The members of the Council of the Chief Rabbinate pledged allegiance to the State of Israel in the presence of President Reuven Rivlin at the President’s Residence on Wednesday, 15 Marcheshvan.
Among those present were Rishon L’Tzion HaGaon HaRav Yitzchak Yosef, who serves as President of the Council of the Chief Rabbinate, Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi Dovid Lau, who serves as Av Beis Din of the Supreme Beis Din, Minister of the Interior and acting Minister of Religious Affairs, Aryeh Deri, and Director-General of the Chief Rabbinate Moshe Dagan.
The opened his remarks by saying, “One of the roles of the council is ‘to work to bring the public closer to the values of Torah and to its commandments’. Bringing the public closer to the Torah and its commandments is, and always has been, the role of every rabbi in Israel. That is what is expected of every religious leader of any kind. That is what the public expects every rabbi to do. One might imagine that this work differs according to where, when and with whom it is undertaken. The role of a rabbi in a city where most of the inhabitants are religiously observant is different from the rabbi who works in a mixed city. It may be that things that were necessary in the past are no longer necessary. And the opposite is true: perhaps the role of the rabbi nowadays requires different approaches. He must understand the times he is living in, its culture, he must know about technology and how to face the challenges that it presents.”
“Faced with the possibility of sanctifying G-d’s name, there is also the danger of desecration,” said the president. “Any inappropriate behavior, or behavior which is seen to be inappropriate – according to the values of the public – could be a Chilul Hashem.”
In that context, the president commented on the discrimination against Ethiopian-Israelis at the Barkan winery: “I would like to remind us of our duty, all of us, to work together to prevent any harm, discrimination or exclusion of the Ethiopian community in Israel as happened recently at the Barkan winery. The historical decision of HaGaon HaRav Ovadia Yosef ZT”L ZY”A, united us with our brothers and sisters from Ethiopia and we must continue in his path of unity and peace between the tribes of Israel, as his son the Sephardic Chief Rabbi said, ‘The Ethiopian-Israelis are our brothers and sisters, and are Jews in every way.’”
Concluding his remarks, the president emphasized, “If we look upon each other equally, calmly, without discrimination, the voices of jealousy and hatred, of division and disagreement will fall silent. Your smiles, your words of encouragement, your interactions with the mighty and the meek – all these have great impact and carry an educational message. I hope that you sanctify G-d’s name in everything that you do. Bless you.”
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem/photo credit: Mark Neiman, GPO)
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One Response
Amazing picture of Rabbonim. I didn’t see even one Ethiopian Rov in it. Perhaps if our leaders show us non discriminatory leadership, things would be different. Are there any? What’s the real story?