Any Rabbi Abadi followers here?

amother

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 8:03 am

I wish there was a safe haven to post this in. Since there is not I ask that this thread be treated somewhat like one with respect and not mocking or allegations.

Most of DH's family follow rabbi Abadi. We did as well at first but then I decided I wanted to be part of the more "main stream" society of Judaism re halaca/kashrut. I am told more people follow him than I think. I am curious if anyone here will admit to following him and would be willing to talk about how it affects your home (re having guest etc)

Are there any people who follow him outside the home but not inside?

Has anyone had issues when the kids get older and start saying things at school?

amother

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 8:16 am

Op- I don't think anyone would call him to machmier.

I think he holds views that many mainstream people do not hold by and eats things many would consider "treif"

I think many people would not want to eat in the kitchen of someone who follows rabbi Abadi. Especially on peach but I am asking more just year round.

He is well respected but ask those who respect him if they would eat in a house that follows him and the answer is no.

amother

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 8:48 am

Ruchel wrote:

Can I have an example of the kashrus list?

Op here. The only "list" he has is a pesach list. As I am simply looking for other followers and not looking to turn this into a discussion of his halaca with those who don't follow him I really am not up for going into his halacas specifically.

The main difference is he believes both year round and pesach that one can simply read the ingredient labels and things do not need heschers. He also has some rulings like one can eat a tuna sub at subway and drink welches grape juice etc.

Again I am more looking for others who currently follow him and how they do it within mainstream Judaism.

amother

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 8:50 am

amother wrote:

DH's uncle openly follows Rav Abadi (he's not sfardi). Apparently one of DH's cousins was in a brachos bee in elementary school and got out because she answered that chocolate is ha'etz (which is what R' Abadi holds).

Anon because I don't need DH's other relatives to know my sn.

OP here that's exactly the kind of situation I am asking about. I am wondering how it affects kids and families. I could just see my kids (if we followed him) getting upset at school because the teacher is saying something is treif that we hold is not etc...

Ruchel

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 8:51 am

Pessach is trickier because chametz isn't "batel" (not judging ! just thinking outloud)... but I do know other rabbis who consider in countries listing every ingredient there/more than 1/60, you can go by ingredients. Either for some items, or for all non meat items. Can he just be more old school?
edited to add: same for eating some items out, and I do remember a minority (?) opinion on grape juice.

hila

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 8:58 am

Just read some of his website.
He advocates following your own minhagim.

However if you dont have your own and want to follow his psakim - his sons say

Quote:

If he follows all of Rabbi Abadi's pesakim, such as; no going to movies, Broadway shows, Sports stadiums for games, bars etc. or makes Ha'etz on chocolate, orange juice, apple juice etc or Haadama on cold cereals or oat bread or oat crackers, or etc, then yes, he can eat kitniyot. The hataras nedarim of Erev Rosh Hashana would resolve the neder aspect of the past minhag.
We also assume that most that are following this website are either unlearned and are looking for an education or to understand our father's Piskei Halacha.

Website is http://www.kashrut.org/

amother

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 9:02 am

Ruchel wrote:

Op- this might have been posted in the wrong section. Honestly I am not so interested in discussing his opinions or how they could or could not be okay. I am more looking for those who DO follow him and how they work that into their daily lives. Sorry to sound like a broken record. It can become a very hot heated topic and I am not looking for that.

I don't think what he does is wrong or treif. I just think in society today it's not accepted and I am wondering if it works living in a yeshivish neighborhood and sending to "normal" schools to follow this.

Have people been kicked out of schools when the schools found out? Have kids had issues when friend came over and saw snacks that their parents call "treif".

Rabbi Abadi regularly says there is no need to tell your guest you are using unheachered foods even if they would not eat at your house if they found out. How do people handle this? Do people actually do that in practice? I am just having a hard time wrapping my mind how a "normal" family might follow these psaks. It's causing a lot of SB issues in my home because my husband wants to follow him and I think it's not so good. Even if we hold its "okay" it might be better to not put the practices into place in our own home for community reasons. Would love to hear from people who have worked those things out.

Notsobusy

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 10:03 am

We don't follow Rabbi Abadi, but we are pretty lenient with hechsherim. But when my kids have friends over, if I know they are stricter or I suspect they may be, I make sure to only serve Heimishe hechsherim. If my kids are having friends I don't know for the first time, I try to find out about allergies and hechsherim.
Same when I have company. If I know in advance they are stricter or eat Yoshon or whatever, I try my best to accommodate. If I don't know in advance, there's usually something in the house I can serve them.
As far as Brochos contests, we say a couple brochos different from on the schools list. When the kids are practicing for their Brochos test or contest I tell them, this is how we say it, like everything else in yiddishkeit some people say it differently. While you should continue to say this brocha, for the contest say it the way the school wants.

amother

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 10:59 am

amother wrote:

Hi! R' Abadi follower here! he is my Rabbi as well as most of my family (parents, in-laws, aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings, etc.). We are a part of "main stream" Judaism living anywhere from Lakewood, Boro Park, and E"Y. Never had an issue to this day. He is a big talmid chacham and tzaddik.

Do you tell guest about your kashrut practices before you invite (I know rabbi Abadi said no need to but I also know we have many friends/neighbors who would be upset if they found out)

Your kids have never been confused by school saying one thing and parents another (re concerts, kashrut etc?)

Ruchel

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 11:42 am

School and friends with different levels is part of life. You can't choose who your neighbours/friends will be down to the very hechsher they eat or not, and not everyone will happen to have a school agreeing 100% with your practice around- and if they have, then it doesn't agree with the neighbour's practices 100%.

Telling or not is a bigger deal, though I read from various rabbis that you adapt to the host level (as long as it's kosher) even if you don't do that way. But the above? Part of life in a kehila.

amother

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 12:02 pm

Ruchel wrote:

Thank you for your opinions. Again I am specifically looking for answers form people who hold by rabbi Abadi.

Example you are making kiddish in welches grape juice. Many would hold its treif. Rabbi Abadi holds its kosher. Rabbi Abadi said you don't need to tell your guest you are making kiddish on welches. I think guest would be very upset if they learned it after the fact.

amother

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 12:05 pm

amother wrote:

And on th school if the school learned you drank welches or got fish from a treif butcher or ate at subway would they still allow your kids to go there?

amother

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 12:34 pm

Hi,

We followed him only for TH, but after 10 plus years of doing it that way, my dh and I decided to switch to a more mainstream Rav in zchus to help us see a yeshua for something we needed. I think he's a tzadik and a nice person. Definitely not mainstream.

I do have cousins who followed him for everything including Kashrus. Bh, they did let us know what we could and could not eat in their home and I am grateful for their honesty. These cousins have some older children but none are married yet. They were not accepted in they typical Lakewood schools, without much begging. I think the older daughter will not marry a guy who follows Rabbi abadi. I feel bad for your kids if you arent Sefardi and you are holding this way. I think there is reason to be concerned...

amother

Cobalt

Wed, Feb 19 2014, 1:14 pm

We're close with someone, lets call him X, who had certain family members, lets call them Y, who had major issues with X following Rabbi Abadi, and only with many choshuva people intervening was Y convinced that he could actually eat in X's home.

X does NOT follow Rabbi Abadi's pesakim in Kashrus, in fact, although officially X is supposed to follow Rabbi Abadi for everything, which is a bit puzzling, but we won't go there.

So, Y had to be persuaded that if X says he keeps 'regular' kashrus, Y can believe him. (Because if X doesn't light neiros on Yom Tov Sheini, and doesn't put mezuzos in certain places, etc. Y wasn't sure if X is considered reliable if he says Y can trust his kashrus.)

And, all in all, the entire family had a lot of agmas nefesh, which could probably have been avoided with more tact.

My personal feeling from being involved in this story is that if you want to be part of a community, it's fine to follow out-of-the-mainstream pesakim for private matters, but when it comes to affecting other people, there is some importance to being 'meurav im habrios' and 've-heyisem neki'im (not making people think ill of you).

(It's actually a bit strange, because most of the older Lakewood poskim learned under Rabbi Abadi, and in fact, I know at least one who officially holds like Rabbi Abadi in vestos, even though he doesn't push this on anyone. However, most of them do not agree with how far Rabbi Abadi has gone in his creative pesakim in many areas. And I wish DH would go along on the vestos ... but again, that's private.)

BTW, Rabbi Abadi holds oats are not one of the 5 minim and you can eat them on Pesach. It makes a lot of sense, because oats don't have gluten. But most of the world would hold you're eating mamesh chametz, not batel there, viz. the gluten free matzos - then again, many poskim will tell you to avoid those oat matzos if you don't have to eat them bec. of gluten intolerance.

Also, to correct someone above, WRT other items having possible chametz in them, chametz is batel before Pesach, just not on Pesach, .