By: Denis Cyr
While many in the Orthodox community have been at odds with Cuomo and NYC’s mayor over the COVID restrictions, particularly the limits on worshippers at shuls, Orthodox Rabbi R’Mayer Zelig Rispler, was on the side of caution and repeatedly urged Jewish communities to follow safety measures impose by city officials.
In April, after de Blasio had issued multiple threats to the Jewish community to follow his coronavirus rules or else, Rispler was one of the leading Orthodox voices calling on the Hasidic community to follow the COVID-19 commands, the New York Post reported.
“We do not condone any behavior that puts people at risk and pledge to keep working alongside the brave men and women of the NYPD in addressing and eliminating any such occurrences,” he wrote, according to the Times of Israel.
Sadly, Rispler, of a Satmar sect, 70, died of COVID-19 last week, the Times reported, and was buried Friday. He had been placed on a ventilator.
Since the onset of the COVID pandemic, the Orthodox community and NY government have been at odds with each other. These clashes have been in the news various times over the last 6 months. Things came to a boiling point in early October after Cuomo issued new “draconian” coronavirus measures during Jewish holiday celebrations and had police sent in to enforce the new rules, which resulted in the community coming together to burn face masks in the streets and holding a festive Trump rally.
These rallies made headlines and were spearheaded by activist, agitator and aspiring politican Heshy Tischler, chants of “Jewish Lives matter” were heard during the mask burning rally.
The Blaze highlighted some of the Jewish community conflicts with Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio:
In March, de Blasio threatened to shut down synagogues for violating his order to stop gathering during the pandemic. He issued the threat on a Friday afternoon just hours before the Jewish community was set to meet for weekly Shabbat gatherings.
In April, the mayor, shortly after closing synagogues for Passover, announced that the city would be providing 500,000 Halal meals for Muslims during Ramadan.
In June, the mayor booted Hasidic Jewish kids from a park in Brooklyn because of social distancing while de Blasio himself endorsed massive BLM protests. He even went so far as to say that the BLM protests trumped religious services.
Cuomo threatened to shut down New York City synagogues if the Jewish community did not follow his coronavirus rules.
