Why Orthodox Judaism is NOT the flip-side to Islamic fundamentalism

I am very indebted to Pamella Geller of atlasshrugs.com for clarifying an issue for me which I had long wondered about. For reference, I am socially liberal (albeit economically a bit more conservative), that is, and I make no apology for this, I believe in equal rights for women, minorities, gays, etc. I am nearly I suppose a libertarian but don't go "all the way" in terms of economics there, considering myself more of a Tory or "center-right" economically, but that is another point. There was a frankly concerning issue to me a story raised about how some in Orthodox Judaism were sort of (literally, in the case of some bus routes in New York) putting women at the back of the bus (I won't comment on that issue specifically as Rabbi Laura Baum of ourjewishcommunity.org has already commented on that issue in terms of buses in New York). Specifically though, as background, Ms. Geller was asked about similar stuff going on in Jerusalem, the concern being about gender equality, etc. This is a legitimate concern, of course, and I don't wish to minimize that. It should be pointed out that Orthodox Judaism is a minority both in Israel and in the US, and does not constitute the vast majority of Judaism. However, the issue at stake was the issue of gender equality vs. religious fundamentalism. Personally I had wondered about this issue as well - being a proud "feminist", or pro-gender equality, this is an issue of great concern to me. Some can naively make comparisons between Islamic fundamentalism and Orthodox Judaism, both of which do not have very progressive views towards gender equality. However, Ms. Geller pointed out an important, a crucial difference. In Orthodox Judaism, women are not equal, and personally, I deplore that, and, again, that does not constitute most of Judaism by any means (as Rabbi Baum can discuss better than I could). HOWEVER, it is inappropriate to compare Orthodox Judaism with Islamic fundamentalism. It is not two sides of the same coin. Why? Quite simply because as Ms. Geller pointed out, Orthodox Judaism is a voluntary affair - if one does not like it, well, one can always join a different Jewish denomination (full disclosure: I am a member of the Society for Humanistic Judaism founded by the late Rabbi Wine in the 1960's as the fifth denomination of Judaism - the others being: Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Revisionist). The point is, Orthodox Judaism is a voluntary religious movement, NOT a political movement. Orthodox Judaism might (literally) have women at the back of the bus, but they are not trying to take over governments, as fundamentalist Islam has (e.g. Iran) and is still trying to do. So the two cannot be compared. Also, the oxymoron of "honor killing" only belongs to Islamic fundamentalism and does not show up elsewhere, not to mention genital mutilation, forced marriages, etc.

There can be no comparison by naive observers between Orthodox Judaism, a peaceful, voluntary denomination (even though I disagree with it) versus Islamic fundamentalism which is warlike, coercive, and political, and by that I mean fascist. I am not saying a majority of Muslims are fundamentalists by any means. What I am saying though is that Islam has a problem that Judaism does not. Judaism can work out issues of fundamentalism in the debating halls - Islam apparently cannot always do so. There can be no comparison between these two.

Don't get me wrong. I support gender equality 100% and would defend that to the death but I also must say that one cannot make naive comparisons between Orthodox Judaism (with whom I have strong and principled disagreements with) and Islamic fundamentalism (with which there cannot be even any discussion or debate, since force is the only language they seem to understand).

I call for civilized discussion on equality issues in whatever form those issues take (gender, race, sexual orientation and/or identity), and I support equality in all of its forms. But I must point out that there is a difference with having voluntary, civilized disagreements, versus dealing with people who want to impose their will by force if necessary. There can be no comparison, then, between Orthodox Judaism, a voluntary movement, and Islamic extremism, for whom the term "choice" apparently has no translation.

I also want to say that I obviously do not want to paint with too broad a brush, and I understand a great many, if not a majority, of Islamic people oppose the darker side of that ideology, so I am not "coming down" on them. I am simply saying that there is a unique challenge there. In Judaism, the road to gender equality can be found in the University debating halls. In Islam the path is more difficult. It is an asymmetric situation, and that is just the "facts on the ground" so to speak. Not all "fundamentalims" are the same, and such is the case here. So, while I say we should never equate naively Orthodox Judaism as being the "flip-side" to fundamentalist Islam, I also say that we should extend a hand of friendship towards anyone in Islam who wants to help their own tradition move beyond the darkness of the past and embrace a brighter tomorrow.