http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,251-1508115,00.html

March 03, 2005

Kosher phone taps into new market for mobiles
From Ian MacKinnon in Jerusalem

AN ISRAELI mobile phone company has brought out a handset to cater for the one-million-strong ultra-Orthodox Jewish community in an attempt to boost business.
The “kosher” phone carries a stamp signifying its approval by rabbinical authorities, who will recommend haredi community members to take out contracts with MIRS Communication.

The Motorola handsets have been modified to disable internet access, SMS text services and video and voice-mail applications.

Growing concern that new-generation mobile phones could threaten the conservative, ultra-Orthodox values and way of life, particularly among the young, led to a rabbinical committee being formed to examine the issue.

Rabbis had already issued edicts that led to costly bans on advertising mobile services in newspapers read by ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities, characterised by the black garb worn by their ancestors in Eastern Europe 200 years ago.

Rabbis say that they are not against technology as a matter of course. But they fear that the latest feature-packed telephones coming to the market will provide the opportunity to access corrupting influences. Television is banned from homes in ultra-Orthodox communities because of the likelihood that images of women — worse, scantily clad women — could be viewed. Even radio is frowned upon. Newspapers circulating in the community are mostly free of images, save for the occasional rabbi.

The rabbinical committee that examined the mobile phone issue passed a list of its demands to many mobile phone operators in Israel but only MIRS was willing to attempt to cater to the niche.

It expects the phone to add up to 100,000 users to its 300,000-strong subscriber base, charging extra-low prices for those calling within the network and relatively high tariffs to those calling outside.

The company and the rabbis hope that the skewed tariff structure will encourage ultra-Orthodox Jews to use only the MIRS handsets, while discouraging members of the haredi community from calling those without the “kosher” phones.

Leading rabbis, who hold great sway over the community, have already pledged to support the deal with MIRS and use their influence to persuade mobile phone users to buy the handsets.

Religious Jews are familiar with rabbinical diktats that restrict their actions, especially on the Sabbath when many forms of work are forbidden.

The completion of an electrical circuit is considered “building” and thus disallowed, prompting many ingenious measures to allow Jews to use devices on the Sabbath. Shabbat lifts, for example, come unbidden and halt at every floor, so that the users do not have to press any buttons.

NEVER ON THE SABBATH

Driving is forbidden on the Sabbath. Orthodox Jews walk instead, although only short distances.


Electrical appliances may not be switched on or off during the Sabbath. Families leave lights on or use a timer

Sabbath rules prohibit writing, playing musical instruments, music, and using money or telephones

Some ultra-Orthodox rabbis forbid television and the internet as corrupting influences

yawn

If the rabbi's gave their haskama, does that mean they have reversed their ban on cell phones?

Are phones not available from the major companies that are just phones, without screens for text/video/internet access? Couldn't someone just buy one of those simple phones? I know personally my phone is just a phone. It's no different than a land-line from my point of view (I realize the technology is different) except that it's mobile. Maybe in theory it could get text/video/internet if I could figure it out, but then I would need the inclination. Even if a phone could do those things, wouldn't it have to be enabled with options on one's account? What I'm getting at is it seems to me it's not the phone that's sinful, it's the people who are enabling it to download stuff. Why not just teach these people that they can't download stuff onto their phones? Is the fear that ownership of a phone that has the capability to download video will necessarily be activated because people have no self control so if they buy a phone with the capability, even if they have no intent to use the features, will necessarily end up activating the features? If so, that really doesn't speak very well of these people for whom this hechsher is addressing. In any event, don't you need to activate some sort of account that is priced over and above basic phone service to access these features? But then I come back to my original question, aren't "simple" phones without screens available any more?
My other question is, what's wrong with voice mail? How is a recorded message more sinful than a live conversation?

yeah this phone would make it very difficult for me to communicate with poor shprintza, being that we talk most over text messages and that would be bad because she is 8 months pregnant, and i had to stop ignoring her texts into the third trimester

It's a gezeirah because it might lead to voice femail.

What's wrong with text messaging?

text messaging leads to teenage pregnancies

Mirs is the cheapest anyway. Melech, old school phones don't have all of those capabilities, except everything has text messaging. Yes, I do think the use of text messaging is bad news. I think the reliance on and constant presense of cell phones is bad. I think yeshiva bachurim have no good reason to have one. I think married people can have them, especially men with pg wives, but I don't think they are a necesity. I also think that if a guy is in kollel it must be off or on vibrate, but must not be talked on during seder.

What is the stock that I should be buying and where can I buy it?

And what, pray tell, is wrong with voice mail? I had no idea that when my husband leaves me a message on the cell phone asking me to pick up bread and cheese for his lunch that we were committing a sin.

That is just basic derech eretz!!!

I agree that people should use cell phones responsibly. I don't plan to get my children cell phones while they are in high school. Let them put a quarter -or would that be 35 cents in the pay phone if they really need to make a call. But, a beit medrash guy should be able to exercise some self control and derech eretz. If some can't handle a cell phone, than they should be asked to leave it at home. But, there are other young guys who need to be in contact with family for whatever reason and I also know an entreprenurial beit medrash guy or two that might actually get a business related call and could use a phone with voice mail.

Can I take it further please? It's not the phone that's sinful, it's the people who use it in a bad way that are...
You can use the internet to look up halacha, or you can use it to look up porn; but it's not the internet itself who's bad, it's a vessel (I don't know if that's correct in English) that allows us to connect to both good and bad. It all depends on how you use it.
You can pick up an apple and use it to make a bracha on before you eat it, or you can throw it at someone's eye and send them to the hospital. Does this mean that the apple is bad? So don't allow the throwing!!! or rather, because the throwing of it isn't bad in and of itself, teach people that the injuring of people is what's wrong. Then they'll know only to throw it in self-defense.

Unless you want to say that the Apple is Evil.
Because they got the Apple from a Snake.
Then they should throw it back at the Snake.
But then again, that wasn't an Apple.

Chances are the Apple was an Etrog. :D

Unlike talking.

Don't call Steve Jobs a snake! You'll insult all the mac users on the board!

Kosher phone...

Yes, but is it Halal?

It's on gizmodo!!! heehaw.

Unbelievable.

Mines OU what's yours? I can't talk to you, you don't have the right hechsher.