Forgot him at home: The 19th candidate in the rabbinical elections in the capital

October 8, 2014   

Last night at midnight, the list of candidates in the elections for the Jerusalem City Rabbinate was signed. In a statement released by the Ministry of Religious Services, the names of 18 rabbis running for the positions of Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi and Sephardic Chief Rabbi appeared - 8 of them Ashkenazi and 10 Sephardic. However, it has now become clear: one rabbi was dropped from the lists, despite having bothered to apply. This is the eminent Rabbi Menashe Malka, Ra'av'd of Mamonot and Rabbi of Melilot in the Sdot Negev Regional Council. Rabbi Malka has served for about 30 years in the rabbinate and has extensive experience in the fields of kashrut and marriage. About 15 years ago, he established a Beit Din for Mamonot matters in which he resolves disputes between businessmen and council heads. In the past, Rabbi Malka was required to discuss extremely complex issues of marriage invalids, bastards, agunot, and the like, and even sat several times with the rabbi of Jerusalem, the late Rabbi Shalom Mashash, in order to provide a halachic solution and to address their problems in creative ways according to halachic law. Today, Rabbi Malka serves as the nightly rabbi of the Sdot Negev Regional Council. He also serves as the head of the kollel and holds an active beit din. "The rabbi is involved in all matters of the area and the population in general. His sympathy and love from the public crosses sectors and committees, and every day many come to him to seek his advice and wisdom," a statement sent by his associates read. And these are the rabbis running for the Jerusalem Rabbinate: For the position of Ashkenazi Rabbi: Gaon Rabbi Aryeh Stern – candidate for religious Zionism and head of the Halacha Berura Institute. Gaon Rabbi Eliyahu Schlesinger – rabbi of Gilo and the ruling rabbi in the Jerusalem Rabbinate. Gaon Rabbi Moshe Chaim Lau – rabbi of the city center of Netanya. Gaon Rabbi Yaakov Shapira – Rosh Yeshiva Merkaz Harav. Gaon Rabbi Avraham Hanoch Kutnier – resident of Bnei Brak, who serves as head of the institutions of the Ostrovets Torah Center in the city of Torah and Hasidism. Gaon Rabbi Yehuda Rosenthal – resident of Bnei Brak. Serves as a dayan and m'otz in the yeshiva trainee community. Gaon Rabbi Eliyahu David Rosenthal – dayan in Petach Tikva. Gaon Rabbi Yehoshua Zand. And in the Sephardic arena: Rishon LeZion and former Chief Rabbi of Israel. Gaon Rabbi Chaim Amsalem – chairman of the Em Shalem movement and former MK for Shas, served as a rabbi in Switzerland. The Gaon Rabbi Mordechai Toledano – Av Beit Din of Jerusalem and son-in-law of the Gra"a Yosef zt"l. The Gaon Rabbi Mordechai Malka – Regional Rabbi of the Be'er Tuvia Council. The Gaon Rabbi Mordechai Malka – Sephardic Rabbi of the city of Elad. The Gaon Rabbi Menashe Malka – Rav of the Moshav Melilot in the Sdot Negev Regional Council. The Gaon Rabbi Yehuda Chaik of Katzrin. The Gaon Rabbi Mordechai Antebi of the Beit Hakerem neighborhood in Jerusalem. The Gaon Rabbi Moshe Maman – Dayan in the Conversion Court. Rabbi Maman cannot legally run for office at all, since he is already over the age of 70. The Gaon Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu – Rabbi of Safed and son of the Rashal"ts ​​of the Gra"a Eliyahu zt"l. The Gaon Rabbi Yehuda Deri – Rabbi of Be'er Sheva.