Historic Gathering of Gedolei Yisrael to Preserve the Kosher Phone Network

Last Wednesday evening, a gathering was held by Gedolei Yisrael from across the spectrum to strengthen the status of the Rabbinical Committee for Communications Affairs.

The historic gathering took place in the Vizhnitz Hotel in Bnei Brak, and was attended by members of all three Moetzos Gedolei HaTorah. They instructed the reestablishment of the Rabbinical Committee for Communications Affairs, which will be led by the Rosh Yeshivah Harav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, shlita, the Vizhnitzer Rebbe, shlita, and Harav Moshe Maya, shlita.

The Vizhnitzer Rebbe opened the gathering and said, “We must preserve the path of mesorah. Harav Yissachar Dov of Belz, zt”l, said that in the parashah of Vehayah im shamoa, we have the mitzvah of tefillin, followed by the mitzvah of Talmud Torah and then the mitzvah of mezuzah. Why is learning Torah – Velimadetam osam es beneichem – in the middle between tefillin and mezuzah? To teach us that just like tefillin and mezuzah are ‘halachah leMoshe miSinai’, there is a fixed mesorah that no Jew alters, likewise Torah learning and conveying it to the next generation needs to be according to the mesorah we received from Sinai, without any changes.

“My father, the Yeshuos Moshe, zt”l, would say that there are no compromises on dinei nefashos, laws relating to lives. Compromises are only with monetary laws, but when it is something that the soul is contingent on, one must not compromise at all, chalilah. That is why what is happening here is a very big thing, as we are not changing the way of mesorah.”

The elder member of the Moetzet Chachmei HaTorah of Shas, Harav Moshe Maya, shlita, said that there is always zeh le’umas zeh – things that correspond to one another. “And if we see that HaKadosh Baruch Hu gave such strong power to the impure forces, to make the generation stray, then certainly there is in this world an equally powerful force of kedushah. And moreover, we have assistance, because one who comes to become impure, then ‘poschin lo,’ the door is opened for him, but when one seeks purity, ‘mesayin beyado,’ he receives assistance, and we have siyatta diShmaya that the kedushah will become stronger and will prevail. This subject of the phones is the most difficult yetzer hara in the generation, and HaKadosh Baruch Hu will help us be successful to work on this and to overcome it.”

The Rosh Yeshivah, Harav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, shlita, said that “this is a gathering lichvod Shamayim.” He cited Rabbeinu Yona in Shaarei Teshuvah (Shaar 3): “One should know that Yiras Hashem is the fundamental of the mitzvos, as it says…and the takanos of chachamim and their boundaries are a foundation to the path of yirah, because one should make a boundary and a distance, so that a person should not come to touch an issur of Torah… And being very cautious and having boundaries and distancing oneself from issur is one of the principles of mora, of fear (yirah). And one who is more careful will be greatly rewarded … because their boundaries are from the principles of yirah. And the mitzvah of yirah has a reward equal to that of many mitzvos, because it is the fundamental of them all.

“What we are engaged in here is the mitzvah of yirah, to set boundaries so that challilah, people should not be tempted by those passul devices, which might bring a person to the three most serious sins, plain and simple. And now that there is a committee of Klal Yisrael together, it is a kiddush Hashem…. to prevent the possibility of sin is kvod Shamayim, and when we are engaged in that, there will be siyatta diShmaya that it should succeed.”

The conference was concluded by reading out the resolutions, by Harav Yosef Korlansky, shlita, one of the Roshei Yeshivah of Beis Medrash Elyon.

The resolutions call to implement significant steps to preserve the kosher phone network, and ensure that the Rabbinical Committee will be reinstated and headed by the Gedolei Yisrael. That will come together with passing a law that will guarantee the preservation of the kosher phone network, without any changes, as per the directives of the Gedolim.

In addition, representatives from all the streams of chareidi communities will be appointed as members of the nonprofit that operates the committee; these will be prominent Rabbanim, carefully selected by the Moatzos, who are proficient in all the relevant issues involved in serving on this committee.

As is known, the kosher phone network was established 18 years ago by Gedolei Yisrael, and its purpose was to serve as a barrier against the ravages of technology and communications, which has felled so many people in their trap. Baruch Hashem, the chareidi public has been able to ward off the foreign winds blowing in the world, and throughout these years, the Gedolim have reinforced the kosher phone network, and constantly stressed how vital it is.

During the last government, which was extremely anti-religious, the Cellular Reform was presented by then-Communication Minister, Yoaz Hendel. He worked to dismantle the kosher phone network, in a vile effort to sow destruction in the tzibbur. With extreme impudence, he turned a deaf ear to the requests of the Gedolim, who tried to get him to back down from his plans.

In order to ensure that the kosher phone network will be preserved as it is, a bill was presented by Shas and UTJ (the Arbel Law) that sets the network’s activities in law, so that it will be preserved. Part of this law prevents numbers with the kosher prefix from being transferred to any other network. With siyatta diShmaya, just before the last Knesset was dissolved, the law was passed in a first reading, and in this Knesset, the continuity principle applies, making it possible to continue the legislative process of a second and third reading from where it was left off.

In recent weeks, the Gedolim have worked together to bring about the reinstatement and strengthening of the Rabbinical Committee for Communications’ Affairs, which supervises the network.

This is now being implemented, and the Committee will reconvene, guided by the Moatzos Gedolei HaTorah.

The Resolutions

1. Baruch shemasar olamo leshomrim. Eighteen years ago, the gedolei and tzaddikei and chachmei hador established the kosher phone network by the Rabbinical Committee for Communications, of the cellphones, which saved thousands of people, yirei Shamayim and chareidim lidvar Hashem, from the damages of technology. We have gathered today, representing all the communities, to continue and strengthen their work, and to make sure that people are not felled by the non-kosher technology.
2. The gathering calls on the hanhalos of Torah institutions, yeshivos and girls’ schools not to allow the possessions of phones that are not approved by the Rabbinical Committee, as they have breaches.
3. The gathering calls to complete the legislative process of passing a law that will prevent transfer of numbers from the kosher network to any other network at all, because this is vital.
4. May it be Hashem’s Will that He have mercy on us and our children, that they should continue to follow the path of Torah and Yiras Shamayim to do His will with a complete heart, and that Kavod Shamayim, and boundaries for all of Amo Bais Yisrael, should emerge from this meeting of roshei am from all the communities, amen.