More Than 40,000 Ultra-Orthodox Jews Rally at Mets Stadium to Determine the Dangers of the Internet

(The Blaze/AP) -- Tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jewish men attended a rally Sunday at the New York Mets' stadium on the dangers of the Internet and how to use modern technology in a religiously responsible way.

Women were not permitted to attend the meeting at Citi Field in Queens. However, it was broadcast live to audiences of women in schools and event halls in ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods. The event garnered so much interest that organizers rented the nearby Arthur Ashe Stadium for the overflow crowd.

It was deemed the "hottest ticket in town" by the Huffington Post, after the 40,000 seat stadium rapidly sold out.

Eytan Kobre, a lawyer and spokesman for the event's organizers, explained that the rally's purpose was not to ban the Internet, but to learn how to harness it.

"There is a very significant downside to the Internet," he said. "It does pose a challenge to us in various aspects of our lives."

He cited online pornography and gambling as well as the risk of social media undermining "our ability to pray uninterruptedly, to focus and to concentrate."

Television is banned or discouraged, but Kobre said many ultra-Orthodox Jews use the Internet either on computers or smartphones. "There's a spectrum of usage and there's a spectrum of how people are dealing with it," he said.

Shlomo Cohen of Toronto told The New York Times that he uses the Internet for shopping, business and staying in touch with friends, but that "desires are out there."

"We have to learn how to control ourselves," Cohen said.

The rally was organized by a rabbinical group called Ichud Hakehillos Letohar Hamachane, which means Union of Communities for the Purity of the Camp. Published reports have put the cost at $1.5 million.

The organizers are leaders of ultra-Orthodox sects that reject many aspects of modern life. Women dress modestly and wear wigs after marriage, while men wear black hats and long beards. Children are educated in Jewish schools, and Yiddish is the first language for many.

Epitomizing some of the tension between ultra-Orthodox and secular Jews in Israel, a writer for the Israeli site Haaretz sarcastically lamented her inability to attend.

"I guess I’ll have to wallow in the Sodom and Gomorrah of Facebook and Twitter, until I can figure out some way to obtain the message...so that I can see the light and pull the plug on my computer and trade in my iPhone for a more kosher model.  I’m really hoping that somebody will write about it on their blog."