Conversion to Judaism part 9

In 1979, after two years of campus work, and two years of congregational work, I became interested in the military chaplaincy. I was only twenty six. I eagerly toured several air force bases, and spoke at length with the chaplains. Jewish chaplains were, and still are, first approved by the Jewish Welfare Board (JWB), that, in turn, deals with rabbinical organizations of the three major denominations. In the case of Orthodox rabbis, that was the Rabbinical Council of America. I was, in fact, a member of  a smaller, more Right Wing organization; the Rabbinical Alliance of America. The JWB informed me that this presented no problem. The RCA would simply approve me or disapprove me on the merit of my credentials. I was summoned to the RCA headquarters in New York (I lived in Cincinnati at the time). One of the bigwigs of the RCA met with me. "Look" he said "each denomination has an annual quota of chaplains. If we are short, we recognize you. If we have enough of our own people, we don't". I suddenly realized I was essentially dealing with a labor union, and I wan't one of "his people". I told the bigwig that I had gone to college with his son. He placed a call to his son. "He doesn't remember you. Goodbye". That's how the U.S. military lost me as a chaplain. That's how I lost my respect for the RCA. Little by little, over the years, I discovered that the whole system was about power and influence. Up until about 1980, any conversion, performed by any Orthodox rabbi, was recognized both in the U.S. and in Israel. Although conversion requirements differed greatly from rabbi to rabbi, all were recognized. Then, the RCA let it be known that they wished to standardize  all Orthodox conversions, by means of a central Beit Din. This proved impractical, so they modified it to include only certain RCA rabbis, who would follow RCA guidelines. Other rabbis, even RCA members, were no longer authorized to perform conversions. Who granted the RCA such sweeping powers? They simply took it, as they had taken control of virtually all major Orthodox synagogues. An expression my late Mother used to use a lot comes to mind; "Who died and left you boss?" People with other conversions, were told that they are not Jewish at all. Chabad, which used to do many conversions, stopped (at least in places where there were  RCA rabbis). Hasidic and right wing Yeshiva conversions were no longer recognized, although, with considerable pressure, they could often be recognized ex post facto, after the RCA deigned to grant recognition. Often, these involved rabbis far more qualified than the RCA ones. Twenty years later, the Israeli Chief Rabbinate made a deal with the RCA that they were to be seen as the only rabbinic representatives of U.S. Jewry. Any RCA rabbi coming to Israel, would also automatically be recognized to serve in an Israeli rabbinic position. (Whereas I, and many others, had to seek the approval of one of the Chief Rabbis.) A similar situation exists regarding kashrut and the OU. (Same people as RCA). Millions have been spent on public relations, to make the OU the ultimate name in the field. A large part of their success lies in the fact that they weaken and destroy smaller hechshers, by spreading all sorts of nasty rumors. On the other hand, mistakes of other agencies are often covered up for political expediency. My mind races back to my abortive attempt of becoming a chaplain. But with me, it was just an issue of a position. For numerous converts, these policies often signal a lifetime of hurt and rejection. I do not know how some people sleep at night.