Trembling before G-D

I had never seen this documentary before….. from looking at the front of the DVD case I thought that the film was going to be about two men who are Hasidic Jews who call in love, but I was completely wrong.

The film interviews orthodox and Hasidic Jews who are gay and their rabbis and what they have to say about it, also is an interview with the first openly gay Orthodox rabbi. The film began with two quotes, one from Leviticus and one from the Schulchan Aruch about how it is an abomination for a man to lie with a man and woman to lie with a woman. Then after that are silhouettes of different religious acts.

Throughout the film these different Orthodox and Hasidic Jews talk about their feelings and experiences as gay Orthodox Jews. And their biggest question is if I am a good Orthodox Jew why can’t I be gay to? And the reason is because in the eyes of their rabbis and their communities it is a sin.

I could never imagine as one woman said that if she came out as a lesbian that her community could take her children away from her…. I couldn’t imagine such a thing. Some Orthodox Jews are so driven by their beliefs that it leads some to go crazy, leave their communities or commit suicide.

This film is inspirational and motivational. It really made me think about this comment that someone said in the extras that this film is “the greatest argument against Orthodox Judaism”. I have never thought anything bad about Orthodox Judaism because I think that they are good people who just observe their Judaism differently than I do but I never realized or even thought about Orthodox Jews being gay and what happens to them.

This film is a wonderful film that really shows the perspective of these people and their lives….. I am really glad that I saw the film and I think that it really is sad that for some of these Jews being gay is such a horrible thing that they suppress it their whole lives. I think it is ridiculous that there are Orthodox and Hasidic rabbis who tell their congregants to seek counseling to change so that they aren’t gay anymore. I truly believe that you can’t change your sexual orientation and if you try it will only make it worse.

I just can’t understand how these communities can do this to their friends and families? Why can’t someone be a good Hasidic or Orthodox Jew and be gay?