I have no problem with anyone wrting a letter. One would hope Israel becomes a REAL democracy some day but then Nadia Matar is going on trial on June 14th for "insulting a public official" a hack who helped steal Jewish homes from Jews, and I would think that stealing was much worse than stating your religious views. That said, does anyone honestly think they are going to install a Chief Rabbi in Israel that openly supports homosexuality? What is the color of the sky on your planet if you believe that is within the range of possibility? Mike, we are talking about Israel, not San Francisco and however much you would like a pro-gay Chief Rabbi, it isn't going to happen in another hundred years. Sometimes you have to look at a mountain and accept that it is a mountain, not a pile of sand that can be blown away with words. Its OK to live in the real world and not be able to change every single thing you want to be a different way, other people want things the way you don't want.

of Israel must be chosen in democratic fashion by the people of Israel and not appointed by this or that political group. He must be above sectorial interests of any kind. A President, from the people, by the people and for the people, not for the politicians.

is most abhorrent to me, and I generally avoid the problem, but I would like an answer from all the detractors. What solution do you have ? Are they not human beings who asked not to be put on this earth just like you and I ? It is not enough to say no, you must be able to say yes to humans who live and breath, otherwise the alternative is back to the dark ages with all the implications, this also is abhorrent.

Good question, and of course they are humans. Ask your same questions regarding pedophiles, rapists, stalkers, murderers, and other perversions. The solution isn't in posing a false dilemma ("say yes... otherwise..."), but in thinking outside of that box. Society must disallow and protect itself, ideally without hating (as Moshe rightly pointed out, #29), from perversions that are harmful to a healthy society and family. Deteriorating moral fabric is harmful to society and our neighbor. Torah represents thousands of years of experience, not to mention Divine Guidance, in setting the course that's best for everyone rather than charting a course that suits the pervert at the expense of society. Paqid 16, The Netzarim Israeli Orthodox Jew www.netzarim.co.il

I only speak of your homophobic tendencies, Bunnie. I do not label you "homophobic" just as I do not label anyone "gay" or "straight" or as Ynet allows, "fag." I enjoy how you change the conditions of your claims. As far as your innocent-sounded "whys" about Chief Rabbi who "openly supports homosexuality," I ask you whether he needs to make any remarks at all. If asked, he can provide a diplomatic answer. As far as who expects what, Bunnie, I think you should stop posting anything on here going forward because we all know what you think about a whole host of issues. Since we can guess your remarks in advance, you no longer need to post anything.

There is no low-life lower than a Christian missionary like Paqid. You see, Jews, however personally homophobic, at some level know that their fellow Jews, gay and straight, are their brothers. Missionaries, however, have only contempt for Jews and therefore triple contempt for gay Jews. Puckweed, tell me: you claim you converted to Judaism. Who did your conversion? Can it be verified? I sure hope it wasn't Rabbi Lau!

Mr. Hume, you say "SK, you are right that the rabbis should be outspoken against the expulsion of Jews from Israel and against heterosexual couples who live together yet do not get married. They should do these things IN ADDITION to speaking out against "gay pride" parades in the Holy Land..." Fair question. I happen to disagree with the good rabbi Lau on his opinions regarding gays. But I'd be willing to agree to disagree (fairly quietly) if anything virtuous left his lips. In fact, though, I consider him a moral pigmy and coward who avoids controversy except when it is "safe" controversy. Now he wants to kosher the Merlot government. Disgusting. The lowest form of rabbi is an expulsion-supporting, cowardly homohater. He doesn't care about Torah. He cares about a paycheck. I have nothing to learn from him.

Eytan Fox(director of Walk on Water), Bryan Singer(director of X-Men I & II, Superman Returns), David Geffen(co-founder of Dreamworks, music mogul, philantropist). Are these respected openly gay jewish celebrities perverts? What about King David and Jonathan? Were they perverts, too?

Herzog was so pro-hetrosexuality he pardoned, or at least reduced the sentence of the so-called "Polite Rapist" from 30 (for 10 counts of rape) to 10 years because the rapist became a born-again Jew. I guess Benny Sela is just waiting to see what he can get from Lau if he becomes President!

excellent posts. With regards to homosexuality, it is not "normal" and never will be. Unlike some, I do not think that it is a choice that someone simply makes one day. It is quite obviously something which is the result of nature, not nurture, and outside the realms of what is considered by most to be normal. That does not mean that gays are bad or do not or are unable to contribute to their societies, etc. I do think however, that they should not flaunt their abnormal sexual preferences and there is surely nothing to be proud of. They are simply gay and that's that. Some gays, by pushing an activist agenda, are simply asking for a backlash. This is especially true in pushing for provacative gay pride parades, in particular in the holy city of Jerusalem. My advice to gays is to just live your lives and stop trying to poke a finger in the eye of non-gays! P.S. Why is it that many gays, and so called human rights leaders who are gay, are so supportive of Pals and Islamofascists who are totally intollerant towards gays?

Israel must act to stop the demonstrations of perversion within Israel and especially within the holy city of Jerusalem

As usual, Rabbi Lau has said the right thing at the right time. Believing Jews are adamantly opposed to any blatant, public display of sexuality – especially in the heart of the Holy Land. And a display of aberrant, dysfunctional behavior – clearly prohibited by the Bible (even if glorified by the media) - is doubly horrifying. But it is not only believing Jews who are shocked. Christians, Moslems and millions of decent people around the world are appalled as well. Concepts such as right and wrong, good and bad, healthy, normal and proper versus unnatural, immoral and dysfunctional have been so impaired that we are no longer able to even explain why homosexuality is unnatural, destructive, wrong, even when the vast majority of people in the world know instinctively that it is. ("I wouldn't want my kids to be one, of course, but it's not my business to tell other people what to do.") Homosexuality is an unnatural phenomenon. Human beings – and almost every other living creature except for one celled animals – were designed to propogate. . The world can only continue to exist if Nature - and sex - are allowed to run their natural course. Demanding public, social and legal recognition of homosexuality as an "alternate life style" means admitting that there is no value to perpetuating life. It is a destructive, nihilistic, and absolutely anti-life ethos. Homosexuality, like any other physiological, biological or emotional problem, is a dysfunctional behavior requiring treatment, not legislation or "recognition". There is treatment available and it can be effective for many people. For those who cannot or are unwilling, to attempt to reach a more normal state, they are free to live their own private lives – privately. Every society has a public and a private sphere. What people do in the privacy of their homes is their own is their own business. But society does not condone parading intimate sexuality in public (although the media tries hard!). Is the desire of homosexuals to go public more pressing than the public's desire to keep certain areas of life private? The public sphere is supposed to be a communal meeting place where all can feel comfortable. In virtually all times and places, heterosexuality has been the universal cultural norm. And family has always been the backbone of human civilization. Changing this long standing historical perception is fraught with danger. If everything can be legalized and validated – not only euthanasia, abortion and same sex "marriages" – why not adultery, incest, pedophilia? Perhaps these, too, are only "alternate ways" of loving? Maybe even murder can be justified in certain circumstances. Why not? Homosexuality is aberrant behavior. Homosexuals comprise a tiny percent of the population and those unable to respond to treatment are a smaller number still, but the media has made them larger than life. In the process, they demand recognition for a biological and cultural aberration just they did in ancient Greece, where every man of standing had a young boy to "enjoy". Civilization needs borders. Society is being raped. The underpinnings of human civilization are being whittled away as universal, natural law is being destroyed. We dare not remain silent! We are not primitive, intolerant, backward, ignorant. We are normal and healthy, and in our normality lies our wisdom. "Love without borders" is the gay slogan. But no human society or civilization has ever existed without borders. What we desperately need today is love, life, order and law with borders. The iconoclasts who would break down all the borders of civilization are not only invading our private space; they are destroying our world. For more information contact: NARTH - the National Association for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality. www.narth.com or JONAH – Jews Offering New Alternatives to Homosexuality www.jonahweb.org

To Quote: "Homosexuality is most abhorrent to me . . . What solution do you have ? Are they not human beings who asked not to be put on this earth just like you and I ? It is not enough to say no, you must be able to say yes to humans who live and breath, otherwise the alternative is back to the dark ages with all the implications, this also is abhorrent." All of the "gays are perverts" responses (which disproportionately come from Christians) do not deal with reality: gay people exist, they have always existed, and they will exist for the foreseeable future. Some of these gay people are Jewish and citizens of the Jewish state. All of the religiously based complaints apply just as much to adultery and perhaps even more to lack of Sabbath observance (according to Torah, one Jew was actually killed for not observing Sabbath). However, the homohaters are cunning: they focus on gay people because they know that gays are more vulnerable than, say, non-Shabbot-observing Jews. In the US, gay people can live in parts of the country that are especially supportive. What exactly do the homohaters propose for Israel? Do they seriously suggest that conditions in Israel should be such that gay Jews leave? Put THAT question into your halacha pipe and smoke it.

David Chamerlain's house in Pelham!

Apparently, the best the Lau supporters can do is a cut and paste job like #42, who sounds Christian anyway. So, a president is not supposed to be a devisive figure., Can ANYONE claim that Lau is uniter, not a divider? Based on these talkbacks, Lau is not fit for the position. But I still want to see what kind of moral guidance this guy provides. Clearly, he scorns the observant gays from Tel Aviv. What other issues has he taken a stand on? How morally persuasive has he been?

Dear SK in USA, FIRSTLY, what I wrote wasn't particulary to support Rabbi Lau. It was to explain a position. SECONDLY, you are obviously not familiar with the Israeli scene. Rabbi Lau is probably one of THE most popular "uniters" in the country. He's Everyman's (& woman's ! ) rabbi. Well liked, universally respected and invited all over - a favorite at non-observant functions. That's why he's being considered for the presidency. THIRDLY, a gay who parades and flaunts his sexual preferences in the street can in no way be considered "an observant Jew" just because he makes kiddush on Friday night, just as a kleptomaniac can in no way be considered an honest, dependable person because he'll return a lost item to its owner. A homosexual who attempts to control - or at least be private -about his situation can claim to be an observant Jew, but one who publicly flaunts a truly major Biblical prohibition, and with much fanfare and glee, cannot in any way claim to be a good, observant Jew. AND LAST, you might be interested in knowing that I am not in the least bit Christian. I'm thoroughly, utterly, absolutely Jewish - all the way back to Abraham.

Dear Yaffa in Jerusalem: No offense, but I am much more interested in Lau's positions (moral and political) and in his achievements (or lack of them) than I am in your general position regarding homosexuality. There are so many logical and scientific errors in your #42 that I would need thousands of words to cover them all. But you wouldn't listen even if I did so. As you evidently will not address the issue Yakov raised in #33, we're back to Rabbi Lau. You say "Rabbi Lau is probably one of THE most popular "uniters" in the country. He's Everyman's (& woman's ! ) rabbi. Well liked, universally respected and invited all over - a favorite at non-observant functions. That's why he's being considered for the presidency." One of the first things I learned when I studied public opinion was that differences between people on important issues of the day are just staggering. Not only that: people tend to know nothing about those who do not travel in their own circle. So, Yaffa, the odds of you being able to speak for those different from yourself are very low. If you want to assert that he is "universally respected," that requires evidence. Anyway, I do not think he was selected because he was so "universally" respected. I think he was selected to kosher the next disengagement/pogrom. This is why I wanted to know more about his role in Pogrom 1. Does that seem to be an unreasonable question to ask? I would also like to know about the quality of his scholarship, his success at motivating people, etc. Since he came to Tel Aviv, has attendance gone up, down, been stationary? One common trick of the homohater is to play definitional games. In your case, you claim that, by definition, a Jew cannot be observant if he "publicly flaunts" his gayness. Instead he should keep it a dirty little secret. Now a gay parade is certainly flaunting something. The thing is, though, that straights flaunt their lifestyle ALL THE TIME, with their wedding rings, their pictures of their families, there maternity leaves, and so. Somehow, though, Yaffa has decided that to be "observant" a gay person needs to stay in the shadows and be submissive. And tell me, Yaffa, about all those Jews who shop during the Shabbat? Are they "flaunting" themselves, and can THEY be observant? Who are YOU to decide any of these matters?

We will never forget, but you have. Your politics and values have killed many people in our world history. People, for whoever they are just want to live without being molested by criminals such as you. You should be ashamed in front of G-d.

How many true Jews feel ashamed by these ignorant comments. If your angry, get psychological help. But don't take it out on other people. Many Jews and other people have died because of these irresponsible comments. Shame on you.

Have you not learned anything in your life? Observant Jews would not behaive the way you do. Dogs have been treated better then this. Observant jews only think about the beauty of G-d and creation and see true strength with inner peace. Please get help and stay away from the evil forces that influence you before you destroy G-d's creations.

I don't particulary like the display in some of these parades, but I pray to G-d that we don't forget who we are and the challenges we all need to face to protect and respect the holy creation. When people have the ability to express themselves without resistance and are accepted, the things that are important to them and reprehensible to us, do disappear. I am proud of my friends and family in Israel. I am proud of Israel's leaders and defence forces. I want all persons who find sanctuary in Israel to find the peace and life they deserve. But as anywhere else in the world, we still have many battles to wage to ensure all persons are respected. We are still infants, and children need a lot of patience. We should not be turning back the hands of time because future generations need all the help they can get. Please be a wise and honorable man, and remove your words so people can respect something better than this.

Words have a serious bearing on people's lives. Are you willing to have blood on your hands? Are you so sure of your "own" religous education that G-d would want you to have such an impact on the lively-hood of people? The judgement is coming from you and not from G-d. You may tell yourself "how sad", but in reality, you do not protect G-d's creation.

We have a right a right to speak if we are trying to learn and want to contribute.

Tolarate and "don't accept" can't be used in the same sentance. In all groups there are good folks and bad folks. Which group will you represent to your children?

Who are you to take the lives of my children in your hands and make promises that end up messing up peoples lives even more. I know you! I know that it is you who needs help. You cannot find peace, until you find it in yourself. Love G-d.

as far as I know Rabbi Lau's nephew who is a spiritual leader in New York is out to his parents and uncle. If the honorable Rabbi accepts his nephew must he make such strong comments against other gays?