<persName ref="http://d-nb.info/gnd/140107282">Moses Hoffmann</persName>: Rabbinical Opinion on the Eligibility of Women for Office in the <orgName ref="http://d-nb.info/gnd/236077-9">Community</orgName>, <placeName ref="http://vocab.getty.edu/tgn/7007601">Wrocław</placeName>, <date when="1923-05-24">May 24, 1923</date> [copy]

(copy) Wrocław, May 24, 1923

My father of blessed memory has discussed the issue of the eligibility of women for office in the community’s administration in his expert opinion printed in the monthly Jeschurun, Vol. VI 1919, pp. 262-266. He is of the opinion that according to religious law women must not be made eligible for office.

He gives the following reasons:

1) Maimonides (H.Melachim 1.5) decides: a woman may not be appointed to the throne, ( Deut. Deuteronomium 17,15) you shall set a king over you – and not a queen. The same applies to all appointments to an office (Messimoth).

2) According to 1,4 (ibid) he includes army commanders, a leader of fifty or a leader of ten, the supervisor of irrigation ditches, and needless to say, a judge or a Nasi. This means it applies to all sorts of military ranks, judges, and administrative positions.

3) In the Justratha Pesikta on Deut. Deuteronomium 17,15 on the words: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, who is not thy brotherDeut. 17,15. King James Bible: thy brother, not thy sister, it follows that one must not appoint a woman as Parnassah (warden) of the community.

4) It is to be understood from the Talmud Yerushalmi (Kiddush in 4.5) that the abovementioned offices from which women are excluded according to Maimonides (Mesimoth) also include, for example: judges onfinancial matters (alms collectors, alms distributors, lawclerks, executors, (alms distribution in women’sassociations understandably is an exception), communityadministration (Tobe Hakohol) are considered equal to the office of a judge according to Choschen Mischpat c 37

5) The case of the prophetess and judge Deborah is to be considered an exception (TosephotSchebuoth 29 b), and similarly, the case of Queen Salome Alexandra can be explained by particular politicalcircumstances.

Eligibility of women for office means a radical breakwith Jewish tradition, which for this reason assigns different spheresof influence to men and women without denigrating women.In the area of politics, this law has notbrought about apparent advantages of any kind. It has not helpedrefine and temper manners in politics, but rathercontributed to the radicalization of parliaments to the right and the left due to a thusly enlarged undiscriminating mass of voters. The same would occur in Jewish community administrations. These already have the right to make decisions over the head of the expert Rabbi, even in cultural and ritual matters. This danger would be increasedby the addition of numerous voters and candidates who are on averageeven less informed about these issues than the men.In my opinion, even the vote for women should thereforeonly be supported if the Rabbi is given the power of veto in cultural and ritual matters. The otherwisevaluable practical participation of women in matters of education and welfare can take place by invitingthem to the respective committees as a consultingvoice. While no tangible advantage would arise from the eligibility of women for office from general considerations either,its introduction contrary to religious law would create a new bone of contention for the different movements within our faith,widening the schism in the community and possibly promote and reinforcethe desire for a split.Therefore it is decidedly inadvisablefor our community to pursue a separate path in this matter.Instead, it is advisable to at least wait untila Prussian Community Council decides on a general directionin this area.

signed HoffmannTo the Council of the Synagogue Congregation-local.