8:00pm: Special Edition – Abuse, Betrayal and Protecting Our Children – Addressing the Recent Horrific Scandal

The topics in this week’s 386^th episode of the highly acclaimed MyLife: Chassidus Applied series, with Rabbi Simon Jacobson, will include:

Torah Perspective on Such a Travesty

• What should be our overall response? 
• Why would G-d allow an individual who would commit such heinous crimes to reach such a high position of power and influence within the religious public, and especially over the innocent hearts and minds of children?
• How do we deal with such a mass betrayal?
• Who comes first: perpetrator or victim? 
• Can we assume his absolute guilt?
• Where do you draw the line between assuming someone’s innocence and judging people favorably and the danger they pose and the damage they may cause others?
• If someone harmed people, but also helped others, does one negate the other?
• How do I deal with my deep feelings of betrayal and internal conflict: On one hand I grew up and was shaped by his books. Yet, I cannot look at his books knowing what kind of double life he led, and the countless people he harmed?
• Do we have the right to judge another?
• Is there hope for a perpetrator?
• Why isn’t child molestation considered an issur in the Torah?

Intervention and Reporting Abuse

• Do the laws of mesirah and loshon hara apply to a sexual predator?
• Can we report them to the police?
• Are we allowed to publicly shame a perpetrator to prevent him from harming others?
• How should the community deal with abusers who have been accused by credible accusations without creating collateral damage?

Community Response

• How can you find clarity between the conflicting and even seriously contradictory messages coming from different Torah authorities?
• How do we justify or explain Rabbis whitewashing or ignoring the travesty?
• How would you respond to the Rabbis that blame the public’s loshon hara for murdering this author?
• Was it wrong that “gedolim” gave positive eulogies at his funeral after all the horrible things he has been accused of? Is this not an overt insult to the victims?

Speaking with Children

• What should we be telling our children?
• How can we protect our children?

His Books

• What should we be doing with his educational books?   
• Should we be reading books from an unholy author? 

Closure

• What can the victims now do to get closure and find justice?
• Do we continue to pursue justice and humiliate him after his death?
• Are we allowed to defile his memory for revenge?
• Can the victims sue his family and his estate for compensation for their injuries?
• How should one think about the suicide of one that caused others harm?

Lessons Learned and Looking Ahead

• What can we learn from this and what can we do as individuals and as a community?   
• What can we do to help grow awareness and prevent further atrocities against the innocent?
• Why aren’t more female mental health professionals addressing this issue?

MyLife: Chassidus Applied is a weekly video webcast candidly answering questions from the public about all life matters and challenges, covering the entire spectrum of human experience. 

This hour-long dose of insights, broadcast live every Sunday night 8-9PM EDT, is meant to provide people with inspired guidance and direction, empowering them to deal with any issue they may face. 

In what has become a staple in so many people’s lives, MyLife: Chassidus Applied has provoked a significant reaction from the community, with thousands of people viewing each live broadcast and hundreds of questions pouring in week after week. At the root of every question and personal challenge tackled by the series is the overarching question: Does Judaism have the answers to my personal dilemmas?

MyLife demonstrates how Chassidus provides us with a comprehensive blueprint of the human psyche as a microcosm of the cosmos, and offers us all the guidance we need to live the healthiest possible life and build nurturing homes and families, bringing up the healthiest possible children, emotionally, psychologically and spiritually. MyLife is brought to you by the Meaningful Life Center as a public service, free of charge.

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