Shas

Expelled From Shas, And Preaching Tolerance

Gary Rosenblatt

Fervently Orthodox Israeli rabbi new darling of Jewish establishment here.

01/11/2011
Gary Rosenblatt
Editor And Publisher

Rabbi Chaim Amsellem has become an unlikely hero to many in the American Jewish establishment who closely follow Israeli life, including a new worldwide group being formed to support his positions.

A Sephardic scholar of Talmud with a thick gray beard and black hat, the rabbi, 51, is a Knesset member from the fervently Orthodox Shas party, known for its socially conservative agenda and interest in obtaining government funds to support a network of yeshivas.

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Ultra-Orthodox Israeli Rabbi New Darling Of U.S. Jewish Establishment

Submitted by Gary Rosenblatt on Fri, 01/07/2011 - 14:49

Chaim Amsellem has become an unlikely hero to many in the American Jewish establishment who closely follow Israeli life, including a new worldwide group being formed to support his positions.

A Sephardic scholar of Talmud with a thick grey beard and black hat, the rabbi, 51, is a member of Knesset from the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, known for its socially conservative agenda and primary interest in obtaining government funds to support a network of yeshivas.

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Seven Who Made A Difference In 2010

Gary Rosenblatt

For better or worse, the newsmakers of the year.

12/28/2010
Gary Rosenblatt
Editor and Publisher

Delegitimization. Flotilla.  Park51. Settlement freeze. Loyalty oath. The BDS (boycott, divestment, sanctions) movement.

These words and phrases recall some of the challenges and controversies that cropped up for Israel and the Jewish community in 2010, a year of increasing assaults on Jerusalem’s legitimacy on an international scale, and blame from Washington for the lack of progress in Mideast peace efforts.

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After the Fires: When Blame is Not a Game

Rabbi Gerald C. Skolnik
12/10/2010
Rabbi Gerald C. Skolnik
Special to the Jewish Week

Now that the horrific fire in Israel’s Carmel forest has been extinguished and Israel has buried its dead, Israeli politicians and pundits have begun the inevitable process of assessing blame for this unprecedented tragedy. I have heard many referring to it as the “blame game,” as if this can be treated like just another episode in which an oversight or omission on the part of some careless government functionary caused a blackout, or a monumental traffic jam. Find the most likely suspect, the reasoning goes, hang him/her out to dry, and go on with your lives.

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The Fires This Time

12/07/2010

While the now-extinguished fires in northern Israel were an unimaginable catastrophe for the tiny nation — which, more than almost any other, cherishes its trees — there were heartening aspects of the fatal disaster.

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Amar Calls on Netanyahu to Quash Military Conversion Bill

12/01/2010

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Israel's Chief Sephardic Rabbi Shlomo Amar said he will no longer be responsible for any state conversions if the Knesset passes a bill requiring recognition of all military conversions.

In a letter sent to Benjamin Netanyahu, Amar called the prime minister to prevent the passage of the bill, the Jerusalem Post reported Tuesday.

Amar has charged a committee to look into legal and halachic issues surrounding the military conversions. He asked Netanyahu to allow the committee to conclude its work before allowing the legislation to go forward.

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Knesset Committee Approves Military Conversion Bill

11/28/2010

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- A Knesset committee approved a bill to protect Israeli soldiers who have converted to Judaism through military conversion courts from having their conversions annulled.

The Ministerial Committee on Legislative Affairs on Sunday approved the bill, initiated by lawmaker David Rotem of the Yisrael Beiteinu Party. The bill, if passed, would force all state agencies, including rabbinic courts and the chief city rabbis and other Orthodox marriage registrars, to accept the converts as Jews.

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Hateful Words From A Rabbi

Submitted by Gary Rosenblatt on Mon, 08/30/2010 - 13:51

The sermon delivered by Rabbi Yosef, the spiritual leader of the Shas Party in Israel, and broadcast in part on Israel Radio on Sunday, is an embarrassment to all Jews.

Referring to the leader of the Palestinian Authority and his followers, the rabbi said that “Abu Mazen and all these evil people should perish from the earth.”

What saddens me is that this sentiment comes from one of the most influential rabbis in the world, and that few of his colleagues have spoken out against such hateful rhetoric.

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Ovadia Yosef and the silence - so far - of American Jewish leaders

Submitted by James Besser on Mon, 08/30/2010 - 10:37

Update: in this blog, I asked what Jewish leader would be the first to condemn Rabbi Ovadia Yosef''s death wish for Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian people.  Answer: Abe Foxman of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).  This just in from Foxman:

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Shas Spiritual Leader Wishes for Demise of Abbas

08/30/2010

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- On the eve of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, the spiritual leader of the Shas Party wished for the demise of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

"Abu Mazen and all these evil people should perish from this world," Rabbi Ovadia Yosef reportedly said during his weekly Saturday night sermon at a Jerusalem synagogue. "God should strike them with a plague, them and these Palestinians."

Yosef also called the Palestinians "evil, bitter enemies of Israel."

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