Yated March 2005
Rabbi Tendler responds to the charges levied against him
BRIS KODESH
Dear Editor, I pray that in the days following your editorial of February 18 you were able to confirm that the actions attributed to me are total fabrications. I affirm that: a) I never contacted the New York City Health Department to inform them of the tragedy that occurred in October 2004 in Maimonides Hospital. b) I never spoke to anyone in the administration of the hospital. Surely the hospital reported the tragedy as required by city and state regulations. By now you surely confirmed the falsity of the malicious tale which is making the rounds in our community. It goes as follows: At a bris in Yeshiva of Spring Valley I asked Mohel Fisher to make metzitzah using a sterile tube. He refused, so I "threatened" him and reported him to the Health Department.
THE TRUTH: I told the father and Mohel Fisher to use a tube. The father asked him to use a tube. He did so! End of story! I have the highest regard for Rav Fisher shlita. When fortuitously he was in Eretz Yisroel, I asked him to circumcise my great-grandson, sheyichye, in preference to the many competent mohelim in Yerushalyim. His "Avodas Hashem" in Russia is legendary. What is my involvement? I co-authored a research paper (with seven pediatricians) concerning eight cases of systemic Herpes infection in newly circumcised infants whose mohelim tested positive for the virus. This report was submitted to the prestigious journal "Pediatrics" on November 3, 2003. After careful study by reviewers, it was published on August 4, 2004. On February 2, 2005 I was interviewed by several newspaper reporters and I stated that mohelim are required by Torah law to make every measure to avoid any risk of health to the infant. Since 90 percent (or more) of Americans carry the Herpes virus, I expressed my opinion that a sterile tube should be used when making metzitzah b'peh. This is in accordance with the ruling of the Gedolim of the last generation as summed up in the responsum authored by Hagaon Rav Elyashev shlita, when the AIDS epidemic began. "If there is the slightest concern, a "sfek sfaikah" of danger, one is to disregard the custom of our forefathers" and use a sterile tube when making metzitzah b'peh so as to protect the mohel, lest he contract AIDS from the infant. The medical issue that is to be evaluated is: Does Herpes virus pose a significant risk to the infant as does the AIDS virus to the mohel? Competent physicians often interpret the same findings differently. A family blessed with a need to circumcise their son, must consult with their family physician and the mohel to decide whether oral suction should be used. The mohel, however, must be attuned to the newest medical information as it impacts on the practice of milah. Torah knowledge is immutable but science is in constant flux. The health import of bilirubin levels, availability of clotting factors to correct bleeding tendencies, use of newer antibiotics post-milah, treating anatomical anomalies in the newborn, all have been updated, corrected, re-evaluated by the medical profession and a consensus reached. A mohel, to fulfill his obligation to Hashem, must be conversant with all these evolving issues. Governmental agencies must not intrude into the domain of milah practices. To prevent this, self-regulation by mohelim must be the norm. The church/state barrier established by our constitution prevents government from interfering in the practice of milah unless there is "clear and present danger" to the infant. Yesterday (February 24th) a letter was penned by Hagaon Yosef Shalom Elyashev shlit"a, expressing his decision that oral suction does not endanger the child and thus differs from his previously expressed concern for the health of the mohel when he recommended the use of the tube to prevent AIDS infection. Surely every family in America, where autonomy reigns supreme, may choose to follow this advice since it is based on the Rav's analysis after consultation with competent medical practitioners in Jerusalem. Loshon Hora and Rechilus are destructive forces that threaten the unity of Am Yisroel. The discord and unpleasantness (and anti-social vandalism) would have been prevented, if discussion and debate within the confines of our community had been initiated as soon as the problem arose. I appreciate the opportunity to clarify my position and refute the false accusations fabricated by individuals whose motives were not Leshem Shamayim.
Moshe Dovid Tendler
