Rabbis comments

Who cares what the Rabbi says? Everybody

Rabbi Ovadia Yosef comments the other day wishing death to Israel’s enemies have caused a furor and a minor international incident. His comments have been blown out of proportion certainly but interestingly enough have made news headlines the world over.
Rabbis are completely ignored by most on theological issues that seem to have relevance only to their parishioners. When an influential one seems to leave theology and enter the political fray everyone perks up and listens. It’s important to understand where this has come from. Rabbi Yosef the spiritual leader of a very influential political party in Israel . He wields considerable political clout and is often quoted for things he says. He previously openly supported territorial compromise in the event of a real peace treaty . He based this support on his interpretation of Jewish Law and was attacked for this stance by many in the Rabbinic world. It would be accurate to say that he went out on a limb to be as pragmatic and compromising as possible and is hoping mad at what cession of land has caused. His sermon was based on the upcoming Rosh Hashanah or Jewish New year where traditional blessing include the cursing Of Israel’s enemies.
Most Israeli’s see the Palestinian authority as Israel’s enemies. That’s a big shock.