Pat Robertson's Jewish cousin?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060321/od_nm/...DRpBHNlYwM3NTc-

Wrath of God behind Israel bird flu? Tue Mar 21, 8:07 AM ET

 

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - An outbreak of deadly bird flu in    Israel is God's punishment for calls in election ads to legalize gay marriages, according to Rabbi David Basri, a prominent sage preaching Kabbalah or Jewish mysticism.

 

"The Bible says that God punishes depravity first through plagues against animals and then in people," Basri said in a religious edict quoted by his son.

 

Basri said he hoped the deaths of hundreds of thousands of turkeys and chickens would help atone for what he called the sins of left-wing Israeli political parties, the son, Rabbi Yitzhak Basri, told Reuters, a week before a national election.

 

The bird flu outbreak stemmed from far-left political parties "strengthening and encouraging homosexuality," Rabbi Basri's son quoted him as saying.

 

One of the parties aired an election commercial depicting two brides kissing. Some campaign advertisements also called for homosexual marriages to be legalized in Israel.

 

Basri is a prominent Kabbalist and author of commentaries on the Zohar, the main Kabbalah mystical text.