A Letter To Madoff

I am sickened at this disgusting turn of events, my stomach recoils at how not only individual investors were hurt by this man, but also so many charities that help all people, hospitals, food services, homeless shelters, the list goes on and on and it is a tragedy. Then to make it worse, there are the anti-semitic slurs to deal with, Bernie Madoff has brought shame on the Jewish people. And as much as we may want to, we can't separate the man from his religion here, because the haters are gleefully relishing this fact and are spewing hatred all over the place.

Excellent piece that eloquently expressed much of what I've been feeling in the wake of this man-made tragedy. We all battle evil inclinations. It's incomprehensible that one man gave in to his need to be liked while ignoring the damage that he was inflicting upon so many others. The reverberations will be felt for years to come as so many people devoted to helping others will be stymied in their efforts. Shame, shame on Madoff and three cheers for Rabbi Gellman in publishing this heartfelt letter.

Everything that Rabbi Gellman has written here is from a self-interested perspective: you betrayed people like me, you make it harder for people like me to make money and you cause people to hate people like me.
What about the intrinsic wrongfulness of his actions? What about ethics? What about Jewish values? i am a Jew and ashamed and disgusted at his actions, but what's more that we as Jews are not taking collective responsibility as we should and asking how is it that someone from our community was able to willingly engage in widespread deceit. The antisemitism, we should not worry about, rather we should be primarily concerned that we do not take actions deserving of hatred for no other reason than that it is wrong.

The suicides have already begun.

Madoff was not a cheat because he is a jew.A cheat is a cheat and has nothing to do with being born in a particular religon.Infact cheating is their religon.The Rabbi is wrong to condemn Madoff as a man who has given anti semitism life.
Madoff deserves to be condemned by all right thinking people because he has let down normal human values of trust and confidence.He should not be condemned as a jew who has let down people who trusted him.To accept the Rabbi's line of argument would be to play the 'jew game'.Madoff should be seen for what he is ,just a person who has lost his moral compass.And believe me he is niether the first nor the last human being who has lost his way.Some take anothers money,others take his liberty and yet others take lives.Each act is morally reprehensible,some more and some less.

I agree with what the author has written, it was a letter written from a grieving heart. I too do not understand how somebody could do something so heartless all because of greed, power, position. etc. But I sincerely hope the author is wrong that just because this man was Jewish, it will cause a backlash. This would simply be a continuation of the evil act that was done. I am a Christian, and what I have always read in the Scriptures, and have been taught all my life is that the Jewish people and the nation Israel are the very apple of God's eye. And the Jewish people were the very chosen people to whom were revealed the oracles of God, and through David's lineage was born the Messiah, Jesus Christ the Lord. All Gentiles owe complete respect and honor to any Jewish man, woman, boy or girl because they are the true branches of God's vine....we Gentiles are simply grafted in because God is merciful and gracious. But we must never forget, as St. Paul wrote that we branches are grafted in to God's family. As Jesus said to woman whose daughter was healed of demon possession...."why should I give bread to the dogs instead of the children?" This is because Jesus was searching her heart to see if she were humble as she was a Gentile. She replied.."yes, Lord but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from the children's table" Jesus said.."because of this saying, go in peace, your daughter has been healed." In her heart, she was meek and humble, and gave respect to whom it was due and Jesus rewarded her faith and her words. We would all do well to remember this important lesson. I hope the Rabbi knows that there are many who feel exactly as I do, and my prayers are with all who have lost so much, and who have been hurt. But I also pray for Madoff that he would come to understand what he has done and repent. He should face whatever legal consequences for his actions, but God is forgiving, and if he repents of his sins and turns to Jesus, the ultimate blood sacrifice for sins, the perfect lamb, he can find forgiveness and eternal life and reconciliation with God. That's what the Bible tells me and I believe it. May God bless the Jewish people now and forever.

Madoff's "Jewishness" is part of the story because Jewish charities figure so prominently among his victims. If Ken Lay had made a name for himself as an important beneficiary of Protestant charities, and then betrayed them, you can be sure THAT would be part of the story... as religious affiliations (or pretenses) WERE very much part of the stories of the various evangelical TV and radio ministry personalities...Swaggart, Bakker, etc...who were caught in activities that contradicted their assertions of faith.

With respect for the Rabbi, perhaps it is some sense a surrender to ant-Semitism, an acquiescence to the false paradigm it posits, to expect it everywhere, and so to interpret every mention of Judaism in any negative context as suggestive of anti-Semitism (even when that negative context is an example of someone falling SHORT of Jewish ideals and values, so that it isn't Judaism that is indicted, or even Jews, generally, but one individual only).

TANSTAAFL

TANSTAAFL