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‘He Should Party a Little Less’: Evolving Orthodox Religiosities in Psychotherapeutic Interventions Among Jewish Gay Men

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Abstract

Drawing on interviews with Jewish Orthodox psychotherapists in Israel and on sources that represent the social, political, and cultural milieu within which these therapists work, we analyze the practices they use when working with religious gay men. Given debates and prohibitions on homosexuality in Jewish law, the therapists deploy three practices: reproducing religious norms, allowing homosexuality to be privately acknowledged while advocating its concealment from the public eye, or adopting religious distinctions that enable two men to live together while abstaining from sexual intercourse. These interventions express therapists’ pragmatic cultural work, sorting out opposing therapeutic discourses, like the liberal-professional and the religious, and engaging with contestations beyond the clinic’s boundaries. Some interventions may suggest an acknowledgment that religious standards are often met only on the surface and require continual subterfuge. They may imply, however, a recognition of cracks in the religious ideal and fine-tuning of religious and professional commitments.

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Notes

  1. The various terms deployed indicate different attitudes, social affiliations and ambiguities. ‘Homosexual’ tends to be associated with pathology and deviation due to its clinical history. The LGBTQ community and religious (and secular) liberals, prefer ‘Homo’ over ‘Homosexual,’ and prefer even more ‘Gay,’ or ‘Ge’eh’ [Hebrew: proud], which have positive connotations. Both ultra-Orthodox [Haredi] and Orthodox [at times referred to as Dati, religious] refrain from ‘Gay’ and ‘Ge’eh.’ Instead, they use ‘Homo’ or ‘Homosexual.’ ‘MSM’ relates to men who have sex with other men, without necessarily adopting social identities of homosexuals. Orthodox therapists often sought to articulate such behavior precisely and distinguish between sexual acts and lifestyle. Still, the term is mainly used by researchers. Ultra-Orthodox, especially the National ultra-Orthodox, often use ‘opposite tendencies’ [netiyot hafukhot] to underscore their social campaign that heterosexuality is the only viable sexual and social identity; it thus expresses their strict censorship of homosexuality.

  2. See Adamczyk and Pitt (2009) for a comparison of attitudes towards homosexuality in different cultures.

  3. Masturbation is usually forbidden in Judaism as it is framed as “wasting seeds” [zera levatala]. Still, in the halakhic discourse and in educational practice, there are differences of opinions.

  4. Some therapists interviewed for the current study shared that they also treat lesbian women.

  5. The Israeli Psychologists’ Law allows only trained clinical psychologists to practice “psychotherapy.” However, therapists from various professional backgrounds are authorized to provide “psychological assistance.”

  6. The secular Tel Aviv liberal gay scene is very different from the Orthodox conservative attitudes prevalent in other sections of Israel, especially in the periphery.

  7. Religious homosexuals often desire, at least at the beginning of their journey, to remain within the fold. They thus tend to approach observant therapists who supposedly are committed first and foremost to the religious law.

  8. Dati-Leumi [National Religious] includes different trends in Israel – ultra-Orthodox, Orthodox, and progressive.

  9. Ultra-Orthodox nationalists [Hardalim] emerged from ideological transformations in the Jewish settlement movement in the occupied Palestinian territories during the 1980s and 1990s. They combine national-religious Judaism with ultra-Orthodoxy, a fusion that is cause for great concern among those who fear a fundamentalist assault on Israel’s democracy (Mahla, 2003).

  10. In contrast to Rabbi Levinstein, Rabbi Harel provides academic references for conversion treatments, and argues homosexuality is normal and is not a disease. He is in favor of conversion treatment for “examining options.” He further claims that if “the experience of change was not successful,” the person should “submit to God's command” and not exercise his inclination (See: Alaluf, 2022).

  11. For example, Kamoha [literally: like you], a website for religious homosexuals, https://www.kamoha.org.il/. Such bottom-up initiatives resonate with other self-help projects in different contexts (Tiaynen-Qadir & Salmenniemi, 2017).

  12. “Second Passover” is a Jewish holiday starting 1 month after Passover Eve. During the time of the temple, it allowed for sacrifice for those who missed the Passover sacrifice.

  13. Clients’ strengths may be related to various factors, like class, religious capital, or family’s social status.

  14. These therapeutic deliberations correspond with Zigon’s (2009) claim that there are always competing and negotiable moral conceptions within a local social sphere. Moreover, at times, there are no dominant values that persons feel compelled to follow but rather a range of possibilities, as when a religious homosexual grapples with impossible choices, and his therapist—limited too by tradition and social belonging—tries to ease his suffering.

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  1. Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel

    Einat Bar Dror & Yehuda C. Goodman

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  1. Einat Bar Dror
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Correspondence to Einat Bar Dror.

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Bar Dror, E., Goodman, Y.C. ‘He Should Party a Little Less’: Evolving Orthodox Religiosities in Psychotherapeutic Interventions Among Jewish Gay Men. Cult Med Psychiatry (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11013-023-09841-5

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