The Real Chief Rabbi (Israel)

It is time we all admit it. Regardless of his status, Harav Ovadia Yosef is, and has been the real Sephradic chief rabbi in Israel ever since he held the post in 1973. This weekend just proved it. The fact that the current chief rabbi feels he needed his backing to make the ruling on IDF conversions, just shows who is the real powerhouse.

So why don't we stop the pretense, and stop appointing other sephradic chief rabbanim? well there is quite a simple answer. We are all terrified we might have to acknowledge the Ashkenzaic real powerhouse. That would be a nightmare.

Harav Ovadia Yosef acted bravely, knowing full well how the Ashkenzaic Haredi Rabbanim would react. It is refreshing to see that Shas (aka Harav Ovadia) can still sometimes represent a different (and perhaps more liberal) view of the world. This ruling has shown how a true chief rabbi acts.