"Ask the Rabbi" by R. Mermelstein
QUESTION: Dear Rabbi
Mermelstein:
The synagogue my husband & I belong to are affiliated with the
United Synagogues of Conservative Judaism (USCJ), which costs each
temple family over $40 a year. My concern is that recently many Jewish
religious organizations have been coming out in favor of gun control.
Do you know if USCJ is one of these organizations that is becoming
"political"? Thank you!
P.S. - If you have any information about USCJ that you would like to
share, I would appreciate, as I am still trying to figure out what
benefit it brings to our synagogue, other than being told "you have to
be affiliated." Thanks again!
Julie Swartz
Rochester, New York
03 Mar 2000
ANSWER: Dear Mrs. Swartz,
USCJ, it appears, is quite active in promoting gun control, or as we know it, "victim disarmament".
See http://www.uscj.org/ in which USCJ states:
"The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism has reiterated its strong
support for the gun control bill. At its 1993 Biennial Convention, the
organization passed a resolution stating that "a peaceful society
should seek to control the acquisition and use of handguns,
semi-automatic rifles and similar weapons in order to assure domestic
peace and tranquility within the home and upon the streets of that
society."
It went on to "call upon all appropriate governmental authorities to
enact and implement suitable rules and regulations restricting the
acquisition and use of [such weapons], giving due consideration to the
Constitutional rights relating to this issue." <snip>
What do you suppose they mean when they say 'giving due consideration
to the Constitutional rights relating to this issue'? Due
consideration, as in acknowledging that many prominent Constitutional
law scholars have opined that laws infringing on the individual right
to ownership of any type of weapon suitable to the unorganized militia
are unconstitutional? Isn't this a bit contradictory? This statement of
theirs is the most ludicrous thing I've read in quite a while, and
that's saying a great deal.
I don't know what the members of your congregation want from the United
Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, but support for the Constitution
will not be from them forthcoming.
Sincerely,
R. Mermelstein
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