נישט נאר מוסר'ן די קינדער, נאר מעודד זיין און מחזק זיין

The leader of the Belz community recently took the unusual step of explaining to his followers the conditions for using the Internet. Rabbi Yissachar Dov Rokeach warned of the dangers of the Internet, while allowing its limited use. "Today there is a modern invention... called the Internet," Rokeach said at his annual speech to followers at the Belz Beit Midrash a few days ago. "It brings with it great stumbling blocks, and there are many questions in this regard... It may be necessary for one's livelihood and impossible to get along without it. One must not bring it into the home, and it must be kept in a closed place where children cannot access it. Of course, it must be used only in order to earn a living and not for other things."

Computers with Internet access have long been part of many Haredi households, but the issue is an exposed nerve that Rokeach and arbiters of religious law prefer to avoid.

Rokeach's comments were part of the annual speech traditionally given by the Belz leader at the end of the Simhat Torah holiday, which contain general remarks on morality, education and society.

Community members say that while their rabbi has spoken about the Internet in the past, this was the first time that he or any other Hasidic leader did so at such an important forum and firmly recognized its importance.

In his speech, which was delivered in Yiddish, Rokeach also forbid unmarried women from working outside the home, even if the owner of the business is an observant Jew. As long as the girl or woman is not married, he said, "the best and safest thing is religious places - to send the girl to school and ensure that the educators, teachers and other students are under proper supervision."

Rokeach provoked a furor in his speech last year when he called on followers to learn a profession and find work under certain conditions. He said that married men studying in kollel (yeshivas) who receive a monthly stipend in return for full-time study should continue to do so if their economic situation and level of study warrant it. But those who do not meet such conditions should learn a profession.

Israel Eichler, a journalist and former MK for United Torah Judaism who is active in the Belz community, said Rokeach's remarks are not a license to use the Internet. "This is reality, and we are realistic people," he said. "But the rebbe says the Internet is a dangerous tool. If a certain rabbi says one must drive carefully on Shabbat, that doesn't mean he is giving permission to drive on Shabbat."

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/776605.html