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In the news business, journalists are often admonished by their editors not to “bury the lead.” That is, get to the heart of a story and put it in the first sentence or first paragraph.

Anthony Weiss of the Forward wrote a fine article about the unusual case in which a Secular Court is being Called on To Enforce a Beth Din Ruling. Perhaps it is the secular perspective of the Forward itself that caused him to not only bury the lead, but to miss the shocking news within this story.

In an inexplicable and unprecedented move an orthodox rabbi is in contempt of a ruling of a beth din!

But this is not just any rabbi or any beth din. This is not a recalcitrant husband refusing to give a get. This is one of the leaders of modern orthodoxy, Rabbi Shlomo Riskin, refusing to abide by the ruling of the Beth Din of America, the beth din run by the Rabbinical Council of America (RCA) of which he is a prominent and respected member.

The RCA is the largest and most prestigious organization of orthodox Rabbis in the US. The Av Beth Din, the head of the Beth Din, is Rabbi Gedalia Schwartz, an eminent Jewish legal scholar. This case goes far beyond a note of interest that a secular court is being asked to affirm the judgment of a religious court. This case is nothing less than a move by a prominent Rabbi to set himself above his colleagues and halacha, Jewish law itself.

Of course, Rabbi Riskin has been more subtle in his contempt for the Beth Din of America. Instead of coming out and telling them he will not abide by their ruling, he has sent no less than three “appeals” to the Beth Din asking for it to change its judgment, suspend its judgment, or otherwise explain their reasoning to him.

The Beth Din of America has been flexible with its own rules to allow Rabbi Riskin leeway, allowing extensions when his attorneys missed deadlines or allowing for translation of documents though the rules specify English as the required language. However, the Beth Din has been firm in its application of its rules that the case was heard, a single appeal to the Av Beth Din is allowed, and then the case is settled. The latest reply of the Beth Din to Rabbi Riskin’s entreaty to stay its judgment stated:

As you know, the Beth Din issued a decision in this matter dated September 17, 2007 (issued October 8, 2007) and a Response to Appeal of P’sak Din dated February 4, 2008. The Av Beth Din has reviewed your request for the issuance of a formal stay of the decision, and has denied that request.

So when Rabbi Riskin told the Forward that he would not comment because the case was still before the Beth Din, he was shading the truth a bit. The Beth Din issued a final ruling on February 4, 2008 and the fact that Rabbi Riskin has sent additional letters to them asking them to change their ruling, does not reopen the case nor bring the case before them again.

Nevertheless, like a child who does not like the result of a contest, Rabbi Riskin continues to ask for a “do over.”

This case easily could have been taken to civil court, but out of respect for Rabbi Riskin and orthodox Jewish sensibilities, I decided that the appropriate place for Jews to take a dispute was to a beth din.

I was asked during the many months of the process what I would do if I won and the rabbi refused to pay. All I could answer was that it was inconceivable that a prominent orthodox rabbi would not abide by the ruling of beth din.

It is all the more shocking in that Rabbi Riskin has been an advocate for the agunot, chained women who cannot get remarried because their husbands refuse to give them a get, a Jewish divorce. It is a major problem and a major issue for virtually every beth din. How can the community force someone to abide by community standards? What can a beth din do to exert pressure on someone who refuses to do the right thing? That’s the critical question for every beth din whether it is dealing with a recalcitrant husband or a recalcitrant rabbi.

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