Jerusalem City Hall issues permits for authorized Kaporos in a small number of areas. This year city officials report they are going to crack down on all unauthorized Kaporos towards preventing animal suffering, citing the extreme conditions that exist in some areas.
Authorized locations include:
1) 1 Chevras Mishnayos Street, Meah Shearim Street
2) 10 Beis Yisrael Street, Bucharim
3) 10 Shiloach Street
4) 10 Shimon HaTzaddik Street
5) 46 Shmuel HaNavi Street
6) 71 Shmuel HaNavi Street
The above listed locations will be under supervision from city health, veterinary, and safety inspectors. The regulations distributed by the city include guidelines for holding chickens prior to Kaporos. Inspectors will be looking for pirate Kaporos and they will be shut down.
City regulations urge those who use chickens for Kaporos to familiar themselves with the proper way to handle the birds to avoid injury and unnecessary suffering.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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6 Responses
Feh. There are kaporos centers all over Yerushalayim in backyards not visible from the street. Nor are they accessible to city inspectors without first getting permission (which isn’t granted) or a warrant (which takes time). The secular government, in its attempts to harass religious Jews, will never find even a quarter of the places in time.
Just one more way to control the Charedim in Israel
Why should a government that as a matter of policy is opposed to Torah, be issuing permits to do a Jewish ritual?
Will they next issue permits to toivel in a mikva, put on tefillin, learn Torah (oh I forgot, that’s exactly what they are planning).
When the Muslims ran the country, did Jews need their permission to do mitsvos?
Forget it! I’m going to Bnei Brak this year for Kaparos. Mr. Bar Cat you just lost my business!
To those that still insist on using live chickens to shlug kappuros, these approved sites should be sufficient. If some rabbonim and askanim nonetheless want to sneak around and sponsor some dirty back-alley kappuros locations without proper oversight, they will probably not be caught but its likely that the tzar baalei chayim and communal disruption they cause will negate the value of their symbolic efforts at Tshuvah in the eyes of the Ebeshter.
Not everything the Israeli government does is an evil plot to hurt chareidim. Stop being so paranoid! There were actually Gedolim over the centuries who opposed the minhag of kapparos with chickens. These included Rabbi Yosef Karo, the Rashba and the Ramban. Rav Yosef Karo called kapparos with chickens “A FOOLISH CUSTOM”. These Gedolim objected for various reasons, including the potentially problematic slaughtering, the non-Jewish superstitious character of thhis custom, and the unnecessary cruelty inflicted on the animals at a time of year that ought to be marked by mercy and benevolence.
The Israeli government is right to try to stop the animal cruelty, tzaar baalei chayim, which is a mitzva d’Oraisa. You can use tzedaka money and fulfill the mitzva without causing pain to an animal.