JERUSALEM (VINnews) — Rabbi David Yosef, the son of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef and a member of the Sephardic Torah Council, referred yesterday to the Israeli government decision to ease restrictions on public prayer and allow up to 19 people to pray together in an open space with masks while maintaining social distance. Rabbi Yosef quoted Rabbi Gershon Edelstein who contends that people should be more stringent and continue praying privately.
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Rabbi Yosef himself distinguished between those over the age of 60 or who have previous health conditions and asked all of them not to listen to the “evil inclination” telling them to pray in a minyan.
Regarding those who are young and healthy, Rabbi Yosef said that “whoever wants to pray at home has whom to rely on. I will take responsibility.”
Rabbi Yosef claimed to Kikar Hashabat that he was the first to close public prayer and based his ruling on Rabbi Edelstein who said that one who prays with proper concentration at home is behaving optimally, “and I take responsibility for him.”
Rabbi Yitzhak Berkowitz, the Rosh Yeshiva of Aish Hatorah and head of the Jerusalem Kollel, told his students that he was not convinced that people could keep the regulations in regular outdoor minyanim. Rabbi Berkowitz said that “It seems as if people are under the misconception that the government’s decision to allow outdoor minyanim is an “all clear” sign and that the danger is ostensibly over. Let’s face it, adhering to the rules in a minyan is not so practical and is just not happening.”
Rabbi Berkowitz urged his students to continue praying in “porch minyanim” or privately and added that despite being in the shloshim for his father, he has yet to be chazan in a minyan for him, since “I am sure that in today’s situation, urging the public to take things seriously is a greater merit.”
There are many heilige Yidden who are so addicted to davening in a minyan that despite what any Rabbonim say, they will risk the lives of themselves, their families and their neighbors to feed their addictive craving. If the Rabbonim tell us that such and such a hot pot is assur to use on Shabbos, who would dream of using it? The same heilige Yidden who would shrei gevalt at anyone using the hot pot regard it as a badge of pride that they can run a MINYAN.
the porch minyan in Jerusalem has nothing to do with those in Lakewood.Rabbi Berkowitz was only talking about his kehila in Jerusalem and not in lakewood where when asked he said only daven AT HOME
the porch minyan in Jerusalem has nothing to do with those in Lakewood.Rabbi Berkowitz was only talking about his kehila in Jerusalem and not in lakewood where when asked he said only daven AT HOME
“Rabbi Yosef himself distinguished between those over the age of 60 or who have previous health conditions and asked all of them not to listen to the “evil inclination” telling them to pray in a minyan.”
Who ever thought that the yetzer hara would tell us to pray with a minyan.