Yom Kippur: Making Atonement with Donating to Charity

SPCA Israel asks to raise public awareness of the option of exchanging the custom of slaughtering chickens by way of making atonement before Yom Kippur with donating to charity

As in previous years, the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Israel has set out on its campaign to raise public awareness of the option of exchanging the custom of slaughtering chickens by way of making atonement before Yom Kippur with donating to charity. In the framework of the campaign in previous years, the Society brought the topic to the public agenda by way of the media, informational pamphlets were distributed in synagogues and in various centers, and several Rabbis and parliament members joined the call of the Society and recommended to the public to replace the Kaparot ceremony with the giving of donations to the poor.

The custom of Kaparot, which is carried out during the Ten Days of Repentance or in the early morning of the eve of the Day of Atonement, is intended to atone for man’s sins through slaughtering chickens. The origin of the custom, prevalent since the 6th Century, came to offer an alternative to the atonement ceremony where a scapegoat was sacrificed in the Holy Temple.The chickens used for the atonement, are raised in extremely crowded conditions, brought under inhumane conditions to those who follow the custom, and are often left to wait long hours without food and water, until their slaughter. Some of them dehydrate and die in agony while waiting and some of those who survive till the end, continue to expire and twitch in agony until finally succumbing to their death, following the slaughter.

Those who are interested may donate to a special project happening these days in the Association – improving the living conditions of chickens who came to us after being injured, and moving them from the petting corner to a special compound integrated with organic vegetable garden.

In order to keep on helping the animals, take in, take care, rehabilitate and find the best homes for them, to stop suffering and misery, to defend their rights – we need your support. Every donation, big or small, will help us help them. You may donate through our website.

Over the years disagreements broke out with regard to religious law relating to the slaughter of the chickens, and different rabbinical authorities (among them Rabbi Solomon Ben Aderet, Rabbi Yosef Karo (the author of the Shulchan Aruch), Rabbi Moshe Ben Nachman and others) expressed objections to this act, saying it should be replaced by giving charity to the poor or through the use of plants instead of chickens.

We believe that on Yom Kippur, a time of self-examination, we should show mercy and compassion to animals and not cause them any pain or suffering. On this day in particular it is appropriate to help the weak and needy by giving donations and being charitable.

We wish you an easy fast and May You be Inscribed in the Book of Life.

Exchanging Kapparot Ceremony with Donations to Charity

SPCA activists on public relations campaign – Contributing to charity instead of slaughtering chickens

As in previous years, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Israel has set out on its campaign to raise public awareness of the option of exchanging the custom of slaughtering chickens by way of making atonement before Yom Kippur with donating to charity.

Today, activists from the Society went to the Carmel and HaTikva Markets in Tel Aviv, spoke to the passers-by, enlightened them as to the extent of suffering which the chickens undergo until the moment of slaughter, explained about the option of exchanging the Kapparot custom with the giving of charity and distributed leaflets on the subject.

We wish to thank all the volunteers who came to support this worthwhile cause and wish everyone ‘Gamar Hatima Tova – May You be Inscribed in the Book of Life’.

Other Ways to Make Atonement

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Israel is campaigning to raise public awareness of the need to exchange the Kapparot custom to one of giving charity

As Yom Kippur, and with it the Kapparot custom, approach, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is once again campaigning to raise public awareness of the urgency of exchanging the Kapparot custom, involving the slaughter of chickens, with the giving of charity.
Through the “Not Your Kind of Atonement” campaign the Society will raise the issue in the public agenda through the media, by means of distributing flyers in synagogues and by volunteers who will go out to the various markets to protest this cruel custom.

The custom of Kapparot, which is carried out during the Ten Days of Repentance or in the early morning on the eve of the Day of Atonement, is intended to atone for man’s sins through slaughtering chickens. The chickens used for the atonement, are raised in extremely crowded conditions, brought under inhumane conditions to those who follow the custom, and are often left to wait long hours without food and water, until their slaughter. Some die in torment from the heat and dehydration while waiting and some of those who survive till the end, continue to expire and twitch in agony until finally succumbing to their death, following the slaughter.

The origin of the custom, prevalent since the 6th Century, came to offer an alternative to the atonement ceremony where a scapegoat was sacrificed in the Holy Temple. Over the years disagreements broke out with regard to religious law relating to the slaughter of the chickens, and different rabbinical authorities (among them Rabbi Solomon Ben Aderet, Rabbi Yosef Karo (the author of the Shulchan Aruch), Rabbi Moshe Ben Nachman and others) expressed objections to this act, saying it should be replaced by giving charity to the poor or through the use of plants instead of chickens.

We in the Society believe that on Yom Kippur, a time of self-examination, we should show mercy and compassion to animals and not cause them any pain or suffering. On this day in particular it is appropriate to help the weak and needy by giving donations and being charitable.
Those interested in joining the Society’s volunteers in this campaign, that will take place in the Carmel Market in Tel Aviv on Sunday, 23 September are invited to contact the Society’s office at *4553 or to follow the announcements on our Facebook page.

We wish you an easy fast and May You be Inscribed in the Book of Life.

Not Your Kind of Atonement

MK’s from different parties and Rabbi Menachem Froman have joined the Society's campaign calling to exchange the slaughter of chickens with the giving of charity when carrying out the custom of Kapparot

As Yom Kippur, and with it the Kapparot custom, approach, the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Israel is once again campaigning to raise public awareness of the urgency of exchanging the Kapparot custom, involving the slaughter of chickens, with the giving of charity. This activity is an integral part of the Society’s 84 year-long battle to enhance animal welfare and lessen the suffering and pain of animals.

Through the “Not Your Kind of Atonement” campaign we will raise the issue in the public agenda through the media, by means of distributing flyers in the Knesset, and by holding a demonstration in Tel Aviv highlighting the cruelty involved in this custom.

MK’s from different parties have joined the campaign this year and together with Rabbi Menachem Froman, have made a public entreaty to exchange the slaughter of chickens with the giving of charity when carrying out the custom of Kapparot.

The custom of Kaparot, which is carried out during the Ten Days of Repentance or in the early morning of the eve of the Day of Atonement, is intended to atone for man’s sins through slaughtering chickens. The chickens used for the atonement, are raised in extremely crowded conditions, brought under inhumane conditions to those who follow the custom, and are often left to wait long hours without food and water, until their slaughter. Some of them dehydrate and die in agony while waiting and some of those who survive till the end, continue to expire and twitch in agony until finally succumbing to their death, following the slaughter.

The origin of the custom, prevalent since the 6th Century, came to offer an alternative to the atonement ceremony where a scapegoat was sacrificed in the Holy Temple. Over the years disagreements broke out with regard to religious law relating to the slaughter of the chickens, and different rabbinical authorities (among them Rabbi Solomon Ben Aderet, Rabbi Yosef Karo (the author of the Shulchan Aruch), Rabbi Moshe Ben Nachman and others) expressed objections to this act, saying it should be replaced by giving charity to the poor or through the use of plants instead of chickens.

We believe that on Yom Kippur, a time of self-examination, we should show mercy and compassion to animals and not cause them any pain or suffering. On this day in particular it is appropriate to help the weak and needy by giving donations and being charitable.

We wish you an easy fast and May You be Inscribed in the Book of Life.

Survival – Cockerel-Style

A brave chicken who escaped the butcher’s knife on Yom Kippur Eve, is being treated in the Society

On the morning of Yom Kippur Eve, and in the throes of the Society’s publicity efforts against the custom of the slaughtering of chickens, one of our volunteers, Eliezer Schwartz, was travelling on the Lod road, when he was taken by surprise by a chicken jumping into the road. Schwartz saw that the chicken was bleeding, but as it was dehydrated and exhausted he was easily able to catch it. The deep cut in its neck along with the sight of the feathers that had been plucked from its body, gave away the fact that it had escaped the butcher’s knife during the Kapparot ceremony.

The frightened chicken received first aid, which was followed-up with professional treatment by Dr. Kaminsky, a veterinary surgeon and expert on fowl, who stitched the wound. Now the chicken, which was given the name Kapparah, is under medical surveillance and antibiotic medication, and will soon join the other birds and chickens in the Society’s animal corner.

We wish to express our appreciation to Dr. Kaminsky for taking care of Kapparah, and hope that in the future people will choose to observe the Kapparot ceremony through giving charity and not by slaughtering animals.

Not your atonement

Atonement should be done with money and not with blood. A summary of the informative activities of the Society to foster replacing the Kaparot ceremony with the giving of charity

In recent weeks the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Israel has gone out on a campaign, the goal of which is to encourage the public to replace the Kaparot ceremony and the cruel slaughtering of chickens with the giving of charity to the needy.

In the framework of the campaign the Society brought the topic to the public agenda by way of the media, and informational pamphlets were distributed in synagogues and in various centers. Rabbi Shlomo Aviner, Headmaster of the Ateret Yerushalaim Yeshiva and Chief Rabbi of the Bet El settlement, joined the call of the Society and recommended to the public to replace the Kaparot ceremony with the giving of donations to the poor.

The height of the campaign was reached this week when Society activists and volunteers went out to the HaTikvah marketplace, distributed the informational pamphlets, explained to passersby about the humanitarian replacement of the ritual custom, and even referred the public to special stalls that were set up in the market for the purpose of redeeming the Kaparot with charity.

It is important to mention that the custom of Kaparot, which is not defined as a commandment, took root in Jewish communities in recent centuries. Next to those carrying out the custom, there arose voices of various rabbis and sages who warned about the danger of causing suffering to animals, and who cautioned about the resemblance of the custom to idol worship and about the legitimacy of the slaughter under Jewish law.

Those who cannot raise their voices are the tens of thousands of chickens that are slaughtered every year during the days leading up to Yom Kippur. These chickens are transported under harsh conditions to those who hold to the custom, waiting for the slaughterer’s knife for long hours without food or water, and some of them continue to expire and to shake in agony even after the slaughter, in great suffering until their death.

We thank all our supporters and the activists who took part in this important explanatory activity, and we hope that the ritual and barbaric ceremony of the slaughter of the Kaparot chickens will quickly disappear.

May you be inscribed in the book of life!

Redemption of Kaparot Atonement through Charity – a Double Obligation

Rabbi Shlomo Aviner has joined the Society's campaign against the custom of Kaparot and calls on the public to exchange it with the giving of charity

As at every New Year, this year as well, the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Israel is going out in a campaign, the goal of which is to raise the awareness of the public to replacing the custom of Kaparot and the slaughter of chickens with the giving of charity. In the framework of the campaign the Society will bring the topic to the public through the media, and volunteers will go out to the various markets to distribute informational pamphlets on the subject to passersby, together with a letter written for the Society by Rabbi Shlomo Aviner, and will try to convince them to replace the custom of Kaparot with the giving of charity.

As stated, the person who has joined the call of the Society is Rabbi Shlomo Aviner, the Headmaster of the Ateret Yerushalaim Yeshiva and the Chief Rabbi of the Bet El settlement. Rabbi Aviner agreed to be photographed and even wrote a detailed letter on the topic of the preference of redeeming the Kaparot with charity. In his words, there is no reason to be cruel to the chicken, for how can we fulfill a commandment by doing something that is not good? The Rabbi quotes various rabbis who came out against the custom of slaughtering and sums up in his letter: “Since we are not speaking of an absolute obligation, and in light of problems of Dietary Laws as well as cruelty to animals, and in light of the words of all the sages as quoted above, it should be recommended and preferred to carry out the Kaparot atonements by way of money, and to carry out the important obligation of supporting the poor. And as the sages said ‘Charity saves from death’.”

The custom of Kaparot, which takes place during the Ten Days of Repentance or in the early morning of the eve of the Day of Atonement, is meant to atone for the sins of man by way of the slaughter of chickens. The chickens, which are used for the atonement, are raised in extremely crowded conditions. The chickens, brought under harsh conditions to those who follow the custom, often have to wait long hours without food and water until their slaughter. And after the slaughter some of them continue to expire and to shake in agony until their death.

The origin of the custom, which was already prevalent in the 6th Century, comes as a replacement for the atonement service of the scapegoat that was done in the Holy Temple. Over the years disagreements in religious law came to light in relation to the slaughter of the chickens, and different rabbinical authorities (among them Rabbi Solomon Ben Aderet, Rabbi Yosef Karo (the author of the Shulchan Aruch), Rabbi Moshe Ben Nachman and others) expressed resistance to this act, and asked that it be replaced with the giving of charity to the poor or through the use of vegetation.

Yes to contributions, no to slaughter

A summary of the Society’s activity encouraging the giving of contributions to charity as a replacement for the slaughtering of chickens before Yom Kippur

In the last few weeks, the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Israel was on a campaign whose goal was to encourage the public to replace the cruel ritual of Kapparot [atonement], during which tens of thousands of chickens are slaughtered, by the giving of charity to the needy. On the pretext of atonement for sins a great sin is made against the chickens, who are raised in very crowded conditions, shipped to the organizers of the custom in difficult conditions and often are made to wait long hours without food or water until the traumatic ceremony and their slaughter.

Various rabbis joined the campaign, and a brochure published especially for the campaign was distributed with the encouragement of synagogues throughout Israel.

A number of days before Yom Kippur the activists of the Society, together with volunteers from the “Anonymous” Philanthropic Society and the Conservative Movement, demonstrated in the Carmel Market in Tel Aviv. The participants marched along the alleyways of the market, at their head a man wearing a gigantic chicken costume and a sign saying “Save my life. Yes to contributions, no to slaughter”. They handed out explanatory material and asked people to stop the killing and abuse that were part of the traditional ceremony.

We want to thank all the people who contributed to the success of the campaign and we believe that this explanatory activity, as well as many others, is an additional step towards the creation of a humane society, which condemns appalling and unnecessary actions such as abuse and slaughter of chickens.

The High Holy Days

SPCA Israel's campaign: encouraging the public to redeem the animals used for atonement instead of slaughtering those chickens

During Kapparot, a ritual carried out close to Yom Kippur, the rooster that is slaughtered will ostensibly atone for the persons sins and will die instead of the person. Over time, Halachik disputes have arisen regarding the ritual slaughter of the chickens, with various Poskim [Halachik deciders] wanting to replace the kappara chickens with donations to the poor.

The Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Israel, which has been diligently working for over 80 years to prevent animal suffering and cruelty, is joining the call of these Poskim, viewing the custom of Kapparot as a primitive and cruel ritual that does not necessarily involve the performing of a commandment. The chickens used for Kappara are raised in crowded surroundings, are delivered to the parties performing the ritual under difficult conditions and are frequently forced to wait long hours without food and water until they are slaughtered. We believe that on Yom Kippur, a day on which people are accounting for their actions, mercy and compassion, rather than pain and suffering, should be shown to animals and that helping the weak and needy through donations is an act that is more suitable for this day.

During these days the Society put out a flier with the goal of encouraging the public to redeem the animals used for atonement instead of slaughtering those chickens. Anyone interested in helping to distribute the fliers is invited to contact the Society by telephone: *4553.

We wish you an easy fast and that your fate will be written for a good year.