ISRAEL — Shas' spiritual leader, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, called on parents and teachers to act to prevent smoking among youth, a phenomenon which he referred to as “a breach which must be thwarted.”
Speaking during his weekly sermon Saturday evening, the rabbi said that “if a person sees his son smoking a cigarette, he should shout at him and defend him and stop him from doing it… A yeshiva head who has a meeting and sees his student smoking, should slap him in the face. What are you smoking for?”
Rabbi Ovadia: Bochurim Smoking Should be Slapped
ISRAEL — Shas’ spiritual leader, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, called on parents and teachers to act to prevent smoking among youth, a phenomenon which he referred to as “a breach which must be thwarted.”
Speaking during his weekly sermon Saturday evening, the rabbi said that “if a person sees his son smoking a cigarette, he should shout at him and defend him and stop him from doing it… A yeshiva head who has a meeting and sees his student smoking, should slap him in the face. What are you smoking for?”
Rabbi Yosef, who spoke during the sermon about the laws allowing smoking during holidays, stressed that dealing with the issue does not make it legitimate.
“It’s very bad. Whoever can quit – blessed be he,” he added. “It damages a person’s body… puts smoke inside his lungs, God forbid, it stupefies the lungs, the lungs can’t operate. There are people who die of this thing… Some rabbis have written that it’s strictly forbidden.”
The rabbi went on to slam yeshiva students’ habit to hand out cigarettes to their friends after getting engaged. “This is stupid. Why are you getting used to cigarettes? It starts with one cigarette, and then they get used to it. You want to give them gifts? Hand out candy.”
‘Cut every cigarette in half’
Addressing people’s addiction to smoking, Yosef said, “On Shabbat they keep on looking at the stars to see the three stars come out so that they can smoke cigarettes again. And there are those who hide a cigarette at the synagogue and tell the manager, ‘After the Havdala (ceremony at termination of Shabbat), let me smoke immediately.’ Poor things. They’ve gotten used to it.”
So how does one quit? “Stop smoking one cigarette every day,” Rabbi Yosef recommended. “How many cigarettes do you smoke? Thirty a day? Tomorrow have 29, the day after tomorrow 28. When you only reach 10 – is 10 difficult? Cut every cigarette in half. You had 10 – now you have 20.”
Rabbi Yosef also spurned Deputy Health Minister Yakov Litzman’s proposal for a new tax on cigarettes, saying, “Now the health minister proposes making another shekel for every pack of cigarettes to get people to abstain. That’s a lie. What will this give? Whoever pays 20 shekels will add one more shekel – so what? It won’t do any good or bad.”
The rabbi also took advantage of the lesson to convey a special greeting to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. “There used to be a king, the king of Persia, who was very sick,” he said. “I hope it happens soon to the president of Persia.”
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Interestingly enough, I heard that the Rebbe offered the same advice re. quitting. I don’t have a source for this. If someone does, it would be appreciated
az
There is a letter from the frierdiker Rebbe about smoking and it is so disturbing when I walk into a lubavitcher yeshivah and see bochurim smoking (especially when it is in the 4 amos of the Rebbe,outside 770) The hanholos should be cracking down on this problem!!!
By example
Maybe Yoel Kahn could give a sheur on the dangers of smoking. LOL
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Rabbi Manis Friedman said you never slap a teenager because he might slap you back,and then he would transgress honoring your mother and your father. I as a simple mother says, never slap a child or teenager or anyone IN THE FACE, only on your…….
DANY
we should tell them the dangours and convinse them to stop but every teacher and parent should not ever yell or hit or do anything to degrade one if we have do yellit in a loving mannerlease because if not bouchrim need love and when we show them that we are like giving them a green loght to be bad. which leeds to worse things like smoking pot and becoming alchoholics. the fact is parents scare and turn off there kids chidishkeit and yidishkiet if they are to taugh on your kids. Because I my self have seen so many bouchrim turn bad and they even smoke on shabos some of them. We must loove them and listen to what they have to say
ceo
so stop them, that part is great.
But some of them do it to releive stress, so teach them stress releiving methods. It would be great to help them
Nechama
Many girls will not marry a guy who smokes. Bochurim – beware, you jeapordize your health and a shidduch.
chanie
i agree with nechama. many, many girls are not interested in guys who smoke.
cigar guy
once u start, u can’t stop
listen to him?
“Rabbi” ovadia also said to give away land for ‘peace’. He also said girls SHOULD NOT light shabbos candles till they’re married. i guess he’s right a little darkness goes a loooong way
Yossi
I believe the issue in Israel is very different than it is in the USA. The stresses of Israeli life prevent many people from quitting, and create a culture of smoking that make it much more difficult to stop.
The USA is a different story, A US bochur that smokes nowadays, where it is so taboo, is probably up to all sorts of other things he thinks are cool, and needs a good mashpia.
Who deserves a slap? You decide.
Rabbi Ovadia Yosef the spiritual leader of the Shas party in Israel participated in the governments thet gave rifles to the sworn enemies of the Jewish people and surrendered land to them in exchange for Shekels toward this institution that he preaches this nonsense.
Alte Miriam
Violence creates more violence.
mushky
if u think its cool well then u could think that over again when ur 38 and not married! 98% of frum girls will not even think of marring a guy that smokes
nhgf
with all due respect i disagree with this rabbis advice. did HE ever smoke?? obviously not because i doubt the way he mentioned will do any good…. it has been scientificly proven that if you stop doing a habit for 21 days-exatly 3 weeks the desire will not come back.the torture of those 3 weeks are excruciating but once its over-the ultimate bliss.
yud
most mochrim do it beacause of perpreshure
NONE
It irks me to see how light people are with Kavod HaTorah when it is not THEIR own Rebbe’s Kavod.
Just because Rabbi Ovadia doesnt hold like The Rebbe in some issues does not mean he is not a Talmid Chacham.
And to say such things during Sefirah! Rachmana L’tzlan.