PUTTING A STUMBLING BLOCK BEFORE THE BLIND

The Jerusalem Post published an article taking the OU, among others, to task for giving a hechsher to products that do not need them. The article appeared on Nov 5. It was written by Michael Freund and titled “When Kashrut Agencies Put Profits Before Prophets.”

The author was amazed to find an OU certified chandelier cleaner at Home Depot. A lady wrote back to the paper saying, “It is conceivable that the cleaner was labeled as being for chandeliers, but it might also be used for cleaning other items made of crystal, such as the bowls, dishes, and goblets that many use for serving food and drink at their tables. That being the case, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that many people who are scrupulous about kashrut would prefer using a cleaner manufactured under proper kashrut supervision, such as that of the Orthodox Union.”

That is an attitude we hear all too often, one that betrays an incredible lack of knowledge about the rules of kashrut. NO CLEANER USED ON KOSHER DISHES, ETC, NEEDS TO BE KOSHER. It is NOT a halachic issue. Plain and simple- it just is not.

Perhaps using a certified glass cleaner makes a person feel religiously superior, but mostly they are just unknowing. Nadav and Avihu thought they were doing something that was the equivalent of using kosher laundry detergent on the table cloth that covered their shabbat table (metaphorically speaking), and look how that turned out for them!

Years ago, a company (in the USA) trumpeted the fact that they had the only kosher for pesach window cleaner. Really? Our thought at that time was that if you ran out of pesachdik dishes, you could just take out the window and use it for an extra plate. Kosher for pesach window cleaner indeed. Narishkeit.

Some years back, three bloggers (including this one) all issued the same piece criticizing the OU for putting their hechsher on poisonous wood alcohol. According to the lady who wrote the above paragraph in her letter to the J Post, she might have thought if you wanted to commit suicide, and you keep kosher, better to do it with a kosher certified poison. (A sarcasm font would be very useful here.)