Interesting Psak: Damaging Graves

A series of acts of vandalism of graves on Har HaZeisim, Mount of Olives, has led to an unusual psak. Actually, the psak itself is not all that unusual or interesting. The source of it is what is interesting.

Some Gerrer hassidim complained about the repeated vandalism to councilpeople in the City of Jerusalem, who let the Mufti know about the displeasure regarding the vandalism of graves.

The Mufti went ahead and publicized an announcement that graves should not be vandalized. Any graves. He asked in return that a rav make a similar announcement, as some Arab graves around the Old City had also recently been vandalized.

In response to the Mufti's request, Rav Eliyahu Shlezinger, rav of the Gilo neighborhood, announced his psak that it is prohibited to damage any grave, any cemetery, no matter where it is and no matter what religion it is affiliated with. Rav Shlezinger said, throughout the generations the jewish nation kept with great reverance the holiness of Jewish cemeteries, and was always careful to not cause damage to to the cemeteries of all other religions.

The Mufti's psak is going to be read aloud in Mosques around Jerusalem this week. (source: Bechadrei)

So, it is not all that unusual or interesting of a psak, on it's own, but it is considering how it is being declared, and by whom. A joint rabbinic and muftaic (I made that up - is it really a word?) psak is highly unusual. Maybe finally seeing eye to eye on something, anything, could possibly be the harbinger of greater things to come...