to have you as my advocate. With friends like you who needs enemies. Success, is not based on quieting victims and defending the perps so that they can continue to abuse children. Perhaps in your twisted dictionary, you consider it a success.
"I hope that all of you can be honest enough with yourselves to acknowledge that there may be some truth here"
The sad truth is, there are too many people like you.
Some have compared me to Kolko. We both have brash personalities, are full of hot air and rose to positions of power.
Of course there are the more striking tzadei hashaveh like being gay and destroying the lives of Jewish children. At least when a young lad died at the blade of a Crusader sword he went straight to Gan Eden. It sure beats living through years of Gehinnom because Yudi kept reflexing his fingers.
To my friend the Lazerowitz victim. Please do not tag yourself with the word "FOREVER".
I know it's difficult, but der Eybishter zolt helfen that you can attain enough happiness to block it from your memory. People like you also have a tremendous chelek in Oylam Habo because of your suffering. The midas harachamim that will help you will unleash the full force of midas hadin on those reponsible for your tzaar.
Hi, this is Neuhoff again. I sure hope Margo gets a new impetus for me to jumpstart my blog again. That under-the-table cash sure helps with the mortgage payments for my new pad on East 31st St.
Nu, mezuman, mezuman?
We of course practice human sacrifice, a ritual that includes ripping out the heart. It looks like we can't count on Yudi Kolko, as he has already eaten his own heart out. The thing is you see, that for the first time, UOJ has arranged for him that he is not the one in a powerful position who is causing suffering to others.
What a chillul Hashem that the NYC public schools have a better system to deal with molesters than yeshivos.
Margo especially is a complete disgrace.
Hey, I bought a Traif chicken in Monsey and before I knew it, it was trying to give me a hand job. And it wasn't even wearing a shtreimel, as it had no head! Explain that one buckeroos!
????To report abuse cases please contact Joan Hertz at Ohel 718 851 6300 or 718 686 3100??????
Isn't Ohel a part of the problem? Why would anyone in thier right mind report a case to anyone connected to Ohel?
I urge everyone to find a chiddushei R Akiva Eiger al Hatorah and read what he says on the possuk 'vehayeesah meshuga meemareh aynecha asher tireh' (you will go crazy from [the appearance of your 'eyes'] that you will see)
Basically he first proves that Aynayim doesn't mean eyes but rather means leaders, specifically the rabonnim who are the representatives of torah jewry.
Then he says that the curse of the Torah is that our leaders will go crazy but the general jewish public will remain normal. The Jewish public will therefore be embarassed from their neighbors b/c they are embarassed to be represented by and associated with such stupid rabonnim.
It seems like this curse has been fulfilled. (for those who are looking for an Ellul/Teshuva bent, the gemara in B Kamma says that the rabonnim are inept only when the people are unworthy, so if we have bad rabonnim it's all our fault and we need to do teshuva.)
Anyway, if you look at it inside and translate his beautiful words, I think you will agree that it rises to the level of the essay that uoj translated from the great R Shraga Feivel.
Good Shabbos
OT but of interest as we approach the yamim nora'im. Let's remember to include in our prayers Jews in difficult situations around the world.
UOJ, note how they served him at a CAIR dinner. Our Sephardi brothers have a good idea how to deal with people who care most about honor. They lived in honor cultures. The Muslims are an honor culture, where the most important thing is your public image. Getting caught is more shameful than stealing. Jews are generally considered a guilt culture, where you are supposed to feel guilty if you've done something wrong, whether or not anyone knows. It appears that some of our leaders have embraced some goyishe cultural values. The next time someone sues a yeshiva or Aguda, the papers need to be served in the middle of one of their dinners.
A group of Jewish-Iranian families has filed suit in federal court against the Ayatollah Mohammad Khatami for kidnapping and torturing their relatives, serving him with the summons at the dinner sponsored by the Council on American Islamic Relations:
Families Of Kidnapped Persian Jews Sue Khatami In US Court.
NEW YORK, Sept. 9 /PRNewswire/ — Seven Jewish-Iranian families have filed suit in an American federal court against former President Mohammad Khatami over charges that he is responsible for the kidnapping and torture of their missing family members. The families, currently residing in Los Angeles and Israel, contend that Khatami instituted the policy of imprisoning their relatives without trials and refusing to provide them any information concerning their whereabouts. The Jews were arrested on different occasions during the years 1994 through 1997, as they sought to leave Iran across its border with Pakistan.
On Friday evening copies of the complaint and summons were served on Khatami at a reception in Arlington, Virginia hosted by the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Khatami has twenty days to file an answer denying the allegations or default the case.
The plaintiffs, who are not U.S. citizens, brought the suit under special laws - the Alien Torts Act and the Torture Victims Protection Act - which permit foreigners to sue their tormentors for torture and kidnapping in American courts. The lawsuit filed in the New York District Court is being represented by attorneys Robert Tolchin of New York, Nitsana Darshan-Leitner of Jerusalem and Pooya Dayanim of Los Angeles. The plaintiffs are seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in damages against Khatami for his role in the on-going disappearance of their loved ones.
Since the Islamic revolution in Iran in 1979, millions of Iranian citizens have sought to escape from the Islamic regime. In normal circumstances when Muslim citizens are arrested attempting to leave without official permission, the established punishment is a small fine or a short jail term. However, in the instances where Jewish citizens have been similarly arrested, the Islamic government has instituted much harsher penalties. The Plaintiffs allege that Khatami has singled out the Jewish community and authorized the policy of secretly imprisoning the Jews indefinitely.
I was trying to figure out who Joan Hertz was. Not sure if this is the same one mention on this blog?
What I found was a therapist who doesn't have any experience with sexual abuse. Here's the bio I found.
It's true that survivors of sexual abuse may be depressed, yet that's a symptom of PTSD. The issues are completely different. If you are going to suggest a therapist at least post ones that are qualified to work with survivors. By suggesting someone who isn't is like referring someone who has a hang nail to an plummer.
--------------------------------
Joan Hertz, Ph.D.
Licensed Clinical Social Worker
ABOUT ME:
I have a general practice in Psychoanalysis and Psychodynamic therapy with a sub-speciality in Adoption issues. I work with individuals, couples and families as well as conducting various groups. I am a co-director and on the faculty of LICMPS. I also supervise clinicians both individually and in groups.
STYLE IN THE THERAPY SESSION: Relaxed atmosphere where open discussion is encouraged.
SERVICES RENDERED:
Individual Therapy, Couples/Marital Therapy, Family Therapy, Group Therapy, Family Therapy, Psychoanalysis, Psychodynamic Therapy
Responding to the comment above about reporting cases. If someone want to report a case the correct place to report cases is to your local police department.
The best way to report a case is by contacting your local rape crisis center and asking them if they have a legal advocate who would go with you. This way you know your rights will be protected. All rape crisis centers offer FREE legal advocates for this purpose. If you are in New York call:
(518) 482-4222
http://www.nyscasa.org/
I faxed Rabbi Hopfer a letter asking if reports that he is connected with the RME allegations are true, but did not hear back. what to make of this?
Rabbi Hopfer has an obligation to the klal to publicize his findings. There can be no ambiguity to his findings that would give the victims some comfort, and condemn Ner Israel, the administration and the various staff members and rebbes that were involved in protecting and enabling a vile sexual predator.
Moshe Eismann and Ner Israel must be held responsible and accountable
for their despicable criminal behavior.
Why would you expect HaRav Hopfer to respond to your demands. Don't forget he's part of the Baltimore Mobster Trio (Heinemann, Hopfer, Neuberger). They make their own laws and dictate to everyone else. You should be honored if he actually read the fax you sent. The odds are it was intercepted by one of his henchmen
I think we need to organize a rally to take place in front of rabbi hopfer's synagogue (Glen Ave. Shul). The only way anything will ever change is with media attention. H/H/N have years of experience stonewalling those who demand change.
If anyone's up for this let me know.
HEY UOJ,
WHY DONT YOUR ASK YOUR ROV, RABBI BLAU, WHY HE WAS SILENT WHEN RABBI GEORGE FINKELSTEIN, PRINCIPLE AT MTA (YESHIVA UNIVERSITY's HIGH SCHOOL) WAS MOLESTING BOYS FOR YEARS UNDER HIS NOSE AND HE DID NOTHING?
Why is it that there are a number of cases coming out of Ner Israel which were totally mishandled? Why is this allowed to continue on?
I think we should organize a rally against Ner Israel!
I heard Rabbi Eisemann has retired & is no longer working with students of any organization.
In addition, the students at Ner Israel Bais Medrash are generally adults.
Leave the man alone as he is no longer a threat to anyone.
I agree, leave Rav Eisemen alone. He hasn't been seen all Z'Man at the Yeshiva. Either he has been retired with dignity or is laying low. The Yeshiva has dealt with it, late, but they have dealt with it. Give it a rest. Allow him the time to address his issues, needs and personal Teshuva.
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