Q&A: Volunteering in a Place That Has Some Problems
Volunteering in a Place That Has Some Problems
Question
Hello Rabbi,
We are a large, well-known youth organization with volunteers all over the country.
We wanted to volunteer with the Efrat Association, but one of the volunteers showed me an investigative article that was done about the Efrat Association, in which it was revealed that the association uses emotional manipulation on young women so that they will not abort the fetus.
The article is attached; I would be happy if you could look at it and tell us whether we can volunteer there or whether it would be more appropriate to volunteer in other places.
https://mobile.mako.co.il/news-israel/health/Article-9e29a8d546f8331017.htm
Thank you
Answer
This is not a simple question.
I do not know what to say about that article. The things there can be interpreted in various ways. It could also be statements by one particular woman that are not necessarily always said, nor said by everyone.
And beyond all that, the alternative is to leave women with the decision to abort without giving them the relevant information from the other side. And especially without making it clear to them that, contrary to liberal propaganda, abortion is murder. In my view it is absurd to allow a woman to decide to murder freely on the basis of the empty and ridiculous slogan of “a woman's right over her own body.” True, there are abortion committees that are supposed to approve abortions, but their criteria are very liberal, and it is well known that they basically serve as a rubber stamp (they approve almost all abortions without any real restriction, not even according to their own absurd criteria). The reasons for this are known, and the liberal pressure and brainwashing are enormous. They engage in wild propaganda that overshadows everything reported in the article you linked to. For this reason, I am also not inclined to accept journalistic reports like this one too readily. Both sides here are agenda-driven, and I am definitely in favor of Efrat's agenda, not that of its opponents.
Therefore, in my opinion it is important to fight against this phenomenon. Although in my opinion one must not lie even when fighting against it, even that is not so simple. After all, in order to prevent murder it is permissible even to do forbidden things, and lying is not the gravest one. Still, I think it is not right to lie in this situation, because the results of such a lie are more harmful than helpful (for example, articles like these). Also, in the end the burden falls on the mother, and unfortunately nobody does the work and bears the price in her place. Therefore I think she should have all the information before her.
In any case, if you volunteer in this organization, the decision about what to say is yours, and you will not lie. If they require you to do things you are not comfortable with, you can always leave, and perhaps also file a complaint.
And one more note. This is not an investigative report. It is a report about a particular case together with a request for a response from the association. An investigation is supposed to be broader and more systematic.