After an ultra-Orthodox upbrgg and yhiva tn, Jayson Ltman has bee a lear the gay Jewish muny
Contents:
- FIRST OPENLY GAY ORTHODOX RABBI ORDAED JESALEM
- MEET THE KG OF NEW YORK’S GAY JEWISH NIGHTLIFE
- WHY STRAIGHT PEOPLE GO TO GAY SYNAGOGU
FIRST OPENLY GAY ORTHODOX RABBI ORDAED JESALEM
Home-sli-1Congregatn Be Simchat TorahLbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgenr, Queer, Intersex, Straight, Jewish. JERUSALEM (JTA) — A gay rabbil stunt nied ordatn by a liberal semary New York was weled to the rabbate Jesalem, breakg a longstandg taboo agast homosexualy the Orthodox muny. Many young gay Orthodox Jews who would have prevly left the fold are stayg “and ’s almost unimagable for them to not have a place, ” he ntued.
MEET THE KG OF NEW YORK’S GAY JEWISH NIGHTLIFE
The Renstctnist and Reform movements began ordag gay rabbis the 1980s, wh the Conservative movement followg 2006. For his part, Lans do not believe that the Biblil prohibn of same-sex relatns appli to people for whom homosexualy is “not an act of voln” and thks that there is room for LGBT Jews the wir muny. Rabbi Nathan Lop Cardozo, another proment rabbi who has ocsnally e to nflict wh the Orthodox mastream, agreed wh Lans, tellg JTA that while he didn’t have a rabbic source to back up, he believ that “the prohibn [on homosexual acts] only appli to those who are purely heterosexual.
Assertg that Orthodox views of homosexualy have been slowly changg, he said that there is a new awarens that “they’re not pedophil, they’re not people of falsehood or whatever, they’re good people. Lans said that the genis of his transformatn om the mastream Orthodox posn, which views homosexualy as a grave s, me several s ago after he explaed to members of his own ngregatn the Uned Stat why he had cled to attend a nference anized by the Central Conference of Amerin Rabbis after the Reform-affiliated group passed a rolutn on LGBT cln. And while the rabbi ially uldn’t image gay Jews wantg to rema the Orthodox muny, let alone bee Jewish scholars unr s spic, he now has a different view.
“I thk we will start wh the gay muny self and if there is the abily to create a real muny on the relig level will lead to acceptance or maybe will be limed for a long perd, ” he said. After an ultra-Orthodox upbrgg and yhiva tn, Jayson Ltman has bee a lear the gay Jewish muny. They were all gay.
WHY STRAIGHT PEOPLE GO TO GAY SYNAGOGU
Bily navigatg this scene — at tim a headset so he uld ordate the chaos — was Jayson Ltman, the eveng’s host and one of the most dynamic figur New York’s gay Jewish muny. Wh nearly 1, 000 partygoers this past December — most om New York, but others travelg om Boston, Philalphia and Washgton — the Jewbilee has bee a major event on the regn’s gay Jewish lendar, as well as a way for revelers to nnect often-separate parts of their inty.
Wh nearly 1, 000 partygoers this past December -- most om New York, but others travelg om Boston, Philalphia and Washgton -- the Jewbilee has bee a major event on the regn’s gay Jewish lendar. “The people at my parti are what I ll cultural or urban gay Jews, ” says Ltman, 34, a former yhiva boy who spent two years after high school studyg Israel.
Even after tellg his parents at 22, he grappled wh the prospect of what he lls “livg gay, ” and then for half a “cid that I didn’t want to be gay” after all. “Gog to a gay-affirmg therapist jt wasn’t an optn at that pot, ” he adds. I never would have been able to go om beg really relig to beg gay” whout a amework that alt wh both.