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Aug 15, 2010

Haredim oppose temporary appointment of Rav Dichovsky

Rav Shlomo Dichovsky was just appointed to be the temporary director of the Israeli Batei Din. He had to retire a couple years ago, due to his age, from his position as Dayan on many batei din around Israel, along with having been appointed to the Beis Din HaGadol of Yerushalayim. He is supposedly considered one of the top and senior dayanim in the world of dayanus.

There was recently an article on Rav Dichovsky in Mishpacha and I, personally, was very impressed with what I read. The impression I got from the article was a very wise man, a talmid chacham, very intelligent, and thoughtful.

One story in particular had struck me, and I think I wrote about it back then. It was that he had been considered for the Israel Supreme Court, as the SC Justice Aharon Barak had been trying to integrate a religious judge into the SC system, and he was an obvious choice. He related that he consulted with Rav Elyashiv about it, and Rav Elyashiv opposed it (I don't remember why offhand). At that point Rav Dichovsky rejected Aharon Barak's offer.

Now with this temporary appointment, he has upset the Haredim, though I don't know why. When the appointment was recently announced, MK Gafni opposed it and stormed out of the committee session discussing the appointments. .

Some suspect that the temporary appointment, supposedly until they find a new person for the job, is too open ended and they really intend it to be long term and not really look for someone to fill the position, leaving Rav D in the position. Even if that were the reason for the Haredim to be upset I still don't know what their problem is with Rav Dichovsky. Why would they oppose him being in that position?

They say Rav Dichovsky is an independent person and judges according to how he evaluates the case and the relevant halacha, and doesn't necessarily tow the party line. I always thought that this is exactly what a dayan is supposed to do, so this whole story makes no sense - the haredim want dayanim who are more loyal to a party or a specific rav than to judging each case according to its merits and the shulchan aruch... it makes no sense.


8 comments:

  1. Do spoiled children ever need a good reason to throw a temper tantrum?

    ReplyDelete
  2. the reason why they don't like him is a simple one. He is a very fine person and a talmid chacham and thinks for himself and he is not a robot. Hopefully Charedim will wake up and smell the coffee and realize how much distaste people have for them in general and how when they oject to a fien person like this it shows are charedi they are but that they are really just policitians concerned about power and control. I wish Rav Dichovsky hatzlacha in his new position.

    Kol tuv,
    YS

    ReplyDelete
  3. Allow me to speculate as to why the charedim have it in for Rabbi Shlomo Dichovsky:

    He went up against Rabbi Sherman on the conversion issue.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Keren Lev Vaad Kupa Shel TzedakaAugust 15, 2010 6:45 PM

    I heard it's because he didn't give to Kupat ha'ir.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Rafi, we just read shoftim this past shakos and one thing I asked my husband was that if a judge is expected to align with a political party ... Isn't that 'taking a bribe'?

    How can a judge be pre-disposed to a certain political party and still be free of a taint of bribery?

    Can someone please explain that .. Halachically?

    ReplyDelete
  6. Oops, that's Shabbat!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Neshama - that is pretty much my question... I guess they find increasing their own power more important than appointing kosher dayanim...

    ReplyDelete
  8. Rafi G.:

    Don;t you realize that this IS what makes them kosher?

    ReplyDelete

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