Jerusalem – A leading figure from the radical Eda Haredit ultra-Orthodox association has issued a broadside attack against the Atra Kadisha organization, which devotes itself to protesting against construction activity around the country that might possibly disturb Jewish graves.
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Atra Kadisha, an Aramaic phrase meaning holy place, has since the 1950s protested against archaeological digs and construction work which might desecrate Jewish graves, something the group considers to be a violation of Jewish laws pertaining to the respect for the dead.
In an unprecedented letter published in the haredi press on Sunday, Rabbi Moshe Shternboch, the head of the Eda Haredit’s rabbinical court and the second most senior figure in the organization, accused Atra Kadisha of protesting construction in Be’er Sheva against the rulings of two of the most respected rabbis in the haredi world.
In addition, Shternboch wrote that infrastructure works conducted by the Nesher cement producer near Ramle do not have the approval of Rabbi Shmuel Wosner, another revered figure in the ultra-Orthodox world, despite claims to the contrary by the Atra Kadisha which states that it is supervising the work.
“The great Torah scholars Rabbi Nissim Karelitz and Rabbi Haim Kanievsky have confirmed that everything [in Be’er Sheva] is being done with rabbinic oversight, and the Karaso contractors [carrying out the construction] should be praised for this” Shternboch wrote.
“Regarding the Nesher works which they [Atra Kadisha] are busy with the whole time, as if they have the approval of Rabbi Shmuel Wosner, this is completely false and no [works] are permitted today, and many deceased Jews have been disturbed from their rest,” Shternboch said.
The senior Eda Haredit figure did not however directly mention Atra Kadisha by name.
Tensions between the two groups have grown of late over a construction project in Beit Shemesh where 1,500 residential units have been planned. Construction has been delayed for almost two years however due to claims by Atra Kadisha that the land on which the project is planned for may contain Jewish graves.
Ahrale Yakter, the director of a separate organization called the Association for the Prevention of Grave Desecration, labelled Atra Kadisha a criminal gang and accused them of seeking extortion money from building contractors.
Atra Kadisha denies this claim.
“These are evil people who are harming the Jewish people, who don’t care about Torah or the opinions of the leading rabbis, but simply care about money,” Yakter said.
According to Yakter, hundreds of families have taken out mortgages for the construction of the apartments and are now facing financial problems due to the delays in construction.
Atra Kadisha is opposed to even checking the land in question to determine if there are graves in the vicinity. Inspections are due to be carried out in the coming days in cooperation with the Eda Haredit.
Rabbi Dov Lipman, an anti-extremist political activist in Beit Shemesh, said that he was troubled by the fact that the Eda only challenges the Atra Kadisha “thugs” when it impacts their own interests “but not when they are delaying construction of a cultural center in Beit Shemesh, a new emergency department in Ashkelon’s Barzilai hospital and other sites.”
Atra Kadisha conducted a long and violent campaign against the construction of the rocket-protected emergency department in Ashkelon because it believed graves at the site were Jewish.
Last year, the Chief Rabbi and overall leader of the Eda Haredit Rabbi Yitzhak Tuviah Weiss came out in support of the Atra Kadisha, despite Shternboch’s support for the competing Association for the Prevention of Grave Desecration.
Weiss declared that Atra Kadisha was the ultimate authority for the protection of Jewish graves and, in pashkaveilim [public notices posted in haredi neighborhoods], wrote that anyone hindering their operations was complicit in grave desecration.
Shternboch came out in support of the Association, which also received support at the time from the former leader of the haredi community the late Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, the current leader of the haredi world Aharon Leib Shteinman as well as rabbis Kanievsky and Karlitz.
Content is provided courtesy of the Jerusalem Post
So lets make a total of the 2 sideds.
Asda Kadisha with rabbi Yitzchak Tuviyah Weiss, the Grand Rabbi of Eida Hachareidis on 1 side.
Arele Yaktar and Rabbi Shternbach with rabbi shetiniman & rabbi Elyashuv on the other side.
Its like the Iran-Iraq War: Its hard to know who to root for.
Unfortunately it comes to a point that you don’t know who to believe.
It reminds me of a quote I heard recently, very unfortunate but probable.
“The ones going to ערכעות can go back to בית דין because the courts are so corrupt”.
“the former leader of the haredi community the late Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, the current leader of the haredi world Aharon Leib Shteinman”
Rav elyashiv and rav steinman were/are indeed respected in most of the hareidy community but how and when did they become the “leader” of the hareidy community.
There are many gedolim in our generation and each of them has his followers. To pick out one and lable him as the “leader” is chutzpa against all other gedolim.
Wow! I don’t know whether to laugh or cry… How simple politics have come to a new low, all the yrs Rav Elyashiv’s P’sak in regard to Kvarim was met with the worst kind of protests– by the very same of the Edahnik’s, now when “Kvarim” are hindering THEIR own developments, they are willing to use that very P’sak … I won’t spell out how we call it here, as it might result in bizoyon haTorah.
While I used to have a certain respect for these kinds, although, I by far agree with with their extreme principles, but I respected their views and for practicing for what they preach, but now it’s true colors have shown. Protests regarding Kvarim were only part of an anti-Zionist agenda, alas diff rules apply to their own..