The New York Hilton ballroom was packed Sunday night, May 9 as Agudath Israel of America held its 88th annual dinner. Two issues dominated the evening: the perception that the United States government is unduly pressuring Israel and the deeply disturbing prosecutions of Sholom Rubashkin.
After greetings by Agudath Israel executive director Rabbi Labish Becker, a kapitel of Tehillim was recited by the crowd, led by Rabbi Yosef Frankel, the Vyelopoler Rebbe, member of the Nesius of Agudas Yisroel.
The evening's chairman, Howard Tzvi Friedman, president emeritus of AIPAC and a respected member of the Baltimore Jewish community, then introduced Rabbi Yaakov Perlow, the Rosh Agudas Yisroel, the Novominsker Rebbe.
After welcoming the guests in Yiddish, he spoke in English, to ensure, he said, that the important issues he intended to address would be comprehended by all.
The first of those issues was how "the great majority of Jews in America is deeply concerned with our government's attitudes and positions" regarding security issues affecting Israel.
"Despite the reassurances," he continued, referring to the Obama administration's insistence that there has been no change in the U.S-Israel relationship, "there is a definite sense that this administration has, to a certain degree, shifted gears, and is not responding adequately to the mortal threats that our people face, from Iran and from the other wolves who are out to decimate the Land of Israel and Jews everywhere."
Our eyes, the Rebbe declared, are trained on our Father in heaven, Who will not abandon His people. "But we hope," he continued, "that the President understands that the hard line he seems to be taking is detrimental and dangerous, not only to the safety of the Holy Land but has become a tool in the hands of those who pursue terrorism and violence, who seek to destroy peace and the well-being of the entire civilized world."
Rabbi Perlow went on to say that in Israel there is a powerful secular force that cannot abide the renaissance of Torah in our day and seeks to undermine the religious community in the Holy Land.
Economic pressures, the Rebbe continued, are creating great stress both in Eretz Yisroel and here in America. And they take a toll not only on individuals but on mosdos haTorah, he said. "Our mosdos," he declared, "cannot be allowed to suffer, Rabbaim and moros to not be paid for months on end.
"The chinuch of our children must receive the priority in our thinking it deserves."
Acknowledging the powerful response of the community in helping needy individuals, the Rebbe exhorted his listeners that our mosdos "cannot be on the back burner."
The Rebbe also focused on the threat from within to dishonor our mesorah, fueled by things like "feminism and the trappings of modernity"; and on the free-for-all of the Internet and blogs that declare "open season on the norms of kedushah and mesorah and derech eretz!"
From there, Rabbi Perlow extolled the community for its efforts on behalf of former Agriprocessors CEO Sholom Mordechai Rubashkin.
Rabbi Perlow's final words of the evening concerned the need to "transmit the perspective of Yiddishkeit" to the younger generation, in particular the proper understanding of "the recent and tragic past" of our people, the years of the Second World War; and to inspire our young with the message that "netzach Yisroel lo yishaker" — "the eternity of Yisroel cannot be undermined."
The Rebbe singled out Project Witness, one of the evening's honorees, which makes available a wealth of serious educational material about the Holocaust to students and the public alike, calling it "a major contribution" to the effort.
The next address of the evening was delivered by Agudath Israel's executive vice president, Rabbi Chaim Dovid Zwiebel. Making clear that it is imperative to ensure that the law of the land is respected — and noting Agudath Israel's numerous concrete steps of late, including a series of dina demalchusa dina symposia in the New York areas and across the country — the Agudath Israel leader asserted that "distancing ourselves from criminal activity does not mean distancing ourselves from the plight of a precious member of Klal Yisroel who has been pursued by the government in this particular case with a zealousness that borders on vindictiveness, with a harshness that borders on viciousness."
After cataloguing some of the outrages to Rubashkin — which would be covered in even more detail by Mr. Cook later in the program — Rabbi Zwiebel noted how seven former Attorneys General of the United States, "wrote a letter to the judge expressing their horror at the prospect that Sholom Rubashkin would be sentenced to life in prison." After that the prosecution withdrew its request for a life sentence.
The Agudah executive vice president lamented, "One gets the sense that things are changing, in a dangerous direction. Even here in this benevolent malchus shel chesed, dark clouds are beginning to hover on the horizon.
"When our governmental leaders," he observed, "at the highest levels, make an international incident out of a mid-level bureaucratic approval of plans to proceed with building housing units in Ramat Shlomo, an almost exclusively chareidi stronghold, there's something troubling afoot."
And with that Rabbi Zwiebel introduced Mr. Guy Cook, who, he said, along with the expert law team of Nat and Aliza Lewin, have done so much for Mr. Rubashkin.
Taking the podium and surveying the large crowd, Mr. Cook, a partner in the Iowa law firm Grefe and Sidney and a past Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa, said it was "an honor to experience firsthand the strength and determination of the Orthodox community." Then the Iowa attorney presented a timeline of the case from its inception two years ago. And he made a powerful case for the contention that, repeatedly and incomprehensibly, Mr. Rubashkin seems to have been treated with undue harshness.
From the unprecedented 600-federal-agents and Black Hawk helicopter raid on Agriprocessors in 2008 (despite Mr. Rubashkin's declared willingness beforehand to work with authorities) to the nature of the crime of which he was convicted — essentially receiving (and repaying) loans for which he did not qualify — to an indefensible denial of bail while awaiting sentencing (despite his willingness to remain under monitored house arrest) — at seemingly every turn, said Mr. Cook, Mr. Rubashkin has faced indignities and outrages that are unheard of in cases of first time white-collar offenders.
When Mr. Cook completed his address, the crowd rose as one to its feet, and remained in a prolonged standing ovation in appreciation of the visitor's efforts on behalf of one of their brothers.
Greetings were extended to the gathering by New York Senator Charles E. Schumer and Congressman Anthony Weiner.
The dinner also saw the bestowal of a number of awards on worthy members of the community. Askonim who received major awards at the dinner were: Jacob (Yaty) Weinreb, who received The Rabbi Moshe Sherer Memorial Award for lifelong devotion to Klal Yisroel; Rabbi Chaim Aaron Weinberg, was presented with the Hagaon Rav Aharon Kotler Memorial Award for distinguished service to Torah; and Eric Stern, Esq., an attorney at Sack & Sack, received the Moreinu Yaakov Rosenheim Memorial Award for distinguished service to Agudath Israel. The Reb Elimelech Tress Memorial Award for the preservation of the legacy of the She'aris Hapleitah was presented to "Project Witness," the organization under the leadership of Mrs. Ruth Lichtenstein dedicated to Holocaust education and awareness.
Avodas Hakodesh honorees, introduced by Agudath Israel executive vice president for finance and administration Rabbi Shlomo Gertzulin, were: Rabbi Daniel Baumann, Yitzchok Eckstein, Yisroel Golding and Shimon Katz. Baruch Rabinowitz received the Wolf Friedman Young Leadership Award.
A special video in tribute to the late and beloved Agudath Israel askan Reb Chaskel Besser was also presented at the dinner, bringing smiles and tears to many.
