Tuesday, March 17, 2009

No Gentile Hair in Jewish Wigs

B"H

The main litvishe Rabbi Yosef Shalom Eliyashiv and the former Sephardi Chief Rabbi and present spiritual leader of the Sephardi - haredi SHASS party, Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef, are against married women (including divorcees and widows) wearing wigs. The two Rabbis simply don't like the Sheitel (wig) and now they made a new decree where a wig worn by a Jewish woman should not include Gentile hair.

The hair covering by Sheitels has been causing countless discussions and disputes. Chassidut Breslov chose the easiest way out: Their women simply don't wear wigs at all.

Rabbi Eliyashiv and Rabbi Yosef also claimed that women shaving their hair off are totally wrong. It shouldn't be this way.
However, what kind of chassidic women are still shaving off their hair today ? The Toldot Aharon have it in their Takanot and in their group it is a MUST. The Toldot Avraham Yitzchak see the issue a little less important, and I myself saw a few Avraham Yitzchak women with hair under their Shabbat hair cover. You can see it well when it is dark but some light shines into a room.
Furthermore, some followers of the Chatam Sofer shave it off but who else ? Women belonging to bigger groups such as Belz, Vishnitz or Satmar wear a wig (with a white "Tichel" on Shabbat).

The Toldot Aharon are famous for showing hatred against wig stores in the Mea Shearim - Ge'ulah neighbourhood and some stores were even burned down in the past. I am not accusing the Toldot Aharon in particular but whoever carries such a wig hatred inside of himself apparently did it.

Another issue is Gentile hair (mostly wigs Made in India) in Jewish wigs. Have the Indians done any idol worship with the hair before they manufactured it ?
At many places such wigs are banned and now the two famous Rabbis followed suit.

No comments:

Post a Comment