Summary Of The Laskin Kehuna Saga - The True Scandal Of The Laskin Kehuna Saga
A quick חזרה of the now famous heter that Bunim Laskin received to marry a giyores. Bunim asked the shaila to Rav Bess. He sent him to ask Rav Cohen who was matir. Detractors, led by Rav Bess and including Rav Fuerst, Rav Levine, Rav Kamenetsky, Rav Feinstein, Rav Fund, and others, disagreed with the legitimacy of the psak.
Bunim felt their disagreeing with the legitamicy of the psak was due to not fully knowing the situation. Rav Forchheimer was consulted, and he recommended putting together a Beis Din to review the psak. He suggested names. After personally speaking to the family, they reached the conclusion that Rav Cohen's heter is legitimate. At the request of Rav Miller's son-in-law Yosef Kushner, (who is a member of the family,) they removed themselves from listening to further, new testimony that he claimed would change the psak.
At the behest of Rav Wachtfogel and the family, another Beis Din was formed. To make a long story short, after conducting an independant investigation, they concurred with the previous Beis Din and Rav Cohen's conclusion. It then went through additional reviews by other prominent poskim such as Rav Fuerst, Rav Levine, Rav Senderovic, and Rav Litke.
The various Rabbanim involved agreed many times to have other Rabbanim review the case, including people requested by the family and their representatives, Such as Rav Swerdloff, who was requested by R' Saltz and R' Bromberg, and who was contacted and agreed.
The family and their representatives did what they could to derail any efforts at reaching a peaceful closure. For them, the possibility of the psak being upheld was not an option.
Some of the Rabbanim involved (those from the first Beis Din to review Rav Cohen's psak,) even went so far as to sign a shtar birurin allowing a Beis Din of the family and their representatives choice to review the case. The Beis Din chosen by the family and their reps backed out.
The family and their reps then arranged for a proclamation to be publicized against those Rabbanim. This proclamation went to extremes the likes of which we don't generally see. It proclaimed that the Rabbanim, and the Beis Din they are affiliated with, are pasul. (Whether or not this would be in their jurisdiction even if all they claim would be true is a different discussion.)
What is the reasoning given for proclaiming them to be pasul?
This is where matters really enter an alternate reality.
The reason given is that they have not answered the call for a review of the investigation into Rav Cohen's psak!
A letter was summarily publicized in which the Beis Din the family and their representatives chose makes it very clear that the entire premise of the proclamation - namely, that the Rabbanim have not answered the call for a review of the investigation - is patently false, thereby utterly delegitimizing the proclamation.
[Well, there is the added caveat of "באופן המניח את דעתינו", and that can be understood as "until you retract and assume our position".]
The proclamation, in an apparent attempt at addressing the fact that numerous other Rabbanim were matir, (which itself raises the question of what the purpose of the diyun is if the other Rabbanim don't partake in it,) makes the bold claim that the Rabbanim from the first Beis Din to review Rav Cohen's psak "הכשילו אחרים להתיר". This is something that they can't possibly know without those other Rabbanim saying they were tricked. And yet, the other Rabbanim have consistently made it clear that they conducted their own investigations! [The family must have known this. After all, they spent hours speaking to some of these Rabbanim. In fact, they spent more time speaking to them then to members of the first Beis Din to review Rav Cohen's psak.]
This is shocking!
A proclamation this strongly worded, and of this nature - a proclamation calling for the destruction of major talmidei chachamim's jobs and reputations - calling for the dismantling of a major Beis Din which is mesader almost all the gittin in Lakewood - calling for all their gittin to be considered pasul! - cannot be issued so flippantly! It cannot be issued based on hearsay and lies. Especially not when the truth is so readily available for those seeking it! (Rav Bess, Rav Reisman, and all the others all have phone numbers...)
There should be public outrage over this!
We should be demanding a public accounting, a public retraction, and a public apology!
And we should ensure that the circumstances that led to this are not allowed to be replicated.
We will not go through each of the signatories, but they can all be easily analyzed. Suffice it to say that we must no longer allow people to misuse an אדם גדול and major posek (Rav Miller), an old man suffering from a severe case of Parkinson's, who will not pasken simple shailos anymore due to the mind-addling effects of the medicine coupled with age-induced senility. It is a בזיון התורה of epic proportions, and we must not allow to pass unnoticed. We must no longer stand for Rav Wachtfogel's "chatzer" (such as Shach Alter and Englander [who is Yitzchak Laskin's brother-in-law], who are self-proclaimed representatives of the family (on record), besides for their other motives,) feeding him whatever they want to elicit the response they desire.
This tremendous חילול השם must be publicly decried.
This is a sensitive topic, so enough said for now.
We here at Fixing Lakewood Blog thank you for giving your attention to this matter.
For accuracy's sake, I don't think they signed on to Rabbi Cohn's hetter, they believed the hetter he issued was incorrect, but believed it was muttar for other reasons.
ReplyDeletetoo much misinformation to try to correct in comments' can write a guest post to correct the record. If fixing Lakewood is the neutral party they claim to be they will agree to accept and publish it.
ReplyDeleteIf you send in a guest post with verifiable information, we will post it. As it is, all the information in this post is backed up by extensive documentation, recordings, and first-hand Rabbinic testimony.
Deletesure I say it is verifiable. What's the difference which anonymous person says it verifiable?
DeleteSeems you completely misunderstood. Perhaps this is clearer. If you can verify to us, then we will post it.
DeleteWe are still waiting for your informative guest post.
DeleteOne who is מבזה a תלמיד חכם loses his chelek in the next world. I’m sure glad I’m not writing against any of the people who signed .
ReplyDeleteThat’s exactly why we stayed away from that even though we feel that for many reasons it may be permitted within certain parameters in this case. ועיין בספר לוחות עדות. ועיין במש״כ הנו״ב להתיר אבל עצה טובה שלא. ועוד דברים כאלה
DeleteJust be careful how you talk about gedolim. I don’t envy the hell that your going to endure.
ReplyDeleteWhich Gedolim? For or against? It seems the rule in Lakewood is no one is allowed to bash the Gedolim who are on your side, but you can feel free to bash Gedolim who are on the other side...
DeleteYou say that R’ swerdloff agreed… are we supposed to take that at face value without any proof
ReplyDeleteWhy don’t you ask him?
DeleteI am confused. What side is the "family" on? And why did Kushner leave the bais din?
ReplyDeleteFake news
ReplyDeleteIs the Rabbi Cohen who's being referenced the former leader of Gvul yavetz in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn?
ReplyDeleteYes
DeleteI seem to recall a letter from Cohen where he retracted his dispensation. Am I mistaken?
DeleteHe has since written many more letters expressing his strong position permitting the marriage. Some went public, some not. He also spoke to Bunim and many of the Rabbanim.
DeleteFor example, see his letter posted here: https://fixinglakewood.blogspot.com/2025/02/a-collection-of-rabbanim-supporting.html
Ask him? I did and guess what fake news once again! Please only post the truth for everyone’s sake thank you
ReplyDeleteStop lying. All those who knew anything about what was going on know About the Rav Swerdloff part. You didn't even hear the recording of Saltz saying to go to him? I thought that was spread pretty widely.
DeleteI have a question.
ReplyDeleteIf the Beis Havaad retracts and announces that they were wrong, will the Alter/Englander/Gorelick group stop their maaracha?
We all know the answer. That is what they want, and the maaracha will end.
Even though the couple will stay happily married and the 'pirtzah' will continue. Because they never cared about hilchos kehuna, they were never worried about the halacha, and no halachic justification could appease them.
Agree! the gedolims problem with this b.d. Is not the laskin saga per say, it’s many other matters that have come before it , that they acted in a way not acceptable for true dayonim in Klal Yisroel the laskin saga is just the tip of the iceberg. Also being a dayon is not just knowing the halocha you need a heavy dose of sechel and pikchus. Without personal biases all of us are human and hashem gave the torah to humans to be decided by us. However when you mess up enough times we begin to wonder what’s going on there
DeleteGedolim’s problem with this Beis Din?! Really?! Who are you fooling?! Do you mean Elya Ber who nobody ever thought was a responsible person, is controlled by his chatzer, is not even a posek, and is not rooted in reality?! The same Elya Ber who does his best to promote Knopfler, and has stated many times that he would like to replace Bais Havaad with Knopfler?! The same Elya Ber who sends people to secular courts without a second thought, without knowing the facts (understanding facts is not his strong point - he just accepts the word of his guy who comes crying to him….) without knowing the halachos involved?! The same Elya Ber whose animalistic, instinctive hatred for the Bais Havaad comes simply because he doesn’t get his way with them when his people lose; like a little baby?! The same Elya Ber who lost all the credibility he never had by actual Rabbanim in Lakewood because of his instinctive tendencies?! The same Elya Ber who whenever anyone speaks to him walks away feeling like there was nothing conscious going on in his little brain, and his responses and behavior were instinctive; like a little kid?! The same Elya Ber who the only reason anyone believes in him is because of this same impression of him not living in reality, because he’s not a responsible person?! Or perhaps Shlomo Miller who supported the Bais Havaad until yesterday, and only signed against them in his Parkinson’s medicine-induced, and unhealthy old person, senility, in a case where his son in law is part of the family, and one of the dayanim is his old competitor and nemesis, whose entire family he has harbored a deep hatred for since he was expelled from Philly as a bachur. The same Shlomo Miller who is known for getting worked into a rage over anything people provoke him about, a כעסן par excellence. And as it turns out, in this case the Bais Havaad has marginal relevance because it was already passed on to other Rabbanim who Bunim is following. So think again. This entire maaracha is clearly just that - a maaracha. All I can say is that maarachos won’t work when it comes to the ג׳יין הגדול ביום הדין הגדול והנורא.
DeleteYou give them too much credit, it's not just sechel they lack, they make plenty of halachik mistakes too.
DeleteThis is starting to border on the idiotic. Actually, it’s been idiotic long ago. What personal bias did they have to permit Bunim’s marriage?! If anything they had bias to uphold their original position forbidding it. And Bunim’s Sheila was anyway given over to other Rabbanim as soon as Kushner asked them to. And you’re probably the big talmid chacham who is not merely on the level of erudition to disagree with their Halachic reasoning; you could even definitively say they made a mistake!
DeleteIn this case we are witnessing כל הפוסל במומו פוסל. One thing that these Rabbanim are specifically known for that Miller and Wachtfogel are specifically not known for, is שכל and פקחות. And Wachtfogel is definitely not known for his Halachic prowess and erudition, while Miller won’t even pasken simple shailos anymore on account of him being senile. So go join the loony Miller family, such as Yitzchak, Avramy, and heilige Bentzy, and keep trying to pump up a sick, senile man, and see if that actually generates more respect for him. I don’t seem to recall that strategy working out too well for the Sveis.
It’s funny how even those who respect the Millers all have the same דארהער that there seems a genetic rabid tendency with a lot of lip-frothing.
DeleteSome of the comments in this thread are getting too ad hominem and are written in a way which promotes tremendous בזיון התורה of some of the גדולי הדור. While we will leave the comments already posted due to the real תוכן in them, (we can’t edit comments,) in the future express your analysis without the בזיון תלמידי חכמים or we will not allow it through.
DeleteSad that people can't differentiate between hanhaga and Torah. When a person is a great Talmid Chacham, we talk differently about him. Even if he does things that are objectively wrong, he is still a Talmid Chacham.
Deletethis is disgusting to speak about Moran Rav Elya Ber Shlita in such a way and the writer and publisher of this blog will pay כי דבר ה' בזה כרת יכריתון
DeleteI am most impressed with one person in this story. When the signature collectors and political operators were playing checkers, Reb Eliyahu Levin taught them how to play 3d chess.
ReplyDeleteHis strict instructions to the Beis Din to ignore the provocations, along with his emphatic statement that אינם יודעים מאומה, had the bored souls hopping. They thought they were 'mentchn tzum tish', rubbing shoulders with the big boys, and having an effect on Klal Yisroel. Meanwhile, the Beis Din continued with their lives, adjudicating cases and helping people resolve their disputes.
They went from the coffee room in South Fallsburg to the streets of Edgware and back around to the hallways of Yeshivas Rabbeinu Chaim Berlin like headless chickens, desperate to be considered relevant. They collected signatures, arranged for inconsequential Dayanim to publicly and pompously resign from jobs they hardly had, and even caused a young posek to temporarily lose his job. But they were never successful at eliciting the reaction they were going for.
Worse still, he unmasked them where it counts. He announced how the people involved have experience and expertise in 'running מערכות'. Now, their final arrow was exposed. Anything they did was pre-empted by the knowledge that this was an organized attack, with no integrity or pure intent. Nobody takes them seriously anymore.
This latest sign, as disgusting as it is, is being ignored by everyone. Even in BMG, where people have less exposure to the world of Batei Din, the sign is being laughed at and ripped down. Their entire bag of tricks has been rendered impotent. Now they have manufactured a parody sign in the name of the Beis Havaad, thinking they finally nailed it. And the Beis Havaad is continuing with their lives, adjudicating cases and helping people resolve their disputes.
Get yourselves real jobs, with actual responsibilities, and take care of your families. Stop filling your sad lives with troublemaking.
I didn’t say he wasn’t asked I said he didn’t say yes. You lied and said that he said yes he told me he didn’t want to get involved so please only say the truth ok sheifela
ReplyDeleteShach. He said yes, and you didn’t speak to him. There were a few Rabbanim involved in that part of the saga, and they have all attested to that.
DeleteYour an idiot it’s not the job of a kanai to stop every person from doing the wrong every day but such a pirtza that “reputable” rabbis gave a heter like this can’t happen and I personally agree with the Them in this case
ReplyDeleteEmpty Gibberish
Deleter shlomo was in philly???????
Deleteunlikely
how is Kushner elated to laskin??
Add more question marks so you can look more ignorant. Kushner's mother is a Laskin. He was one of the main family members involved in the family testimony. He pays for the kuntresim, and drafted his father in law, Rabbi Miller, to join their cause.
DeleteAnd yes, Rabbi Miller did learn in Philly.
You bash gedolim under the disguise of anonymous then you act like a tatela by saying you won’t post any BZoiyon gedolim haha good one but I’m going to take that as an insult to my intelligence
ReplyDeletePlease even if a Tudor makes a mistake and even if he is wrong there is a way to address a person who has put day and night in harbutzoas hatora and it sit and learn
ReplyDeleteFunny you say reb eliyahu Levine is playing chess well In that case I’ll continue along those lines CHECK MATE
ReplyDeleteNo, he is learning Torah. He is teaching them how to play 3d chess.
DeleteSo far, the maaracha has been 'vi arbes oif di vant'. His strategy seems to have worked.
Someone tell rabbi Grossman that the strategy is working, I think it will be news to him.
Delete