Tuesday, January 11, 2005

Is The Outside World The Enemy?

A woman who was sexually abused by an Orthodox rabbi (who was her employer) writes on her blog:

In the bubble that I grew up in, girls were taught to be modest and demure ("aidel"). I was an exemplary student, and I learned these lesson well. I learned obedience and passivity. I learned to be invisible and not to think on my own. I learned to seek guidance from someone bigger than myself, preferably a rabbi, for every issue I faced, no matter how small. It felt noble to relinquish the decision making to someone bigger than myself, since I didn't need to take responsibility for the outcome. Only good can come from following rabbi's advice.