... and yet not a word about sexual abuse or domestic violence within relgious communities. Priorities! Yes, Shabbat can be a powerful way of bringing families together and encouraging spiritual awareness. But this isn't a particularly intelligent way of getting the message across and encouraging people to take an interest in it.

how about Christians who observe Shabbat AND Sunday- ? Let me tell you a story about a donkey.... this Rabbi has a sense of humor- unfortunately it is the kind of humor most people do not find funny- He obviously hates secular people- but why is he telling this story to HIS flock who believes everything he says anyway? Come to think of it: I am not sure I want to to end up in the same place as him in my afterlife-

We're the ones, the religious soldiers, doctors, rescue volunteers, policemen and so on... who walk around with a phone or beeper to be on-call 24/7, just in case something happens. We're the ones who break the Torah in the name of Pikuach Nefesh because that's something we were taught Torah commands in the first place. I sincerely doubt that Rabbi Ovadia Youssef is unaware of Pikuach Nefesh - he published the collected Halachot on the matter for IDF soldiers, after all. We're the ones observing Shabbat, so we're the ones who must know when we must break it for a greater good, not you. You don't observe it in the first place, yet are quite keen on pointing out the nuances to us. As for Rabbi Ovadia - it never ceases to amaze me how often the media takes a snippet out of large lesson completely out of context, especially considering Rabbi Ovadia's joking, in-your-face approach to teaching his students, and his rather lenient approach to Halachic rulings.

No one ever read Isaiah? I can't imagine an educated person who has never opened up Shakespeare nor can fathom that an educated person could not recognize such a basic text as this section from Isaiah. 'The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider.' http://www.answers.com/Isaiah%20:%20%201

Thanks for reminding me why i am secular, besides i couldnt join Shas , i dont have a criminal record. Well must get on work to do, as my tax money has to fund their cult. How is Mr Benizri these days, still preaching " i am hollier than thou" form behind the prison bars?

You think that i don't know it ? certainly before you knew what it means to be a Jew , a TRUE one , not someone with a uncertain past . Regarding your ovadia , it's always the same with him , and then you come " the media takes it out of context " . Poor guys .

Who is the beast that is going to listen the Rabbi sermon to afterwards come to Ynet with a disgusting,ugly gossip?? And about the sermon:the Rabbi is right! Blessed and happy are those who strictly obey the Mitzvah of Shabbat!

so I'm going out to buy a pair of horns and I shall also stop using toilet paper. Now that I know what I am I want to get into the hang of things.

Sephardic Jew, says the rabbi speaks in an ancient form of Hebrew and is often misunderstood. He also told me today that there is a great shock in Israel, that the rabbi is ready to pronounce that all (Sephardic) young men be compliant in joining the IDF. I do not know the reason but my son-in-law said it had something to do with the fact that the rabbi now believes that the Sephardic have just about made up sufficient ground in Israel to make it a level playing field between themselves and the Ashkenazim. Remember, the Sepahrdic have, since the founding of the nation, been considered second-class Jews. Not so anymore, so I hear, says the rabbi. Besides all that, I think he tells a pretty good story.

Yes, we may be worse than beasts, but you sure love to live off our money. Give it up. This nonsense only hurts you and reinforces our opposition to your hatreds and your parody of Judaism.

that's in the Talmus, Talmud is late extra book, if you know your own religion, sheesh, I am explaining a jew what he is pray from, god never claimed Pikuach Nefesh only rabbis, gods also said thou sell not steal and respect your neighbor, and According to this Rabbi he doesn't. if the Askenaz jews whould call sphared jews beasts you would probably draw the out the racism card, I really appretiate Charles for being religious open minded jew and not from the dark ages like you.

weren't causght yet. but it's only a matter of time someone will pout them behind bars.

You'd think when you get to that age you should be able to deliver a sermon that is enriched with experience and encouragement based on acquired learning through life. But alas no. This stupid old man uses it to continually bash seculars, soldiers and anyone who doesn't follow the god squad. Once again we are back to the learning issues outside of the Yeshiva. These single-minded, self-opinionated, holier-than-thou people are not sophisticated human machines like the rest of us. They lack the knowledge of technology (apart from porn sites) and probably don’t even know what evolution is. How are seculars supposed to live with and support these people? I don’t need a daily thank you for working my ass off to support them. What I would like is for them to simply keep quiet. Is that too much to ask?

This is what he believes.He's a rabbi, a head rabbi, and it's his job to preach what he believes. He's speaking from the pulpit. Ignore the message, if you want. I doubt he'll change his mind just because people don't like what he says. If he, or his followers, riot in the streets because of this message THEN you should get upset and *demand* the police arrest the rioters.

We are always taking his words out of context , he's a "great sage" to whom we should carefully listen . That's what they , those Ovadia followers ,dare to say to SANE people . My reaction when he talks ? ....ויפתח . I hope you know the other words following ....

is very simple. Of course they know what it is. They themselves have evovlved into what they now are. It all started some 250 years ago in a place called Poland, otherwise known affectionately as "der heim" by the present descendants of those who got out by the skin of their teeth. They wanted to be like the local nobles so they adopted their dress code, the Rebbe was the "noble" and his followers were the "serfs". Thus it all started and "evolved" into the ridiculous thing that it is today. It has no connection to Judaism in any shape or form, either ancient Israelite religion or the shape to which that took in the ensuing diaspora. I have no doubt that they will continue to evolve until they disappear. The sooner the better for all of us. I regard them as "dropouts" from society. How sad they are and how sad for our image amongst the Nations. If I pass by a Sikkh in London in his traditional garb it does nothing to me but when I pass by a "Jewish holy man", as once they were described to me by an Englishman, I am filled with shame.

And maybe that he even don't understand "der heim" . Being a Yiddish speaking Ashkenazi , who was much in touch with Ultra Orthodox Jews , i never heard them calling Poland their heim .

They also walk around with a phone or beeper to be on call 24/7. What's the difference here? Why are they singled out as 'misfits' and are not looked on as people who break the torah in the name of pikuach nefesh? People who save lives, but you do? Do us all a favour Ro!

damn, I am telling him the obvious, ok some jews from Europ r sphared jews, so your definition of Poland is not true, believe it or not, so before you separate "them and us" check first.

..much in touch with Ultra Orthodox Jews...and spitting on them...ummm... That's the attitude of a PURE circumcized EREV RAV! Let’s ask to any TRUE Jew about their opinion on this kind-like of circumcized being from Petah Tikva. I'm curious to hear their opinions.I really am..

most beasts are actually better (smarter), they KNOW when to keep quiet as not to attract attention-. Secular people are not his responsibility- why is he telling this to HIS followers? Mind your own business- make sense?

I know quite a lot of stories of jewish men who lived in guettos in old Europe and who were used to caught shikses around,fall in love with them ,make a baby in them and then go to live in another guetto in a further town,where they were unknown, just to cheat the local rabbi with his "jewish"wife in order to get his "jewish” baby circumcized.It happened... Some of these babies grown very older and many of them went to Israel, to suck its system and its TRUE Jews, as olim. Some live in PT,some in TA,some....

circumcision is the LAST subject you know anything about. besides, i don't think men are your area of expertise, to say the least.

Firstly, Charles isn't religious - he's an Atheist. Secondly, I do believe I know my religion *and* Jewish history a tad better than you, and I do not consider a literalist reading of the Torah scroll to be in any way adequate. The Torah had an Oral Law, which was passed down from generation to generation back when we still had a coherent and stable clan-based society with central rule. Two genocides and cataclysms later, some of our sages decided that writing the oral parts down was the only way to actually salvage them - that's what the Talmud was about, and that's what other writings of that era were all about. Debates, arguments, schools of thought, all centered around a simple, central concept - religious and cultural perseverance. If not for their initiative, we'd all be just one scattered and crushed nation out of many, ignored and forgotten in the mists of time. If you wish to believe otherwise, that's up to you. But kindly don't consider yourself in any way an authority about teaching me my own faith.

put it. Since when do only religious people save lives, and work on Shabbat to do so? I've yet to hear *any* religious authority criticize a person who worked on Shabbat to save lives!

I don’t think(my opinion,Ynet) you are a Jew,not at all! You hassle everyone one with your silly(to say the least) judgement about the trustfulness or untrustfulness of their Jewishness,just to hide a problem of yours:YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH YOUR OWN JEWISHNESS,ONLY YOU!!!YOU KNOW THE TRUTH ABOUT YOURSELF! You know very well, in the hidden of your goyish soul( my opinion,Ynet), that you are not a Jew and that's why you need to press down Jews( my opinion,Ynet). You're an ugly soul!. There are many beatiful gentiles and many ugly Jews and vice -versa,but you surpass any category of uglyness in your horribleness,in your crassness. The lowest of the low of a favela in Brasil doesn’t have such a crass specimen as you are living in there.They have their cars,work with dignity and have much more than the minimum of sensitivity required to be called human beings,what you lack(my opinion,Ynet). Go and hide in a hole and shut up already because you are an embarassment to any normal person,or,at least show a glimmer of intelligence and normal reasoning to explain why you are a Jew,besides your fake brit(my opinion,Ynet),because ,as I said,many can be circumcized and not to be a jew. I don’t think you have intelligence for that.Your being is overcame by utter crassness,not to say retardness(my opinion,Ynet).

The Torah gave the world a day of rest, this was a revolutionary idea in its time. I believe everybody knows the meaning of the sabbath. The problem arises in each individual's idea of what it means to rest. The orthodox follow the rules of the Sulchan Aruch, others have different concepts of rest. The Sulchan Aruch is a 16th century document which basically states that what was done to build the Holy Temple is work. But the world has evolved from a mostly agrarian society to a mostly urban society. People may no longer live near their place of worship or may have to climb 10 floors to get to their apartment. There are typed of work which did no exist in the 16th century and an update of definitions is certainly required. Evry Jewish person is religious just each has a different degree of religiosity. To call other Jews "beasts" is certainly not in keeping with basic Jewish concepts. The Rabbi should be ashamed of himself..

if god is everything why does he have just one day over the whole week? because i think this means that we only dedicate him one day for week and i think the whole week is for him if really god is everything,each and every day is the same important for existance to remember all the creation and to respect the creation,each and every day is shabat,each and every day is god´s day,sorry but there are a lot of things i do not agree with the scriptures,i think the word lives inside me and everyone and we do not need to read a contradictory book to know what is good and right because i can hear the word inside me.

now THAT'S comedy there. haha.