Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef attacked former Supreme Court President Aharon Barak during a class on Saturday night.
“They asked him on the radio if there’s a G-d? He said he doesn’t believe. They told him to lay Tefillin (phylacteries) and say the Shema prayer, embarrassing, a 86-year-old man doesn’t know how to say the ‘Shema Yisrael’ verse, that’s a Jew? They are the continuation of the enlightenment generation,” stated Rabbi Yosef.
“Barak would get involved in issues of religion, different cases, what does it have to do with him? Why are you getting involved in hametz (which is forbidden on Passover) in hospitals? After that, they complain about religious coercion, he’s causing the mess. Why is he getting involved with this? All of the state and religion problems are because of these people, these heathens,” the rabbi added.
Aharon Barak, who served as Supreme Court President in the late 90s and early 2000s, is best known for championing a proactive judiciary and is responsible for that has interpreted Israel’s Basic Laws as its constitution and challenged Knesset laws on that basis.