The Shabbos Committee of the Eida Chareidis met and is discussing the possibility of renewing Shabbos protests on Yerushalayim’s Bar Ilan Street in light of the increased chilul Shabbos. Eida officials are certain the increase in chilul Shabbos is the result of the recent police decision to remove barricades that stood in the area on Shabbos.
In the “Eida” Newspaper, Rav Reuven Duduvitz writes that in a “bold move,” police recently decided to remove the barricades that closed the road on Shabbos with the “ridiculous reasoning” that the presence of the barricades poses a danger to motorists according to experts. This despite the fact that no driver has ever smashed into them.
Duduvitz adds that police intentionally decided to ignore the sensitivities of residents with the unilateral decision and we may not sit idly by with our hands folded. Therefore, it is possible that we will return to the streets to bring the issue to the forefront once again. To make matters worse, police lied by promising when the barricades are removed police personnel will maintain a presence but in actuality, this did not occur.
Making reference to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, he writes the Shabbos repays the insult – citing Olmert’s hard hand policy during the battle to close Bar Ilan to traffic on Shabbos, involving the Supreme Court, imprisoning youths on Shabbos and then pushing that police hold them without bail. As a result, writes Duduvitz, it is no wonder that the man now suffers the embarrassment and humiliation due to his corrupt ways.
(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)
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7 Responses
ok get ready for the comments of daas baleibatim hefech daas toirah.
before u write against the above; consider what ur opini0n might be if by some coincidence u would be SAVING lots of money [legaly] if the eida “returns to the streets & bar ilan st. would be closed as before.
is SAVING kedushas shabbos v’yerushalayim of less value to you??
For those of u who are going to scream “chillul hashem” the answer is The daas torah -rabanim will consider that & paskin lemaase!
I fail to see what the protests will accomplish. Chareidim have been protesting such matters for decades, and have gotten nowhere. Why do people think this will be any different? And Eli Lev, those of us who oppose the protests do not nagate the value of kedushat Yerushalaim. Rather we oppose the increased acrimony engendered by protests that have proven fruitless.
what right do the Chareidim have to protest?
They live in Israel, mooch off the Government (and threaten to leave the coalition if they can’t get more money) and do nothing productive (from the Chilonim’s perspective) for society. Yet, they still insist on attempting to run a country that they do not involve themselves in according to their values.
Live your own life, mind your own business. And we wonder why the chilonim hate us
#3
…have gotten nowhere”??????
either u dont know the facts or u choose to ignore them.
this may feel uncomfortable but the reason bar ilan was closed until now is largely due to the protests [that had the backing of rabamim]
again speak to askanim in yerushalyim who are involved in these things behind the scenes & who meet with the police & politicians quietly – not reported in the media that u see & hear!
If the protests are kept under control, I’ll join them otherwise it’ll all be to no avail. There needs to be clear guidelines about what’s acceptable protesting and what isn’t.
#5 did the closing of Bar Ilan street reduce chilul Shabbat at all? I didn’t think so. thus the protests accomplish nothing of any value.
How many of those who posted here live in Israel ? My sense is that it is very few. When I was living there and saw young children throwing stones at drivers on Rechov Bar Illan, I was apalled. Most of them didnt even know why they were protesting! Their parents told them to do so and they did it. What if, chalilah one of the drivers got out of their car and hurt one of them as a result of their actions? I have never met a chiloni that has begun keeping shabbos because people yelled “shabbos” at them. I have, however, met many chilonim who have become further estranged from Judaism as a result of such actions. In America, and everyhere else Jews live, we have learned to tolerate car traffic on shabbos. Are we better or worse than those who actually live in eretz yisroel? It is a huge chilul hashem and the Rabbinim have an obligation to speak out against such behavior, the same way they speak out against those who are mechalel Shabbos.