Following a harsh court ruling against Rabbi Yonatan Chen of Elad for sexual offenses, allegations have emerged that his students forged a letter in the names of prominent Rabbis, falsely portraying them as opposing the court's decision and disparaging its judges.
The forgery came to light when Rabbi Chaim Rabi, head of the Ateret Chachamim institutions in Holon, contacted Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu and Rabbi Reuven Nakar. He clarified that he had never signed the letter, as falsely claimed, and stated that the signature attributed to him was fabricated.
The legal proceedings against Rabbi Chen began after a woman filed a complaint with a panel of respected Rabbinical judges: Rabbi Zion Boaron, a veteran judge of the Great Rabbinical Court; Rabbi Aharon Yarchi, formerly of the court of the late Rabbi Yaakov Yosef; and Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, Chief Rabbi of Safed and a member of the Chief Rabbinate Council.
Initially, Rabbi Chen denied the accusations. However, according to the court, after being presented with photographs and audio recordings, he admitted to having a connection with the complainant. As part of the court's ruling, Rabbi Chen agreed to stop teaching Kabbalah publicly. When he later violated this agreement, the court reissued its ruling.
In a recorded statement, Rabbi Chaim Rabi firmly denied involvement in the forged letter:
"We never signed, neither I nor Rabbi Shimon Asher. These are false claims. There is a legitimate court here, guided by Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, and its rulings are sacred. We are not involved and have no knowledge of these matters."
He condemned those behind the forged publication: "Whoever issued this letter in our names are deceitful and wicked. It's driven by their evil inclination. Our goal is to sanctify God's name and promote harmony, love, and unity, but we have no connection to this incident."