Ovadia Yosef

Ovadia Yosef (Ovadya Yosef, عبد الله يوسف; September 24, 1920 – October 7, 2013) was an Iraqi-born Talmudic scholar, a posek, the Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel from 1973 to 1983, and a founder and long-time spiritual leader of Israel's ultra-Orthodox Shas party.

Yosef's responsa were highly regarded within Haredi circles, particularly among Mizrahi communities, among whom he was regarded as "the most important living halakhic authority".

Yosef was born in Baghdad, British occupied Iraq, to Yaakov Ben Ovadia and his wife, Gorgia.

In 1924, when he was four years old, he immigrated to Jerusalem, Mandatory Palestine, with his family.

In Palestine, the family adopted the surname "Ovadia".

Later in life, he changed his surname to his middle name, "Yosef", to avoid the confusion of being called "Ovadia Ovadia".

The family settled in the Beit Yisrael neighborhood of Jerusalem, where Yaakov operated a grocery store.

The family was poor, and Yosef was forced to work at a young age.

He learned in Talmud Torah B'nei Zion in the Bukharim quarter, where his passion and skill for Torah study was apparent.

His literary career began at age 9 with a commentary on Reshit Chochmah, which he penned in the margins.

In 1933, Hakham Sadqa Hussein prevailed upon Yaakov to send his son to Porat Yosef Yeshiva.

He soon advanced to the highest shiur taught by the rosh yeshiva, Rabbi Ezra Attiya.

Yosef composed his first sefer, together with two friends, called Machberet Ha'atakat Hidot.

In 1937, Rabbi Yaakov Dweck sent Yosef to give the daily Ben Ish Hai halakha shiur in his stead at the Ohel Rachel Synagogue for the Persian Jewish community in the Beit Yisrael neighborhood.

In the course of giving this shiur, Yosef dissented many times with the stringent opinions of the Ben Ish Hai, who preferred the rulings of the Ari zal over Yosef Karo.

This was a defining moment for Yosef, who had found a podium to give air to his opinions, while simultaneously learning how to deal with the negative feedback he was receiving from many in his audience, especially from his fellow Iraqi Jews.

A number of notable rabbis, among them Yitzhak Nissim, rebuked him over the years for his positions, even burning his first halakha sefer, Hazon Ovadia.

But Rabbi Attiya encouraged his student to continue ruling according to his own understanding.

In 1947, Yosef was invited to Cairo by Rabbi Aharon Choueka, founder of yeshiva 'Ahavah VeAchvah', to teach in his yeshiva.

Yosef also served, at the request of Rabbi Ben-Zion Meir Hai Uziel, as head of the Cairo beth din (rabbinical court).

Yosef considered religious observance to be lax in Egypt, in the Jewish community at large, and among its rabbis.

One of the major Halachic issues was the lack of any organised system of Kashrut, which led to conflict between him and other members of the community.

It was due to these events that Yosef resigned from his position, just two years after arriving in Cairo.

Approximately one year later he returned to what in the meantime had become Israel.

Back in Israel, Yosef began studying at midrash "Bnei Zion", then headed by Rabbi Tzvi Pesach Frank.

He also served on the rabbinical court in Petah Tikva.

In his first term as a dayan (rabbinic judge), at the age of 30, he wrote a Halachic ruling favoring Yibbum over Halitza, which contradicted a religious ruling made by the Chief Rabbinate of Israel a year earlier, which had forbidden Yibbum.

In 1951–1952 (תשי"ב by the Jewish calendar), he published his first halakha sefer, Hazon Ovadia on the laws of Passover. The book won much praise, and received the approval of the two Chief Rabbis of Israel at the time, Ben-Zion Meir Hai Uziel and Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog. Two years later he founded 'Or HaTorah' Yeshiva for gifted Sephardic Yeshiva students. This Yeshiva (which did not remain open for long) was the first of many which he established, later with the help of his sons, in order to facilitate Torah education for Sephardic Jews, in order to provide leadership for the community in future generations. In 1953-4 (תשי"ד) and 1955-6 (תשט"ז), he published the first two volumes of his major work Yabia Omer, which also received much praise.

Between 1958 and 1965, Yosef served as a dayan in the Jerusalem district Beth Din.

He was then appointed to the Supreme Rabbinical Court of Appeals in Jerusalem, eventually becoming the Chief Sephardic Rabbi of Tel Aviv in 1968, a position which he held until his election as Chief Sephardic Rabbi of Israel in 1973.

In 1973, Yosef was elected Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel by a majority vote of 81 to 68, replacing Yitzhak Nissim.

His candidacy was criticised by some, as he was competing against an incumbent Chief Rabbi for the first time in the history of that office.

The election process was characterised by tension and political controversy because of the Psak Din of the Brother and Sister and due to the tense relations between Yosef and Nissim.

In the same election, Rabbi Shlomo Goren was chosen as the Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel, the relationship with whom would prove to be difficult.

The Council of the Chief Rabbinate was controlled by Goren, and for some time thereafter Yosef decided that there would be no point in attending its sessions.

In 1984, Yosef founded the Shas party in response to minimal representation of Sephardic Jews in the Ashkenazi-dominated Agudat Yisrael.

It has since become a formidable political force, becoming part of the coalition in most of the elected governments since.

Yosef's objections on Ben Ish Hai, for many years in handwritten form only, were printed beginning in 1998 with the appearance of his Halikhot Olam.

Yosef received rabbinic ordination at the age of 20.

He became a long-time friend of several members of his class who went on to prominent leadership positions in the Sephardi world, such as rabbis Ben Zion Abba Shaul, Baruch Ben Haim, Yehuda Moallem and Zion Levy.