About that Child Molester who Ties Tzitzis* in Jail...

There is a guy sitting in prison right now for molesting his daughter, tying tzitzis and selling them to, um, guess who? Apparently, us!

A friend asked me what we are going to do about this. How can we allow this to continue?! Who wants their husbands and sons wearing these horrible tzitzis?

I am going to think out loud about this for a moment.

You may think I'm crazy, but I think its great that this guy is sitting in prison for molesting his daughter tying tzitzis. I actually think it should be the image of teshuvah for our generation. I really like this idea! If it was a rabbi who told this man to tie tzitzis in prison, I applaud him.

If you are a guy wearing tzitzis, you should be aware of why you are wearing them, and why tzitzis hang down around your sexual organs. My understanding is that the mitzvah of tzitzit is to remind Jewish males why they have a body and a sexuality in the first place, and what its mission is in their lives. Whether you are wearing tzitzis, or not, and if you are using your sexuality on a regular basis for personal gratification, for hurting others, or disconnecting from healthy relationships, then, yeah, maybe you should be sitting in jail tying tzitzis as a tikkun. Because the fact is, emotionally, psychologically and spiritually, you ALREADY ARE in jail if you are molesting someone, or using your sexuality in any way that violates another, or even yourself and your integrity. And yes, I am fully aware that some sexual deviances are obviously worse than others, and some prisons are obviously worse than others.

So guys, when and if you put on your tzitzis, remember that they are part of Judaism's great message of mindfulness, and sexual health. They actually might have been tied by a guy sitting in prison for molesting his daughter, and if nothing else that should be a powerful reminder of what your tzitzis are for, and what we need to work on as a society and a community.

Here's the thing; I suggest that instead of focusing on the guy in prison tying tzitzis, we think about how we use our own sexualitity.  We all need to focus on working towards using this powerful gift  for connection, for holiness, to bring us closer to our spouses and to ourselves, and of course, to our Creator who put us here with specific instructions about what to do and not do with our sexuality.

...Call me crazy, but that is just my two cents.

*A four cornered religious garment worn by Orthodox Jewish males.