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Nov 3, 2020
Interesting Psak: entering a church to vote
It seems that residents of Crown heights and parts of Flatbush discovered their polling station for today's elections to be located inside a church. Halacha normally prohibits Jews from entering a church. According to Kikar, the affected communities tried to get their polling station changed, but were unsuccessful.
They asked Rav Yosef Yeshaya Braun, a rav in Crown Heights and one of the rabbonim on the Crown Heights beis din, if they would be allowed to enter the church in order to vote or not.
No mention is made of the option of early voting in order to avoid entering the church, so let's assume that for plenty of people early voting and voting by mail was not an option.
Rav Braun responded that as long as the polling station in the church is not located in the prayer sanctuary. The room should be a side room designated for this purpose so that anyone who sees a jew walk in will obviously realize that the Jew is entering for the purpose of voting. Rav Braun added that his psak is based on previous piskei halacha on the matter from Rav Shternbuch and Rav Yochanan Wosner of Montreal.
Rav Tuvia Bloi, a Chabad posek, supported Rav Braun's psak saying he is a major talmid chochom that can be relied upon, especially when the issue is one that directly affects pikuach nefesh that is hanging in the balance and could be the difference between a Trump victory or that of his opponent.
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You can check it out yourself, no need to really on hearsay: https://asktherav.com/is-it-permitted-to-vote-if-your-voting-location-is-in-a-church/
ReplyDeleteHe clearly writes, only if no other option is available.
This is nothing new. People in NYC (and other cities) have had their polling places in churches for generations. Poskim of those earlier generations also permitted it
ReplyDeleteNow what about states that have election day on Saturday...
ReplyDeleteWhy no mention of the other Kikar article where Rav Mutzafi forbids it?
ReplyDeleteI missed that article. at the bottom of this article there was a paragraph about Rav Mutsafi's psak and I almost mentioned it but figured I didn't have enough info
DeleteNachum: Election Day in the U.S. has always been on the first Tuesday in November. Now with all the shenanigans going on, they allow them to mail in ballots certain states before Election and some places even after, I think. But Election Day has never been on a Saturday.
ReplyDeleteSome states have local elections or primaries on Saturdays. Louisiana, I think, for example.
Delete"... the issue is one that directly affects pikuach nefesh that is hanging in the balance and could be the difference between a Trump victory or that of his opponent."
ReplyDeleteThere's an actual, immediate physical threat to your life if one candidate wins?
And he's a posek, right?
And this isn't a joke, right?
Incredible.
So, according to Rabbi Bloi you can only go into the church if youre voting Trump. But if you want to vote for the other candidate, you're not allowed to enter, which is to say, vote. And even if you did voe for the other candidate you're putting your fellow jews' lives at risk in a real and direct way.
ReplyDeleteNo wonder people are disenfranchised with rabbis and observance.
good catch! he probably didnt even think anyone in the area would possibly be voting for anyone other than trump
DeleteIt's not voting President Trump, that's irrelevant in NYS where he's going to lose snyway. It's the other government offices which bring in money 💰 to various local Chabad organizations
ReplyDelete