Washington post headline Rabbis are loosing the internet war They are not loosing its a constant battle and they are ontop of it with new ideas and tools how to address the issue.
JERUSALEM — Ultra-Orthodox rabbis have waged a battle in recent years to stop the Internet from infiltrating their insular communities. Their efforts have included declarations that smartphones aren't kosher, conferences on the evils of the Internet and rabbinic edits demanding that the pious stop using WhatsApp.
But the rabbis, it seems, are losing the fight. Research by Israel’s Ben-Gurion University of the Negev has found that ultra-Orthodox Jews in Israel use the Internet just as much as anyone else. And just like most others online, they gossip, consult with one another about life, discuss issues in their community and share their feelings on all manner of subjects. In fact, the ultra-Orthodox, or Haredim, even like to tweet, and Facebook pages are abundant. Of Israel’s Jewish population of 6.37 million, roughly 900,000 are ultra-Orthodox. Roughly 58 percent of the community is 19 or younger. On a public level, Haredi society disdains all things relating to the Internet. Ultra-Orthodox yeshivas have been known to suspend students found logging on, while some rabbis have even told followers that they should burn iPhones if and when they find them. read more at Washington post
The "Gedolim" lost on this issue, just like they did with television before that. And just like with television they are denying they did. Most Chareidim outside of isolated enclaves like Meah Shearim know about the internet, have internet access and anyone who tells you about the great filter he has probably isn't using it.
ReplyDeleteGedolim actually won the TV battle.
DeleteSure - nobody has TVs anymore, because we can just get it on our computers.
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