PJV: Is Judaism part of your adult life?

Very much so. It was part of my childhood; it is certainly part of my adult life. My family and I are observant Jєωs. I went to Jєωιѕн Day School at Solomon Schecter and at Akiba, and I think, most importantly, is the influence my Judaism has on my public service. For me, when you boil down all the teachings and all the rituals, fundamentally, Judaism is teaching that none of us is required to complete the task, but neither is any of us free to refrain from it. It is really what guides me in my public service, and what that means, then, is that we don’t have a requirement on us to solve every problem, but we are also not permitted to sit on the sidelines and leave someone else do it for us. And so for me, the public service arena has been my way of doing my part to help complete the task.

PJV: With regard to Roe v. Wade, if the Roberts’ court votes to overturn earlier criteria for permissible termination of pregnancy, would you support a reargument based on First Amendment, Jєωιѕн religious grounds?  That is, freedom of religion grounds -- that Jєωs, in some instances, are not just allowed but required[to terminate a pregnancy?

That’s an interesting argument. I had not thought about that. I would support any argument to protect a woman’s right to choose, and if we can make an argument on religious grounds, I would.  Should the issue of abortion come back to the states in the event that the Roberts’ court would overturn Roe v. Wade, I would vote to keep abortion safe, legal and rare.

PJV: With regard to same sex marriages, is there a reason why the Commonwealth could not apply the term civil union to all householding couples and eliminate the state government’s involvement with religious sacrament of marriage entirely, but simply avoiding the term marriage in all of its laws and regulations.

It could, but I think it is unrealistic.  Marriage is an important institution in our Commonwealth; it certainly is to me. I would not like to undermine the union of marriage in any way, shape or form.  I think the real issue is whether I would want to confer rights on same sex couples, the same rights as married couples enjoy, and the answer to that is yes.  A same sex couple committed in a relationship should have the same rights and responsibilities as a married couple.

PJV: My point is that if someone wants to take away that capability from some people, why not just take it away from everybody and leave the sacrament of marriage up to churches, ѕуηαgσgυєs, mosques and other religious institutions?

I suppose that is one approach.  I would have to look into that and see what I think.  I would not want to take the notion of marriage out of our state law.

Pro Faith. Pro Family. Pro Choice.
The Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice (RCRC) is a broad-based, national, interfaith movement that brings the moral force of religion to protect and advance reproductive health, choice, rights and justice through education, prophetic witness, pastoral presence and advocacy.
RCRC values and promotes religious liberty which upholds the human and constitutional rights of all people to exercise their conscience to make their own reproductive health decisions without shame and stigma. RCRC challenges systems of oppression and seeks to remove the multiple barriers that impede individuals, especially those in marginalized communities in accessing comprehensive reproductive health care with respect and dignity.