On Sun, Aug 20, 2000, joshua kamenetz wrote about "Re: Organizing a Linux Dinner":
> > > Why Kosher? How many people will not come if it's not Kosher?
> It should be Kosher because several people,including me,are religious
> and are limited to Kosher restaurants. Israel is a democracy and
> freedom of faith is instituted in this democratic state. A religious
> Jew _can't_ eat in a non-Kosher place. A non-religious Jew can
> eat in Kosher restaurant. If the dinner wasn't Kosher, then a fraction
> of Linux people would be blacked balled from this event which
> I understand is an official IGLU event.
I don't think high words like "democracy" and "freedom of faith" are
relevant in this case. You're free to come to a non-kosher dinner, and
watch other people eat, or bring your own sandwiches (and plate) from
home. Obviously, it wouldn't be *nice* of us to let you do that, which is
why we're not going to do it (i.e., the dinner will probably be kosher
after all, whether MosheZ likes it or not). We're going to have a Kosher
dinner because we care about the religious people in our group and respect
them - not because we care about their religion (or the religion varient they
choose to practice).
But don't act like it's some sort of democratic or freedom-of-faith issue
that we have to have Kosher food: try going to any conference in the U.S.
(for example). You'll be given food, and they may even try to make it
pseudo-kosher (e.g., serve beef, not pork, don't put cream on the beef, make
vegetables and other stuff that don't have such strict kashrut code, etc.),
but you won't get a glat-kosher meal. They will outright laugh if you request
to eat only in a place which is closed on Saturday. But they will give you the
option to eat somewhere else, bring your own food, or eat nothing at all.
Some orthodox Jews do not drink wine if it was served by a gentile (goy). But
it doesn't mean they have the right to force the restaurant to employ a
Jewish wine-server. At the most, they can decide not to drink wine if served
by a gentile.
Freedom of faith is the freedom to practice your own faith without being
disturbed or persecuted. It is not the freedom to force your own faith on
others, or the freedom to say that "my faith requires me to make others
behave like me".
--
Nadav Har'El | Sunday, Aug 20 2000, 20 Av 5760
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Phone: +972-53-245868, ICQ 13349191 |A professor is one who talks in someone
http://nadav.harel.org.il |else's sleep.
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