With Yom Kippur approaching, the annual debate for and against the minhag of kaporos is underway. This year a newcomer opposing the minhag has appeared on the scene, a chareidi organization, which has decided to join the Anonymous for Animal Rights organization.
The Chemla (Compassion) organization has signaled its opposition to the minhag, and its decision to come out publically against it ahead of Yom Kippur. “It is simply unconscionable that frum Yidden, Yirei Shomayim, cooperate with ‘macharim’ who transport the chickens under unacceptably harsh and abusive conditions. These creatures remain for hours on end in overcrowded condition without anyone concerning themselves with the most minimum of standards” states Yehuda Shein, a Chemla activist.
Shein says he does his pidyon with money, thereby fulfilling the requirement while avoiding the unacceptable treatment of living creatures, which negates Halacha.
Pashkavilim will be posted in frum areas calling upon the tzibur to abandon the minhag towards having pity on the creatures.
In a related matter, there are many prominent rabbonim who explain that they are not opposed to the minhag conceptually, but in practice, the situation here is unacceptable. Their concerns surround substandard shechita more than unacceptable treatment of the chickens. Holon’s chief rabbi, Rabbi Avraham Yosef Shlita has been an outspoken advocate warning the public of untrained and uncertified ‘shochtim’ who are out to make a great deal of money on erev yomtov. The rav explains that the professional shochtim are employed and do not engage in this, leaving an open door for many who simply should not be performing shechita, yet alone under the harsh and less-than-ideal conditions that exist in the kaporos locations. The rav adds that some of these shochtim will work 10-12 hour days, totally unacceptable and rendering many/most of the chickens questionable from a halachic point of view.
Other rabbonim encourage the tzibur to avoid waiting until erev Yom Kippur to permit slower proper shechita and adequate time to clean, prepare and distribute the chickens to the needy. They question the merit of the shechita hours before Yom Kippur, asking just how these birds reach the needy as they should.
In past years, chickens have been found in garbage dumpsters, giving credence to concerns that some of the kaporos stations are indeed illegitimate. In Yerushalayim, the main station that is certified is situated near the shuk, supervised by city, health and other officials. During recent years, there has been increased supervision to prevent unauthorized kaporos in neighborhoods around the city for a number of reasons, including health and sanitation concerns.
Proponents of the minhag insist they are carrying on the traditions of our fathers and while some involved are indeed taking advantage of the situation for personal gain, one should not malign a long-standing minhag due to the unacceptable actions of a few. They support action to shut down the illegitimate kaporos operations, but insist they will continue the minhag as has been the tradition of Am Yisrael over the centuries. They also encourage people to seek out authorized kaporos and to distance themselves from others for all the reasons mentioned above.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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9 Responses
The issue is not whether to do kaparos, but whether to use a live chicken. Since very few people have the foggiest idea what to do with a newly slaughtered chicken (unlike the old days), it isn’t so easy to give them to tsadakah any more.
NO ONE FRUM OPPOSES THE HALACHA OF DOING KAPORES.
These people arent Chareidim. They are barely even religious.
The title is misleading
The answer is very simple. Do it right. Stop the small-time kapporos operators who claim to represent some tzedoko which is really their pocket and let the community leaders (shul and yeshiva rabbonim) run one or two central kapporos per neighborhood.
When I lived in the US, kapporos got out of hand because we had 2 or 3 official kapporos that were properly located and a handful of jokers who were more convenient for most people. Where I am now, we have ample room, the shochtim are our regulars and the chickens go to the moisdos and/or the communal sukkah.
There was a post in a local advertising weekly here( EY) that pointed out the following: Many of the bird supply operations are milking this by supplying spent laying hens that are at the end of their productive life. They are all females, scrawny shmatte looking birds, and they have no food value left to them after being caged and manipulated to lay an egg or more a day, every twelve hour period for 1-2 years. By comparison, birds for meat use are rushed to be market weight at 7 weeks from the abused, useless remnants being profitably dumped on uninformed city folks as “kaporos”
It’s not a halacha, it’s a minhag.
#5 twisted: It can;t be true, since they are 50% male and 50% female. The women use female chickens.
Apparently some “Orthodox” people/organizations are just too chicken to do kapores.
In my family, we do kaparos with money, wrapped in a handkerchief. There is a very satisfying feel to it, and I recommend that more people take up this custom.
It takes a lot of mental gymnastics not to notice the tzaar ba’alei chaim of the chickens at a kaparos station. They’re stacked up in crates, subject to the elements, unwatered, unfed.
How is this a way to resolve our sins before Yom Kippur?
As always, it’s important to t*h*i*n*k.