From West by Northwest.org Voices of the Nation Yom Kippur and a Despicable Law By Rabbi Arthur Waskow Sep 29, 2006 Dear Friends, Habeas corpus - which the English barons imposed upon King John in 1215 through Magna Carta -- the present sycophantic US Congress today handed back with a smile and a flourish. John, often described as the worst of English kings, was reined in. The present President, certainly the worst of all American presidents, is being handed the power to define who can be tortured, and what torture is; and the courts are being debarred from stopping him. The vote to strip out the anti-Habeas provision lost 48-51. It would have taken only 41 Senators to filibuster the bill to death - and what bill in the entire history of the Senate more deserved a filibuster? Years from now, after more people have been tortured, the Supreme Court may follow the clear statement of the Constitution that Habeas Corpus may be suspended only during invasion or insurrection - but judging from previous votes of the present Justices, they may uphold this law by a 5-4 vote. This law is second in despicability only to the protection explicitly given slavery in the original Constitution of the United States. I am ashamed that to my grandchildren I am bequeathing an America so defiled. This coming Monday, Jews who are observing Yom Kippur in traditional form will read the stories of ten great rabbis who were tortured to death by the Roman Empire. It is a cautionary tale about all Empires. And we will read one of the greatest of all the prophetic outcries: Isaiah's delivery of God's message that refraining from food and "hanging down one's head like a bulrush" is not what God meant by the fast of Yom Kippur: rather, striking off the shackles put on by wicked power; feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, housing the homeless. (Isaiah 57:14 to 58: 14; for my own translation see - http://ent.groundspring.org/EmailNow/pub.php?module=URLTracker&cmd=track&j=983 59170&u=930825 ) Isaiah interrupted the official liturgy of Yom Kippur to say God's impassioned words. He describes how people shouted at him, shook their fists at him, when he "interrupted" the sweet levitical hymns with God's challenge. I hope in synagogues throughout America this Monday, rabbis and congregants will speak out, and will realize that even Isaiah's words have become tame liturgy, unless we rouse them to cry out the truth of our own time. "Raise your voice like a shofar!" says Isaiah. I hope that Muslims and Christians -- who also recognize that Isaiah, a prophet, spoke for God - will figure out a way in the next few weeks to introduce this outcry into their own prayers and studies, and will raise THEIR voices like the ram's horn. The ram's horn that saved Abraham's son from death: may it save our children from this deadly sin. Here is the voice of Maher Arar, a Canadian citizen who was grabbed by the US as he returned from a business trip to Europe, on a connecting flight into LaGuardia, on his way to Canada. The United States "rendered" him to Syria to be tortured. His words have been verified by an independent Canadian commission, which publicly criticized both the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the US government for its behavior. With blessings for a Yom Kippur that makes a difference, Arthur Copyright ©2006 by Rabbi Arthur Waskow Rabbi Arthur Waskow is a peace and social justice religious leader and founder of the Shalom Center. He writes a blog and newsletter for subscribers. © Copyright 2000-2004 by West by Northwest.org