Monday, November 19, 2007

Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu

Rabbi Mordechai EliyahuThe Jerusalem Post reported that the former Sephardi chief Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu explained in his book that "Reform and Conservative synagogues reek of hell and a Jew should not even come near their entrance." I don't think this rabbi will be invited to give a keynote address at any pluralism retreats any time soon.

Putting aside his deplorable comments, I found the story he recounts about having to enter a three-story building to attend a bris very comical. He describes the quandary he faced trying to get to an Orthodox synagogue on the third floor of a building in Israel where a Reform and Conservative synagogue occupy the first and second floor respectively. Hmmm... A three-story building with Reform, Conservative and Orthodox prayer services under one roof? Sounds like a campus Hillel building.

In response to his comments, the Masorti (Conservative) Movement in Israel said that it would sue Rabbi Eliyahu for slander.

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