Dear Rabbi Lamm: With reference to your inquiry may I state first of all that we in the Rabbinical Council deem you an authority on Halachah and that as Moro D’asro of your community you are the authority to decide all questions of Jewish Law and it is within the province of your prerogative to make the decisions which need to be made. We know that whatever decisions you make will always be based upon Halachah without any deviation from its principles. With regard to the specific items under discussion, our Halachah Commission has on numerous occasions studied the various facets of the problems and has always come to the conclusions that: The ״mechitzah״ is an integral part of the synagogue and is ordained by the Halachah. Its absence reflects upon the synagogue as a sanctuary and deprives it of the ״Keddusha״ which differentiates it from another building. A house of worship must according to Halachah have a separation between the sexes in order that it might be a suitable place for worship. There can be no other opinion on this in the Halachah.On the question of microphone, may I say that our Halachah Commission considers the use of a microphone on the Sabbath a forbidden act involving issurim proscribed in the Torah.I am confident that because your authority and scholarship are recognized that the decisions which you will make will be accepted without questions.Kindest personal regards.CordiallyRabbi Israel Klavan

Dear Rabbi Klavan: I am ordering 4,000 reprints of my article on "Separate Pewes" from Book Craftsmen. Mr. Saul Bernstein told me yesterday that The Union wants 1,000. which will amount to $91.74 without postage. (Rabbi S.R. Weiss approved of the order). Rabbi Finer asked me this morning far 2,000 copies for the Yeshiva, This comes to $151.44 without postage. Another 1,000 – at the reduced rates of a bulk order of 4,000״ – will cost the R.C.A. only about $40 or so for its thousand. However, we must calculate about $40-$50 for total freight plus customs, etc.Hence, I suggest you charge as follows: a) 1000 for U. O. J. C. A. – $98.00b) 2000 for Y. U. – $165.00The rest should be absorbed by us.I an informing Book Craftsmen that we will handle the reprint situation, i.e. we will collect from The Union and Yeshiva, and have him add the total unto our bill far TRADITION.Rabbi Finer informed me that while ho will be able to make an initial payment soon, the final payment will have to wait for the end of the summer.Sincerely,Rabbi Norman Lamm Editer

Dear Izzy: Enclosed is a copy of a letter to Rabbi Finer. Please note the suggestion about R.C.A. doing for its members what Yeshiva University plane for its alumni. Please let m know what you think. Sincerely, Rabbi Noman Lamm, Nl/rs. "Separate Paws in the Synagogue: A Social and Psychological Approach" was written in the conviction that we have a tenable, valid point of view which is deserting of the widest dissemination. Silence on an issue of such sharp public controversy – and which has caused us so ouch misery – will not win us any converts. Denunciation of others will certainly not win us any sympathy. Only by naans of a wholesome educational campaign can we hope to stem the unfortunate desecration of our synagogues.I am convinced, moreover, that on the "mixed pews" issue we can present a strong and attractive cams for our traditional view even without relying solely upon an appeal to the authority of the Halakhah. While that is indeed cur ultimate sanction and ths soiree of our opinion, it is no easy natter to convince a wavering layman on the basis of Halakhah alone. The major part of this article is based, with some modifications, upon an address to the Sisterhood of Cong. Kodimoh in Springfield, Mass., where I served until recently. It was the surprisingly favorable reaction of that group to this kind of exposition that has persuaded me to publish it in TRADIHOK. It is ay hope that this kind coeducational approach to the whole painful problem will yield better results than either submission. evasion, or epithet.Tbshivu Itai varsity, R.C.A., and the U.O.J.C.A. all have a number of reprints available for those who wish to have their lay people read the arguments directly. The suggestions that follow are meant for those of our colleagues who may want to use the article as source-material for their own personal approach.The presentation should be forceful, fearless, and unapologetic, but never 80 strong as to offend the feelings of a possibly antagonistic au…

Dear Rabbi: At the outset I must first say "Mazel Tov" and lets together make "Shehecheyonu" that we have lived to see that The R.C.A. has its own "Tradition." As for myself I congratulate you as the Editor and your board of editors for seeing to it that "Tradition" came out as good as it did. This letter comes to you from a man by the name Baruch Litvin living in Mount Clemens, Michigan, the fellow that is fighting windmills, the fellow who started the "Milchamas Hashem" against letting the laity in a Synnagogue by majority vote decide Hallacha, which means taking over the prerogatives of the Rabbis, and of course once we let this thing go by without a fight the next thing then follows: what was taken up on the concervative convention that the laity must have the final, in determinning the norms of the ritual and ethical behavior, yes the Rabbi can be consulted but the final say is left with the "Am Aratzim and the women" (please excuse my attitute toward the the women and their husbands who do not know the difference of an Alef to a Beis).I do not wish to burden you with the vast amount of information gathered by myself in regards the Tradition of Mechitzos, but I feel that Mechitzos are entitled to be spread on the pages of ״Tradition" as a part of what the alms of Tradition is, and should be.Should you give serious consideration to my way of thinking I can arrange a meeting between you and myself and give you much more material than I am stating now. Your Secretary Profesor fox knows me and is well aquainted with the case same is Rabbi Sharfman, Rabbi Rockman, and I am making this plea to you, and your board to consider Litvins thought on the matter of Mechitzos, that Judaism will stand or chas Vecholile fall by the attitude of the Rabbis towards mixed pews.I need not go into detail as I am aware that I am writing to Rabbis and I am only a laymen Vehamaskil Yovin.Please if after deliberation you find merit in my thinking that "Tradition" Must take up the fight …

Dear Izzie: Walter and I have drawn up a list of articles to be included in “A Tradition Treasury.” The enclosed is the draft of a letter we'd like sent to the contributors. The accompanying sheet provides the names of the writers and their articles. Please have your office send this out and inform us of all responses. Best wishes and, p.g., Cordially yours, Rabbi Norman Lamm. Dear ________, It has been proposed that in the near future there will be published an anthology of articles that have appeared over the past several years in *TRADITION*. We have been asked by the RCA to act as co-editors of the book which, we hope, will present some of the more enduring material of *TRADITION* in an attractive, permanent form.Accordingly, we have consulted with the Editorial Committee of *TRADITION*, and with each other, and have compiled a list of articles for re-publication in what we have decided to call *A Tradition Treasury*. Included in this list is your material, namely, your article on \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_.We solicit your written consent for publication in *A Tradition Treasury*. Please bear in mind that we want to re-publish the articles as they are, and can accept only typographical corrections and deletion of material which you may believe may be obsolete. No additions can be accepted.Please be kind enough to send us your consent as well as the minor corrections mentioned as soon as possible.Sincerely,RABBI WALTER WURZBURGERRABBI NORMAN LAMMNL/lg

Dear Rabbi Lamm: We are in agreement after our conversation that your suggestion of the title of the forthcoming Council book, A Treasury of "Tradition" is a good one. We have accordingly instructed our compositors to proceed with this title. By the way Rabbi Klavans has also acquiesed in the selection of this title. Cordially yours, Hebrew Publishing Company, Isidor Werbel, President

Dear Rabbi Klavan: At the end of last month, I sent a note to Rabbi Levovitz concerning ways of increasing the distribution of Tradition and A Treasury of Tradition. In it, I made some recommendations, which would include the above, whereby a great deal of publicity could emanate from the RCA and be used officially by synagogue bulletins. I realize that we have had a very busy convention in Israel in the meantime, but I hope the letter will not be a total loss. I have received no acknowledgement of it as yet either from Rabbi Levovitz or from yourself or Rabbi Wurtzburger, to whom I sent copies. Upon rereading my suggestion, I think it has merit and humbly suggest that it be pursued by the Executive. Cordially yours, Rabbi Norman Lamm

Dear Issy: I enclose a draft copy of a Proclamation which ought to be circulated, signed, and published as quickly and expeditiously as possible. I talked with the Rav about it, and he is very much in favor of the idea. Please show him the copy for possible revision. I have no pride of authorship; as long as it is done in time for maximum effect I’ll be happy. Perhaps you can contact a number of people, in different areas in public and academic life and ask them to obtain consent for the use of their names. Dr. Seymour Lachman, the Board of Education (who first proposed the idea to me) might know of others in his field. In city government you might try Marvin Schick and Drell Greer. Marvin may have recommendations for other academic too. Milton Furst of Y.U. may have a list of people. Offhand, I might mention Marvin Fox of Ohio State, Paul Rosenberg of Columbia, and Abraham Tennenbaum of Columbia. The petition should be sent to Golda Meir and published in the Jerusalem Post, in Haaretz (in Hebrew) — and how about the New York Times? My secretary is typing this up while I’m off to California, but you can contact me at any time. I’ll be at the Riviera Hotel in Palm Springs — she has my phone number. I’m sorry to burden you with this, but if the issue has not been settled by the time you get this letter, it is simply too important to delay.

Dear Rabbi Rackman, As you may be aware, a rather comprehensive article on rabbinical courts, written by Joseph Kaplan, a Columbia student, was reprinted in the New York Law Journal during the summer. Certain of the information was based on interviews with you, and I assume that you must have previously seen a copy of the original article. If not, I would commend it to your attention. The appearance of the article suggests one or two points which I would share with you.The presentation of the activities of the RCA Beth Din is a rather favorable one. It occurs to me that it might be appropriate to arrange for some kind of reprinting and distribution of the article for publicity purposes. As a matter of fact, if the reprints could be made available in quantity, this is the kind of material that we might consider including in the "kit" normally distributed to UOJCA convention delegates.The conclusion of the article touches on a matter which has been the subject of correspondence between us in the past—the possible expanded use of the RCA Beth Din in areas other than matrimonial problems and situations. You may recall, for instance, that I had once suggested the recommendation that contracts with synagogue employees include compulsory arbitration provisions so that the embarrassing public display of a litigated dispute with a cantor, rabbi, or school principal could be avoided. While I know that the RCA has an excellent leaflet describing their procedures in matrimonial matters, a parallel publication for non-matrimonial activities might also be appropriate.The article contains an assertion that the Conservative *ketubah* clause has not been widely used. The only support for that assertion, however, which is given in the footnote appears to be a statement in the article originally written by Rabbi Lamm when the clause was first promulgated. In the light of our conversation and correspondence before the summer, I would be curious as to whether any better information is …

Dear Norman, I was delighted when I arrived at the office this morning to receive a mailgram from Max Etra telling me the good news of your election to the Presidency. I want you to know that you have the good wishes, the cooperation and the prayers of all your colleagues, who know that you are possessed of the talents and energy to undertake this great assignment and who feel assured that you will, in the great tradition of your predecessors in that office, bring growth, dignity and creativity to the great institution of learning which all of us love and revere. May the Almighty ever be in your corner to guide you and strengthen you. Again, heartiest congratulations. Cordially yours, Rabbi Israel Klavan Executive Vice-President