Rabbi Haim Steiner, head rabbi of the Takuma Party (now Religious Zionism), member of the “Rabbi Torah Ha’aretz Tuba” presidency and Rabbi of the Rabbi Center yeshiva told his students in recent days that “great scholars should be given the opportunity to run for the chief rabbinate regardless of their age.”
Rabbi Kook said to Rabbi Steiner that he opposes the very age limit for rabbis, “even an older rabbi is good”, as he put it, and that “the goal is to have a Zionist rabbi in the chief rabbinate”.
“At the time, when I spoke with the Ritza, he said that no one ever thought of limiting the rabbis to a certain age, and that age is neither an advantage nor a disadvantage,” said Rabbi Steiner.
“Age must not be a barrier for worthy scholars to run for the important position of Chief Rabbi of Israel,” explained Rabbi Steiner.