Israel – Rabbis are set to ban the burka for a small group of radical Jewish women who have taken to wearing it.
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Two years ago, it emerged that around 100 women in the city of Beit Shemesh had begun to cover their faces with a veil and wear numerous layers of clothing to obscure their body shape. When many rabbis criticised the trend, the women took no notice because they considered the rabbis too moderate.
But now, the religious body admired by the most religiously hard-line elements in Israel – even the Neturei Karta anti-Zionist sect – is about to apply its clout and try to quash the trend.
The Eda Charedit rabbinic organisation will soon release a statement condemning the practice of the Beit Shemesh women, Shlomo Pappenheim, a senior member of the management committees, said.
The move was prompted by the husbands of some of the burka-wearing women, who last week urged the Eda to take a stand against their wives.
The Eda’s decision coincides with a raging debate about banning the burka in Europe. Politicians in Belgium and France have voted in favour of bills to ban it, and other countries, including Italy, are considering similar legislation. In Britain Conservative MP Philip Hollobone has said that he would refuse to hold meetings with constituents if they attended in burkas.
There is also some interest in bans in the Arab world – Syria has just declared its universities burka-free zones. In Israel, Kadima MP Marina Solodkin is to introduce a proposal for a ban to Knesset.
Rabbi Pappenheim described the Jewish adoption of the burka as part of an “obsession” with extreme modesty that is also manifest in the wearing of many layers of clothing.
“We have got a Torah and we have got a tradition and these things were never allowed or demanded,” he said. “Cover the body, fine, but you would think them a sack of potatoes.”
The Eda is worried about the sexual dynamics that result from face-covering and multiple-layering, added Rabbi Pappenheim.
“The Eda Charedit is very against it and sees in it a real danger that by exaggerating you are doing the opposite of what is intended – severe transgressions in sexual matters.”
In the Yemen, where the locals wear a veil, it was frowned upon by traditional Jews. Only in the past few generations have younger women there begun wearing a veil (perhaps albeit for very good reason, eg so as not to stand out in a crowd of veiled Arab women, or attract unwanted attention from men unused to seeing unveiled women in public), and are regarded as ‘modernisers’ by the traditionalists.
Finally! A chumrah that everyone agrees is stupid and dangerous.
Maybe this will start a trend of eliminating stupidity disguised as Torah and Avodas Hashem.
Rav Pappenhiem, shlita,is 100 percent correct. This “obsession” with modesty and tzinius has gone way too far and the rabbonim of the Eda has decided to restore some sanity to the way yiddeshe women dress. Hopefully, they will follow this decision with similiar forceful action to stop the “tzinius hooligans” who have been terrorizing yiddeshe women who don’t dress properly from their distorted perspective.
The leader of this burka wearing cult is none other that the famous “Rabbi” Ellior Chein. ’nuff said.
Meshuganahs!!
wow this is what happens when religion is taken to extreemes anything in extreeme is harfull may it be overeating over exersizing
There is a special Gan Eiden for stupid women like that.they will be accompained by the chasididhe women who wear raincoats in 110 degree.in the torah this is not mentioned anywhere the only thing it is mentioned is that the jewish people didn’t change their clothing like the non jews and for that they were released from eygept
Why is the non-burka-wearing woman’s face covered up by Photoshop blur?
Ok, this is going to sound ironic, but don’t these burkas attract attention from people by standing out, thereby causing a LACK of tznius?
It’s untznius to dress In an exream manner
its a real nebach on these ppl OCD is not something small to laugh at these ppl need major psychological help. by the way how many ppl are included in this trend? a handful? let’s not start saying how everyone is so chumradig and so on…
Very misleading article. In what way is it causing the opposite effect? They wear many layers and show no flesh. Maybe u consider it too frum but so what. Let them walk around that way. Why is it everyones business. Doesn’t it say the arabs zechus is modesty?
B”H
I bet sarah emainu had her face covered. isn’t there a rashi that says when avraham and sarah approached the land of avimelech avraham noticed for the first time that sarah was beautiful and asked her to say she was a sister not a husband….
also if sexual thoughts and non torah approvd actions are biggest aveirah then why not cover the thing that brings on those thoughts
While I acquiesce to Das Torah and the psak of the rabbonim and am not from the Rabbonim bashers who seem to migrate to this site, see Mishnayos Shabbos perek 6 Mishna 6 where it implies that there was a segment of klal yisroel in Arabian lands where the custom was for women to wear burqas. It seems that the Rabbonim didn’t have an issue with that and even were matir for them to go out with these clothing on Shabbos.
As an aside, this also shows that the minhag of burqa has nothing to do with the Great Religion of Peace but was an Arabian fashion in the time of the Mishna, before the great prophet was even a thought.
wear that on Shabbos.
These ladies are frauds. If they were really tzniusdik they would wear sunglasses with their burka to cover their eyes!
can you describe 2-3 chumros that you consider ‘stupidity’ so i can start a movment to abolish them ?
#1 5 that answers i itself, it was only in arabian lands so ..see #1
#14 not because she had her face covered…see rashi again and the gemmorah …and you’ll destintcly see she her face wasnt covered
#3 and your perspective is perfect..and where does your oespective come from also please describe your prospective
#9 yes, but there is no hirhurim involed because its just a sack of potates
What do you expect from people like this? They are the ‘religious’ and ‘pious’ ones and know what the ‘torah’ says.
I don’t believe this article. I hope someone will publish the KOL KORA (public declaration) when it comes out. Unlike the govt. of some countries the eida doesn’t need to distract the population with such unimportant issues which in my opinion is serious threat to the freedom of religion.
“avraham noticed for the first time that sarah was beautiful and asked her to say she was a sister not a husband….”
Would commenter #14 care to explain that pirush, please? Something he has written does not add up.
to poster #14 : If you are so worried that seeing a woman’s face is going to give you sexual and unTorahdik thoughts I suggest you put on blinders. It’s your problem, not hers.
The reason they wear burqas is to hide the black-and-blue marks.
This is just one more example of how women being subjugated and oppressed in Orthodox Judaism. First, these men tried to enforce their will on their wives. Failing that, they brought in the big guns – the rabbis, who are only so willing to oppress poor women even harsher. Can Jewish Taliban be far away? Why, it’s already here!
Boy, can I speak the loshon of Modern Orthodoxy or what? 🙂
Gut shabbos, everybody!
These women make the Eda seem liberal. Maybe that’s why they are issuing the Kol Koreh. I always tell people “look at that psychopathatic lunatic. He makes me, a plain ol’ lunatic seem normal.
to #1 4 – you mean Paroh. As to your question – because it is against minhag yisroel (see #1 ) and I can understand why. It is creepy and dehumanizing.
it did kill two families in williamsburg that I know of both with adorable children just picked themselves up and left for isreal…this is a major cult to b aware of
Welcome to the Chareidi Comedy Show!
Brought to you by some of the Rabbis who prohibit burqas ( too much tznius) but require women to shave their heads before their wedding.
No 4 it was not elior chen but the BURKA REBETZEN Or The TALIBAN MOM anyways who cares they are both sitting in jail, so she can do her burka acts there in prison!!
#32 we have a shulchen urech to guide us ..what does yorjudaism consist o?. whers are your guilines derived from?
So, #34 , you don’t want to discuss the obvious stupidity of prohibiting burqas while forcing women to abandon their hair forever before the wedding. My guidelines are common sense, and the so-called gedolim who are sticking their noses in on this issue accomplish very little, except for making fools out of themselves.
But for argument’s sake, please give me a direct, I said direct quote from the shulchan aruch requiring a woman to shave her head before her wedding.