Ethiopian Jews and the Chief Rabbinate

This week, the Chief Rabbinate reaffirmed and formally accepted the ruling of Rav Ovadia Yosef zt’l concerning the halachic Jewish status of the Beta Israel Ethiopian Jewish community. For some this was a historic declaration, while for others, the very fact that such a statement was felt to be needed was insulting. In this episode of RZWeekly we begin by discussing the significance of this announcement, and we then proceed by exploring attitudes towards the Chief Rabbinate including the balance of authority and power between the institution in general and individual Battei Din and how this plays out in terms of kashrut, gittin and other matters.