When will the media stop giving publicity to this senile old man. At one time Ovadia was a hacham. Now his only a joke.

Does this man have any idea as to the damage he does and how much he sounds like certain people from 70 years ago? What if people in the US decided not to sell houses to Jews, set aside certain neighborhoods and stipulated that all Jews could only live there? This is beyond comprehension and downright pathetic. If this is according to the God of Israel, it's time to find another God.

if you havent realized yet that no one else in the world likes us than you havent left Israel enough. Obv the more you sell to non jews the less power jews will hold in Israel. If you dont care you are opening the door to our demise, i guess were do for another.

I'LL BELIEVE THIS WHEN I SEE IT ...

dont sell land to gentiles? how else do we jews get rich? another total religious crack pot

I can't stand Ovadia, but how come NOBODY mentions that selling land to a Jew means mandatory death penalty in the West Bank, Gaza and some Arab states. That, of course you bleeding heart liberals, is perfectly acceptable, RIGHT!!!!????!!!

His "pearls" prove that there is something very wrong with Israel.

The simple fact is that Arabs and Jews are fighting over who owns this land. As long as the Arabs are trying to disposess us (and are killing Arabs who sell land to Jews), why would any Zionist sell them land?

You should read Michael Freund's column in the JPost: "Take, for example, Isaiah 14:1-2: “The Lord will have compassion on Jacob; once again He will choose Israel and will settle them in their own land.” Or how about Jeremiah 11:5, where God says: “I will fulfill the oath I swore to your forefathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey...” And then there’s Ezekiel 34: 11-13. And Hosea 3:4-5. And Amos 9:14-15. And Obadiah 1:17, Zephaniah 3:19-20 and Zechariah 8:7-8." And there are many more.

Truly righteous people know that they can transform a place by their presence. The passenger/follower personality will just go where others are with no thought. Some people find themselves in a place and just give up. Idealists are a rare breed. Rabbi Ovadiah is once again arguing within very limited box. The prophecies are clear that the Holy Land will be the seat of Messianic Government for the whole world. Perhaps more people should heed a new version of an old dictum. "Make for yourselves a new teacher !"

Conveniently, largely as a result of the verse mentioned above, 93% of Israel is owned by the state, which does not sell it to anyone (see "Basic Law: Israel Lands"), and the other 7% is already primarily Arab owned. Almost everyone in Israel actually leases their land and homes from the state through the Israel Land Administration instead of owning, so really this ruling is purely hypothetical. Once we start talking about land that is actually owned by the JNF (17% or so and most of the residential areas) the land can't even be leased to non-Jews, so it is even more so obeying this ruling.

You should not compare your vast and secure country with a besieged tiny speck of Jewish land. You should not judge people who are being harassed and threatened in mixed Israeli neighborhoods so as to push them out or injure them - or worse. You have been reading this site long enough to be familiar with what is like for Jews to live in fear of their lives every time they do something as ordinary as walk down the street. These people are not racist. They just want to live lives with a minimum of security. They want to protect their kids. They know that pollice quite often do not bother to give them assistance when they are being threatened. I find your response absolutely insulting, particularly your last paragraph. Israeli Jews and Jews in general deserve your apology.

Rav Ovadia Yosef Shalitta, like Rav Shmuel Eliyahu Slalitta, and others are just stating Jewish LAW. The same law as stated by the Rambam and our Great Torah giants of past and present. These are not his inventions, its the laws given by G-D to HIS nation. Its about time you keep it instead of talking bs all the time agains't G-D and His servents.

Do not make a covenant with them and do not give them a resting place. ( Va’etchanan 7:2) The Gemara (Avodah Zarah 20a) derives from this verse that it is forbidden to sell land to a gentile in Eretz Yisrael. The Rambam brings this as practical law in Hilchos Avodah Zarah 10:3, and the Shulchan Aruch brings it in Yoreh Deah 151:8

I don't know about anyone else, but I would never disparage Jews or Israel by comparing either to people, who don't deserve to be mentioned in the same sentence.

Actually, there is a Real Estate promise to Abraham. Check out Genesis chapter 12 or thereabout. Of course, I wonder why God didn't promise them the land where all the oil is or why, since it was promised, the ancient Hebrews had to fight for every square inch to get rid of the Canaanites. Couldn't God just have made those pesky Canaanites disappear or put a bug into their heads that they really liked Italy or, what the heck, the French Riviera much better???

Rabbi Ovadia Yosef is not saying anything novel or new here. He is simply doing his job - which is to teach the Jewish nation what the Torah requires of us. The basis for his ruling is the prohibition of 'lo tichanem' which is found in Devarim 7:2, explained in BT Avoda Zara 19b-20a and codified in Hilchot Avodat Kochavim 10:5[4].

Orthodox rabbis restate the laws of the Torah which is what rabbi yoseph did. The real estate section of the Torah is called bava batra. If you want a rabbi to fabricate laws out of thin air based on personal opinion ask a conservative or reform rabbi

It seems the Vatican is getting upset now and US Catholics have started to question Israel's policies in the last week, I don't remember that ever happening before on this scale. The PR for Israel in US is slowly turning and not for the good, if this continues then US support will drop quickly.

I used to think he is just a senile old man but he is dangerous.

the saudis and others were giving Israeliarabs money to buy parts of the Galil. I would not sell my home to an arab or a hara-di.

Remember that Rav Ovadia said not to sell, but the Arabs KILL anyone who sells property to Jews. Get your liberal loving head screwed on right and go after the real outlaws, not the easy targets...

Oh that's right Jews don't live there....

Tzvi - I know you were just answering poster 5, but this is exactly what I was wanting also. Could you please tell me what verse the Talmud talking about? I'm a fan of the Torah and want to see it for myself. Thanks again!

Only in the last 48 hours there has been much news about Obama's demise. He will not last even one term!!!??? Amazing! Dont you even THINK going aginst Torah! You seem to be following in his shoes.