israels Sephardicโ Chief rabbi Issues Stark Warning Amid Measles outbreak
Jerusalem – Rabbiโ David โYosef, โฃthe Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel and โRishonโฃ LeZion, has deliveredโข aโข forceful condemnation of parents who choose not to vaccinate their children, particularly in light of the recent measles epidemic โspreading through โขJerusalem and other Israeli cities.โ Rabbi โYosef stated unequivocally,”Parents who do not vaccinate their children-I โcannot call โคthem Torah-observant. If, heaven forbid, somethingโ happens to โคtheir child,โค these parents should live withโ the guilt their entire lives because they โคkilled their own child! The bloodโข will be on their hands. There is no doubt about this matter.”
The Rabbi alsoโ directly refuted religious objections โto vaccination, โasserting, “Anyone who claims, in the name of religion or Torah, that it is โคforbidden to vaccinate, not onlyโข misuses theโข Torah, but is entirelyโข lying! โThe opposite of the truth. The holy Torah instructs us to follow the guidance of doctors, and ifโ medicine says to vaccinate, then it must be done.”
Rabbi Yosef โฃhighlighted his โlong-standing support for vaccination โคefforts, recalling his public vaccination during the COVID-19 pandemic as a demonstration for the โฃcommunity. Heโข emphasized theโค proven effectiveness โof public healthโฃ measures, stating, “Blessed โขbe God, today no one disputesโข that isolation and โคvaccination guidelines literally saved lives,” andโ referencing โhistorical โprecedents like strict isolation protocols followed during past epidemics, such as one in Turkey.
The โคChief Rabbi also expressed concern over the influenceโ of certain โreligious leadersโ who discourage conventional medical treatment.He recounted โa decades-old incident in beit Shemesh involving a child diagnosed with leg cancer whose parents were initiallyโ dissuaded from seeking medical care by โฃa respected rabbi who promised a miraculousโ healing. Rabbiโ Yosef describedโ confronting โthe rabbi, stating, “I went โto โคBeit Shemesh, shouted at him that heโฃ was a murderer spilling blood. Who allowed him to prevent life-saving medical โขtreatment for a Jewish child?! I ordered him to instantly contact the parents and the medical teamโ to take the child to the hospital.” The child ultimately received treatment and survived, and now has a family.
Rabbi Yosef further cautioned against relying solely on alternative โฃtherapies, stating, “It is indeed fine for people to use natural remedies and various alternative โฃtherapies, such asโข acupuncture, but under no โcircumstances should โขthis replaceโข conventional medicine! Heaven forbid!” Heโ shared a personal experiance ofโฃ witnessing a tragicโข outcome resulting fromโ this approach, recounting the death of anโ acquaintance who refused hospital โฃtreatment in favor of natural โคmedicine,โ despite Rabbi Yosef’s โขattempts to โคpersuadeโฃ him or else.