Reply To: Siyum Hashas on eBay controversy….

it is a secular platform, so you have to follow secular rules.

eBay’s policies on discrimination in selling practices (as opposed to selling offensive items or publishing offensive comments which are legal but against eBay policies) are entirely based on Secular law and not any specific eBay policy.

Under secular law a florist cannot decide what type of wedding to sell flowers to even if it’s an religious florist and an “alternative” wedding that goes against the florist’s religious beliefs.

However under the same secular law a Rabbi, Priest or Minister can refuse to perform such marriages.

The point ZD is that secular law on religious observances is very different than secular law on non-religious transactions.

So, if you are selling Judaica and you specify Jews only, despite the Jewish content it’s not a religious observance, so that’s illegal under secular law and that’s why eBay won’t allow it. However, if you are selling benching or maftir Yonah that’s a religious observance and it’s perfectly legal under secular law to restrict it to those who belong to the religion and your experience with transactions that are not religious observances is not representative here.