'Kosher' Phones Block Porn

Sleeping with the enemy has Biblical precedent

(NEWSER) - It's kosher for women working for Israel's spy agency to trade sex for national security, according to an Israeli rabbi. Rabbi Ari Shvat's study concluded that so-called "honeytrap" sting missions, which have repeatedly been used by Mossad, don't violate Jewish law, ABC reports. The rabbi noted that similar missions can be found in Biblical lore. "Queen Esther, who was Jewish, slept with the Persian King Ahasuerus around 500 BC to save her people," he wrote. More»

Sandals don't inflict sufficient suffering for holiday, religious leader rules

(NEWSER) - A Lithuanian rabbi has ruled that Crocs should not be worn during Yom Kippur because the sandals are too comfortable, Ynet news reports. Rabbi Elyashiv based his judgment on a prohibition against leather sandals, saying they were banned because they fail to provide an appropriate level of suffering for the holiday. "It is permissible legalistically" to wear Crocs, Elyashiv said, "but it is inadvisable." More»

Stores could lose kosher certification

(NEWSER) - An Israeli rabbi has called for a boycott of shops that display scantily clad mannequins, AFP reports. Mannequins and "obscene photographs" of models wearing swimsuits or underwear "elicit sorrow among the passers-by," said the rabbi. Stores in the northern city of Tiberias that keep their racy displays will lose their religious customers and their kosher certification, he said. Modest mannequins are OK. More»

Renaming disease 'Mexico flu' shows lack of seriousness

(NEWSER) - Israel has confirmed its first case of swine flu—but don't call it that, says the head of the country's health department. The minister, a member of one of the ultra-Orthodox parties in Benjamin Netanyahu's government, insisted yesterday that the infection should be referred to as "Mexico flu," since pork is non-kosher. For Haaretz columnist Benjamin Hartman, the renaming is just what you'd expect out of Israel's "demented Legoland" political system. More»

(NEWSER) - The kosher alcohol scene has long been dominated by sweet Manishevitz, but that old standby is getting a run for its money as premium wines, and even hard liquor, are crossing the kosher barrier. Making kosher product has many restrictions, but entrepreneurs seem to think Jewish tipplers are in the mood for something different. The Los Angeles Times checked in on the trend. More»