HHmmm. This is making me think.
There's this article on reuters that entitled "Jews struggle to come to grips with Madoff" I'm thinking.... why does his ethnic group come into the picture at all?
His fraud transcends it all; he was just a really unscrupulous bastard who stole people's money. For a man that low, greed isn't going to be affected by his god, or religion, or his race. He stole from EVERYONE. He had no mercy. He accepted every grubby opporunity that came his way and he didn't care whose money he took.
An excerpt says : "We're still shellshocked," said Rabbi Joshua Hammerman, religious leader of Temple Beth El in Stamford, Connecticut, which describes itself as an Egalitarian Conservative Jewish congregation. "I am sure every synagogue is dealing with it in some way."....
Since Madoff's arrest last month, Hammerman's synagogue and other Jewish groups have struggled with how to assess the scandal and what it means for Jews.
Hammerman, who said his synagogue had not itself lost money in the scandal, but has publicly called for Madoff to be excommunicated. He wrote in a letter to the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations that he thinks Madoff represents "something rotten that must be exorcised from our culture and from our midst."
Do you really this this man is worth it? I mean, to excommunicate him? Why? He didn't do it for Jews, he did it for his own selfish reasons. Is this a more extreme viewpoint? Or are "Egalitarian Conservative" known for being really.... well... conservative?
I'm afraid the only Jewish people I know of are Elisson and Laurence and they seem fairly rational. And not rabid followers of Judaism lol. In fact, they're pretty smart! Unfortunately, Jews are uncommon in Singapore, I believe there are only about 300 of them and there's only one synagogue. So I regret that I don't know much.
But I do know about excommunication and I personally think it's a ridiculous concept. The catholic church has it too. I don't agree with it's use either.
*small sigh*
Sometimes I wonder why people always have to bring religion into things.
Natural introvert, learned extrovert.
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4 comments:
Thanks for your interest, Fiona. If you want to read more background on the matter, check the essays on my blog, at http://joshuahammerman.blogspot.com/search/label/Madoff
Joshua Hammerman
Hello Rabbi Hammerman,
Thank you for the link. I found the articles interesting and thought provoking.
Still not sure if I agree though.
*wry grin*
I'm just trying to digest all the information! Still, it was definitely education. And I do thank you for that.
Being a tiny and often-persecuted minority whose mission in life (if we can be said to have one) is to be "a light unto the nations," it bugs the crap out of us when someone does something that reflects poorly on the rest of us.
In a better world, the actions of one member of a particular group would not reflect on others in that group, but that's not the way people think. There are plenty of assholes in this world who will use Madoff as an example of "those scheming, money-grubbing Jews." It's an old and hateful stereotype, but it's still, alas, alive and well.
And Madoff is an even bigger asshole for feeding it.
Elisson,
Alas. The more hateful a stereotype, the longer it lingers. Which is a pity because scum like Madoff don't think of things like racial issues.
I think it's interesting what you mentioned re excommunication in Judaism. :) Thank you for the input!
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