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<DIV><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" face=Arial color=#000000
size=2>From: "s kadish" <A
href="mailto:skadish1@gmail.com">skadish1@gmail.com</A><BR><BR>>>Despite
the widespread discussion of #1, in our experience it is #2 that<BR>is truly the
motivation for the batei din. The ingathering of the exiles<BR>was never
promised to be lily-white: The State of Israel has accepted --<BR>rightly and
justly -- the surviving remnant of communities that suffered<BR>Hitler, Stalin,
and 70 years of communism. These included intermarried<BR>families and their
descendants. It is precisely this point that those<BR>who disqualify the RZ
batei din most disagree with: The charedim view<BR>the recent aliyah of
1,000,000+ Russians as a Torah tragedy rather than<BR>as a historical
vindication of Netach Yisrael. That is the difference<BR>that makes all the
difference.<<<BR><BR>Shabbat Shalom,<BR>Seth (Avi) Kadish<BR>Karmiel,
Israel<BR></FONT></DIV><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" face=Arial
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<DIV><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" face=Arial color=#000000
size=2>>>>>></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" face=Arial color=#000000
size=2>Thank you for clarifying this extremely important point.</FONT></DIV>
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size=2>I would add that the flood of Russians that were brought into Israel on
the basis of the flimsiest of Jewish connections were /deliberately/
brought in by the secular government, with the precise intention of diluting the
influence of the religious parties -- charedi and DL alike.</FONT></DIV>
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size=2>Many charedim are very unhappy with what they see as the DL tendency to
do the secular Zionists' dirty work for them -- retroactively "kashering" what
amounts to a spiritual eruv rav -- without really expecting that the majority of
these Russians will ever be observant.</FONT></DIV>
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size=2>The testimony which has been brought here, to the effect that the DL
batei din DO grill would-be converts intensively, suggests that maybe these
charedi criticisms are having an effect. In addition, negative experiences
with large numbers of converts who proved to be very problematic have also
probably had their effect, such that DL batei din are, perhaps, belatedly
tightening up their standards.</DIV>
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<DIV><FONT lang=0 face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF"
PTSIZE="10"><BR><B>--Toby
Katz<BR>=============<BR></B><BR></FONT></DIV></FONT><BR><BR><BR><DIV><FONT style="color: black; font: normal 10pt ARIAL, SAN-SERIF;"><HR style="MARGIN-TOP: 10px">Wondering what's for Dinner Tonight? <A title="http://food.aol.com/dinner-tonight?NCID=aolfod00030000000001" href="http://food.aol.com/dinner-tonight?NCID=aolfod00030000000001" target="_blank">Get new twists on family favorites at AOL Food</A>.</FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>