Back in November, thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews took part in an indoor, mask-free wedding in New York City. They sang, they celebrated, they spread COVID. And they were able to hold the event because they kept everything a secret.
It just happened again on Monday.
More from last night's wedding in Brooklyn, NY.
Some context:
The groom is the youngest son of the Bobov Rebbe, Bentzion Halberstam (son of my great-uncle, the Bobov Rebbe Reb Shlomo, who replanted the dynasty in the US after the holocaust), one of the largest Hasidic sects. pic.twitter.com/4YvTxla57m— Abby Stein (@AbbyChavaStein) January 19, 2021
Shlomo Halberstam, 18, the youngest son of the dozen-plus children of Rabbi Bentzion Halberstam, the head of the Bobov Hasidic sect, was married before thousands of men in the synagogue parking lot before the party moved inside. Hundreds of celebrants flew in from Europe and Israel for the event, likely adding to the risk of coronavirus transmission, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
Remember that a single summer wedding that took place in Maine with 55 attendees has now been linked to 177 COVID cases, including seven deaths. None of those deaths involved an attendee. They were accidental victims of the idiots who attended the wedding.
What kind of damage will a wedding like this cause when so many people are openly defying safety precautions when vaccines are not readily available? What sort of punishment will be effective? The $15,000 fine a few months ago clearly didn’t dissuade a copycat.
Religion: It always finds a way to make a bad situation so much worse.
(Thanks to Izra’il for the link. Portions of this article were published earlier)