Jerusalem – Israel’s Sephardic Chief Rabbi: Homosexuality ‘A Wild Lust That Needs To Be Overcome’

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    FILE - Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem Shlomo Amar (Flash90)Jerusalem – Rhe Sephardi chief rabbi of Jerusalem said gay people cannot be religious Jews and called homosexuality “a wild lust that needs to be overcome.”

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    Rabbi Shlomo Amar made the remarks last week during a sermon. A video of some of his comments was published Monday by the Israeli public broadcaster Kan.

    “There are people who call themselves religious who also fell into that trap,” he said, according to The Times of Israel. “They aren’t religious. It would be better if they cast off their kippah and Shabbat [observance] and show their true faces.”

    The rabbi also referred to homosexuality as “a wild lust that needs to be overcome and it can be overcome.”

    Three groups representing religious LGBTQ Jews– Bat-Kol, Havruta and the Gay Religious Community — slammed his remarks in a joint statement Tuesday, according to The Times of Israel.

    “Rabbi Amar, with your harsh comments you called on our families to vomit us out of our homes and from our communities,” the organizations said.

    Last week, Israel’s new education minister, Rafi Peretz, came under fire for saying he supports gay conversion therapy and that he has used the practice to help homosexual youth. He later walked back his remarks, condemning the practice.


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    29 Comments
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    fat36
    fat36
    4 years ago

    So to all the other sins.And we have to overcome

    commonsense99
    commonsense99
    4 years ago

    Does he know common it is in the woods in camp and the toilets in yeshivas? hormones + gender separation =……………

    Shlomo-1
    Shlomo-1
    4 years ago

    “It would be better if they cast off their kippah and Shabbat [observance] and show their true faces.”
    So ultimately it’s just better if all LGBT people leave the frum world?
    Since you have a problem in one area, just go forth and forget all the mitzvot?

    Sorry, can’t support his message.

    elyeh
    Noble Member
    elyeh
    4 years ago

    All have taivehs that we must control and be appropriate with.

    Especially in the 3 weeks he should know better than voicing sinas chinum.

    MayerAlter
    MayerAlter
    4 years ago

    The truth hurts and Rabbi Amar speaks the truth.

    Normal
    Normal
    4 years ago

    Unnecessary homophobic comments are killing our kids. Maybe stick to hassling people about Shabbos instead.

    HeshyEmes
    Active Member
    HeshyEmes
    4 years ago

    “representing religious LGBTQ Jews”; It’s OK to be gay (attracted to others of your gender), but it’s an abomination to to act upon that urge (well for men at least; for women; not so terrible). For a man to call oneself “a religious Jew” while practicing Homosexuality is no different than any of the Big 3; 1. a serial killer calling himself “a religious Jew”, or 2. someone having relations with his daughter; and calling himself “just a regular religious guy practicing incest” or 3. worshipping Avoideh Zoreh and calling yourself a “religious Jewish idol worshipper”

    Nebech!.

    4 years ago

    I’m not homophobic.

    I’m God-o-phobic.

    ayinglefunadorf
    ayinglefunadorf
    4 years ago

    We are a pick and choose religion. I dont personally like or agree what they are doing but it has nothing to do with keeping other mitzvos, The next thing we going to hear that this boys (1000’s) in Flatbush, Monsey, 5Town, Lakewood etc who don’t keep some (or many) Mitzvos they should not keep Shabbat? Because they smoke? Kibud Av Voem is the same like Shabbat. Everyone hoe does not keep it should not keep Shabbes? 80% of Shulls would be closed. The Chassidishe keep some mitzvos some not, the Same with the Litvishe and Young Israel. The opposite is the Truth. If you choose not to keep one even more important to do some others. Almost no one keeps all Mitzvot (A few in a Generation) Hello Anyone here said Tefilas Zakoh on Erev Yom Kippur.????

    4 years ago

    I think the point being missed by many is that their mission statement puts an emphasis on their sexual orientation as well as being religious.
    How can you reconcile those two?

    4 years ago

    Absolutely! Let them VOMIT u out of your families and all of Klal yisroel. A Jew comes with a price. U cant stoop to the lowest nif you do then you’re a piece of vomit anyway.

    Shlomo-1
    Shlomo-1
    4 years ago

    Do you have any data to back up your assertions?
    While the expression of LGBT in society has changed, there’s little to suggest that the prevalence has.
    “if a boy didn’t have urges for sex or a girl was more of a tomboy, it didn’t usually lead to them viewing themselves in a deviant way”
    First, the issue here isn’t really the lack of urges but the direction those urges take.
    Second, in the past those urges most certainly led people to believing that they were deviant. Tremendous guilt, marriages with one partner not attracted to the other, etc.
    In thinking that it is a “social disease” and that we can learn from places like Saudi Arabia (execution is certainly a powerful message), you are learning the wrong thing. Forcing LGBT back “into the closet” doesn’t diminish LGBT, it only hides it. It exacerbates psychological problems, opens people up to blackmail, etc.

    commonsense99
    commonsense99
    4 years ago

    I worked with gay, bisexual and various other alternative, who cares and frankly the Rav should mind his own business and focus on helping the sefadim, anyway it happens all the time in yeshivas

    qazxc
    qazxc
    4 years ago

    Some hide their homosexuality and some take pride in it. Either way, there is only one reason someone is so busy dealing with homosexuality. They are obsessed with their homosexuality.

    Phineas
    Phineas
    4 years ago

    Seems like the harshest pronouncements come from the Israeli rabbinate. From what I’ve seen, U.S. rabbis are just as definitive in their condemnation but a little more nuanced and without the total rejection.

    This dilemma could happen to any of us or to a family member. Words have consequences. Talk like this appealed to me when I was in yeshiva. It doesn’t appeal to me now that I see how complicated life is.

    4 years ago

    Lets quantify this. Are we discussing the actual sinful sexual act or we discussing identifying yourself as part of that group?

    re the sin, i get the arguments. Not sure if I buy phineas nonsense that people are “born ” that way. Shtusim. But lets agree that its a tavia that exists in this generation more than others and it has strong allure. And so we are all subject to sinning esp in the area of arius and zenus. We can’t judge someone for being a bal tavia. Its todays test and nisan.

    Re identfying: Now thats a problem. Just like people with a sex addiction don’t idnetify themselves as proud “adulterers” same should be true about a gay addiction. Put on dark cloths and do it quietly. Don’t be proud with it nor idnetify yourself as a formal bal averioa