Sunday, October 3, 2010

Not all Sefardim are Shas'nikim


הרב יהודה מועלם, ראש ישיבת פורת יוסף

We're used to Judaism's groups having one face. Let me explain: In Di Litteh it's Reb Chaim and Rav Elyashiv. OK, make that two faces. In Chassidus it's Satmar, Belz, Vizhnitz etc. In Edut HaMizrach it's Rav Ovadiah, and maybe Rav Mordechai Eliyahu too. Somehow Rav Ovadia and Shas managed to make themselves THE face of Sefardi Religious Jewry. They give him credit for being machzir attara leYoshnah. In a recent talk ROvY spoke about the fact that the Sefardim always learned in Ashkenazishe Yeshivos and that Porat Yosef was the only (serious, maybe) Yeshivah for Sefardic Bnei Torah. He made mention of this during the whole Immanuel saga last summer, and he thanked them for it. But now, he said, Shas has many Yeshivos and all Sefardim should learn there. There's a not-so-well-known movement of "Bnei Torah-Sefardim" in Eretz Yisroel that identifies more with the Yeshivishe Oylem than with Shas. Some are major adversaries of Rav Ovadiah and never will forgive him for many reasons. Some are of the Kanoyim camp and dislike the fact that he turned Sefardi Jewry into a Political Party. Some don't like the fact that he made Sefardi Jewry into this large bloc that is forced to follow his Pesokim, which he says are based on the Pesokim of Maran HaBeit Yosef, and therefore all Sefardim are required to follow his rulings. That in turn made all other Rabbonim, including all Poskim from previous generations basically irrelevant, which made their followers rather unhappy. Rav Meullam and the Porat Yosef faction are now unknown to many because all they know is Rav Ovadia and Shas.

Me not being of Sefardic extraction makes my opinion here basically irrelevant, but I would venture to say that there's a very strong difference in approach here between the two camps. You may not think that their intentions were pure and wholesome, but that fact is that Rav Ovadia's approach of building Yeshivos and Chadorim pulled the Sefardim up by the bootstraps and made them a proud segment of society, despite what the Ashkenazim may want and think. The Bnei Torah Sefardim movement is understandably not pleased with that development just like in Ashkenazic society the Talmidei Chachomim and Rabbonim would not be were they in a similar situation. You can compare it to the old pre-Chassidus society in Eastern Europe, where only the elite were expected and even allowed to learn. All others were expected to be Tehillim and Eyn Yankev Yidden. In the Sefardic lands you could count the Talmidei Chachomim in each city on one hand, and that "tradition" continued in Eretz Yisroel as well. Chas VeSholom, I'm not accusing Geonim like Rav Muellam and Rav BZ Aba-Shaul and Rav Yehuda Tzadkah of not caring about their people, they were just continuing the traditions of their communities for centuries.



In a recent interview with Rav Yitzchak Yosef, son of, and author of VaYelaket Yosef, he spoke about his father and about the fact that he was the one that לחם לכבוד מרן שהוא המד"א בארץ ישראל. He mentioned how he made the Hamon Am change their minhogim despite that fact that this was what they did in Iraq, etc, AND DESPITE THAT FACT THAT THIS WAS THE RULING OF THE BEN ISH CHAI, ZT"L. The example he used was the issue of women making a Brochoh on Netilas Lulav, which according to the Mechaber is a Bracha LeVatalah. I was a bit taken aback by that. As if the BIC was not careful to pasken like the Beit Yosef, and only ROY was the one for whom the koved of the BY was important... This may be a Iraq vs. Morocco issue, or a Iraq vs. Egypt issue, depending on where the parties originate from. Which I guess is what irks some people too - the fact that the Shas people lumped all Sefardim/Bnei Edut HaMizrach into all big bloc that all are under the reign of Rav Ovadia, Sefardi Jewry's pride and joy and its biggest product in 500 years... That would be similar to comparing Litvaks to Yekkes and to Oberlanders, it just won't work. Rav Meullam passed away this Shabbos at the age of 90. He was a Mechutan with Rav BZ Aba Shaul - the latter's son being his son-in-law, and he was one of the last who learned in Porat Yosef in the Old City.

Ah Gezunten Vinter.

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

as long as there is machlokes to talk about, you and your readers will be happy. agav, i heard there is breaking news in the bobov saga...

Hirshel Tzig - הירשל ציג said...

I don't believe you read what I wrote. There wasn't enough time.

Anonymous said...

Reb Yakov Chaim Sofer A grandson of the Kaf Hachaim is one of the big adversaries of Reb Ovadia, A great boki and he takes him head on, on his total new sefardi world order, his Bekios his vast, he wrote 6 seforim only on the subject of Pesak and Minhag. He refutes reb ovadias theories with his own sefardic bekios, He considers himself more right wing Lithuanian BB style his sons are regular BB yeshiva guys

AK said...

Greta Post Hischel - Let's not forget that HaRav BZ Abba Shaul zt"l didn't vote for Shas...because he held it was ossur to vote in Israeli Elections!

AK said...

Greta Post Hischel - Let's not forget that HaRav BZ Abba Shaul zt"l didn't vote for Shas...because he held it was ossur to vote in Israeli Elections!

Mottel said...

"As if the BIC was not careful to pasken like the Beit Yosef, and only ROY was the one for whom the koved of the BY was important... This may be a Iraq vs. Morocco issue, or a Iraq vs. Egypt issue, depending on where the parties originate from"

I don't understand - who would be from Morocco or Egypt here?

Hirshel Tzig - הירשל ציג said...

I'm not sure where Rav Meullam is from, he may be from Morocco or Syria or Iraq or Egypt. I also don't know where the Chilukei Minhogim are from and what they are. I'm saying that the general disagreements may stem from that.

Dov said...

It's pronounced Rabbi "MOO-allem", he was probably of Syrian or Iraqi Extractiom.
The big talmidei chachomim in Porat Yoseh were mostly Syrian (Rabbi Ezrah Attiyah for example) or Iraqi, following in the Ben IshChai's traditions.

Hirshel,
I noticed you have dodged the Chersoner Genizah issue.Sounds.like shtikkeh kehoduah,eh?

Ma Rabbi said...

No one can deny that Rav Ovadya is a great Gaon, but many of his Psak are politically motivated. Like his ruling that the Ethiopians are full fledged Jews against all the other Poskim and against common sense. Also, his recent statement to Shimon Peres that its permitted to give away land for peace. Nobody would argue with that except for the fact that its been shown that every time Israel gave away land to the Arabs, they received more violence from them. He is surely aware of this. But unfortunately alot of his Psak have more to do with politics than what is the Halacha.

Isaac Balbin said...

MaRabbi: "many of his Psak (sic) are politically motivated".

What percentage would you estimate? Even using your brush, I'd say infinitesimally small.

Your example of Ethiopian Jews can be used in reverse: the Ashkenazim were politically motivated to assur them. Both assertions are in my view false.

The Psak of Land for Peace is a moving target. It does involve politics and politicians, but in ROY's psakim he clearly is motivated by danger to Jews as he sees it. You don't have to agree, but that's obviously his view. Do you think he would chas veshalom pasken this way if the thought more people would die? Of course not.

The bottom line is that most of the issues that Sefardim have been reacting to are due to Ashkenazi racism and "supremacy". We caused many of their issues. Whilst our so called simple people said Tehillim, their simple people knew Tanach off by heart! Their so called simple/and or/non frum people, still, to this day, seem to have more Kovod Chachomim and Kovod HaTorah than ours. They did something very right.

PS. Let's not forget R' Uziel and R' Chaim David Halevy as great more recent Poskim and Personalities.

Ma Rabbi said...

Isac:
The Ashkenazi Poskim such as Rav Moshe and many others who question the status of the Ethiopians are not playing politics. There are real Halachic problems here with calling people who have had no connection with torah shel Bah peh Jews. That is why they paskened that they should go through a Geyrus. These poskim were seeking the true halach not that which is politically correct.

Anonymous said...

Ma Rabbi
Reb Ovadia knows your argument but he still has sources that differ.

Ma Rabbi said...

Reply to anonymous:
Ofcourse he has sources. I said he is a gaon and can cite sources for his opinions. I question whether he is really seeking the truth or just using his tremendous knowledge to support a position which is politically correct.

Anonymous said...

Ma Rabbi

Hashem Yireh Lelevov, who are you to judge a goan hador that is a etzem hatorah on his inner toughts.

Anonymous said...

ROY is not politicly MOTOVATED ,but influenced ...$70000000 for approving oslo...heard from r yitzock ginsburg the only 2 public figures the chabad rebbi refused to see were ROY and simon peres...