Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Hashem Yirachem Aleinu!

















http://www.juf.org/news/local.aspx?id=63724#

Address by Rachel Zimmerman, coordinator of Project Shield at the Jewish Child and Family Services and recipient of the 2010 Samuel A. Goldsmith Award, at the 110th Annual Meeting of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago Sept. 15, 2010.
Thank you- It is a great honor to be receiving this award- but really, I can’t accept it on my own for what is truly being honored today is the work of many.
Let me just take a moment to say congratulations to David, Lisa, Jason and Rabbi Kurtz- I am honored to be sharing the morning with you.
I also want to thank G-d first and foremost for giving me the strength to reach this point.
Last October- I did something really brave and somewhat crazy- I ran my first marathon.
Three years ago, when I started running, I couldn’t run a mile.
But I started jogging for a couple of minutes at a time before collapsing breatheless.
Then I celebrated being able to run for 30 minutes straight.
Suddenly I could run 5 miles and onward I went from there.
Crossing the finish line of first marathon was a life altering moment. Not just because of the cool bragging rights (though that’s nice) but because I never in my life thought I could do it. And as I spent five hours running that fateful Sunday morning I consistently received messages from every part of my body saying “stop”, I’m, tired, :you can’t do this”, “you’re not ready yet”, “This hurts”, “you’ll never make it”. And as I heard the barrage of complaints I closed my eyes and told myself over and over again “I can and I will, I can and I will, I can and I will”.
Three years ago I took on the job as the coordinator of Project Shield.
The task seemed daunting, the distance that needed to be covered seemed too great. You want me to do what? Sexual abuse of children is a hard topic to talk about. I expected doors to be slammed in my face, inquiries about training to be denied, and people to not want to believe that this is an issue happening in our very own community.
But in reality, the CDC cites that 1 in 4 women will be sexually abused before the age of 18 and 1 in 6 men. I have yet to do a training or a presentation where someone hasn’t come up to me afterwards or contacted me a couple of days later to tell me that they were abused, or a loved one was abused. The survivors of this silent epidemic are to be found in every country, in every culture, in every religion, and in every community.
With all of this information I took a deep breath- I closed my eyes and said “I can and I will” There was a lot of education to be done and so I took my first step forward.
And so it began. But just like with running- the gains that were being made in a short period of time were incredible. My fears started to fall by the wayside- camps said yes to having their staff trained. Parents showed up to prevention talks, and Rabbis requested meetings with me to hear more about what they could do.
But there is one main and very significant difference between running and Project Shield- Running is a one-man sport. If you fall or get hurt your race is over.
Project Shield is a team effort. Every month, every week, and every day, more and more people are joining our team. It is through the efforts of one of the most amazing teams ever put together that Shield had grown and succeeded in the astounding way that it has.
First- The Jewish Federation. Without your guidance, your funding, your unwavering support, your advice and expertise- we would not be the program that we are today.
Secondly- JCFS. What an incredible organization JCFS is. The breadth and depth of all the work we do takes my breathe away when I stop to think about it. Everyone from our wonderful executive director Howard Sitron, to our amazing Director of Community Programs, Planning, and Development- Suzanne Franklin, every clinician, every program staff, and every support staff- they have all put their hand in to help and to ask “what can we do to help you make Project Shield stronger.”
Third- the Project Shield Advisory Council. A little over two years ago we invited a group of professionals from inside and outside the Jewish community to come together to help advise our program. Together that council formed a strong voice and each member of the council has used their own strengths and programs to open doors for Shield programming. I am awed by each one of them on a constant basis.
Fourth- The leaders of the Jewish community. Every Rabbi, Every School Principal, and Every Camp Director, and Every Lay Leader that I have contacted have each been instrumental in taking the messages of Project Shield and making them a reality within each organization that they serve. I am honored to live and work in a community that has the leaders that it has.
Fifth- My incredible supervisors. The one’s that got me into this embaressing speech in the first place by nominating me. Amy Rubin and Lynn Shyman. I come to work knowing that no problem is too big to be overcome- because I have the incredible daily advice and guidance from these incredible women.  They support me and the program in every way imaginable and I truly believe that I am the luckiest employee of JCFS for having such an amazing supervisory team. I learn from you both on everything from how to be a professional, how to write a proper English sentence, how to build community collaborations, to how to handle a crisis situations. The love and admiration I have for you both is never ending. Thank you!
And lastly, but most importantly on the Project Shield team is my family. Without which I could never do what I do. So thank you to my amazing parents. Thank you to my amazing in-laws. Thank you to my four beautiful children who are so tolerant with my schedules and with all my crazy ways.  A big I love you to my beautiful and sweet daughter Devorah who is here representing all of her siblings- And thank you the most to my husband. My husband is my role model, my Rabbi, and my best friend all in one. Thank you for enabling a moment like this to happen.
So back to last October when I crossed that marathon finish line- oh and by the way- just to answer my most frequently asked question- Yes I do run in a skirt- and nah- it’s not hard at all- but I digress- anyway- so when I crossed the line, besides for being exhausted- I thought to myself- I need to do this again. There are more races to be run and more miles to be logged. This race is just the beginning…….
And today as I stand here I realize- that we the Project Shield team have come a long way, but we have a lot more to do and more distance to cover. So to end- I invite you all- every person in this room- to take the message of project shield, and help us to create safer Jewish homes by starting conversations in your own lives, with your own family members, and with organizations that you’re involved with. Learn about the signs of symptoms of child sexual abuse, urge parents to learn how to talk to their children about prevention- because Education is power and the key to prevention.
And if we – the Project Shield team of today’s annual meeting – all step up to day “we can and we will, we can and we will” imagine where we’ll all be in three more years from now.
Thank you!

35 comments:

posek belsky said...

Yosef Kolko is innocent. He should call Stuckle & Ferguson.

http://www.paulstuckle.com/



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pedaling for a cause said...

Group Pedals to Prevent Sexual Abuse of Children
Page Last Updated: Tuesday September 21, 2010 6:46pm MDT
A group of men crossing the country to raise money and awareness of an issue they say is important made a stop in Pocatello Tuesday afternoon.


Tyler Gilliam, Landon Phillips and Michael Allen are pedaling across America to prevent child sexual abuse.


Tuesday afternoon the group made a pit stop in Pocatello where they met with members of the Gate City Rotary.


The group set out weeks ago from Charleston, South Carolina and has traveled 2,700 miles.


Their goal is to raise $40,000 to help train adults on what signs to look out for to keep kids safe.


"At the end of the day it comes down to one child. If us riding 4300 miles across the country keeps one kid from being sexually abused, I think we'd all feel we'd done more than what we can," said Gilliam.


All money raised from eastern Idaho will help Bright Tomorrows train adults learn what signs to look out for.

Shmuel said...

Rav Belsky will answer all of your intriguing sheilos. "Ask the Rav" posters are all over the place, and Belsky is eagerly awaiting tough questions, such as, why is it muttar to defend yidden accused and/or convicted
of molesting kinderlach.

The posek will kindly enlighten you on dinim of motzei shem rah and loshon horah.

Please NO QUESTIONS on what the RABBIS KNEW, this provision just added due to CNN airing a similar machshava titled "WHAT THE POPE KNEW."

Wishing you all a good moed!

Shmuel Tubul a'h said...

Breslov Hasid murdered in Uman

Young Israeli man visiting Rabbi Nachman of Breslov's grave on 200th anniversary of rabbi's passing stabbed to death by local Ukrainian. Brother of victim lightly injured in incident. 'He was murdered for being a Jew,' his friends estimate.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3959826,00.html

'What the Pope Knew' said...

The special report "What the Pope Knew" (8 p.m., Saturday, and 8 p.m., Sunday, CNN) takes a scrupulously evenhanded look at Pope Benedict XVI and his handling of the Church's sexual abuse scandal while pope and in his previous roles as the Archbishop of Munich and as the powerful Cardinal Ratzinger.

"Knew" offers a mixed verdict, combining powerful and painful testimony from victims with a painstakingly legalistic defense of a man who, as pope, has done much to confront the trauma. At the same time, Benedict's actions as archbishop and cardinal reflected an institutional instinct to protect priests and ignore their victims.

"Knew" also reminds us that while serving as Cardinal Ratzinger, Benedict vigorously purged priests "guilty" of doctrinal liberalism. It was a church hierarchy, one expert contends, far more concerned with controlling thought than policing action.
It's interesting to note how this CNN report continues the media's remarkable, even obsequious, deference to the image of Benedict's predecessor, Pope John Paul II. It shows rather clearly that Benedict acted rather swiftly on the matter once he was in charge. It declines to ask why John Paul II did not do the same. A special report on what that pope knew might be more informative, pertinent and explosive.

rabbi and child molester enabler shloime mandel said...

Now the goyim have another excuse
to point fingers at us yidden. The airing of CNS's 'what the pope knew' will have them making choizek about us, demanding an investigative report on what I knew or what belsky knew or what margulis knew or what schinerman knew, get where i'm going with this? we dont want anymore machloikes, do we?

And if chas vesholom any yidden still have the shmootz box television or internet, now you know why I am so against it.

Catholic version of Agudah and Co. said...

CNN's appalling attack on the Pope

This weekend the CNN television network will air a special report, “What the Pope Knew.” The goal of the show, apparently, is to persuade viewers the Pope Benedict XVI bears much of the blame for the sex-abuse scandal. If that requires massaging the facts and covering up inconvenient evidence, CNN is prepared to take those steps...

http://www.catholicculture.org/commentary/otn.cfm?id=711

Yudi Kolko said...

How much is a plane ticket to Thailand these days?
-------------------------------

Sentencing Postponed For Canadian Guilty Of Running Pedophile Brothel

Lawrence Mijares - AHN News Contributor

Newark, NJ, United States (AHN) - A Newark federal court has postponed sentencing of a 63-year-old Canadian and former Boy Scout leader who has pleaded guilty to operating a pedophile brothel in Thailand.

John Wrenshall was expected to be sentenced Monday for conspiring to engage in sex tourism and producing and distributing child pornography. The judge postponed sentencing without explanation.

Wrenshall was arrested in London in 2008 and extradited to the United States. Authorities discovered his sex operation in Thailand after confiscating computers from Wayne Corliss, one of Wrenshall's clients in Union City, NJ. Corliss was a small-time actor and entertainer who often portrayed Santa Claus.

Corliss made three trips to Thailand in 2000 to 2002, arranged by Wrenshall, where Corliss had sex with two boys aged 6 and 19. Seven other clients of Wrenshall have already been sentenced.

Wrenshall was previously convicted in 1997 of sexual assault involving members of a Calgary boys choir whom he lured and “seduced” over three decades, telling them he was working on a study on pre-teen boys' sexuality.

He was convicted of a similar offense in 1970 and was given a suspended sentence with two years probation.

Wrenshall could be sentenced to 50 years imprisonment. The terms of his plea agreement suggest a range of 21 to 27 years. He remains detained without bail in New Jersey ’s Essex County jail.


Read more: http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7020030872?Sentencing%20Postponed%20For%20Canadian%20Guilty%20Of%20Running%20Pedophile%20Brothel#ixzz10mi23shT

Eddie Long has Agudath Israel supporting him said...

Pastor fights sex abuse claims
Atlanta
September 28, 2010

THE PASTOR of an Atlanta megachurch was cheered by a congregation of 10,000 as he fought accusations of having sexually abused four teenagers in his flock.

Eddie Long, 57, is an advocate of sexual abstinence, who once described homosexuality as a ''spiritual abortion''. He leads one of America's largest black congregations, the New Birth Missionary Baptist church in Georgia.

Mr Long (left) last week faced civil suits claiming he lured young men into sex with cash, jewellery and electronics at a youth academy billed as a ''rite of passage''.

Mr Long has avoided any direct admission or denial of wrongdoing.

Aaron Twerski said...

Pope Benedict is honorable, but not more honorable than the Jews, regardless if those Jews refuse to meet with victims and are also
unwilling to serve up apologies of any kind.

My rationale is a bad Jew is still am honorable good Jew, but an honorable good gentile is always a bad gentile no matter what.

http://blog.beliefnet.com/catholicsmediaandculture/2010/09/cnns-gary-tuchman-asks-what-the-pope-knew-and-when-he-knew-it-regarding-child-sexual-abuse-within-th.html

Anonymous said...

http://www.newsinferno.com/archives/24406
----------------------------------

Yeshiva Poll Shows More Awareness of Sexual Abuse
Date Published: Tuesday, September 28th, 2010

“We have a fundamental responsibility to provide a safe learning environment,” Rabbi Yona Reiss, dean of Yeshiva University’s Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) told the Jewish Star. “Those causing irreparable harm ought to be eradicated from the community,” he added.

around the blogs said...

The sexual abuse case against Rabbi Bryan Bramly was dropped, but it is not over - certainly not for the rabbi and his family, nor for anyone who is concerned about sexual abuse by clergy. The case against Bryan Bramly was dropped because of "inconsistencies" in the complainant's story and her inability to recall many key facts in the events surrounding her charge.

Rabbi Bryan Bramly's life and that of his family have been torn apart. The test of a responsible Jewish community is whether it will work at least as hard to restore that life as it did to unravel it.

Clergy who abuse, especially those who abuse children, as Rabbi Bramly was accused of doing, should be pursued to the ends of the earth and punished to the full extent of the law. That process includes taking accusations seriously and shining a bright light on all suspected abusers, as I did when I wrote about this case, months ago.

Back then, I challenged the Jewish community to stand up and address more effectively, the issue of rabbis who abuse. I wondered aloud whether or not we would be up to that task. We were, we did, and that is good. The task however remains incomplete and we are still being tested.

Keeping people safe from abusive clergy, demands that we take charges seriously even before we know for certain that they are legitimate. But keeping ourselves moral and decent also demands that we accept responsibility for the innocent lives which are torn apart when such charges turn out to be without substance. That is as much a test as is our ability to discover and punish abusive clergy.

Having just completed a cycle of holidays whose central messages are those of repentance, renewal and the ongoing need for all people to enjoy safe, productive lives, it is up to all of us who celebrated those holidays to carry their teachings into the world and into the life of Rabbi Bryan Bramly.

While there is no question that damage has been done, and that some of it may never be fully repaired, the case of Rabbi Bryan Bramly will not be over until his life is rebuilt with as much fervor as it was destroyed. We need not apologize for the damage done, especially if it resulted from honestly pursuing what appeared to be a legitimate charge. But neither can we turn away from the damage, failing to take responsibility for having contributed to it.


Read more: http://blog.beliefnet.com/windowsanddoors/2010/10/sexual-abuse-case-against-rabb.html#ixzz11JsLaik9

Belsky thugs? said...

Rabbi and his family suspected of settling dispute with guns

http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/rabbi-and-his-family-suspected-of-settling-dispute-with-guns-1.316931

Andrew Cuomo said...

Vito Lopez is Anti-Markey's Child Victims Act Of New York bill.David Niederman pathetically defends accused pedophiles. Is this true? Check out the picture with me and the Rabbis.

I love the grapes.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/maggiehaberman/1010/Cuomo_meets_with_ultraOrthodox_Jewish_leaders_.html

Andrew Cuomo has been spending much of the afternoon meeting privately with the different leaders of the ultra-Orthodox Jewish sects, including the two factions of the Satmars and with the Pupa Grand Rabbi, sources familiar with the meeting said.

Vito Lopez, the embattled Brooklyn Democratic Party chairman, was with Cuomo at the meeting with the Pupa rabbi, a source famliar with the meeting said.

Another source said Cuomo was being squired by Rabbi David Niederman, of the United Jewish Organization. He's a Satmar leader who's also close to Lopez, who is reportedly at the center of two federal investigations.

Lawsuit: Rabbi sexually abuses student; affair hushed by college said...

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3961880,00.html

Teacher at religious college in Jerusalem files suit against rabbi for allegedly harassing former student. Teacher claims affair was silenced by college, which reached financial settlement with Takana forum in return for immunity

Pedal for Prevention said...

According to Ken Burger of the Charleston, S.C., The Post and Courier newspaper (www.d2l.org), all of us can be a hero in the fight against child sexual abuse.

"The answers to stopping this plague are responsibility and courage," he said. "The Darkness To Light training session makes you acknowledge some uncomfortable realities. But it also deputizes each participant to become part of the solution. By learning the facts. Could you spot an abuser? By minimizing opportunity. Abusers groom their victims and their families before they act. By talking about it. Kids don't know they can say no. By staying alert. Learn how to spot signs of abuse. By making a plan. Believe the child. Very few reported incidents are false. By acting on suspicions. Trust your intuition. Ask questions. By getting involved.

This is a huge human challenge that can be impacted by collective power if you know what to do. Sadly, child abuse is a generational curse. But it can be stopped if we shine a light on the problem and expose it. Abusers depend on our innocence. They hide in plain sight."

As we start another year of trainings and educational opportunities, please consider attending a Stewards of Children training and/or financially sponsoring a training and become one of our community heroes. Our children deserve to live in a community that is protective. You can make a difference. For information on trainings, refer to www.larimercac.org/ or send an e-mail Ana Sluss at ana@larimercac.org.

Anonymous said...

Why do the clergy have a terrible habit of hushing up sexual abuse? Aren't they men of God?

By adapting a cover up approach of the crime - they create a terrible message and only fuel people to leave their religion altogether because of the hypocrisy.

"Rabbi" Shloime Mandel said...

It is important to stay silent sometimes, like for example when someone asks me why I don't get rid of the YOB molester (Nussbaum), I tell them "be silent," I don't want people finding out that I'm a scum of the earth faker who is apathetic towards sex abuse victims.

Yudi Kolko said...

Hi folks. Just wanted to wish a Mazel Tov to Avi Smolen and Justin Rosen on their upcoming Chasunah.

kudos to pasik said...

Good article by Elliot Pasik in the JP.

Speak Out Against Child Abuse - Now

By: Elliot Pasik

Date: Wednesday, October 06 2010

We are winning the war on child abuse. We shall fight this war until we win. We shall fight the abusers in the yeshivas, the synagogues, the mikvehs. We shall fight them in the hills, the valleys, on the land and on the beaches. We shall fight with every ounce of our strength, until we win.

So soon after Yom Kippur, please find forgiveness in your heart for my Winston Churchill-style excess. I am a lawyer, in the thick of the fight, and as my colleagues and family can attest, my occasionally mordant sense of humor helps preserve my sanity. I am a witness to the great evil of child sex abuse, and the aftermath of fractured lives, drugs, alcohol and suicide.

Above all is the good news that we are winning. With the help of God, we are winning.

Continued...

http://www.jewishpress.com/pageroute.do/45483

Carl Paladino said...

The Jews gave me a prepared text to read, instead I chose my version of homosexuality sinning, because I couldn't decide which congregation had more of a brainwashing effect on me.

If I spoke the truth it would be me saying that these same Jews banning homosexuality are the same who refuse to emit such venom when it concerns child predators of their own kind.

But - I'm a politician - and politics is kissing butts, in this case the bottoms belonging to the Hasidim who will vote for me in return.

-----------------------------------
http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/culture/2010/10/593459/carl-paladino-and-rabbi-levin-create-gay-mishegoss

Now, let's go to the main story: "CARL GAY RANT." In case you weren't keeping up with this last night, our Republican gubernatorial nominee Carl Paladino seems to have had some trouble with the gays and the Jews yesterday. At two synagogues he delivered speeches about moral values (despite being a "live and let live," "Don't Tread On Me" sort of guy) that included his objection to kids being "brainwashed" to believe that homosexuality was an "option" as good as heterosexuality. The story records some of the back and forth about his "prepared remarks," which are, most of the time, printed versions of the speech about to be read, distributed to reporters for quoting in their publications, and which ended up differing from what he actually said. According to his campaign manager, there was some ill communication with the organizers of his two synagogue visits, and the remarks as printed were not finally approved by the campaign. And consequently, from the "remarks as prepared," we get only this from the Post today: "A prepared text of the speech distributed by leaders of the congregation before it was delivered was far more incendiary, declaring that God disapproves of homosexuality and gays should be ashamed of themselves." It would have been nice if we had gotten a direct quote here and put it on the wood.

Rabbi Yehuda Levin’s access to a major-party candidate is raising eyebrows in the Jewish community said...

Koch is the voice of reason and he got this one right too.

Who the hell cares about Levin? He's clearly causing a hillul hashem by using religion to incite hate.

How Does Levin feel about Rabbis molesting and the enabling parties who tried to cover up the crime?

Why is he not raising hell over those atrocities that clearly the Torah detests?

Levin and Paladino. They have their priorities backwards, where focusing on the real issues and problems that people really care about doesn't seem to pertain to them.

Meir said...

Good to see Assemblyman Dov Hikind confront hate mongers, shows leadership.
Time now for Hikind to take a more pro-active role in outing the dirty criminals who see no evil in employing pedophile Rabbis.
It is only fair he do this because it is a promise he made and has yet to keep.
___________________________________

Source: Gothamist

http://gothamist.com/2010/10/12/assemblyman_tried_to_punch_westboro.php

Assemblyman Tried To Punch Westboro Hate Mongers

2010_10_dovhik.jpg
Assemblyman Hikind lunges at Phelps-Roper (WPIX)
Yesterday the Westboro Baptist Church, the group that regularly protests at funerals of those who served in the military (prompting the father of a slain soldier to sue the church's pastor), had a few of its protesters in Brooklyn and Manhattan yesterday to spread its provocative gospel of "God Hates Fags," "Thank God For 9/11," and "Your Rabbi Is A Whore." At one location in Brooklyn, Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D) was so incensed he tried to punch out Shirley Phelps-Roper, daughter of the church's founder Fred Phelps. According to WPIX:

Hikind interrupted an interview Phelps-Roper was doing with PIX 11 News to slap the posters, saying "Come on!" Phelps-Roper shouted, "Don't touch me! Don't touch me!" while police supervisors grabbed the Assemblyman by the waist. "How dare you have those signs!" Hikind yelled. He then warned the Kansas group, "Just be careful the rest of your day in Brooklyn."


Hikind also called Phelps-Roper a "whore" (you can see video below). Yeshiva World News reports that the Westboro protesters' minivan's tires were slashed: "They were seen a short while later getting their flat fixed at a local tire-repair shop. 'The only thing I’m sad about, is that all four of their tires weren’t slashed', Dov Hikind told YWN."

Anonymous said...

I dont know anything about this subject. But as a Jew, I wish you luck in spreading the truth.

Yeshiva of Brooklyn, a century of child abuse said...

The battle over sex abuse reporting in the Orthodox community is exploding worldwide, and one of the hubs is in New Jersey. State law requires anyone with reasonable suspicion to alert authorities. But rabbinical authority has ruled in Orthodox communities for thousands of years, mainly due to splits with secular law over civil issues (unlike the Catholic Church scandals). Victims have been threatened, ostracized and driven out. Yet, rabbinical and secular authorities in Lakewood, Passaic and other communities say they are trying to "bridge the gap."

http://www.cliffviewpilot.com/public-safety/1673-yeshivas-more-aware-of-sex-abuse-in-need-of-better-detection-skills

Anonymous said...

Incidents like yeshiva kids held up at gunpoint in Far Rockaway invite all sorts of chatter for better security measures to prevent a repeat, as well it should, nobody wants to see any tragedies.

The fact is so too by child predation and sexual abuse, nobody wants to hurt the helpless or be held responsible for covering up such a reprehensible crime, the silent epidemic affecting a relentlessly high number of boys and girls for the rest of their lives.

Or, perhaps pedophiles operating as Rabbis in our community are not seen as posing a threat to our children and community in the same way as when thugs hold kids at gunpoint, and if this is a position greatly followed, as is widely seen to be the accepted, then please explain the difference between the gun and the pedophile.

Levin is a radical nut said...

OU Apologizes To NY Archdiocese For Levin Protest
Monday, October 18, 2010
Adam Dickter
Assistant Managing Editor

Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, executive vice president emeritus of the Orthodox Union, called Archbishop Timothy Dolan of the New York Archdiocese last week to express regret that an Orthodox rabbi held a political protest on the steps of St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

Rabbi Yehuda Levin on Wednesday publicly suspended his support for Republican gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino at the iconic Manhattan church, calling on Catholic leaders to hold a conference on politics and gay rights.

Although Rabbi Levin is not a not a member of the Orthodox Union, Rabbi Weinreb said he felt the need to express his regret. “We have an ongoing relationship with the Archbishop and other officials of the New York Archdiocese. “I know representatives of the church felt it was inappropriate.”

Rabbi Weinreb said his message, which did not address Rabbi Levin’s speech, only the venue, was acknowledged by officials of the Archdiocese.

Tyler Perry said...

Tyler Perry appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show today to reveal "devastating secrets," as Oprah put it in previews.

On his site, Perry promised, "It's the most in-depth and revelatory interview I have ever done."

And he did detail several different moments of sexual abuse as a child growing up in New Orleans.

"I was about five or six," the first time, he said. He was building a bird house in his backyard and a man from across the street came over and put "his hand in my pants," said Perry. "I thought, 'What is this?'"

The next person was "a male nurse at the hospital. And he was doing the same thing. ... Then there was the man in the church who used God and the bible to justify a lot of the things that were going on. That was my first sexual appearance - this man performing oral sex on me as a boy."

And there was the mother of a friend of his, who seduced Perry when he was 10. He went over to play with her son and she locked the front door, laid on the couch and spread her legs, not allowing him to leave. "She puts the key inside herself and tells me to get it. I get the key but I feel my body betraying me again. I felt an erection. This is so disgusting - what these people did to this little boy - she pulled me on top of her and I felt myself inside of her."

He spoke of his father who "hated me so much." And of his mother, whom he "loved so much." He also talked about how the molestation affected him during sexual experiences with women later in life. "Every time after sex I would go to the shower and wash it off of me. I needed to get way from it."

He wept when Oprah asked him what he would say to the little boy left behind? "I would say, 'It's going to be all right."

Tyler first raised the subject of his childhood abuse in 2009, when he posted a letter on his website after experiencing a flood of memories following a screening of the Oscar-nominated Precious, which he co-produced, including a story of remembering a man in his church who molested him.

Perry's new movie, the adaptation of For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf, comes out in November.

Perry wasn't the only one who cried during the show. He brought tears to Oprah's eyes by thanking her for all she's done for viewers for 25 years.

shatnez checker and child molester rabbi yehuda nussbaum from yeshiva of brooklyn said...

Just an update for everybody on my recent activities at my workplace. I bli ayin hurah have a good job. The best part is the private spending time with boys when they get pulled into my resource room. Buruch hashem I also spend quality time learning in the beis medrash. Reb Shloime Mandel is kind for employing me. He once told me that there are worse tzuras in the wold to worry about than child molesters.

Yudi Kolko said...

Time for Rav Belsky to write some more hazmanas.
-------------------------------------

The Takana forum published a statement Thursday describing the investigation against Rabbi Mordechai Elon, who is suspected of sexually abusing his male students.


The statement says that in July 2005 a married man complained that Elon had harassed him as well as others. The forum says Elon admitted to wrongdoing but claimed mental distress had caused him to perform the acts. (Kobi Nahshoni)

Hypocrite Arabs said...

They incite hate all the time against the Jews, and suddenly they scream bloody murder when to a much lesser extent it is done to them. Reminds me of Agudah acting so pious, but when your
back is turned they derail any negativity involving child sex abuse with falsehood.

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/leading-rabbi-encourages-idf-soldiers-to-use-palestinian-human-shields-1.320311

Yeshiva of Brooklyn said...

We guarantee Rabbi Nussbaum has no STD's, so rest assured he did not transit any such disease to any of his molest victims.
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After a 4-year-old girl complained earlier this year to her grandmother about genital pain, a doctor's diagnosis shocked the family: The child had chlamydia and gonorrhea.

Authorities were not so surprised. In St. Louis County, about one in 10 child sex abuse cases starts with discovery of a sexually transmitted disease.

What happened from there did surprise officials. Police and prosecutors developed enough evidence to file charges against the mother's boyfriend. That, investigators say, happens in only about 1 time in 20 after a child is found to have a sexually transmitted disease.

The substantial obstacles include witnesses who are unable or unwilling to talk, medical privacy laws and inconclusive science.

"It's discouraging," said Sgt. Gary Guinn of the county police child abuse unit. "You feel very helpless."

There were 1,169 children under age 15 in Missouri and Illinois diagnosed with STDs in 2009. Of those, 22 in Missouri were under age 11, 66 in Illinois were under age 10.

Guinn pointed to a fresh file on his desk in Clayton this month that involves a 9-year-old who tested positive for chlamydia and gonorrhea. He said he knows what the reaction will be when he assigns the case to a one of his detectives: a slump in the chair followed by a sigh of frustration.

"They want to do the best they can do, but they know that more than 90 percent of the time, it doesn't work," Guinn lamented. "It gets so frustrating, doing all the interviews, getting cooperation, and in the end you don't know how the child got the disease. The only way to find out is if someone tells you who did it, or if the victim can tell you."

The 4-year-old did talk with officials, after the doctor who treated her placed a hot line call to the Division of Family Services. That, coupled with physical evidence that doctors discovered during the exam bolstered the case even though the suspect did not cooperate, Guinn said.

James Davis, 19, of East St. Louis was charged Sept. 29 with one count of first-degree statutory rape. He remains at large.

Read more:

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/article_b0b8d1a3-a93b-509f-8746-5eb97e21861e.html

Monsey Rabbi said...

MONSEY, N.Y., Oct. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Top rabbis of the largest Orthodox Jewish communities in Rockland county convened an urgent summit meeting Sunday evening to address threats to religious people and religious education. The rabbis unanimously agreed, for the midterm elections, to urge their communities to shun candidates who oppose morality.

Scapegoating People of Faith.

The summit focused the way in which "gay rights" legislation that purports to advance "equality" and end "discrimination" in effect, demonize and scapegoat people of faith, blaming them for the problems of homosexuals. Same-sex marriage laws, in particular, threaten to unleash attacks on education, lawsuits, and the loss of state licensing, for people committed to Bible values.

Rav Laizer Chayim Blum, Grand Rabbi of Kasho communities in Rockland, Westchester and Brooklyn, spoke stirringly about the need to avoid sacrificing Torah principles for material benefit, and the terrible price to be paid for such compromises. He emphasized that sin is sin, and can never be whitewashed with the morally-neutral rhetoric of "anti-discrimination." The Grand Rabbi also stressed the need for activism and outreach to other Orthodox voters not yet familiar or fully sensitized to these issues.

Rabbi Noson Leiter, Executive Director of the Orthodox Jewish advocacy group, Torah Jews for Decency, and an organizer of the event identified those candidates who advance the LGBT agenda. "The prospect of State Senator Eric Schneiderman, an avid proponent of same-gender 'marriage,' becoming the highest ranking law-enforcement official in New York state, raises the specter of thousands of Bible-adherents eventually becoming criminalized for their religious beliefs and practices. Additionally, Attorney Andrew General Cuomo's pledge to prioritize same-sex 'marriage,' should disgust any G-d fearing voter and disqualify him."

Rabbi Leiter also urged voters in Monroe to reject the pro-abortion, Log-Cabinist Nan Hayworth in District 19 by writing in "Neil DeCarlo." Family-values voters could play a pivotal role in state Senate contests, including races involving Queens Senator Frank Padavan and Rockland County candidate C. Scott Vanderhoef. Senator Charles Schumer and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand were identified as candidates to vote against.

Threat to Religious Education.

Dovid Z. Schwartz, editor of Zeh Journal, illustrated the threat to religious education posed by recently-enacted changes to New York state Education Law. The Dignity for All Students Act (DASA) changed the legal definition of the terms "tolerance," "respect for others," and "dignity," which are required to be taught in civics classes in both public and private schools, to include "awareness and sensitivity to discrimination and harassment" for "sexual orientation" and other "religions" and "religious practices." DASA requires religious schools to contravene Biblical law by teaching "respect" for the very ideas and conduct that the Torah requires Jews to unequivocally reject in the strongest terms.

A senior pro-family activist, Reb Shlomo Diamant, addressed the assembled Rabbis as well, noting how anti-religious intolerance has been sold to the public under the cover of "anti-discrimination" in an attempt to conceal efforts to undermine the free thought and practice of Bible-believers.

Meir Kahane said...

The life story of the late Israeli lawmaker Meir Kahane, an ultranationalist activist whose banned Kach party is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, is now available for children.

A comic book called "Miracle Man," alluding to a 5th century warrior-rabbi buried near Tiberias, will be published in the coming days, according to Arutz Sheva, an Israeli news agency considered close to the country's messianic religious settler movement.

Arutz Sheva's Hebrew-language website last Tuesday presented a preview of the book, written by Naama Nieman and illustrated by Dikla Sagiv, and billed it as "An original way of teaching the path and heritage of Rabbi Meir Kahane to the young generation."

Slideshow: Panels from the forthcoming comic book

Among the scenes depicted are a map of Israel that includes the occupied Palestinian territories and Syrian Golan Heights. Another image shows an Israeli flag waving from a pole atop Jerusalem's Dome of the Rock, a Muslim holy site. The site is also holy to many Jews, who call it the Temple Mount.

Kahane was assassinated in 1990 in New York by an Egyptian gunman. The anniversary of his death was marked Tuesday at Jerusalem's Ramada Renaissance Hotel. The event was headlined, "Kahane was right."

According to Knesset member Michael Ben Ari, it is important to remember that Kahane was assassinated for political reasons and that his heritage teaches now "more than ever" that he was right.

"The younger generation must also be taught the image of the man who fought for the honor of Israel and acted for the people of Israel and for the land of Israel," Ben Ari was quoted as saying by Arutz Sheva.

Kahane advocated ethnically cleansing Israel and the Palestinian territories of Palestinians.

Kaporos said...

Kaporos is practiced for the atonement of our sins. Slaughter of the animal is for the purpose of reminding sinners that in truth they ought to be sacrificed instead.

There are many of us out there who wonder if this annual sacrificial ritual is really working. After-all, clearly displayed for all to see are prominent Rabbis who abide by a protocol adhering to personal greed and self- interests.

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It is unfortunate that it has come to this. It is a big darn shame it has come to this. It is very hurtful that it has come to this. But yet, IT HAS COME TO THIS. It has come at the price of a GREAT CHILUL HASHEM. It has come to Hashem having to allow his holy name to be DESECRATED so that his CHILDREN remain SAFE. Shame on all those responsible for enabling and permitting Hashem's name to be desecrated! When you save children you save the future. You save the future you save generations. You save generations you save lives. You save lives you have saved the world!!!!!!!