![]() So why did Schoen repeatedly cover his head with his own hand? Religious law only requires a blessing before one’s first bite (or sip) and after eating or drinking is completed - and using your own hand to cover your head doesn’t really count as a valid covering according to most Orthodox interpretations of halacha. Įven observant Jews expressed confusion about why Schoen repeated his hand motion every time he drank. The Mysterious Case of Hand on Head caused confusion for many viewers and frenetic discussions on Jewish Twitter, where political polarization fell away in favor of shared bemusement. If avoiding stares was Schoen’s goal, he didn’t succeed. Schoen wore a kippah heading into the Capitol building, but chose not to wear one on the floor. Ilhan Omar and interfaith groups, overturned their 181 year ban on head coverings in 2019. Plus, the Senate bans head coverings, but carves out an explicit exception for religious requirements. In public courtrooms in particular, some observant Jews fear that wearing a kippah could bring extra scrutiny from anti-Semitic jury members, judges, or in this case, members of the public. While it’s true that most Orthodox men regularly wear a hat or a kippah (also called a yarmulke) at all times, some elect not to wear a head covering at work or in situations where being identified as a religious Jew could cause harm. “I didn’t want to offend anyone…It’s just an awkward thing and people stare at it.” “I just wasn’t sure if it was appropriate, frankly,” Schoen said after the hearing to a CNN reporter who asked him why did not wear a kippah. So why wasn’t he wearing a kippah or another head covering, as many observant Jewish men do? Based on this fact, it’s likely that Schoen covered his head with his hand while he recited a blessing before drinking from his water bottle. Jewish law, known as halacha, stipulates that in order to say God’s name, men (and in some opinions, women) should have their heads covered. ![]() Late Monday, he retracted that request, saying that his co-counselors could fill in for him.Īfter hours of scrolling through Twitter to parse the hairy situation, it seems social media users could all agree on one thing: thanking Jake Tapper for bringing it to our attention.Whenever observant Jews drink or eat, they typically recite a blessing that includes the name of God before and after doing so. Schoen’s religiosity played a part in the impeachment trial even before “The Great Kippah Debate of 2021.” Earlier this month, he requested that the trial pause at sundown on Friday so that he could observe the Sabbath. ![]() “I didn’t want to offend anyone.” He added: “It’s just an awkward thing and people stare at it.” “I just wasn’t sure if it was appropriate,” he said. When asked about the issue by CNN on Tuesday evening, Schoen explained why he wasn’t wearing a yarmulke. More questions arose: Should we be calling it a yarmulke? A kippah? A skullcap? Could he have grabbed a tissue and, if so, would it need to be double-ply? Did he perhaps think he had his yarmulke on and was merely reaching to keep it from falling off? And why wasn’t he wearing the yarmulke to begin with, allowing him to have both hands available to argue his case? Many modern Orthodox Jews choose not to wear a yarmulke in business settings, but will often put one on while eating, drinking or reciting a prayer. What nobody is saying, is that Schoen isn’t covering his head with his hand (which halachically wouldn’t count as a headcovering), he is covering it with the BOTTLE CAP! Did Schoen, in fact, have the water bottle cap nestled into the palm of his right hand? If so, would that count as a tiny plastic yarmulke? ![]() On the C-SPAN live feed, Schoen is clearly seen using his bare hand, while his sleeve remained several inches from the tip of his dome.Įagle-eyed sleuths slowed down the video as if they were studying the Zapruder film. Hats off to David Schoen who, like me, makes a statement with a yarmulke.
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