Jerusalem – Shas spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef may no longer bless his adherents via smartphone, the Central Election Committee ruled on Thursday.
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On Sunday, Shas unveiled the app – called Maran Shelita, a Hebrew acronym for “the great rabbi, who should live a good and long life” – which can be used to request blessings from Yosef.
The Maran Shelita app does not condition blessings from Yosef on voting for Shas. However, the religious freedom NGO Hiddush demanded that Central Election Committee chairman Justice Elyakim Rubinstein investigate whether the application breaks the Election Law, which forbids the use of blessings, talismans and curses in campaigns.
Shas would not comment on the matter.
Content is provided courtesy of the Jerusalem Post
Apparently the law prohibits brachos, but allows anti-Semites to run.
This whole meshugaas of “selling barochos for votes” make Yosef look more like just another political hack than a respected rav. He should acknowledge that this was some askan’s really bad idea and pledge to stay away from politics going forward.
This is crazy rabbonim sholdn’t be campaigning it just lowers their image of being a moral compass.
How can there be such and APP?
Have not the gedolim ruled that a smartphone is oiser, in fact it is Hareg val yavoir?
Is it possible this is aL’ifney Eiver isuue.
I am lost ,what should I do?
I thought smart phones weren’t permitted. Oh, sorry, just for the “lower level”.
Oy lachem mezalzel talmidei chachamim
The people who would seek blessings would vote for him anyway. Why ban blessings from campaigns?