The Special Place of the Rabbinate: Something to Wrestle With (Shev 31b)

There's been a lot of talk about the power of the rabbinate, especially around the latest conversion bill. Although it's tabled for the short term it will probably come up again soon.

So why do we care? One reason comes from yesterday's daf. In it we find that if I ask someone to testify on my behalf outside of a courtroom and they lie, saying that they don't have relevant testimony, they are exempt from any penalty. However, if I ask the same question to someone in court, they are liable for having lied.

This is just one example of the special place of the rabbinate and rabbinical courts throughout Jewish tradition. Although we may not like it, there has always been something different, something special about testifying in court, before the rabbis.  While its been contested just how much power the rabbis had during the time of the Mishnah (when our daf text was written), we know that over time, the rabbinate has grow in traditional communities have have a lot of power.

One of the things that's missing from the debate about the place of the rabbinate for Jews today is the nod at the texts that give the rabbinate power. While many will plainly say that they don't want the rabbinate running their lives without considering this history (which is an important position to have), there needs to be other liberal Jews who are loudly wrestling with these traditional texts. How can we as modern Jews feel bound by these texts when they do give the rabbinic court power and might invalidate our standing as Jews? How can I fight for what I believe in (the place of liberal judaism in America and Israel) but not forget that we have a two thousand year tradition behind us (and in front of us)?

Of course, sometimes you just have to look at what's going on and shake your head. Why is the rabbinate telling me that I can't sing under the chuppah at my wedding?