Fifteenth Day: Pervert "Rabbi" To Be Sentenced For Spying On Women

[Lewinsky Stinks, Dr. Brennan Rocks]

For Those Who Revered Him, Rabbi's Sentencing Will Not Bring Closure

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/for-those-who-revered-him-dc-rabbis-sentencing-for-voyeurism-will-not-bring-closure/2015/05/13/da065c28-f5a0-11e4-b2f3-af5479e6bbdd_story.html

Let me guess: this was another phony "Orthodox" rabbi like the two Schneier kapos who worshiped BHO and negroes and Dumbocrats in general as gods. 


LSDBR

[muman613]

I would not assume that he is an 'Orthodox' rabbi at all. All men suffer from the temptation to engage in voyeurism. I would be willing to suggest that a pious Jew often has thoughts which are not quite kosher. It is a very difficult thing to keep thoughts away from this kind of thing.

Making assumptions like this is not kosher in my opinion. You do not know the facts of the case. We can all agree that what happened is wrong. But I think it is important to remain honest and admit that a man struggles with his eyes constantly. Enough so that our Shema prayer says 'Do not stray after your heart or your eyes'.

[muman613]

http://torahweb.org/torah/2008/parsha/rwil_shlach.html

Do Not Stray After Your Eyes

I

"You shall not stray (V'lo sasuru) after your heart and after your eyes" (Bamidbar 15:39). The heart and the eyes are spies for the body. The eye sees, the heart desires, and the body commits the sin (Rashi).

The Torah places the heart before the eyes, but Rashi reverses the order, stating that first the eye sees, and then the heart desires. Perhaps the heart does two things- one prior to seeing and a second, after. First, the heart strays[1]. As a result, the eyes stray, as natural curiosity takes over. This is then consistent with the order in the pasuk, as "The eyes follow the heart" (Medrash Tehillim 14:1).

Much of the expanded range of vision presented by natural curiosity is benign. Nonetheless, inevitably one's lust is aroused by what the eye sees, and at that point, the heart desires. Occasionally, a person cannot control these desires, and the body sins, as Rashi explains[2].

II

"'You shall guard yourself (vnishmarta) against any evil thought' (Devarim 23:10). A man may not gaze upon a beautiful woman even if she is unmarried" (Avoda Zara 20a).

Why isn't the violation of "v'lo sasuru - you shall not stray" mentioned here? The Smak (30) answers that "v'lo sasuru" applies only when one stares for the purpose of an immoral act. If one enjoys the beauty of a woman, but has no intention to commit an immoral act, he violates "vnishmarta". This distinction is reached independently by the Igros Moshe (Even Hoezer 1:69)[3]. However, the Mishna Berura (75:7) states that staring at a woman to enjoy her beauty is a violation of "v'lo sasuru". Perhaps this is the Rambam's position as well (see Sefer Hamitzvos, Lo Saaseh 47), that one who is pulled after physical lusts and a preoccupation with them violates v'lo sasuru, even if no sinful act is contemplated.

III

"If women are not properly dressed near a river, one who has an alternate route but chooses the river route is termed a rasha. If there is no alternative, he must force himself to avert his gaze"(Bava Basra 57a).

This passage has tremendous relevance nowadays, especially in the summer months. Men must avoid, if possible, walking in places where women are not dressed properly. When a man must walk in such a place to reach his destination, every effort must be made to avoid focusing on forbidden sights. Unfortunately, in most workplaces this vigilance must be maintained all day. (This vigilance includes avoiding prohibited internet sites.)

It is important to note that women are also included in the prohibition of v'lo sasuru if they gaze upon men with the intention to sin (Igros Moshe, ibid.). In addition, women may not wear clothing that reveals their upper arms or thighs (Mishna Berura 75:2), and certainly not any part of their torsos. The ubiquitousness of low-cut garments does not permit one to wear them. Tight-fitting clothing, which accentuates a woman's figure inappropriately, is strictly prohibited (see Az nidberu by Rav Binyomin Zilber). These laws reflect the requirement of tznius (modesty), as well as the interdiction of placing a michshol (stumbling block) in the path of men. In choosing their wardrobe, women must summon the strength to be discerning, and not to slavishly follow current fashion.

Other methods of arousing the male sexual desire are also forbidden, and can produce disastrous results. The Gemara (Yoma 9b) relates that women would entice young men by releasing perfume in their presence. This was a cause of the churban Beis Hamikdash. Even excess conversation, which can lead to levity, can be disastrous (see Avos 1:5).

In sum, both men and women must focus on resisting these behaviors, so typical of general society, and must govern their thoughts, sights, words/conversations, wardrobes, and deeds according to Torah law.

"If one sees a provocative sight (dvar erva) and does not allow his eyes to enjoy it, he merits to see the Shechina, as it is written, (Yeshaya 33:15 - 17) 'One who shuts his eyes from seeing evil shall dwell in heights and see the King in His splendor'" (Derech Eretz Rabba, 1). If we control ourselves, and do not stray after our hearts and eyes, we will be rewarded for keeping this difficult, yet critical, mitzva.

[1] One's heart should be totally dedicated to serving Hashem, as the Torah states, "You shall Love Hashem with all your heart" (Devarim 6:5). One who serves Hashem wholeheartedly is able to focus all of his senses in a single-minded effort to do good and avoid evil. If we allow our heart to stray, this ability is lost.

[2] The Gemara (Berachos 12b) states, "'After your heart' - this is heresy, akin to Avoda Zara. 'After your eyes' - this is sinful thoughts", in particular lust for women. At first glance, this statement is at odds with Rashi's interpretation which is found in Medrash Tanchuma. Rashi projects a progression: a straying heart leads to a straying eye. The Gemara refers to two totally separate sins - heresy and sinful thoughts. However, one may view a seemingly innocent straying heart, a lack of focus on loving Hashem, as a mild form of heresy, and even as containing traces of avoda zara. If one walks in the way of his heart and the vision of his eyes (Koheles 11:9), there is no law and no Judge (Medrash Raba). One who makes no effort to contain his thought inevitably sees prohibited sights. Carelessness in these areas reflects a lack of constant awareness of Hashem the Judge. This shortcoming smacks of heresy and avoda zara.

[3]This view is supported by the proof text of the aforementioned Gemara (Berachos 12b): Shimshon said to his father, "take her for me, for she is fitting in my eyes (Shoftim 14:3). Shimshon acted upon his lustful gaze and married a Plishti woman.

Copyright © 2008 by The TorahWeb Foundation. All rights reserved.

[Kahane-Was-Right BT]

I would not assume that he is an 'Orthodox' rabbi at all.   

Uh, no.   It is not assumption but fact.  He was an orthodox rabbi of the most prominent DC synagogue and he had a huge role in conversion authority in America.   He was a faker all along using his power to betray and violate our community's women and families for his sexual gratification.  How dare you defend this creep after what he did?   Total lack of empathy for his victims.

 All men suffer from the temptation to engage in voyeurism. I would be willing to suggest that a pious Jew often has thoughts which are not quite kosher. It is a very difficult thing to keep thoughts away from this kind of thing.

Making assumptions like this is not kosher in my opinion. You do not know the facts of the case. We can all agree that what happened is wrong. But I think it is important to remain honest and admit that a man struggles with his eyes constantly. Enough so that our Shema prayer says 'Do not stray after your heart or your eyes'.

You need to rethink your comments and educate yourself about this case because you are spouting ignorance.

This animal recorded hundreds of women without their knowledge and against their will in the most sanctified of places.  He set up cameras in the mikvah!  It's disgusting.

Prosecutors have also revealed they found tapes whicih recorded this squinty eyed miscreant having sex with other women (not his wife).

Every man is tempted by women and to look at women in person but no one has a right to violate privacy or video women against their will for crying out loud muman.  What are you smoking right now?

It takes a special kind of evil to do what he did. Utter garbage.

[muman613]

KWRBT,

Nowhere did I defend what he did. I was trying to say that being religious has nothing to do with whether a person will commit a sin. As a matter of fact, those who are religious may have an even more voracious yetzer hara for these kinds of things. But because you want to find a problem with what I said, you ignored the bulk of what I wrote and attributed things to me which I did not say.

I can bring plenty of examples from the Torah of great men who had problems with their womanizing. And by the way what are you smoking? I expect you to apologize for suggesting I ever defended what he did.

[muman613]

I would not assume that he is an 'Orthodox' rabbi at all. All men suffer from the temptation to engage in voyeurism. I would be willing to suggest that a pious Jew often has thoughts which are not quite kosher. It is a very difficult thing to keep thoughts away from this kind of thing.

Making assumptions like this is not kosher in my opinion. You do not know the facts of the case. We can all agree that what happened is wrong. But I think it is important to remain honest and admit that a man struggles with his eyes constantly. Enough so that our Shema prayer says 'Do not stray after your heart or your eyes'.

[muman613]

To demonstrate I am not 'just making stuff up' here is a discussion from 'ilovetorah.com' which repeats what I am trying to say here concerning the temptation of women to men... Again this is not defending what happened here, just saying that the Torah should have provided a way for him to deal with his yetzer hara. He failed and he is being punished, so be it... But to suggest that he was not an 'Orthodox' rabbi is foolish because you would make rabbis into some kind of super-human beings, and rabbis (even tzadiks) have especially strong yetzer haras...

http://ilovetorah.com/yetzer/

Every tzaddik is faced with the most difficult tests. Chazal say that the higher ones level the greater their evil inclination. There is no tzaddik that exists that wasn’t tempted and didn’t face sin head to head. We think that because they are righteous they were never normal human beings just like us, facing the simple temptations we do. Yosef HaTzaddik covered his face and ran away from the most beautiful women in the world, Potifar’s wife. “Rabbi Abraham Abulafia wrote that he defiled his body from the wasteful admission of seed. He said that for fifteen years, the Satan was at my right hand to mislead me.” Also he said that the numerical value of Satan, 359, is the same as that of Zera Lavan, white seed that is in reference to semen.”[10] This goes to show you that one of the main goals of the satan is to attack someone’s sexual desire.

 

            Rebbe Nachman says that sexual desire is the great test a man faces in this world.[11]  The Rebbe said that he was able to overcome this desire but he had to cry out to Hashem again and again. The temptations were very real for him but he later said, “A man with even the smallest amount of real intelligence, will not find this a temptation at all.” The Satan wanted so much for him to slip on this desire that he was willing to let the Rebbe overcome every other desire if only he would slip up on this once. The Rebbe did the opposite, though, and said he would ignore his other desires and not work to control them at all but the sexual desire he would completely eradicate.[12] As a young man even amidst the fire burning inside him, he overcame this desire completely. He later said, “I do not have any feeling of desire at all. Men and women are all the same to me.” When he came in contact with a woman, he didn’t even have an extraneous thought.[13]

 

            Another time the Rebbe said, “I am afraid of neither women nor angel”. This deserves further explanation. A person may totally cleanse himself of evil thoughts. However, as long as he has the slightest fear of such thoughts, he is still not completely cleansed. This slight fear he has is a sign that he has not yet attained true complete purity. Therefore, he must fear an angel.”[14]

 

            One shouldn’t fear the evil inclination; rather they should be aware and cautious of its tricks, so as not to fall into its traps. When you fear anything, you cause yourself to loose control. The only thing to fear is Hashem. Fearing the evil inclination is like giving into it.[15] Rabbi Pinchos of Koritz once said, “When a person is scared of something, he is actually subjugated to that very thing. If he is not afraid, he remains above it.[16]

 

            King Dovid was the most devout of men, Samson was the strongest, and Solomon the wisest man that ever lived. The reason the Torah recorded that these great men went wrong through women is to show us that women have an overpowering hold over men and that the sexual desire overwhelms even the greatest of men.[17]

 

            A woman, though created differently, has many of the same inclinations as that of a man. They just manifest themselves differently. Today immorality has crawled its way into even the most protected of homes. We think that we have made our homes sealed from outside influences but they still manage to get in. Lets not be naive and not talk to our children about things like this. Don’t just assume they just know what is right and haven’t been exposed to the wrong as well. Clarify it for them; tell them how to deal with their sexual emotions. If you don’t, then you are more naive then they are! In a society like we have today, you cannot take chances. You must talk to your children and students. Tell them that these thoughts and temptations they might be having are normal and only then tell them the words of Chazal on how to overcome their yetzer hara.

 

            When you attain purity of the Covenant, you will have reached the highest of holiness. When a person guards the Holy Covenant, it is as if he had kept the entire Torah because it is equal to the whole Torah.[18] The Holy Covenant makes the body of a man radiant and lustrous, and one who guards it will never come to any harm.[19] For years, tzaddikim searched for a tikkun, remedy, for the sexual desire. It wasn’t till about 200 years ago that it was found but unfortunately the remedy hasn’t become publicized enough. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said, “Through ten expressions of praise, the book of Psalms was composed. They are Nitzuach, Nigun, Maskil, Mizmor, Shir, Ashrei, Tehilah, Tefilah, Hoda’ah and Hallel.”[20] These ten types of song also correspond to the ten Sefiros as alluded to in the Zohar. They therefore have the power to nullify the strength of the kelipah and blemish caused by an impure experience. The ten Psalms a person should recite are, 16, 32, 41, 42, 59, 77, 90, 105, 137 and 150 in this order as shown. This is called the Tikkun HaKlali, the complete remedy. “Every sin has its own remedy but this is the complete remedy”.[21] Those struggling with overcoming their sexual desires should say these Psalms. Also, those who seek a remedy for any problem they might be experiencing should say it as it has the ability to reach places and rectify sins, even those of which we have forgotten about.

 

            It says in the Talmud, “Sinful thoughts are worse than the sin itself.”[22] Guard your thoughts very carefully, for thought can literally create life. The higher up a faculty is, the farther its capability to reach. You can kick something with your foot, but you can throw it much higher with your hand. Your voice can reach still farther, calling to a person far away. Hearing reaches even farther. Father yet is the reach of sight, which can touch even the astronomical bodies. The higher a faculty, the farther it can reach. The highest of all is the mind, which can penetrate the loftiest heights. You must therefore safeguard your mind above all else.[23] 

[Lewinsky Stinks, Dr. Brennan Rocks]

This "rabbi" is about the lowest of the low that exists. If this sick perverse "rabbi", or a child-molesting priest/pastor, were trapped in a burning building, along with a Shiite imam, and I was forced by law to save one...

[Kahane-Was-Right BT]

KWRBT,

Nowhere did I defend what he did. I was trying to say that being religious has nothing to do with whether a person will commit a sin. As a matter of fact, those who are religious may have an even more voracious yetzer hara for these kinds of things. But because you want to find a problem with what I said, you ignored the bulk of what I wrote and attributed things to me which I did not say.

I can bring plenty of examples from the Torah of great men who had problems with their womanizing. And by the way what are you smoking? I expect you to apologize for suggesting I ever defended what he did.

Womanizing? What do you mean by womanizing?   A man getting involved with multiple women in consensual sinning?    That is not allowed and it is a sin, but don't you understand the difference between 2 people consensually committing a sin vs a non consensual act like rape or video where there is a perpetrator and a victim?   And don't you understand what a betrayal of trust is when someone trusted by the community violates everything it holds dear and literally attacks and assaults his congregants?  Please tell me you can recognize a difference.

[muman613]

I did not seek to minimize the crime. My initial response was to demonstrate that just because he sinned like this doesn't take away his 'Rabbi' title. Even righteous men have been shown to err in their ways, especially concerning women. When LSDBR put rabbi in quotes,. implying it was a false title, I wanted to expound the lesson that all men struggle with the temptation to look at, touch, dominate women.

That does not excuse the behavior but puts the issue more on every man to contemplate what he looks at and desires (lusts) for.

[cjd]

I did not seek to minimize the crime. My initial response was to demonstrate that just because he sinned like this doesn't take away his 'Rabbi' title. Even righteous men have been shown to err in their ways, especially concerning women. When LSDBR put rabbi in quotes,. implying it was a false title, I wanted to expound the lesson that all men struggle with the temptation to look at, touch, dominate women.

That does not excuse the behavior but puts the issue more on every man to contemplate what he looks at and desires (lusts) for.

Have mercy ... I was avoiding making a comment here until I read where you state that the above animal should retain his Rabbi status... The biggest problem I have had with the RCC was the fact that in the past they failed to remove priests that went sour... What possible use to anyone is a Rabbi like the one above... Even if this creature managed to regain himself how would it be possible for him to be the head of a community.

[Zelhar]

Exactly so, keeping such a person is a big disservice for the community. People can't and won't trust such a "rabbi" and won't seek his counsel. That rabbi betrayed the trust of people of his community. That disqualifies him forever from such position. It's not about revenge or forgiveness, it is about not being fit for the position. It's kind of like all other so called civil servants on the tax payers paycheck, they tend to think we exist to serve them rather then the other way around.

Have mercy ... I was avoiding making a comment here until I read where you state that the above animal should retain his Rabbi status... The biggest problem I have had with the RCC was the fact that in the past they failed to remove priests that went sour... What possible use to anyone is a Rabbi like the one above... Even if this creature managed to regain himself how would it be possible for him to be the head of a community.

[muman613]

Have mercy ... I was avoiding making a comment here until I read where you state that the above animal should retain his Rabbi status... The biggest problem I have had with the RCC was the fact that in the past they failed to remove priests that went sour... What possible use to anyone is a Rabbi like the one above... Even if this creature managed to regain himself how would it be possible for him to be the head of a community.

I suspect the problem is you are reading something which I did not intend into what you bolded.

As I thought about this over Shabbat I realized that I may have seemed to minimize the wrongdoing and that is not what I intended to do. My point, however obtuse, was to point out that just because a man is a rabbi or a priest that there is temptation, and the original post tried to minimize it by putting 'scare' quotes around the word rabbi. The original post also cast suggestions that he was a liberal and a BHO supporter. As if a real conservative or Orthodox rabbi would not be capable of committing such an act.

It was because of this I wrote about how all men are susceptible to temptation of women. And it is a big problem in both the irreligious and the religious worlds. Modesty seems to be a fading tradition even among the Modern Orthodox.

But please cease trying to portray my position as excusing this behavior. That is pure nonsense.
 

[Lewinsky Stinks, Dr. Brennan Rocks]

because of this I wrote about how all men are susceptible to temptation of women. And it is a big problem in both the irreligious and the religious worlds. Modesty seems to be a fading tradition even among the Modern Orthodox.

But please cease trying to portray my position as excusing this behavior. That is pure nonsense.

Please tell me you are writing this in jest. Or, are you seriously asserting that this "rabbi" was completely unable to control himself from setting up spy cameras in the women's showers? 

[Tag-MehirTzedek]

It was because of this I wrote about how all men are susceptible to temptation of women. And it is a big problem in both the irreligious and the religious worlds. Modesty seems to be a fading tradition even among the Modern Orthodox.

  Just imagine if it was your sister or wife he was looking at.
Having temptations and then doing this is completely different things. Besides the women that got hurt by his actions (emotionally) add on to that the Hillul Hashem and the fact that perhaps some women will be turned off and/or use it as an excuse to violate the laws of Nidda on top of that.
 If he wanted to see naked women he could have used the internet, plenty of those who want others to see them naked instead of having innocent, religious women exposed like that.