Chareidi elected officials in Yerushalayim are lobbying to persuade fellow lawmakers to oppose budgeting the new Jerusalem Sport Tech project. The Vaad L’Maan Shabbos, which represents both Ashkenazi and Sephardi gedolim, has instructed chareidi councilmen to oppose the budget in the upcoming vote. The vaad sent a letter to the chareidi councilman detailing the project, which is supposed to be in the Emek Arazim area. The city council is set to convene on Thursday, 10 Sivan to discuss the matter.
The issue began last summer when Mayor Nir Barkat wanted to build a country club type resort in the Ramot area of the city that would include an Olympic swimming poll. The chareidi parties launched their opposition based on fears of immodesty and pritzus that would offend the religious sensitivities of the many frum residents of Ramot.
Following negotiations a compromise was reached and the new venue was selected, Emek Arazim. The new complex is to be called Sport Tech. the chareidi parties viewed this as a victory for the project was moved from the chareidi community.
The problem now is that some chareidi councilmen are questioning how they will look the mayor in the eye as he understood their pain and moved the project away from the chareidi area and despite this, they are instructed to vote against the budget.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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7 Responses
The mayor has made it clear that he considers the large hareidim presence in Jerusalem to be a problem that needs correcting. Most non-hareidi Israelis agree with him. Remember the whole idea of zionism was to create a Torah-free zone, and having the capital overrun by frummies is not what they want.
The only meaningful alternative for hareidim is to work with the Palestinians (who heretofore boycott elections). On most issues pertaining to Jerusalem, we have more in common with them than with the secular Israelis.
akuperma,
Palestinians themselves play sports and have comedy shows on TV, except that instead of throwing in a big dose of pritzus and immorality, it’s a little less of that and more hatred of Jews who are apes and pigs. In all their cartoons they depict the pig-Jew as a Chareidi looking one…
They all teach and propagate that killing Jews is a Mitzva, especially if they’re living in EY, just as by us it’s a Mitzva to keep Shabbos.
The Satmars just have a problem that they cannot see anything but what was taught to them as the reality of 50-60 years ago even though reality is quite different now.
“On most issues pertaining to Jerusalem, we have more in common with them than with the secular Israelis”
If you truly believe this you are completely crazy. I’d suggest you go discuss your common agenda with them in person next time you are in E”Y. I’m sure they will welcome you with open arms.
Why are the rabbanim against it if it’s not supposed to be by a frum area anymore? I think I live near the area they were going to build it originally, my neighbor mentioned something about a country club a few weeks ago – thank G-d they scrapped that one!!!
akuperma speak for yourself!!! Living in USA I’m guessing you don’t get much exposure to Arabs (at least non-westernized ones) and have a mostly academic view. Let me enlighten you – I interact with Yerushalmi arabs quite often and I can tell you frum Yiddin have slightly less in common with them than we do with chimpanzees. Please drop the knee-jerk antizionist routine already. It really fouls your otherwise often intelligent comments
The Jews in Eretz Yisrael (meaning the frum Jews, the hareidim), have two choices: 1) make peace with the zionist hilonim; 2) make peace with the Arabs. The zionists demand that we give up Torah and join them in building a modern secular medinah. The Arabs couldn’t care less about Torah, but demand the we be subserviant to them (similar to African Americans under Jim Crow in the early 20th century).
The possuk states “The land will vomit them out”
plus,
immodesty and pritzus in Jerusalem impacts the whole world !!