-- Rav Shalom Cohen, spiritual leader of Shas, while paying a shiva call to Rav Gershon Edelstein and talking about the ramifications of the draft law
there are some groups of people that could maybe be thought of as honestly saying what they mean, saying something like this. Shas, living and surviving by all that government funding, and regularly fighting for it and for it to be increased, and its school system only surviving because of it, is not one of those groups. Funny how dismissive the Shas leader is of all that money that he so dearly needs for his organizations..let's see him put his money where his mouth is and give it all up.
I am a bit surprised he calls the Israeli secular government "goyim". That too is not really the way of Shas. Rav Ovadya said some harsh things about various groups, but Shas is very close, or at least tries to be, with the secular community in Israel and with the secular government. It is strange to see them become so extreme. It is more appropriate for the Eida types, though they dont really call them goyim either, or the Peleg people who do actually call them goyim. Just the other day Rav Tzvi Friedman of the Peleg, one of its leaders since the death of Rav Auerbach, called them goyim
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Shas generally doesn't have a problem insulting their base. Said base feels a bit guilty not being fully religious, and so is willing to accept that proposition that while they have to serve in the IDF, say, their leaders and their kids (and the Ashkenazi charedim they support) don't have to. Cohen, if he's thinking at all, is probably banking on the typical Shas voter thinking, "Yeah, I *am* a goy, shame on me."
ReplyDeleteExcept that's probably the case less and less. Shas has been losing a lot of support- the death of R' Ovadiah may have something to do with it- and may not even cross the threshold.
Of course, Cohen is probably not thinking. Oh, and newsflash for him: When the Torah talks about "yotzei tzava," it's talking about people who are, you know, actually fighting.
Also, who talks like this at a shiva? Visiting someone who's lost a son? Don't these people have an off switch?