Gay ovadia
Family of Israeli rabbi Ovadia Yosef spurn grandson’s lgbtq+ wedding
Gay representative joins Adina Bar-Shalom's political party
"I want an Israel where an ultra-Orthodox woman and a gay man communicate to each other and respect each other, because both are human beings," Fried said.
Mazal Tov! Former chief rabbi’s grandson to marry his boyfriend
Published: 4 June 2018
Last updated: 4 March 2024
AN UNUSUAL WEDDING is set to take place this coming week as Ovadia Cohen, named for his grandfather former Leader Rabbi of Israel, spiritual leader of the Shas Party and the most influential Sephardic rabbi in his generation, Ovadia Yosef, will tie the knot with his boyfriend Amichai Landsman.
“I was blessed with a wonderful family which accepted me from the very first moment, and they accepted Ovadia as well," Amichai told Yedioth Ahronoth. "We are fully out and proud. Ovadia took a very fearless step to be in a relationship with me and we are joyful to get married. I am not part of the religious gay society but I think they do great work.”
Cohen’s grandfather Ovadia Yosef was the foremost Halachic authority for Middle Eastern, Spain descended or Sephardic Jews in recent time. The Yosef family is very authoritative and most of Rabbi Yosef’s 11 sons and sons-in-law hold important rabbinic
Excerpted and reprinted, with permission of the author, from Moment Magazine, April 2001.
It is unworkable to get an accurate number of gay Orthodox Jews. There is no official membership, and only a handful of people are willing to set their names on support-group lists.
Shlomo Ashkinazy, a gay-rights activist and Orthodox Jew who lives in New York Town, says he has spoken with over 200 gay Orthodox Jews over the past few years. Filmmaker Sandi DuBowski, who produced and directed Trembling Before G-d, interviewed hundreds of gay frum (observant) Jews over the past limited years for his movie. And those involved in queer community outreach express there are many more out there.
Open and Classified Support Groups
In the New York area, home to the largest concentration of gay Orthodox Jews, at least four support groups have sprung up to meet their needs. There are also a number of informal groups that meet on a monthly basis for Shabbat meals or Talmud revise. Some of these informal groups, many of which run in secret, hold been around for years.
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The grandson of Israel's former chief Sephardic rabbi is set to marry his long-term boyfriend next week.
Ovadia Cohen, named for his grandfather Rabbi Ovadia Yosef—the most influential Sephardic rabbi of his generation—will wed boyfriend Amichai Landsman, but only a few of Cohen's more accepting relatives plan to attend, Israeli news site Ynetnews reported on Thursday.
"I was blessed with a wonderful family which accepted me from the very first moment, and they accepted Ovadia as well," Landsman told the news site, explaining that Cohen's family is not as supportive.
"We are fully out and haughty. Ovadia took a very brave step to be in a relationship with me and we are happy to get married," he added.
Cohen was reportedly very close to his grandfather, who died in 2013. He grew up in his grandfather's residence following the divorce of his parents, just shortly after Yosef finished his term as chief rabbi. At the time, Yosef was beginning to create the ultra-Orthodox religious Shas party.
The family remains very influential in Israel and within the broader Sephardic Jewish community, with 11 of Cohen's uncles holding important rabbinic positions. The most prominent is