NEW YORK
JTA
(JTA) — The board of a New York synagogue in a letter to congregants said its rabbi, Jonathan Rosenblatt, committed “no misconduct” amid a debate about the propriety of his sauna talks with boys and young men launched by a published report.
In its letter sent Tuesday to members of the Riverdale Jewish Center in the Bronx, the board wrote that Rosenblatt adhered to established guidelines when playing racquetball and visiting the showers and sauna with boys and young men from the congregation.
Over the weekend, The New York Times wrote in an article that some of these congregants and former congregants of the modern Orthodox synagogue discussed the trips to the sauna during which the rabbi “engaged the boys in searching conversations about their lives, problems and faith.” Some of the boys were “uncomfortable” with the rabbi in the sauna, according to the article, and some said he gawked at and touched them.
According to the synagogue board’s letter, “We recognize that there are strong feelings about the situation and the appropriate steps the congregation should take going forward. We want to assure you the Board agreed upon a process that includes gathering more information and giving careful consideration to our options in the best interest of the community.”
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