How dare she, a lowly woman think god wants her to be a rabbi, created from a mere rib?

October 24, 2012 5:56 AM

Rabbi Yaakov Rosenblatt recently took issue with Sarah Silverman's Let My People Vote campaign for its use of "biblical language", but then decided that it was symptomatic of a hole in her life that can only be filled by traditional marriage and family. Silverman's dad took to the comments and responded: "Hey asshole...".
posted by Mezentian (25 comments total)

Heh. Rabbi caught in the headlights.
posted by MuffinMan at 6:03 AM on October 24, 2012 [2 favorites]

AUDIO AUTOPLAY ON LINK
posted by thelonius at 6:07 AM on October 24, 2012

1. Don't try to troll a stand-up comedian who has perfected the art of trolling.
2. She is pretty damn amazing, isn't she?
posted by Foci for Analysis at 6:08 AM on October 24, 2012 [1 favorite]

Is the quote in HuffPo/Jezebel the entire comment by her dad? For some reason I can't seem to look at comments on JP so I can't tell.

But wow that's a terrible open letter. Just atrocious.
posted by Lemurrhea at 6:11 AM on October 24, 2012

But I won’t be so gratuitous. You are in show biz. I am in the rabbi biz. You entertain people. I serve people. I believe I have your number. You will soon turn 42 and your destiny, as you stated, will not include children. You blame it on your depression, saying you don’t want to pass it on to another generation.

Disgusting.

I've really struggled with certain precepts of Orthodox Judaism. My mother was raised in an Orthodox family, and growing up we went to my grandmother's synagogue. The services, which excluded women and were conducted in Hebrew, are likely partly to blame for my prevailing agnosticism. I have trouble with any religion that doesn't want my participation except in the home--I was similarly troubled by the status of the women at the wall when I took my birthright trip to Israel. I remember talking to my Orthodox aunt about it and she gave me the standard line about women being more holy than men and therefore not needing to pray. Recently, my mother (who had been trending more and more reform over the years) came back from visiting her with a spiel about how gross she feels reform synagogues are--"Like Church, with everyone all sitting together!" and declaring that she feels women should sit separately and that anything else is "creepy."

And maybe some of that is just my family (my family is pretty screwy), but I have so much trouble with religious conversations which start with insults and rudeness and devaluing the experience of others--others who identify as Jews, even--rather than mutual respect and thoughtfulness.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 6:21 AM on October 24, 2012 [5 favorites]

Patriarchal religion adherent is dismissive of women, film at 11.
posted by Kitty Stardust at 6:23 AM on October 24, 2012 [4 favorites]

I had better start writing my "Hey Asshole" letter to my daughter's 4th grade teacher!
posted by shothotbot at 6:25 AM on October 24, 2012 [1 favorite]

I pray that you channel your drive and direct your passion to something positive, something that will make you a better and more positive person, something that will allow you to touch eternity and truly impact the world forever.

Hey rabbinical dude, shouldn't you be spending your prayer time asking for things that would constitute actual changes rather than things that are fait accompli?
posted by orange swan at 6:29 AM on October 24, 2012

Is there some context within orthodox Judaism in which calling your family "the brood" isn't creepy? Didn't sound like he was trying to make a joke, either.
posted by echo target at 6:30 AM on October 24, 2012

Huh. The Jewish Press article keeps crashing the browsers (two of them) on my phone. Does the text exist anywhere else?
posted by looli at 6:31 AM on October 24, 2012

Huh... I'm not sure I'd want my father rushing to my defense to brag about how great my sister's family is.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 6:33 AM on October 24, 2012 [4 favorites]

Dad got his moment to shine, did a slightly better job of it than the typical Little League dad getting thrown out of the ballpark. Go dad!
posted by surplus at 6:38 AM on October 24, 2012 [1 favorite]

I think this story benefits strongly from being presented in tiny pill form, ending with "hey asshole..."
posted by SharkParty at 6:38 AM on October 24, 2012

You will soon turn 42 and your destiny, as you stated, will not include children.

My wife had our son when she was 42. All due respect, Rabbi, go step on a Lego.
posted by bondcliff at 6:39 AM on October 24, 2012 [12 favorites]

I'm not sure what people are so up in arms about. This is his area of expertise and he should have his say in a public forum. Nothing he said was particularly egregious.

Oh wait, hang on, sorry, I was reading the "Interpretation of Noahide Laws with Regard to Brisket Processing" op-ed. Carry on.
posted by griphus at 6:43 AM on October 24, 2012 [1 favorite]

Serene Empress Dork: "Huh... I'm not sure I'd want my father rushing to my defense to brag about how great my sister's family is."

Yeah, he lost me after the "Hey asshole". He is more defending the Silverman family name than Sarah herself.

Sarah, although not needing to be defended, can and should be defended all by her own merits. I do love when he says he cannot find the rabbi on the list though.
posted by AugustWest at 6:43 AM on October 24, 2012 [3 favorites]

All due respect, Rabbi, go step on a Lego.

I am totally using this at least three separate times today, including the Rabbi, but to non-Rabbis.
posted by nevercalm at 6:43 AM on October 24, 2012 [9 favorites]

People on facebook have been circulating this the last few days.... I don't know. The rabbi's letter is abhorrent, but the dad's response just seems kind of shouty and slightly off-topic. People seem to respond to his passion, I guess, but his response was nothing like what you'd expect from Sarah herself, which is to say, cool precision and complete evisceration. I would not ever willingly put myself in her crosshairs.
posted by sleevener at 6:44 AM on October 24, 2012

Also:

"But now, for the very first time in my life, I patronized Chick-fil-A. I bought a $50 gift card. I will give it to my postal carrier in appreciation of a job well done. I chose Chick-fil-A over other retailers because when the media and left-leaning politicians are calling for the downfall of a man who speaks his heart and expresses what is good for humanity, it is time for all those who share Judeo-Christian values to stand up and be counted."

Oh fuck you, rabbi.
posted by griphus at 6:44 AM on October 24, 2012 [2 favorites]

I never knew I'd be in a position to think Sarah Silverman's dad is pretty awesome.
posted by shakespeherian at 6:49 AM on October 24, 2012

The rabbi's letter is despicable.

But so is Sarah Silverman.
posted by gertzedek at 6:52 AM on October 24, 2012 [1 favorite]

I'm not terribly fond of Sarah Silverman's act, but I don't think anything she has said was remotely as despicable as "maybe you wouldn't be so uppity if you found yourself a man and had a few kids like you're supposed to."
posted by griphus at 6:55 AM on October 24, 2012 [3 favorites]

Go Dad, go Sarah.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 6:56 AM on October 24, 2012

I'm hoping Sarah Silverman responds with a song, I Am Woman, performed as a solo duet.
posted by zippy at 7:00 AM on October 24, 2012

The rabbi's letter is despicable.

But so is Sarah Silverman.
posted by gertzedek

Jeez, that is pretty harsh.
posted by orme at 7:02 AM on October 24, 2012