A $430,000 Chilul Hashem

Guest post by Hayitochen:

I was most disappointed to read in last week's Jewish News about Elwood Shul and the Yesodei Hatorah college battling it out in the Supreme Court of Victoria, with the report that the Shul has already spent $430,000 on the case!

Both sides are supposed to be Torah-observant organisations, so how come they didn't do the proper Torah thing and go to a Din Torah?

Whilst I am unsure on who the religious authority currently is for Yesodei, it was established by a group of frum Jews headed by Rabbi D Nojowitz of Beth Hatalmud with the approval of the late Rabbi Chaim Gutnick and offers a Charedi agenda and curriculum. Similarly Elwood Shul, has always been Orthodox and currently lead by Rabbi Mordechai Gutnick, who heads the Melbourne Beth Din and Melbourne Kashrut.

How is it then possible that such groups defy the stern and unambiguous Halacha of not bringing our arguments  to the secular courts? Rashi states that this is a Chilul Hashem - which as we know is one of the greatest Aveiros and about which our Sages say that במקום שיש חילול השם אין חולקין כבוד לרב.

And what lesson does the average Halacha-abiding Jew learn from this? If Shuls (in this case one whose rabbi is the acting head of Beth Din!) and religious schools shun Din Torahs why should he be any different?

Additionally, one may ask, is Elwood Shul truly so flush with money? Can they really afford to squander half a million dollars fighting another Jewish institution? And what about Yesodei?How much have they spent on lawyers?

I  have no inside knowledge of the case, but from what I read and heard, the case is nowhere near the end. Isn't there anyone in the community who can knock some sense into both sides?