With the election for the chief rabbis set for June 2013, there is a growing movement in the dati leumi and dati leumi Torani community to make sure that the new chief rabbis, appointed for a ten year term, are affiliated with the Zionist stream and not chareidi.
Te campaign calling for the appointment of Rabbi David Stav is well underway. Interestingly, the office of the Sephardi chief rabbi remains out of the race, as most appear resigned to the fact that the so-called Amar Law intended to permit the Rishon L’Tzion to serve another term will be accepted. There is a great deal of support for HaGaon HaRav Shlomo Moshe Amar Shlita, and to date, there has not been a audible effort to oppose his reelection, at least until now.
A letter signed by many rabbonim affiliated with the dati leumi tzibur calls for replacing Rav Amar too, seeking a Zionist chief rabbi in both positions, Ashkenazi and Sephardi. Rabbonim from Gush Etzion, Har HaMor and others are signed to the letter, seeking to return the Chief Rabbinate to the hands of those with a Zionist hashkafa. The letters makes mention of the deal-making that exists between the Chief Rabbinate today and the Shas Party, calling for an end to this unacceptable reality.
The prime candidate for the post of Sephardi Chief Rabbi is Tzfas Sephardi Chief Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, son of HaGaon HaRav Mordechai Eliyahu ZT”L and a member of the Chief Rabbinate Council today.
When asked to comment, aides to Rabbi Eliyahu explain that the rav is extremely busy working to elevate the level of kashrus in dati leumi communities and the matter of the Chief Rabbinate race has yet to be brought to his attention.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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15 Responses
This whole idea of an official “Chief Rabbi” is ridiculous. Frum Jews will only listen to to whomever each individual regards as his posek. This isn’t something the government can or should control (correction: when we have a legitimate government in Israel, with a King, a Sanhedrin and a Kohen Gadol with Urim v’Tumin – they can appoint a “chief rabbi”). At most they need a halachic consultant for any government shailohs, but since the current (meaning since 1948) government doesn’t go by halacha, they would never ask any.
aperkuma you might be wrong you might be right.. but i cannot evaluate your opinion
before you realize that israel is not a community like chicago flatbush lublin or odessa or salonika
the jewish nation which is what it is… is a singular geographic contiguous mass the size of new jersey with 5 million mass jews who need to be tended and not neccesasarily are a active member in their individual jewish cultural life
this is something that is new but the jewish state is something tangible real and definitive which american jews are not and do not need.. but in israel there are certain needs questions and identifications which remain which require mass federal coordination
Having a dati leumi Chief Rabbi will only further degrade the standing of the office. Why not pick someone at least moderately acceptable to all (ie hareidi)?
It’s especially bizarre when it comes to the next Rishon L’Tzion as any Rav who is not in line with Maran Ovadia Yosef will be marginalized by Sephardim and Mizrachim.
Mind you, I don’t think they necessarily care so long as they can lobby for quicky conversions and civil marriages.
It’s not true, the chief rabbinete is in charge of all religious affairs.
if the charedim dont listen to the chief rabbi, why should there be a charedi chief rabbi
4, why would a Dati Leumi rabbi degrade the office? And having a Charedi is not acceptable to all because of their actions. Furthermore, the charedi population doesn’t even hold of the chief rabbinate so why do they care if the Dati community wants to be led by a Dati chief rabbi?
Bla bla bla “My hoshkofa is better than your hoshkofa…in fact, your hoshkofa is sheker…and my way is Hashem’s way…so if you disagree with me, you are not only incorrect…you are evil..and don’t talk to me about sinus chinum and Tisha B’Av…for I’m pure and my opinions are pure”
“It’s especially bizarre when it comes to the next Rishon L’Tzion as any Rav who is not in line with Maran Ovadia Yosef will be marginalized by Sephardim and Mizrachim”.
Rav Mordechai Eliyahu was not always in line with Chacham Yosef and extremely accepted by Sephardim, Mizrachim and Charedim.
“Having a dati leumi Chief Rabbi will only further degrade the standing of the office”… Do not see the connection at all. If the Chief Rabbinate is unacceptable (No matter who it is), even when Hagaon Rav Herzog was in position, by Charedim, therefore the post should go to a talmid chochom in the Dati Leumi camp. There are many affiliated with that camp (majority not interested in the position)who r qualified and will bring honor to the role. Making the Charedim happy with this role that they shun,,,is for what purpose, pls remind me??!!!?
#7 “why would a Dati Leumi rabbi degrade the office? And having a Charedi is not acceptable to all because of their actions. Furthermore, the charedi population doesn’t even hold of the chief rabbinate so why do they care if the Dati community wants to be led by a Dati chief rabbi?”
Hence why I said “moderately” acceptable. A hareidi Chief Rabbi is inoffensive to the majority.
#9″Rav Mordechai Eliyahu was not always in line with Chacham Yosef and extremely accepted by Sephardim, Mizrachim and Charedim.”
Different strokes. Times have changed and only really Maran Ovadia remains with any real authority in the Sephardi world, that’s undeniable.
“Do not see the connection at all. If the Chief Rabbinate is unacceptable (No matter who it is), even when Hagaon Rav Herzog was in position, by Charedim, therefore the post should go to a talmid chochom in the Dati Leumi camp. There are many affiliated with that camp (majority not interested in the position)who r qualified and will bring honor to the role. Making the Charedim happy with this role that they shun,,,is for what purpose, pls remind me??!!!?”
You seem to take this quite personally, you aren’t dati leumi, are you? It’s telling that you fail to address the reality that those who are running for Chief Rabbi in the dati leumi world, such as Rav Stav, are doing so to relax halacha and Torah values, rather than enhance them.
Fine, allow me to remind you of a good reason to try and please a plurality of Jews as much as possible: achdus.
By all means give the role to a Talmid Chochom who wears a knitted kippa, but don’t be surprised if you come on YWN to find more people alienated with the medinah.
#10 that those who are running for Chief Rabbi in the dati leumi world, such as Rav Stav, are doing so to relax halacha and Torah values, rather than enhance them.
That is opinion rather than fact.
Check the piskei tshuva of Tzitz Eliezer, Rav Uziel and Levi who were renowned poskim and dealt with sheilus/tshuvos of the early Medinah. You might be surprised at some of the answers.
If the Rabbanut wants a Chief Rabbi, no problem, but they should not impose their will on all of Israel, and certainly not on other countries (which they do). The Rabbanut should be privatized like every other Badatz and keep out of government and international affairs.
I have long ago stopped commenting on a regular basis but “breslever’s comments are so outrageous and actually against halacha that I had to write in. The chareidim never accepted the rabbanim horoshim- they castigated Harav Shlomo Goren zz’l and made fun of Rav Unterman zz’l. Why should we care what the chareidim think? Secondly, to write that “they are going to relax halacha and torah values’ is truly “motzi shem ra” of cosminc proportions. According to breslever, the only halacha that is valid is the one that come out of bnai brak. There is no pope in judaism and halacha comes in many guises- yes, even halochos that make life easier.
Kocho dehetaira odif”.
so,please spare us your jeremiads and if this alienates you from the medinah- try chutz lo’oretz-see if you like it!
#8 YonasonW answered this matter clearly and totally. If they need a “Chief Rabbi” to begin with, it should at least be one who follows derech Hashem.
to the Heilliger Berlinner Rabbiner,
Please show me where the Gemmara uses “Kocho dehetaira odif” to determine that the Halacha should follow the meikel view.