Following a court settlement, Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, grandson of former Sephardi Chief Rabbi Ovadia Yosef for whom he is named after and son of immediate past Sephardi Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, has issued a formal apology to the Tzohar Rabbinical Organization retracting past statements he made against the group. In addition to acknowledging that his remarks were incorrect, he pledged to donate NIS 10,000 NIS to the Noar Kahalacha association.
The apology follows a legal dispute between Rabbi Yosef, head of the Tiferet Ohel Moshe Kollel in Beit Shemesh, and the Tzohar Rabbinical Organization.
Approximately six months ago, Tzohar filed a lawsuit against Rabbi Yosef through attorney Assaf Benmalach following allegations he made during a weekly class at the Nazar Aharon synagogue.
In his sermon, Rabbi Yosef accused claiming, "Everything is a professional trade. Everyone goes to Tzohar; they convert them for NIS 25,000. It doesn’t matter if they have [agreed to follow mitzvot, the commandments of Judaism, which is an essential step of the conversion process] or not—they say it’s not necessary."
A settlement was recently reached in the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court, requiring Rabbi Yosef to issue a public apology both in writing and during his weekly class.In a letter addressed to Tzohar, he stated:
"In a sermon I delivered and published online, I spoke of the Tzohar organization as one that performs conversions and raised allegations against them. I hereby declare that my statements were misleading and incorrect. I retract, renounce, and apologize for them. The Tzohar organization does not engage in conversions, and certainly not for money."
Rabbi Yosef also opened his latest YouTube lesson with a verbal apology, further emphasizing his regret. Alongside the apology, he committed to donating NIS 10,000 to Noar Kahalacha, an organization dedicated to preventing sectarian discrimination in haredi education.
In response, the Tzohar Rabbinical Organization stated: "Rabbi Yosef’s apology is important and necessary. Tzohar is an organization that meticulously maintains integrity and absolute loyalty to Halacha. The erroneous statements not only harmed our good name but also misrepresented us as operating in violation of Halacha and the law.
"We hope this apology will correct the misunderstanding and help prevent similar false statements in the future. We remain committed to full transparency and the values of Torah and Halacha."
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