Different groups have different interests. Diversity and proximity equal conflict.<\/p>\n
Washington Post<\/a>: In a letter faxed to hoteliers in Jerusalem, two of the city’s chief rabbis warned against displaying Christmas trees on their premises.<\/p>\n \u201cAs the secular year ends we want to remind you that erecting a Christmas tree in a hotel contravenes halacha [Jewish law] and that therefore it is clear that one should not erect [a tree] in a hotel,\u201d the letter reads, according to the Times of Israel. \u201cIt is also appropriate to avoid hosting parties to mark the end of the secular year.\u201d<\/p>\n The Israeli daily said the letter could be interpreted as a \u201cveiled threat\u201d to hoteliers who risk losing their kosher licenses. This flies in the face of recent developments, including a March 2015 ruling by Israel’s Chief Rabbinate that lifted a ban on Christmas trees in hotels and tied the criteria for kosher certification more closely to the preparation of food.<\/p>\n Christmas trees and other symbols of non-Jewish traditions rankle some Israelis; the country’s ultra-Orthodox rabbis are known to criticize their display. In a separate incident reported by Israeli media, a rabbi at Technion Institute of Technology in the city of Haifa warned students against entering the student union building because of a Christmas tree there, arguing that the tree was \u201cnot a Christian religious symbol, but even worse, a pagan one.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Different groups have different interests. Diversity and proximity equal conflict. Washington Post: In a letter faxed to hoteliers in Jerusalem, two of the city’s chief rabbis warned against displaying Christmas trees on their premises. \u201cAs the secular year ends we … Continue reading