The Kavanaugh hearing has been on the tip of everyone’s tongue. Some say he is a rapist and should not be officiated. Others say this is a witch hunt designed to keep Judge Kavanaugh off the supreme court, and a final camp points out that this is a delay tactic. So, which is it?
First of all, Judge Kavanaugh is innocent of the charges. But did he do it? That is another issue entirely. Let’s look at this from a Torah perspective. Would Judge Kavanaugh have been convicted in a Rabbinic court?
Let us look at the witnesses for the only accusation with merit, Ms. Ford’s accusation. In the Torah it says that, “Only on the testimony of two or three witnesses shall a man be put to death” (Deuteronomy 17:6). Now people might say he isn’t up for the death penalty. While that is true, in the Kingdom of Israel, for whom these laws that we hold dear were made, a gang rapist would certainly be up for the death penalty. Thus, according to the Torah, the two witnesses rule certainly applies in this case.
But should the accusation prevent him from sitting on the court? No, as this would make a legal precedence. Any woman could, even if the allegations were completely false and had no corroborating witnesses with no evidence to back up her claims, invalidate any man from public office just by accusation. This would give too much power as anybody would have the veto, and they could exercise it without the approval of the rest of the country. If one person disliked a public official and the rest of the country adored them then that one person could invalidate them for further service.