Kosher Internet
BNEI BEREK, Israel: From a drab office in this ultra-Orthodox Jewish stronghold, three devout young women hunch over computers and surf the internet - looking for pornography, celebrity gossip and a list of other items banned by their rabbis.
It is odd work for this trio, dressed modestly and wearing wigs in keeping with their beliefs. But it is their job at Israel’s first ultra-Orthodox internet provider, Nativ, as it tries to launch a product that could transform the traditionally sheltered community: kosher internet.
Because racy images of women are the most common offensive content found, the company decided it would be less objectionable to hire women to scour the internet.
Lea Bernat, 22, a former kindergarten teacher, clicks through hundreds of web pages a day, using specialised software to open links and disable problematic content.
”If it’s clean, we release it,” she said. ”If it’s really unclean, we tell the customer that the site isn’t approved.”
But is it kosher?
That is the question facing many ultra-Orthodox Jews as they move online and are greeted by a fast-growing industry seeking to cater to their special needs.
There’s Koogle, a Google-inspired searchable directory of kosher businesses offering, say, bargains on ”modest” wedding dresses. Many rabbis frown on YouTube, so Yideotube offers a ”daily online source of carefully screened videos”, ranging from spoofs of anti-war activists to tips for buying a ceremonial kittel robe.
Worried about violating prohibitions against working on the Sabbath? Software vendor SaturdayGuard sells technology that enables websites to block access for users, depending upon their time zone, between Friday and Saturday night.
There’s even an online support group, GuardYourEyes.org, specialising in helping Orthodox Jews break ”lust addictions” arising from internet access. The group offers tips for curtailing inappropriate surfing, including using software that automatically sends lists of visited websites to your spouse or rabbi.
Ultra-Orthodox rabbis initially labelled the internet as the biggest threat yet to Judaism, likening it to eating pork and calling it ”1000 times worse” than TV. As the technology spread, rabbis softened their stance and by 2005 allowed limited use for work purposes.
Now, as the internet permeates most aspects of life, from banking to registering children at school, more Haredi families have no choice but to go online. About one-third admit to having internet access at home, though the actual figure is believed to be about 50 per cent.
”The overwhelming majority understand that if you can’t fight it, join it,” said Avi Greenzeig, believed to be Israel’s first ”kashrut monitor” - similar to those who inspect kosher restaurants.
He was hired by rabbis to edit and censor one of Israel’s most popular Haredi websites, Behadrei Haredim.
”People can live without television, but the internet is different,” he said. ”It’s impossible to tell people to go back to the caves. Technology is moving forward and people must move with it. But there are limits.”