Dear Rabbi Riskin,
As American rabbis, we, your colleagues, write to you to ask you to retract and apologize for your statement comparing President Barack Obama to Haman.
As rabbis, we know the importance of being careful with our words. In the Babylonian Talmud (Eruvin 13a), Rabbi Yishmael the scribe warns his student Rabbi Meir, “be careful with your work, for it is the work of Heaven. Should you perhaps omit one letter or add one letter ― it could result that you destroy the entire world.”
For those of us who know both the Purim story and the history of how some extremist Jews have understood that story, your recent comparison of President Obama to Haman is dangerous, and borders on incitement. In your statement that “The president of the United States is lashing out at Israel just like Haman lashed out at the Jews,” you compare our president to someone whose execution we recite aloud every year. This comparison is outrageous and unacceptable.
You justified your accusation by saying that you were “not making a political statement, [but] a Jewish statement.” As rabbis, we know that “Jewish statements” and pronouncements by rabbis govern how Jews are meant to live our lives. Referring to the President of the United States in terms reserved for one of the greatest enemies of our tradition both violates the prohibitions against lashon hara and undermines the interests of the Jewish people.
As a deeply-respected rabbi born in the United States, who has served communities both here and in Israel, you know the implications of your statement, as well as the harm of such statements in both communities.
As we approach Passover, the holiday of liberation and justice, we ask you to use your rabbinic voice to model Jewish language that heals the brokenness of our world, rather than that encourages hatred or worse. In the words of Proverbs, “יֵשׁ בּוֹטֶה כְּמַדְקְרוֹת חָרֶב וּלְשׁוֹן חֲכָמִים מַרְפֵּא” “The words of the reckless pierce like swords, but the words of the wise bring healing.” We ask you to retract your words, and use your powerful rabbinic voice to bring healing.
Sincerely,
Rabbi Anna Boswell-Levy, NY
Rabbi Ayelet Cohen NY
Rabbi Jill Jacobs, NY
Rabbi Eric Solomon, NC
Rabbi Sid Schwarz, MD
Rabbi Nancy Wiener, NY
Rabbi Menachem Creditor, CA
Rabbi Paula Marcus, CA
Rabbi Lester Bronstein, NY
Rabbi Rachel Mikva, IL
Rabbi Jonah Geffen, NY
Rabbi Laurie Green, MD
Rabbi Eric Cohen, NH
Rabbi Lina Zerbarini, NY
Rabbi David Bauer, NY
Rabbi Meredith Cahn, CA
Rabbi Jan Uhrbach, NY
Rabbi Abie Ingber, OH
Rabbi Hillel Gamoran, IL
Rabbi Jim Kaufman, CA
Rabbi Martin Weiner, CA
Rabbi Andrew Paley, TX
Rabbi Steve Westman, FL
Rabbi Andrew Ettin, NC
Rabbi Gavriel K. McDaniel-Miccio, CO
Rabbi Renee Edelman, NJ
Rabbi Daniel Kirzane, NY
Rabbi Pamela Frydman, CA
Rabbi David Ruderman, PA
Rabbi Michael Mellen , NY
Rabbi Ellen Dreyfus, IL
Rabbi Leah Sudran, CA
Rabbi Nadav Caine, CA
Rabbi Barat Ellman, NY
Rabbi Barry Block, AR
Rabbi David Steinhardt, FL
Rabbi Robert Dobrusin, MI
Rabbi Sandra Cohen, CO
Rabbi Judith Edelstein, NY
Rabbi Jan Salzman, VT
Rabbi Peter Knobel, IL
Rabbi Arnold Saltzman, DC
Rabbi Matthew Dreffin, MS
Rabbi S David Sperling, NY
Rabbi David Levy, NJ
Rabbi Shawn Zevit, PA
Rabbi Rick Shapiro, CT
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