[Avodah] Reporting Child Abuse - A Clarification

[kennethgmiller at juno.com]

R' Micha Berger wrote:

> The differance between the RCA and RAS's presentation of the
> Agudah's position is more that one says "contact the police,
> consult with pros and rabbis if you're unsure" and the other says,
> "contact your rabbi -- who presumably knows to consult
> professionals in the field -- unless you are certain". A
> difference in tenor, and thus possibly in how the instructions get
> followed lemaaseh.
>
> BTW, it's leshitasam. MO, which sees Western Civ as tools for
> qedushah first, and only then considers the risks involved,
> phrases it as calling secular authorities unless you're in doubt.
> The norm is to work with civil authorities (working with Western
> Civ), the need to ask a she'eilah, the exception. The Agudah,
> which has the chareidi focus on Western Civ as a challenge that
> once circumvented may still have some tools for avodas Hashem,
> talks about speaking to a rav unless your sure. The shei'eilah
> is the default, and only once checked does working with the
> Western Civ authorities make sense.

I don't understand what "Western Civ as tools for qedushah" has to do with any of this. There's no logical connection that I can find between the first paragraph and the second.

As I see it, both have the same top priority: protect the public. The main difference between the two, as the first paragraph explained so well, is that the RCA trusts the individual to decide, and the Agudah is afraid that if the public has this permission, witch hunts may ensue, causing more damage than the non-reporting might.

But there are other possibilities. One is that the RCA's threshhold is "first-hand-knowledge or a reasonable suspicion", while the Agudah's is "probable cause (raglayim la-davar)". I cannot help but notice this difference in wording, and I think it is entirely possible that the Agudah considers a mere "reasonable suspicion" to be **insufficient**.

In other words, it is not merely that the Agudah feels that we're dealing with "a halakhic matter which requires a decision by a qualified posek" and cannot be decided by a layman, but that the level of evidence which is acceptable to the RCA is not good enough for Agudah.

None of the above should be understood as me endorsing one side or the other. I do have some opinions on this, but this issue is far too important for a katan like me to weigh in on. Leave this for the gedolim.

Akiva Miller


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