Secular education under fire

Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef highlights dangers of secular upbringing

The rabbi recounts a fiery exchange with a mother over the impact of permissive values on her child.

Rabbi Yosef Yitshak (Photo: David Cohen/ Flash90)

Former Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel Yitzhak Yosef shared a story from his tenure as a judge in the Beit Din HaGadol, during which he sharply rebuked a mother about the consequences of the secular education she gave her daughter.

Rabbi Yosef said this in his weekly shiur, which he gives every Saturday night. "During my 11 years in the Great Court, there came a case in which a daughter could not marry because of a halachic problem," the rabbi said.

"Despite all the efforts – checking the ketubah, witnesses and all the possibilities – we didn't find a solution. When the daughter burst into tears, I couldn't help yelling at the mother: 'Look what your education is doing, look what your permissiveness is doing.'"

Rabbi Yosef said that he was warned that statements against secular education could lead to a petition to the High Court, but he responded: "Let them file a petition to the High Court, we have gone through a lot of things."

However, he emphasized that in cases where it is possible to find a lenient solution, "the power of the heter is preferable".

* Arutz 7 contributed to this article.

Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef Secular education Dvar torah The Chief Rabbinate of Israel High Court

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This story touches on the broader tension between traditional religious values and modern secular norms, particularly around child-rearing.
Dana Hershel 15:59
1
Thought-provoking insights. Could discuss balancing tradition with modern realities.
Asaf H. 15:52


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