Separation of Church and State, or How to be a First-Class Asshole

Recently I started receiving a publication from the URJ called Eilu v'Eilu, which is a point-counterpoint publication on various issues. The first issue was separation of Church and State. The initial arguments were good, although neither author argued excellently. Rabbi David Saperstein, who is the Director of the Religious Action Center, argued that strict separation of Church and State is necessary and indeed benefits Jews, while Rabbi Clifford Librach argued that the founding fathers had no intention of a strict separation between Church and State, and that one that is lax benefits Jews more than a strict one. I tend to agree with Rabbi Saperstein, and I think that the arguments are obvious.

But the futility of this particular point-counterpoint argument is not what concerns me. What concerns me is the manner in which Rabbi Librach answered questions from readers after the initial arguments were sent out. It was clear he did not respect the readers' opinions or knowledge. And what makes that more annoying is that they, unlike me, are mostly well-educated middle-aged persons.