Once upon a time, there was a shul with a young lady dating a Gentile. The lady wanted her beau to be Jewish and so he underwent a conversion process. That June, the old rabbi married the couple.
Soon rumors began to spread. This young man was bragging to his friends that he had in fact "pulled a fast one on the old man" viz. the old Rabbi. The word got back to the old Rabbi and it broke his heart. Not being in robust health, the old rabbi soon passed on.
The shul went out and hired a brand new rabbi. It was soon that he faced a real dilemma. The young Convert was a regular in shul. There was no doubt that his predecessor had married legally them - and thus the conversion was presumably valid.
Yet the ugly rumors persisted. And they came from various independent sources. Shul members were quite skeptical about the entire affair. No one wanted to insult the Old Rabbi's memory, but people said "let's face it, had the old rabbi been about 10 years younger this scoundrel could have Never pulled the wool over his eyes."
The new rabbi is in a dilemma. There is no hard evidence to support the fact that this conversion was a scam. On the other hand, there was a good deal of circumstantial evidence that pointed in that direction.
What should the new rabbi do? Should he open up an investigation - and a can of worms! Can he afford to ignore the obvious sticky situation?
KT
RRW
Previously Published 5/15/07
Soon rumors began to spread. This young man was bragging to his friends that he had in fact "pulled a fast one on the old man" viz. the old Rabbi. The word got back to the old Rabbi and it broke his heart. Not being in robust health, the old rabbi soon passed on.
The shul went out and hired a brand new rabbi. It was soon that he faced a real dilemma. The young Convert was a regular in shul. There was no doubt that his predecessor had married legally them - and thus the conversion was presumably valid.
Yet the ugly rumors persisted. And they came from various independent sources. Shul members were quite skeptical about the entire affair. No one wanted to insult the Old Rabbi's memory, but people said "let's face it, had the old rabbi been about 10 years younger this scoundrel could have Never pulled the wool over his eyes."
The new rabbi is in a dilemma. There is no hard evidence to support the fact that this conversion was a scam. On the other hand, there was a good deal of circumstantial evidence that pointed in that direction.
What should the new rabbi do? Should he open up an investigation - and a can of worms! Can he afford to ignore the obvious sticky situation?
KT
RRW
Previously Published 5/15/07
1 comment:
Important question: is the convert a big donor? Or is his wife?
If he is, then leave him alone.
If not, toss the faker out!
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