[Avodah] Tzeni'us and gender roles

[Ken Bloom]

In an off-list discussion about something I said, RMB pointed out to me
that I made as statement that sounded like an ad-hominem attack when I
called RAW "disingenuous". That was not my intention.

I wrote:
>     Here's where I think the issue is. I think R' Weiss is being
>     disingenuous about how he presents this. He wants to create a woman who
>     can be the sole leader of a community, and he's not doing it because he
>     thinks that people can improve their halachic observance that way. 
>     AISI, R' Weiss wants to build a female pulpit rabbi so that he can show
>     the world we have gender equality. His constituency is so enamored with
>     the idea of gender equality that they're willing to pay for this.


And RMB responded:
> If I'm reading him correctly:
> Ken finds that creating a Maharat that people will only realize after
> the existence of women with the title are accepted really means "woman
> rabbi" is disingenious.
> 
> I do not think this characterization of RAW and his community is fair,
> though. I think they do believe that can improve their avodas Hashem
> (including observance) this way. I think the flaw is that they're
> accepting the worldview in which that's true as unchangable, rather
> than jettisoning the desire for egalitarianism and with it the illusion
> that excluding women from the clergy in unfair. Unless they do that,
> their girls will be alienated by the current communal structure. And
> that problem is real.

I guess you're right, and I probably should have stated it the way you
did. He probably really does see a perception that excluding women from
the clergy is unfair, and feels that he should accommodate this by
creating a Mahara"t.  And I agree with you that they should look at
changing their worldview rather than promoting women to fit their
worldview.

I probably shouldn't have used the word "disingenuous". He's only being
disingenuous if he's saying the goal is to solve the problems RnCL has
been discussing on Avodah. He isn't saying that, but I got confused from
the context I was writing from earlier in the post.

--Ken