Here is where I put up a post that causes a wildfire of its own in the comments section.
Shas’ spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef implied on Saturday night that the fire raging on Mount Carmel in northern Israel was a punishment from God for religious offenses committed by the area’s residents.
During his weekly sermon, the rabbi read a section from the Babylonian Talmud, which states that “the fire only exists in a place where Shabbat is desecrated.”
“A number of houses were destroyed, entire neighborhoods were lost – all under supervision,” the rabbi said. He recommended that people “study Torah, engage in good deeds, repent, observe Shabbat, and know the entire Halacha, and thanks to this God will apply a full recovery.”
On Friday, a day after fires began blazing on the Mount Carmel range, ultra-Orthodox newspapers called for self-scrutiny, saying the disaster was a sign from God.
I’m going to call bullshit on that theory. Make that: Incredible bullshit. Because by calling disasters a punishment from God for not being observant enough, you have to maintain constistency with that and say that people who get cancer are being punished by God for not being observant enough. And as extremely observant Jews also die of cancer and other diseases, I’m going to have to go with: Bullshit.
Here’s my interpretation of the fires: Although a great tragedy, they are also a blessing in that they alerted Israel’s government to a threat that there was not enough protection for: The aftermath of thousands of missiles raining down from Gaza and Lebanon. Fires will absolutely start in the event that there is a missile war. The IDF will not be able to prevent all, or even most, of those missiles from landing. And there are a lot of natural gas tanks in Israel. There will be fires. Now the IDF knows that it has an unprotected flank that needs protecting. And Israel is nothing if not responsive to new threats. As Israel’s enemies come up with new threats, Israelis come up with new ways to counter them. The terror war is over. There are no more suicide bombings (though not for lack of trying). The IDF and the security fence have defeated the suicide bombers that used to strike several times a day.
I am confident that Israelis will fix the problem. Just as I am confident that God is not punishing several dozen Israel prison guard cadets who perished trying to save prisoners from the approaching flames.
I’ll start the fight:- If the Israeli government spent as much on fire equipment as it does on Yeshivot, it might have been an entirely different story.
The Interior Ministry, which is controlled by Shas, is responsible for purchasing and maintaining fire equipment. Rabbi Yosef is always pleading for more money, but it’s not spent in the right places.
Fire victim buried in non-Jewish plot
http://www.ynet.co.il/english/articles/0,7340,L-3994736,00.html
A HERO treated like crap.
I don’t see this. THe woman who was buried was not Jewish and did not convert to Judaism. It would have been an insult to her as well to pretend that she was Jewish. It would be like trying to force the Catholic Church in Italy to bury a Jewish citizen in a Catholic cemetary.
As far as talking about something happening because of sin, you are misunderstanding what Rav Ovadiah Yosef said. He did not say that he is blaming others for the sins that might have caused punishment. He is saying that we must consider what we can do in order to merit miraculous salvation. We must consider what we have done that could have led to us being subject to the “natural course of events” and what we must do in the future.
As far as the fire equipment and training, we must realize that we are required to act “bederech hatevah” as well as improving our spiritual lives. That is why the Torah commands us to go to the doctor to be healed. We must act properly in all aspects of life. We must work to be worthy so that Hashem will send the rain so that we are not faced with the danger of the current drought, but we must also act to protect people from the results of the sin that caused the drought. Take a look at postings like this at Shiloh Musings. Rav Yosef is correct. What we do affects how successful our hishtadlus (attempt to act?) can be. We need to do both types of actions.
The reports in the news that at least some of the fires were arson points to the fact that we need to do more in all aspects of life, physical and spiritual.
sabbahillel,
Whether we are worthy or not, Hashem might or might not send a rain. It’s all in the realm or faith.
“We must work to be worthy so that Hashem will send the rain…” is also in the realm of faith. I can
agree that it wont hurt if we will be worthy but it’s not a guarantee. I’m not sure whether it’s even
a promise.
On the other hand upgrading the capabilities to fight the conflagration is a solid promise that the
next fire will be extinguished sooner. Regardless of whether we are worthy or not.
Sounds like the Rabbi is using sound biblical reasoning here. Doesn’t the Bible tell us that the Lord sent enemies, like the Assyrians and the Babylonians, and natural disasters, like droughts and plagues, onto Israel in order to punish the Children of Israel for their sins and for disobedience to the His laws?
On the other hand I, as a person who grew up in the 20th Century and studied natural science, am inclined to think that droughts, plagues, and other natural calamities are not the sendings of the Lord, but rather misfortunes that happen of their own accord. Excrementum facit.
As for the enemies of the Jews, I’m more inclined to attribute to Satan, rather than to the bad temper of the Lord, the hostility of so many to the Children of Israel, whether in the homoeland or in exile.
Regarding what I wrote earlier, the Jerusalem Post reports that Yishai, the Interior Minister from the Shas party, refused to accept fire engines offered by a Christian organization.
Israel, a major player in the high-tech industries, is mired in 18th century religious fanaticism.
Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, with all due respect, will do himself and everyone else a lot of good if he confines his eruptions of wisdom to his nearest and dearest. His nearest and dearest will do everyone a lot of good if they stop transmitting every such eruption to religious journalists who, in turn, could be more discreet.
Sorry, Sabba Hillel – you know that this point is the matter of a strong disagreement between two different kinds of Jews. And that the best will be not to raise it at all, and if one senile rabbi cannot keep his mouth shut there is no reason to assist him.
What does Rabbi Ovadia Yosef do about the Mitzvot for Temple Practices and Sacrifices while there is no Temple? Oh, and if those were among the violations condemned by Hashem?
But he is someone who, like Falwell and others, call AIDS, Katrina, tidal waves, chicken pox, and (perhaps) the music of Lady Gaga punishment from Hashem?
If he denounced the music of Lady Gaga as punishment from the Lord I, for one, would have to agree.