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In
recent weeks irate members of the Orthodox community have hurled
threats and anathemas at Rabbi David Bar-Hayim, head of Machon Shilo, his only crime apparently being an attempt to make the
culinary lives of Ashkenazim living in Israel a little bit easier.
Bar-Hayim, together with four other rabbis, issued a halachic opinion two weeks ago that would permit Ashkenazi Jews to eat kitniyot
(legumes.) If Bar-Hayim has his way, no longer will foods such as rice,
humous, peanut butter and tofu be permissible for Sephardim only.
Rather, Jews of European descent would adopt "the custom of the Land of
Israel" and partake of kitniyot, as well.
Bar-Hayim's detractors, however, do not want their lives to be made any easier if it means compromising tradition.
"Your
place in Gehinom (hell) is assured" and "If you don't clarify your
opinion, we will organize a worldwide campaign to blackball you" are
just some of threats recorded on Bar-Hayim's answering machine and
Internet inbox.
In the haredi Internet chat room Hadrei
Haredim, Bar-Haim and his fellow rabbis were attacked as "spiritual
midgets who have the audacity to take on the giants."
"I've received three types of responses," said Bar-Hayim, 47, an immigrant from Australia, told The Jerusalem Post in a telephone interview.
"The
happy ones call to thank me for doing something that should have been
done a long time ago, but which no rabbi has had the courage or
willingness to do.
"The curious ones call to get a copy of the
halachic opinion. Then there are the angry ones." But Bar-Haim, who
studied for a decade at Mercaz Harav Yeshiva, a bastion of religious
Zionist spiritual leadership training, said he was neither surprised
nor intimidated by the negative reaction which came "primarily from the
haredi community."
His halachic opinion was written for "Torah
Jews" who are interested in forging a new identity for themselves in
the Land of Israel.
Read the full article at http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1173879256642&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
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