London – A well-known figure in Stamford Hill’s Charedi community has urged Jews to avoid the optional question on religion in the Census because it contravenes Jewish law.
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JJ Rosner, who runs a number of medical charities, took issue with advice from other strictly Orthodox organizations for community members to respond to the religion question.
This guidance was “not in conformity with the Torah law which prohibits counting the Jewish population”, he argued in a Charedi newsletter.
“Unfortunately, members of our community have lately been stricken with unprecedented tragic fatal events,” Mr Rosner wrote. “Do not contravene the Torah and do not sacrifice your life and your family’s life for the benefit of a few fundraising organisations.”
The last Census a decade ago produced a significant undercount of Jews in Hackney as large numbers from the Orthodox community opted not to answer the voluntary religion question.
This time Charedi charities have encouraged residents to answer it because they believe it is necessary to have an accurate figure for the Jewish population in order to get funding for social services, housing and other needs.
A source close to the strictly Orthodox rabbinate said the rabbinate did not share it. “The rabbinate has got nothing against it,” the source said. “If they had, they would have come out and said so.”
The prohibition applied only to a direct head count of Jews, he explained, whereas the Census count was not being conducted by Jews. “It is a form processed by computer for all the population in the country. It doesn’t come under the prohibition against counting.”
Is there a difference between this and the United States Census? All of the poskim and Roshei Yeshiva of BMG in Lakewood last year explicitly said that taking part in the Census is both permitted and encouraged. (I’m not aware of any others who put out a letter clarifying that it is permitted, but there likely are others)
Oh, I see, there is a religion question on this Census, while the United States Census does not ask about religion.
This is total B.S. As the “source” stated, there is no prohibition for NON-Jews to count Jews.
Really??? I thought it was in the hands of Hashem. These Rabbi’s should be more concerned with ahavas yisroel – because therein lies the problem.
The issur is to count actual people, not census forms!! Even if it was Jews, there still wouldn’t be an issur!!
The sad thing is, idealistic Yidden will believe this nonsense.
“Unfortunately, members of our community have lately been stricken with unprecedented tragic fatal events,” Mr Rosner wrote. “Do not contravene the Torah and do not sacrifice your life and your family’s life for the benefit of a few fundraising organisations.”
any time something bad happens one can attribute it to many different think or whatever they have issues with
Confused. The entire book of Numbers in the Torah of Moses COUNTS jewish persons of each family. So where do we get that it is prohibitied to put a number on our persons. Just curious. Thanks!
Why don’t you American citizens butt out and let the British get on with what is, after all, THEIR census and not yours?
I seem to remember reading right here on VIN that the uptake on last year’s United States Census in CH, BP, Willi, Lakewood and other centers of Jewish population was appallingly poor.
Put your own houses in order before you start criticizing other people.