Gedolei Hador of Degel Hatorah led by Maran HaGaon HaRav Aaron Yehuda Leib Shteinman Shlita and HaGaon HaRav Chaim Kanievsky Shlita have come out against newer generation smart phones that are compatible with kosher SIM cards. These phones are advertised as ‘compatible’ with kosher SIM cards.
The declaration from the gedolim appears in Yated Neeman, referring to the new ‘compatible’ phones as a פריצת הגדר (breach in the wall of kedusha), citing the known “churban” that has resulted from prohibited technological devices.
The announcement continues by explaining gedolim have been calling on the tzibur to only purchase approved kosher phones for the past decade, warning of the new threat, of the “prohibited phones that are now compatible to kosher SIM cards and thereby advertising as being a kosher phone”.
The declaration continues by detailing the spiritual destruction that results from ignoring the words of the gedolim and exposing oneself to this prohibited technology and the consequences of such actions.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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7 Responses
What are the parameters for defining what makes a phone kosher? If someone would publish a definitive answer people couldn’t get away with pretending that something was kosher.
I use my smartphone to listen to shiurim.
In all seriousness, companies stopped making and marketing the old phones for a handful of reasons be it demand or that they can’t run on the current 3g or 4g systems. The phones are now all, in essence, smartphones.
So what are people to do?
All in favor of Kosher phones. I still await the day that our gedolim will focus more on the instilling of Yir’as Shomayim, instead of the endless loops of chasing after the yetzer horah. They do not my haskomoh for prohibiting phones that can be used be used for improper things. But this work will never end, and allow them to lead us with their Torah and Avodas Hashem. We need to make the recognition of HKB”H’s presence in our lives something real, not just a lovely concept to remember on Yom Kippur. If we were all better in the Yir’as Hashem department, there would be much less pursuit of gedorim.
Which kind of kosher phones are they talking about? There are now android phones with a special kosher version of Android that has the standard teudah/chotemet and basically no apps. Are they targeting those or the ones with real apps like Whatsapp, texting etc…?
Im married with kids bh kenayno hora and quite often i have married friends of mine pouring their hearts out to me that they saw lots of tuma and their phone and etc… and yes these are good people. And yes it was blocked internet.. but hey their is ways around it. My point is that the nisoyin in todays world is a tough tough battle and we all fight it daily. What the gedolim are trying to do is save our marriges and our neshomas. And people Have the nerve to critisize them. So many broken marriges from the interchet!! Their intention is to save you!!! We must appreciate our holy devoted gedolim!
#5:
They are targeting the second kind, the ones that are advertised as “tomech kasher”, not the ones with the chotemet.
The difference is that once upon a time, a non-kosher cellphone wouldn’t work with a kosher SIM. Now, they are being made to be compatible with the kosher SIMS, which basically means that if a kosher SIM is inside then the phone won’t access internet, texting, etc. – but all one has to do is switch the SIM and it’s open season.
That’s why they’re called “tomech kasher” – they support a kosher SIM but don’t require one.