Hillel sponsors forum to discuss LGBT issues

  Courtesy of Melissa Minkin Rabbi David
Rue (left) and Rabbi Benay Lappe chat
during a break from the discussion last night at UCLA Hillel.

By Lisa Klassen
Daily Bruin Reporter

In a move to understand the relationship between Judaism and
sexuality, students and other community members met Wednesday night
with a panel of rabbis to discuss the issue.

UCLA’s Hillel Center sponsored the forum, called
“Trembling before G-d” after a documentary about gay
Orthodox Jews, in order to promote awareness of the gay Jewish
community.

“We’re here to talk not about Judaism or about
sexual orientation, but about both,” said coordinator
Ruttenberg, who also acted as the moderator of the forum.

The rabbis presented their backgrounds and experiences with
religion and sexuality.

“There’s still too many lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgendered Jews who pass by a synagogue and say “˜That
place is not for me “¦ because I’m not okay because God
says so,'” said panelist Rabbi Benay Lappe, who is a
lesbian.

The second member of the panel, Rabbi David Rue, represented the
Los Angeles Rabbinic Court as well as Judaic law. His Orthodox
training in Israel and experience as the Senior Justice of the Los
Angeles Rabbinic Court surprised many audience members.

“I was surprised to see the conservative side
represented,” said Adam Levy, a second-year psychology
student. “I was interested in what the conservative Orthodox
side had to say, and I think having their voice in the panel made
things more interesting.”

According to Rue, the Torah forbids male homosexuality but says
nothing against female homosexuality.

“The Torah condemns male homosexuality because in that
particular act there is no possibility for procreation,” said
Rabbi Chaim Seidler-Feller, director of UCLA Hillel. “The
seed is spilled, and there is no life created, but with women,
nothing is lost.”

According to the panel, the family is central to Jewish beliefs.
The panel addressed the question of whether or not a gay couple
constitutes a family.

“If they can become a family unit, then it contributes to
the Jewish way,” Seidler-Feller said.

Panelists said love and caring are more important in a family
relationship than the sexual orientation of the parents.

“I know of traditional rabbis that will marry a
(heterosexual) couple who they know can’t have kids,”
said Rabbi J.B. Sacks-Rosen, a panelist and spiritual leader of the
Congregation Shaarei Torah in Arcadia. “I don’t really
think that every family should focus on procreation.”

The idea that homosexuality is a sin evoked various responses
from the panel. Although the Torah proclaims that homosexual acts
are an “abomination,” some felt that the ancient text
is open to revision and interpretation.

“There is no limit to how much the Torah can be
revised,” Lappe said. “According to rabbis 2,000 years
ago, change is okay if the ultimate goal is to save the
Torah.”

According to Lappe and fellow panelist Rabbi Lisa Edwards,
founder of Los Angeles’ Beth Chayim Chadashim ““ the
world’s oldest gay and lesbian synagogue, Jews today often
misinterpret the true meaning of the text. The passage in question,
said Edwards and Lappe, has a different context.

“In that narrative context, the text refers to
heterosexual people engaging in homosexual acts,” said
Sacks-Rosen. “It means that homosexual people shouldn’t
do what’s unnatural for them, just as heterosexual people
shouldn’t have homosexual sex, because they’re not
homosexual.”

Rue and Seidler-Feller disagree. To them, this interpretation is
too radical.

“It’s the recognition of a completely different
lifestyle,” Seidler-Feller said. “It’s not just a
violation because it’s called an abomination in the Torah.
It’s also a social matter. When parents find out that their
child is gay, they immediately think, “˜My life is
over.’ It is (a) deep and harsh hit to the family
tradition.”

Some panelists said gay relationships are supported by the
stories of Ruth and Naomi and Jonathan and David in the Bible.

“It’s hard if you’re gay or lesbian to read
these stories and not to see the relationship between them and to
see that they are in love,” Edwards said.

Though the panel was unable to come to a conclusion about the
role of gays in the Jewish faith, the rabbis agreed that gays
should be included in the Jewish community.

According to Edwards, gays should interpret the Torah in their
own way to determine how they can find a balance between their
sexual orientation and faith.

“The greatest criterion to looking at the Torah is to ask
yourself, “˜Is this true to life?'” Edwards said.
“It is not a question of whether we can change the Torah, but
rather, should we change the Torah? In the end, it’s up to
each of us to decide for ourselves what the Torah means.”