Madeline Albright was the former US Secretary of State. That means more than bringing coffee to the President and typing things up for him. THAT'S OFFENSIVE!!! She was the kind of secretary that if the President and the Vice President die or are outta commission - she is IN. Chief Skipper!!! In the meantime, the SOS has many duties:
Serves as the President’s principal adviser on U.S. foreign policy;Conducts negotiations relating to U.S. foreign affairs;
Grants and issues passports to American citizens and exequaturs to foreign consuls in the United States;
Advises the President on the appointment of U.S. ambassadors, ministers, consuls, and other diplomatic representatives;
Advises the President regarding the acceptance, recall, and dismissal of the representatives of foreign governments;
Personally participates in or directs U.S. representatives to international conferences, organizations, and agencies;
Negotiates, interprets, and terminates treaties and agreements;
Ensures the protection of the U.S. Government to American citizens, property, and interests in foreign countries;
Supervises the administration of U.S. immigration laws abroad;
Provides information to American citizens regarding the political, economic, social, cultural, and humanitarian conditions in foreign countries;
Informs the Congress and American citizens on the conduct of U.S. foreign relations;
Promotes beneficial economic intercourse between the United States and other countries;
Administers the Department of State;
Supervises the Foreign Service of the United States.
And, of course, if the President asks - she will bring him coffee.
Back to Madame Madeline. She found out very late in life that she was actually - gulp - Jewish. I found out when I was eight days old. It was painful but WORTH IT DUDE!!!! A few tears, somebody sticks their finger in my mouth with some wine, I go off to sleep and I am good to go forever and ever.
Sadly, this revelation did not trigger a massive change in her life - Shabbos, Kashrus, Challah baking Thursday nights with 39 other women as a Segulah for a shidduch for all of their single friends and the cholim, subscription to Mishpacha Magazine etc. etc. She lived as a Goya [I was going to use another word but I don't really like that word when used in relation to a human being!!!:-)] and died as one. She had a Christian funeral. She got to the "pearly gates" [not that the gates are made of pearls] and was like "Where's Yoshke?" Sorry lady. Not over here. In the basement.
But let's say she WOULD have wanted to do Teshuva. Would she have been obligated to bring a Korban Chatas for all of her violations of Shabbos? Yes. One for all b/c she didn't even know that she was commanded. So all the Shabbasos are lumped together.
כְּלָל גָּדוֹל אָמְרוּ בְּשַׁבָּת כָּל הַשּׁוֹכֵחַ עִקַּר שַׁבָּת וְשָׁכַח שֶׁנִּצְטַוּוּ יִשְׂרָאֵל עַל הַשַּׁבָּת. אוֹ שֶׁנִּשְׁבָּה וְהוּא קָטָן לְבֵין הָעַכּוּ''ם אוֹ נִתְגַּיֵּר קָטָן וְהוּא בֵּין הָעַכּוּ''ם. אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁעָשָׂה מְלָאכוֹת הַרְבֵּה בְּשַׁבָּתוֹת הַרְבֵּה אֵינוֹ חַיָּב אֶלָּא חַטָּאת אַחַת שֶׁהַכּל שְׁגָגָה אַחַת הִיא.
A great general principle was stated with regard to the violation of the Shabbos prohibitions: Anyone who forgets the fundamental principle of the Shabbos, failing to recall that the Jews were commanded to observe the Shabbos or was captured and taken among gentiles while a child or converted in his childhood and remained living among gentiles, he is liable for only one sin-offering even though he performed many forbidden labors on many different Shabbasos, for it is all one lapse of awareness. [Rambam Shgagos 7-2].
The question is - why? Is every Goy obligated to explore his roots to find out if he or she is Jewish? Madeline and all of her ilk [someone was inspired to write a whole book about people who found out later in life that they were Jewish] are completely guiltless. A Korban is brought b/c there is some level of guilt, for the person should have been more careful [רש"י יבמות פ"ז, ב ד"ה שלא עפ"י ב"ד ובית אלקים למבי"ט שער התשובה פ"א].
So why the חיוב קרבן???
Similarly, if individuals followed the erroneous ruling of the Sanhedrin - they have to bring a Korban [Shgagos 13-2]. Why? Why is it their fault? They were merely following the Torah that says to follow the Sanhedrin??
