While attending the World Economic Summit in Davos, one of the sideline meetings conducted by Prime Minister Binyamin was with Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg. Proud of his son Yair, Mr. Netanyahu used the meeting to share some private news with the prime minister, that Yair was dating Sandra Leikanger, a Norwegian national. Yair, 23, has already traveled with her to Norway during the summer and the relationship continues. The Norwegian daily Dagen reported she met the prime minister’s son while studying in the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya, where he too is studying and it appears that fact that she is not Jewish does not trouble the young Netanyahu.
While the prime minister appears pleased to share the news, that his son is seriously dating a shiksa, Dr. Chaggai Ben-Artzi, Sara Netanyahu’s brother has a different viewpoint regarding the relationship. Ben-Artzi, who is Shomer Torah and Mitzvos, did not attempt to hide his anger over his nephew’s relationship. “Are you crazy” he asked when learning of the couple, adding he will not permit the young lady to come near the kevarim of his late parents. He added that if his parents knew of what their grandson was doing it would not be received well to put it mildly. He added that if Yair does not break it off and “does this thing then his is spitting on the kevarim of his grandparents. They loved him so much and raised him. From now on he will not have the zechus to stand at their kevarim and say how much he loves them.”
Ben-Artzi continues; “If you love them, this demands breaking it off immediately. Do we lack suitable women among your own people? You have to go to the daughters of the Plishtim! Have you gone crazy? This is beyond comprehension”.
Ben-Artzi adds that if he does not break it off, then he will personally see to it that Yair does not approach the kevarim of his parents on their yahrzeit when the annual memorial is held. He explains his father was very clear on the matter of assimilation and there is no room here for leniency. Ben-Artzi tells how his father, who was also the father of Yair’s mother, Mrs. Netanyahu, was adamant and he said assimilation was “the absolute worst thing that one can do, even worse than leaving Israel”.
Ben-Artzi stated adds his father always said if one of the family members would intermarry he would go out into the streets shouting and pull his hair out, “and here Yair is doing just that” he concluded.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem/Photo: Channel 2 News)
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41 Responses
This seems to be pretty much straight lashon hara to me; not sure how you can justify posting it.
Dovid Hamelech’s son Shlomo Hamelech, got married to Bas Pharoh; she was not M’zerah Avrohom.
Elimelech and Noami had two sons who married non-Jewish girls.
In Yosiefin there are countless stories of respected families having their sons marry to other nations. Yosiefin explains that there was nothing wrong because by a Goyishe girl there is no problem of marrying an Urrel.
For us it’s not right but it’s not so simple.
I wonder what the charedi Knesset member, who has a non frum daughter, thinks.
Loshan hora doesn’t apply to a person that is not shomer Torah u mitzvas. And from the mere fact that he is dating a shiksa it’s self evident that he is not shomer Torah.
Why is this lash in hara they r all ופשעים כופרים day don’t believe in ה they r מחלל שבת
it is a chillul Hashem to write this – how do we know she doesn’t want to become a giyores? she could actually make him frum – i’ve seen it happen many many times
What more do you expect from a zionist? Marrying shiksas is one their things. Usually they do a hosus-pocus “conversion” first.
We need a Pinchas today to do here as Pinchas did.
#2, It is totally ASUR. The cases from Tanach have their own pshatim.
Yira
How dare YOU make a comparison between this oysvorf and my zayda Shlomo Hamelech!?!? You are a sheygitz for even thinkign like that!
Chazal speak about how Shlomo Hamelech had them be m’gayeres before marrying them. The same for Naomi and Rus.
I am not m’kaneh your “schar” for that comment.
Yira
The examples you bring to prove your point, actually show the opposite, the dreadful outcome.
As a result of Shlomo marrying Bas Pharaoh, Rome was founded. Elimelech was already dead when his sons married Rus and Orpah, and they did not listen to their mother Naomi’s vigorous protests. Hence, they died young.
To # 9
Noami and Orpoh were Not m’gayer at marriage. Noami wanted to send them back home, how could you send a Yiddishe girl who is M’chiev in Mitzvohs back to Moav ??
The Chazal talk about Rus being M’gayer when she came along to E”Y, but not a word of Giyur mentioned in the Psukim. There is Definitely not one word of Giyur mentioned by Bas Pharoh.
Not everything has to fit our taste.
lashon hara .. no justification for LH ..end of story ..
those relishing with their self-righteous comments on this subject need to get a life ..
#2 – go learn more. Look at what happened to the two sons of Naomi & Elimelech. Look at what their names mean.
#7- “Marrying shiksas is one of their things”. What a disgusting, vile, sick statement!!
Every one of my Zionist family members and friends would be horrified if their children married a shiksa C”V.
Where do you get your stupidity and chutzpah from??
Yira
There are different Midrashim about that. See
ילקוט שמעוני רות – פרק א – רמז תקצט
ר’ שמעון בן יוחאי אומר אלימלך מחלון וכליון גדולי הדור היו, ומפני מה נענשו שיצאו מארץ לחוצה לארץ. א”ר יהושע א”ר חייא בר אבא חס ושלום שאפילו מצאו סובים לא יצאו, אלא מפני נענשו, שהיה להם לבקש רחמים על דורס ולא בקשו שנאמר בזעקך יצילוך קבוציך:
Also see Ibn Ezra Rus 1:2 which proves they did do Geirus before as well, but it just wasn’t with a full heart.
Anyway, there end was bitter, so what kind of comfort is it?
Shimu Shamayim! In which Shulchan Aruch is a non-frum person allowed to be spoken Lashon Hara about?! What has happened to Am Yisrael?
Since when is it allowed to use vulgar language? The word s—-a comes from shaketz. Just because someone is not Jewish does not mean that she is disgusting. She may be a very fine person just that a Jew may not marry her.
Ho made u a rabbi yoni what’s the shimu shamayim.the r all כופרים בה’day don’t believe in השי”ת the r all yodim as ribbonam & don’t believe in him ימש”ו the took away ארץ ישארל from us
y
The issue of intermarriage is one of the most serious – if not most serious halocha issue. I would expect that people not comment on such issues unless they have mastered the halocha and hashkafa issues involved. It is also important to master both the halocha and hashkafa issues relevant to hilchos lashon hora.
Instead of talking about Yair’s uncle, how about his 1/2 sister who is Shomeres Shabbos weighing in on this looming tragedy? His 1/2 sister davens at Heichal Shelomo Shul every Shabbos, and is Jewish married with a child, so could she me Mashpi’a on her 1/2 bother?
RabbiYoni
It’s in the sefer Chofetz Chaim, written by the famous achron of that name. He wrote the book on lashon hara… literally.
“In which Shulchan Aruch is a non-frum person allowed to be spoken Lashon Hara about?!”
In the Hilchos S”A cited in the Sefer Chofetz Chaim.
It is completely muttar to speak loshon hora about a treif eating Mechallel Shabbos bfarhesya.
NO Shimu Shamayim!
Shimu Tipshim!
If you don’t agree that someone who publicly does an Aveirah and who is openly a Mechalel Shabbos is not included in ‘Oiseh Maseh Amchu’, you are a “megaleh Punim b’Toirah shelo k’halacha”.
It is the ‘Sinas Chinum’ and ‘Lashon Hoarah’ crocodile cries of this state, that have decimated Klal Yisrael throughout the latest generations.
Don’t you guys know that loshon horah is muttar as long as it somehow makes non-frum people in E”Y look bad? How long have you been reading this site? Clearly, not long enough….
This arcane debate over whether or not its loshan horah is as irrelevant as the opinion of everyone else including Ben Artzi….This boy is old enough to understand his choices and the implications of those choices. We don’t know the nature or the relationship and its none of our business. She may well plan to covert and even if not, Netanyahu shows sound judgement not threatening to cut off ties with his son over his dating choices. I have friends who made that mistake and lost all contact with their children who married non-jews. Better to keep them close and encourage geirus if that is their ultimate decision. Stupid analogies to shlomo hamelech (aka Mark Levin’s zeidah) have no place in this dicusssion.
Not shocking-This is the natural outcome of secular Jewish life. We Americans know it only too well.
Every Jewish soul which goes wandering and gets lost is a tragedy that may never be corrected…
But when a high profile public figure takes this step-the very son of the leader of the JEWISH STATE is dating a non-jew, now the thought of intermarriage- gains momentum and possible justification-it makes very big news -it sets a new acceptable precedent (G-d forbid!) for young affiliated Israelis .
In the last sentence I meant young “unaffiliated” Israelis -the typing jumped….thx.
According to many mforshim, Bas Paroh went down to the river to toivel in order to convert and at that time found Moshe in the basket. But when ever it was, she certainly did convert. Rus had converted before her marriage and because conversion for marriage is not acceptable, Nomi was testing her by telling her to go back (three times,) and from Rus’s answer, she realized that she had sincerely converted. Also from here we learn the Halacha of trying to discourage the prospective convert three times.
Yira, marrying a Goya be’tzinah is assur only de’Rabbonon according to Ramoh. At the time of Naomi the gezeirah was not around yet.
Who cares if this is lashon harah or not? What really matters is that Ben Artzi probably didn’t teach his daughter much about yiddishkeit. Instead of being totally against assimilation,if he had taught his daughter about Yiddishkeit, and not just zionism, she maybe would have taught her own children about yiddishkeit, and they would not be wandering to Norway.
This is, of course, classic Zionist shmad. The reason for Zionism is to create a new hebrew goy nation that is as identical as possible to the goyim. So, just as a French citizen might marry a British citizen, Israeli intermarriage with other nations is, then, a perfectly reasonable means to that same end, R”L.
Simply, assimilation is their goal.
Interestingly, the religious uncle of this boy is quoted stating that assimilation was “the absolute worst thing that one can do, even worse than leaving Israel”.
This is also a good illustration of how toxic it is to mix Zionism and religion.
The kids of many of the big Zionists do leave Israel. So if a religious person tells you, a young Zionist, that assimilation is in even the same league as “leaving Israel”, then you’ve already lost half the battle.
Even “merely” making religion the same thing as your Zionism, as do “religious Zionists”, results in much of the rest of the battle lost, because Zionism is, after all, political and not at all religious.
Sticking to just the Torah would make so much more sense.
The Chafetz Chaim does write such a thing. We all know that.
You simply aren’t familiar with the myriad of Acharonim who wouldn’t consider this confused kid a Mumar! The Chazon Ish was the leader of those Acharonim.
Even if you disagree with the Chazon Ish, you would be sticking your head in a Safek Issur D’Orayta – in which you must be Machmir.
Get off my Semicha, and my opinions. It’s YOUR Chelek in Olam Haba I was worried about. Not mine.
No. 29: I thought Goya was a brand of beans. I think they are OU-kosher.
On the other hand, maybe Netanyahu was just being diplomatic with the Norwegian prime minister. He’s not going to beg her to help break up an inter-dating relationship! What goes on around the Netanyahu dinner table, however, might have a different nusach…
The outpouring of comments on this story is remarkable. Why are so many frum Jews surprised that a non-frum parent – Benjamin Netanyahu – would have a son who is dating a non-Jew? And why do you care? He is only one of many – about half of non-frum Jews are marrying gentiles, and probably more than that number consider marrying a gentile even if they decide to marry a Jewish mate. The problem is not Yair Netanyahu, it is the other 4 million of his contemporaries who are intermarrying.
To #17 Avi K
If only we would have done away with all these vulgar words and phrases when referring to the Umos, HKB”H would never have sent all these pogroms, crusades, holocausts on us.
Middoh Keneged Middoh; if we are sincerely nice to the Umos Ho’olom, Hashem will instill the Umos with love towards us.
So no one who had a fine Yiddish Chinuch married a Goyah? Nonsense. I am not sure what this young man has or hasn’t done with this non-Jewish woman (although I am not naive and suspect that they are not saying Tehilim together.) He is partying and having a good time. Does this meet our standards? – no. What do we call this? – znus. Don’t get all bent out of shape. (Unfortunately there are no shortage of frum people who are caught up in this too.) My prediction, he will settle down and marry a fine Jewish girl. relax!
RabbiYoni, I am not sure about the myriad Achronim, but your opponent has what to rely on. Just curious, are you so machmir with all other issurim?
“החפץ חיים בהלכות לשון הרע כלל ח’ סעיף ה’ – אומר: “אותם האנשים שמכירם שיש בהם אפיקורסות מצווה לגנותם ולבזותם בין בפניהם ובין שלא בפניהם”.
ובהמשך- “אפיקורוס נקרא הכופר בתורה… ואפילו הוא אומר כל התורה כולה מן השמים חוץ מפסוק אחד…”
The Chofetz Chaim is telling is WE MUST JUDGE who falls into this category and then WE SHOULD tell loshon hora about him and make fun of him.
MDD – You don’t know, since this clearly isn’t a topic you’ve learned much about.
And yes, I am Machmir on other Issurim. Just as you are Meikil on all other Issurim.
MDD — Well said. We 100% can rely on the Chofetz Chaim when he paskens it is a mitzvah to make fun of and tell loshon hora about these people.