New York Jewish Week - June 12, 2009
by Staff Report
Rabbi Dovid Cohen, Jewish Legal Advisor of Ohel |
The
halachic adviser to Ohel Children’s Home and Family Services, which
receives millions of dollars in state and federal money, told a
Bergenfield, N.J., synagogue audience in 2007 that tax evasion is
permissible under Jewish law as long as one doesn’t get caught,
according to people in attendance.
The
adviser, Rabbi Dovid Cohen, a Brooklyn-based, highly respected halachic
expert who also serves as one of three rabbinic guides to Nefesh
International, a network of Orthodox mental health professionals, is
said to have made the comments about tax evasion during a Shabbat talk
at Congregation Beth Abraham in Bergenfield in February 2007.
Now, more than two years later, the repercussions may be taking a toll on Rabbi Cohen and his reputation.
Several
in attendance at the talk said that Rabbi Cohen gave an extended
response to a question from the audience, asserting that tax evasion is
permissible under Jewish law, as long as there is no realistic
possibility of being caught, thus causing a chillul hashem, or desecration of God’s name.
The
justification was based on the rabbi’s apparent belief that the reason
the rabbis of the Talmud forbade stealing from a non-Jew was only out of
fear of anti-Semitism.
Virtually every halachic source agrees that tax evasion, as well as theft from non-Jews, is categorically forbidden.
Rabbi
Cohen allegedly told his audience that he was making his controversial
remarks on Shabbat — he is also said to have asserted that, like the
biblical Esau, non-Jews still hate Jews — knowing he was not being
recorded, and that if subsequently questioned about his statement, he
would deny it.
The
rabbi told The Jewish Week on Monday that the statements attributed to
him were "totally misunderstood" and that he "repudiated" them.
Based
on letters obtained by The Jewish Week, it appears that at least seven
people in attendance at the lecture wrote to or called the Rabbinical
Council of America, the largest group of Orthodox rabbis, where Rabbi
Cohen, though not a member of the RCA, served on its prestigious Va’ad
HaPoskim, a group of halachic authorities. Some of the letter writers
sought to have Rabbi Cohen removed from the panel; others simply
attested to their having heard the rabbi make the remarks, which he
denied to the RCA.
The
RCA appointed a committee to look into the matter, and concluded that,
based on Rabbi Cohen’s assurance that he opposes tax evasion and affirms
treating non-Jews with full respect, the matter was closed.
But last week, without fanfare or notice, the RCA disbanded the Va’ad HaPoskim.
Some
speculate that it may have come about in light of recent reports in the
Jewish press regarding Ohel, with which Rabbi Cohen is affiliated.
Others note that the RCA passed a resolution at its annual convention
last month calling on congregations not to give honors to those who
engage in unethical conduct.
"So
how would it look if one of their halachic authorities is alleged to
have approved of cheating on your taxes?" one source noted.
In
response to a query from The Jewish Week, RCA Executive Director Rabbi
Basil Herring explained that the Va’ad HaPoskim move was taken "to avoid
confusion." He said that while individual members of that group will be
consulted on halachic matters, as in the past, the RCA’s halachic
decisions will continue to be made by its Va’ad Halacha, made up of RCA
member rabbis.
But according to an RCA official, "the catalyst for the move was the Rabbi Cohen issue."
The official, like most others contacted for this report, asked not to be named out of concern about repercussions.
Asked
in an e-mail whether it was appropriate for Rabbi Cohen to continue to
serve as halachic adviser for the group, an Ohel spokesman did not
respond.
Rabbi
Cohen, an American-born graduate of Yeshiva Chaim Berlin, with a pulpit
on Coney Island Avenue in Brooklyn, has a longstanding reputation as
one of the most respected and practical-minded authorities in the
charedi community.
"He
has taken courageous positions" on matters of domestic and sexual
abuse, according to Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, the outgoing executive
director of the Orthodox Union. Though some halachic experts are
reticent, as is Ohel itself, Rabbi Cohen has encouraged victims in some
cases to go to civil authorities, including the police.
Rabbi
Abraham Twerski, a psychiatrist and fellow halachic adviser to Nefesh
International, said Rabbi Cohen is one of the most "highly respected"
rabbis and "one of the most flexible halachic experts" who is unafraid
to take lenient positions.
Both rabbis expressed surprise at the controversial statements about tax evasion and non-Jews attributed to Rabbi Cohen.
But
another leading rabbi, who described himself as a longtime friend and
admirer in many ways of Rabbi Cohen, said that though he had not heard
of the tax evasion statement before, he found it "consistent" with the
rabbi’s views on non-Jews.
"The irony is he’s a big liberal in the haredi world," the rabbi said.
Others
recalled that Rabbi Cohen is no stranger to controversy, and that at a
Nefesh International conference in 2000, he suggested that women in
abusive marriages stay in the marriage for the sake of their children.
After much heated discussion, he apologized the next morning.
____________________________
How Many Survivors did HaRav Dovid Cohen Turn Away?
Jewish Survivors of Sexual Abuse Speak Out - Blog
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
http://jewishsurvivors.blogspot.com/2006/08/how-many-survivors-did-harav-dovid.html
Lo ta'amod al dam re'echa. We are forbidden to stand by and do nothing!
I keep hearing about cases in which survivors of childhood sexual abuse went to Rabbi Dovid Cohen for help. Each of these cases Rabbi Dovid Cohen stated that he didn't believe the survivors or that the cases were unsubstantiated.
Rabbi Dovid Cohen is the halachic advisor (advisor on Jewish law) at Ohel (a mental health center in Boro Park). I think it's also vitally important to note that there have been many complaints about Ohel over the years regarding the training and education of those who work in their programs for survivors and offenders. I've also been told that if a therapist at their agency suspects a child is being abused, they need to get the ok from Rabbi Cohen prior to making hot-line reports.
Many Victim Advocates like myself have been saying over and over again that our rabbis DO NOT have the education or training to collect forensic evidence nor know how to conduct victim sensitive interviews. Our rabbis NEED to be working as if they are all mandated reporters. Meaning if they SUSPECT a child is being abused and or neglected -- they pick up the phone and make a hot-line report.
We all NEED to start demanding that when a rabbi hear disclosures they IMMEDIATELY help those who have been "allegedly" victimized contact child abuse hot-lines and or make police reports. Let those who are trained conduct the investigations. The way cases have been handled in the past NEEDS TO STOP TODAY!
The goal is to protect our children from ANY POTENTIAL HARM!!!
Here's a list of some of the cases in which Rabbi Dovid Cohen said were unsubstantiated. If you know of more please post them:
- Simcha Adler
- Yohannan Berkowitz, PhD
- Rabbi Lewis Brenner
- Rabbi Ephraim Bryks
- Rabbi Moshe Eisemann
- Rabbi Eliezer Eisgrau
- Shmuel Juravel
- Rabbi Solomon Hafner
- Rabbi Yaakov Menken
- Rabbi Avrohom Mondrowitz
- Rabbi Ben Zion Sobel
- Rabbi Mordecai Tendler
- Rabbi Matis Weinberg
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