Illusions of Life*

Are illusions something to avoid? Do they counter reality? Are they nothing but lies? The intuitive answer to these questions might be yes. But that would be the wrong answer. The truth is that life without illusions would be very boring and depressing. Meaningless even. The fact is that many Halachos are tied to illusions.

Sukkos is replete with illusions. For example the concept of Lavud. When there is a break less then 3 Tefachim wide (about 15 inches) in a wall, it is considered as though it is not there. One of the wasy this applies to Sukkos is the following. If there is a 3 Tefachim wide space in the Schach (the Halachic roof of a Sukkah) it is considered a closed roof. An obvious illusion that nonetheless allows the fulfillment of the Mitzvah even if one sits directly under that break and considered a fulfillment of the Mitzvah.  

Another example is this concept of Tzuras HaPesach.  A Sukkah requires a minimum of three walls to be considered valid. If one has only two walls one may erect two poles and affix a fishwire atop the two poles across the distance between them. That is considered a wall. Even though in reality it is nothing more than an open space between 2 poles.

Are these lies? Not at all. They are illusions that we are allowed to have in order to fulfill the Mitzvah. 

Then there is the Mitzvah of Teshvu Kein Taduru. We are supposed to live in a Sukkah the same way we live in our homes. But even though we eat and many of us sleep in the Sukkah, we do not really move into the Sukkah and out of the house. Kein Taduru requires us to have the illusion of living in the Sukkah. We are supposed to feel like we live there all of Sukkos.

Illusions are not only the stuff of Halacha. Illusions affect our everyday lives If one were to live their lives based solely on facts, life would be pretty boring. In a scientific sense, a home is really just a house filled with furniture. People are objects made up of atoms and molecules. Relationships are impersonal. A wife is only a housekeeper. Children are tax deductions. Gifts are bonuses that part of the household budget. As though the home was nothing more than a commodity market. Beauty and sweetness is sterilized out of our lives by ignoring such illusions as dignity, love, hope, purpose, happiness, and humor. 

Take the much abused word love for example. We can talk about sexuality in our post Freudian world all day long. But love is taboo and considered a comforting illusion. 

A narrow factualism regards integrity and honesty as illusions because ‘they don’t pay’. An idealistic appreciation of illusion considers that in the long run there is justice. Maybe a thief will prosper in business butlike a worm borig its way into a luscious fruit. However, that same dishonesty will find its way into the innermost recesses of the home.

Of course some illusions are harmful and even dangerous. Like race superiority. Or the idea that might makes right. But these are myths. They are false. Substitutes for facts. 

Illusions do not ignore facts. They build upon them and see them from a broader perspective.

What are some of the noble illusions that Judaism teaches? The principle of Teshvu Kein Taduru provides us with some outstanding examples. One is that Man is basically good. In the words of Tehilim (8:6) VaT'chasrehu Me’at Me’Elokim – he was created but a little lower than angels.

Man was given a Neshama, a soul. The man who sees only the hard facts of body parts will not see a soul in the human personality. For this you must have an eye for larger illusions and a heart for great ideals.

How silly was a Russian astronaut who - after returning from a mission in orbit said, ‘I looked through the heavens and found no God.’ Same thing the surgeon who said he conducted a thorough search of the anatomy and found no soul.’ That’s like a someone saying he took apart the violin and found no music.

What a wonderful Yom Tov Sukkos is. Teshvu Kein Taduru teaches us the noble, beautiful, and precious exchange of illusions. No wonder it is called Z’man Simchaseinu – the time of our happiness. May it continue for all of Klal Yisroel and indeed for all of humanity.

*Based on a sermon delivered by Rabbi Norman Lamm - published in Fetivals of Faith

The Good War 2.0

Palestinian protesters on Columbia's campus (Arutz Sheva)

I am tired of the world just standing by and watching our people be killed. Our enemy is determined to commit genocide against us. We therefore declare our right to destroy the enemy by all means necessary. Even if it means sacrificing our own people. 

To that end we will continue attacking the enemy until we get the job done. It doesn’t matter how many civilians die. It is our moral right to engage in armed struggle until we succeed in our goal. We will never give up no matter what the cost.  We have a right to exist as a free people in our own land. There is no such thing in collateral damage in our holy mission.

How many people think Netanyahu said this? And how many people think this attitude is immoral?

I would think basic human decency would militate for a very harsh response to people with this attitude. Killing innocent people to get what you want is about as immoral as you can get.

Thing is it is not Netanyahu making this argument. That is not Israel’s philosophy. It is the philosophy of the Islamist extremists that make up an axis of evil led by Iran. 

This is not something I just made up. It is the mantra of Hamas and their terrorist allies. It is even the mantra of their supporters protesting in the US - as noted by Arutz Sheva:

Last week, CUAD (Columbia University Apartheid Divest) retracted the apology it issued on behalf of Khymani James for his statements that Zionists do not deserve to live and expressing his desire to murder Zionists. The retraction was published a day after the first anniversary of Hamas’ Oct. 7 invasion of Israel...

The apology “does not represent Khymani or CUAD’s values or political lines,” the statement said. “CUAD organizers were complicit in not maintaining our political line.”

CUAD's statement also included an explicit endorsement of violence. “We support liberation by any means necessary, including armed resistance,” the CUAD statement said. “In the face of violence from the oppressor equipped with the most lethal military force on the planet, where you’ve exhausted all peaceful means of resolution, violence is the only path forward.”

This is why Hamas was willing to allow Gaza to be flattened by Israeli bombs. They knew Israel would be blamed for the civilian casualties they are themselves responsible for. They planned it that way and have admitted it publicly. They knew Israel would respond harshly to the mass murder, rape, mutilations, and kidnappings they carried out last year on October 7^th.  Point being that they used their civilians not so much as human shields but to increase world sympathy for their cause. 

They have succeeded to the point of the world accusing Israel of genocide. Instead of accusing those really responsible for that, Hamas!  And they are not going to stop no matter how many of their people they are willing to have Israel kill for their cause. 

If they cared at all about the crying Palestinian mother carrying her bloodied dead child after being hit in an Israeli air strike on a Hamas command and control center located in the middle of a sensitive civilian facility - they would have surrendered a long time ago and saved tens of thousands of their own people. But they will keep letting their people die. Because hurting Israel's image in the world is more important to them than the lives of their own woman and children.

Their strategy is working. The progressive left that passes for European leadership sees only a mighty military power (the oppressor, Israel)  killing the unarmed helpless innocent Palestinian civilians (the oppressed) that had nothing to do with October 7^th. (Other than to have felt good about that momentary victory for their beloved leaders, Hamas, whose goals they share.)

Netanyahu is therefore correct for fighting the current axis of evil no less than the US and the allies were were correct for fighting the axis of evil in what some have called the good war - World War II. The only way to truly end this war now is with the kind of victory the allies had then. If only the Biden/Harris administration would let them do it. 

But instead of offering their full throated full support Biden/Harris has done exactly what Hamas wanted them to do: Pressure Israel to put the brakes on their war against the current axis evil. Biden/Harris watches the news just like everyone else. They see innocent Palestinians (and now Lebanese) being killed by Israeli air strikes targeting enemy strongholds. Biden and company also watch protesters on campuses demanding a cease fire and demanding that their schools divest from companies doing business with Israel. And then they say things like, ‘They have a point!’ They accuse Netanyahu of not caring enough about civilian casualties.

Israel has to pay attention to what its only true ally says. They have therefore  been held back to an extent. Although not enough to the liking of Biden/Harris.

Biden/Harris wants to see a permanent cease fire. Well so do I. But the only ones that have ever honored an agreed upon cease fire in the past is Israel. Hamas and Hezbollah have lobbed rockets into Israel whenever they felt like it. It was only then that Israel would respond. The only way there can be a permanent  cease fire is if the enemy is completely destroyed. 

And that includes Iran. There can be no victory with out that. Israel is about to attack Iran in retaliation for the 200 missiles they fired into Israel earlier this month. With the blessing of the US. But also with a warning that certain targets are off limits. I believe Israel has no choice but to listen to its closest ally.

I only wish Israel’s closest ally saw the reality instead of the images they are fed on TV and the Palestinian protesters calling for a ceasefire - some of whom think killing Jews is a good idea.

If there was ever a time to finish off a regime whose stated ultimate goal is world domination, now is that time. It’s time to let the dogs out. Israel should be allowed to do as much damage to Iran that it is capable of doing. With the blessing of the US - if not outright joining them in that endeavor. 

The people of Iran  deserve to be liberated from the tyranny of a regime that brutalizes their own women for not covering their hair in public. A regime that jails or kills their own people when they express public dissent. Iran was once a Western style nation that had friendly relations with Israel which had an embassy in Teheran. 

There would be no better service to world than to overthrow a regime responsible for spreading terrorism all over the world. and restore freedom to its people. 

There is no way that a fanatic Islamist regime like Iran should be allowed to continue to exist. They are on the precipice of enriching uranium to nuclear weapons grade. Which pretty much coincides with time when that terrible deal with Iran was supposed to expire. A deal that allowed them to continue spreading terror with impunity. The time to strike is now. Before it’s too late. If only Biden/Harris realized that.

Why Trump May Win the Election

There is not the slightest doubt in my mind that Donald Trump is every bit as bad as his critics say he is. Critics on both sides of the political aisle have been saying the same things about him. Which pretty much boils down to the fact that in virtually every way that matters, he is unfit to be president. This includes hard core Conservative Republicans that once enthusiastically supported him despite his horrible rhetoric. And still support his policies.

On an almost daily basis Trump exaggerates or lies about his opponents and says that once he is elected he will do things that sound like the acts an all powerful dictator after a military coup. I’m not going to bother listing all of the horrible things he has been saying. The list is way too long. Suffice it to say that if even one of those things would have ever been said about any presidential candidate in the past, he would have been completely rejected by the American electorate as unfit. Presidential candidates have dropped out for a lot less. (Gary Hart and Ed Muskie come to mind.)  

And yet the latest polls have shown the election to be a dead heat. The more Trump talks his trash, the better his poll numbers become. The latest numbers according to the latest NBC poll show an actual tie between likely voters: 48% for Harris and 48% for Trump. And a statistical tie in al the battleground states. The election is 3 weeks out and these are the best numbers for Trump since Harris replaced Biden as the Democratic nominee. 

Considering that  more than half the electorate votes democratic, this means some Democrats are switching their vote to Trump.

Not only that but while the percentages for Harris are still high, Black and Hispanic support for her has dropped from what they were for Biden in the last election. Some in these both of these 2 demographics have switched their allegiance to Trump, too.

The media has been relentless. Every day they report on a new and obvious exaggeration or lie Trump tells his supporters at a rally about his opponent - or the revenge he’s going take against his ‘enemies’ after he wins the election.  And yet, it is as though this is helping him rather than hurting him.

The media must be pretty shocked by all this. Is there nothing they can say or do to wake the American people up to the reality of who and what they will be voting for – if the vote for Trump? They must be collectively shaking their heads in utter disbelief.

Indeed. This is pretty shocking, all things considered. How is any of this possible? Are the American people that stupid? Is half the electorate not paying attention to who he really is and what he has been saying? Are they not aware of his lack of personal morals and ethics? Or his vindictive governing style? Do they not fear that Trump’s reelection will be the end of democracy in America? 

I think the answer to all of those questions is that the American electorate knows exactly what he has been saying and they don’t care! They do not take his trash talk literally and don’t care about his lies and exaggerations. Nor do they care about his vindictiveness over his ‘enemies’.   

Those same polls show what the electorate does care about. The two most important things being the economy and illegal immigration. Most of the electorate believes they were far better off financially when Trump was president. And they fully support his policy of mass deportation of all illegal immigrants. By far. While the abortion rights issue favor Harris, I don’t think that is what’s moving the electorate.

This is the only explanation I can think of. It appears that these 2 issues override all other considerations. They do not believe that Trump will destroy the country in a second term anymore than he did in his first term. They in fact believe the opposite. That they were better off then than they are now. They want to go back to that.

If the media wants to understand why their very harsh and very legitimate criticism of Trump isn’t working, they ought to think about that.

Media Bias? You Bet!

The anti Israel bias of UN has never been more obvious than now. Nor has it been more blatant. I don’t see how any objective observer could see it otherwise. Except that the mainstream media actually does see it otherwise – having reported the latest Israeli attack against Hezbollah in Lebanon exactly the way the UN sees it – pretending they were reporting it objectively

Injuries were sustained by so-called UN  peacekeepers placed in Lebanon at its Northern border. They  were originally stationed there to prevent hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel.

Which of course Hezbollah never honored - firing rockets into Israel from time to time with impunity. . Since October 8^th in an act of solidarity with the Nazis of the Middle East (Hamas) Hezbollah has been firing a barrage of rockets into Israel for over a year now. Only a complete idiot would say that the so-called peacekeepers are doing their job. The only job they were doing was letting Hezbollah do whatever they wanted.

Israel finally did something about that relentless attack for purposes of returning Israelis safely to  homes evacuated after October 8^th.  After warning civilians in Northern Lebanon to evacuate, Israel started bombing Hezbollah strongholds - from which they were firing rockets. 

UN ‘peacekeepers’ stationed there were also advised to leave. The UN hierarchy refused to allow that with the ridiculous claim that they were still needed for their intended purpose (of preventing cross border attacks). So they stayed and some of them were injured. The UN condemned Israel claiming that Israel deliberately attacked them. The UN was joined in their condemnation of Israel  by bunch of European countries. (No surprise there.) The mainstream media has for the most part reported it from the UN perspective, too. (No surprise there either.)

Anyone who doesn’t see the obvious bias here is either ethically blind, stupid, or an antisemite.

Ta-Nehisi Coats and Tony Doukopil (mediaite)

And if that isn’t enough consider what happened to Tony Dukoupil - one of the 3 news anchors of CBS Mornings - as reported by JNS:

Dokoupil’s Sept. 30 interview with Coates on “CBS Mornings,” which Dokoupil co-hosts, prompted a backlash within the newsroom after he pressed (writer Ta-Nehisi) Coates on why the new book, The Message, presents a one-sided, pro-Palestinian - anti Israel view of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

 Dokoupil asked Coates some hard questions about his one sided presentation. Like this one:

Why leave out that Israel deals with terror groups that want to eliminate it? Is it because you just don’t believe that Israel in any condition has a right to exist?”

And then this happened: 

Adrienne Roark, the head of newsgathering at CBS, said that “many” people in the newsroom had complained about Dokoupil’s interview with Coates.

“After a review of our coverage, including the interview, it’s clear there are times we have not met our editorial standards,” Roark said during the meeting, per a recording that the Free Press obtained. “I want to acknowledge and apologize that it’s taken this long to have this conversation.”

Editorial standards?! The only standards the mainstream media seems to have is one the aligns with the progressive left. Anything to the right of that is considered a violation of their journalistic standards - for which they need to apologize and reprimand the journalist deemed guilty of it. 

I wouldn’t even attempt to count the vast number of times a mainstream journalist challenged someone who had a pro Israel position. Not a word of reprimand. But when the reverse happens all hell brakes loose. 

In fact in this case the brass at CBS’s news division hired Donald Grant - a self described  DEI “strategist” and “trauma trainer” to address a staff meeting. But that was cancelled after the following: 

(The) network unearthed a social media post, in which Grant photoshopped Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), who is black, onto a cover of Uncle Tom’s Cabin and labeled him “Uncle Tim.”

Scott used a screenshot of Grant’s post in a fundraising appeal on the Republican Party’s WinRed platform.

It was gratifying to finally see some pushback by someone that CBS cannot ignore .Shari Redstone, the controlling shareholder of CBS’s parent company Paramount Global who said the following: 

“I frankly think Tony did a great job with that interview,” Redstone said at Advertising Week New York on Wednesday. “I think he handled himself and showed the world and modeled what civil discourse is.”

The same attitude was expressed by one of CBS’s more respected journalists, Jan Crawford: 

“I don’t understand how Tony’s interview or any of his comments that he’s made with anchors fail to meet our editorial standards,” Crawford said at the meeting. “When someone comes on our air with a one-sided account of a very complex situation, as Coates himself acknowledges that he has, it’s my understanding that as journalists, we are obligated to challenge that worldview, so that our viewers can have that access to the truth or a fuller account, a more balanced account.”

“To me, that is what Tony did,” Crawford said. 

It’s nice to know that there are some journalists at a major broadcast network news organization who are not ‘holier than thou’ progressives. Progressives whose ideology is  so deeply ingrained... so deeply believing they have the moral high ground - that anyone who disagrees must be reprimanded as a matter of conscience. And then call that objective journalism. What makes this particularly nefarious is that they do they actually believe they are being objective.

These two examples of media bias should convince anyone with even a half way open mind that the mainstream media is run by people that do not have a clue what it means to be objective. They may not be deliberately lying. But when extreme bias passes for objective journalism they may as well be.

Loving God as a Father - and Forgiveness

Avinu Malkeinu - Our Father, our King This is how one of the most cited prayers of the season begins. It is the prefix to a series of multiple requests made of God during these 10 Days of Awe - culminating with Yom Kippur.  

Although this Yom Kippur we will not be saying these prayers since they are not said on Shabbos – they are nonetheless an overriding theme of the day.  A theme that sees God as a father and ourselves as His children begging for forgiveness for transgressing His wishes. And as a King and ourselves as His loyal subjects. 

We hope he reacts the way a father who might be more inclined to have mercy on his own child whom he loves dearly than he might as a king that might judge strictly.

This is the dilemma we face on Yom Kippur. We are well aware of the consequences of our actions if we are judged strictly.

I believe that this dichotomy is related to the concept of Yiras HaShem - fearing God;  and Ahavas HaShem - loving God. Both approaches are legitimate ways of serving God. We can serve him out of fear of the consequences. Or we can serve him out of love. Chazal tell us that serving God out of love is the superior method.

I think that might be because love is a two way street. When one feels love of God, that will generate reciprocity and more likely His merciful side - to forgive us without the consequences due us. If on the other hand we serve God out of fear of the King's wrath, that might generate our just deserts. 

I believe this is why we begin the Avinu Malkeinu with the words, Our father. We hope that God will see us first as His children and spare us the consequences we might otherwise deserve. 

These are my thoughts as we approach Yom Kippur. With this, I would like to wish all my readers and commentators a Gemar Chasima Tova. Have an easy fast. May we all be sealed into the book of life, good health, and happiness for the year 5785. And finally - may we see an end to this brutal war soon! 

A Charedi Reassessment of the Military?

R' Dov Lando (photo credit: Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Not long ago, I detected a subtle but revolutionary change of opinion about Charedim in Israel serving in the IDF, Israel’s military.  It was an offhand comment by one of the two top leaders in the Charedi world. Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch told an American philanthropist that he supported drafting Charedim who are not engaged in full-time religious study.

I noted at the time that this comment demolished the long standing primary objection to military service. Which was based on the belief that the army was little more that a medium for disabusing religious Jews from their religious beliefs and practices. That was never the purpose of the army. (Although some of the more radical socialist founders did in fact see that as a secondary ‘benefit’.)

But since the advent of Nachal Charedi units that cater to the special needs of the Charedi recruit, that argument no longer has any sway.  Even though there was pushback in the sense that those units did not live up to their billing, that too has been discredited. To the extent that it might not be up to full par in that department, IDF brass has indicated complete willingness, even eagerness to do whatever it takes to get it there.

Understandably there was a lot of skepticism expressed about this supposed change of heart - considering the strident opposition and willingness to forego decades long massive financial support from the government by defying the new draft law. The reaction to this news by of a lot of people was disbelief. That story was made up.  Or that it was a mistaken impression by the philanthropist that reported it.

Some just accused that philanthropist of being a practiced liar because he had been convicted of defrauding the government in a tax evasion scheme. But I argued (and still do) that even ex-cons might have values they share with the rest of us and do not automatically lie about projects that are meaningful to them. They are not all pure scoundrels. 

The philanthropist’s support for Nachal Charedi is probably what generated a discussion with Rav Hirsch about it. He merely reported what he heard. Why would he lie  – knowing he could be disproved in a flash by merely asking Rav Hirsch directly about it?

That said, I’m sure there are still a lot of skeptics out there. Well now Rav Dov Landau (Lando) - the other top Charedi Rabbinic leader has weighed in albeit in an indirect way. As noted in the Jerusalem Post about an address he gave to students at Yeshivas Mir:

Rabbi Lando's words hold enormous influence, and this evening would be no different. He began, as expected, with a firm and familiar declaration: “No yeshiva student, no avrech (married Torah scholar), will go to the army, under no circumstances.”

But for those closely listening, something about the address felt different. While the rabbi's message seemed unchanged, the subtleties were impossible to ignore. The speech was not just about keeping yeshiva students out of the army; it was about the shifting ground beneath their feet. Rabbi Lando's silence on those outside the yeshiva—those working illegally or lingering on the margins—was telling. Without making it explicit, the message was clear: if you're not in yeshiva, maybe it's time you serve.

 As  the article also noted, other Charedi leaders have expressed similar sentiments. And as I have indicated in the past, I have spoken to Charedi Yeshiva Rebbeim (who are in the trenches so to speak). who privately told me that not everyone that is registered in a Yeshiva ought to be there.

(It is with that last item in mind that I have the following questions. If this becomes policy will some Charedim use enrollment in a Yeshiva just to dodge the draft? Will there be more scrutiny about who is enrolled and why?)

There is also this piece of encouraging news from ArutzSheva: 

Chedvata, the first-ever haredi Hesder Yeshiva, has enrolled over 400 students this year.

A Hesder Yeshiva is a Torah studying institute for after high-school, which combines Torah studies and army service.

Founded eight years ago by haredim, Chedvata is beginning to have an impact on the haredi community, strengthening the future of Israel.

I have said many times that there is no ethical way that every single Charedi youth should be exempt from the army. If you are going to live in a country that requires its people to be citizen/soldiers, every segment must participate. Exempting an entire segment is unjust in that  -during a war - it allows others to do the dying for you. And the families of those required to serve worry about them while the families of those exempted don’t have to even think about it.

At no time has this been more relevant than over the past year. At no time was there so much frustration and anger by families of those who serve against a community that has been entirely exempted from serving.

What I have also said is that even though Charedim should be required to serve, there is room for exemptions in their community just as there are exemptions in other communities. What percentages should be exempt is a matter that can be worked out between the government and the Charedi parties in the Knesset under the guidance of their leaders. (Which has always been the case.)

In my view what is most important is to give the IDF the manpower it needs. And that the Charedi community ought to be part of that equation. 

Based on the two aforementioned articles, I think the top two Charedi leaders may have actually have had a change of heart about this.

This is a tiny step in the right direction. A direction that can hopefully lead to reversing the trend of animosity between those who contribute in a material way to the welfare of the nation and those who are perceived to not contribute anything. We have along way to go. But at least it seems that we have changed direction. At least I hope we have.

Torah, Science, and Kefira

Rabbi Natan (Nosson) Slifkin - The Zoo Rabbi (Wikipedia)

It was a subject of major discussion. And it was extremely upsetting to me at the time. I spilled a lot of virtual ink on it then. But  as upsetting as it was for me, surely it must have been a thousand times more upsetting to Rabbi Natan Slifkin and his family. 

That feeling came rushing back to me this morning as I read Rabbi Slifkin’s remarks upon the 20^th anniversary of his books being banned by Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv. Books that did a good job trying to reconcile Torah and science. Those of us that have had a decent education in both subjects appreciated any intelligent discussion that reconciled the two.

Until that ban, discussions and books on this subject were widely accepted and well within the parameters of accepted Jewish theology. Even in Charedi circles. I recall that the Chicago Community Kollel (a Lakewood Kollel) had featured speakers that dealt with this subject in a positive way. One of whom was Rav Shalom Kaminetzky, son of Rav Shmuel Kaminetsky, currently an elder on Agudah’s Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah (often referred to as Daas Torah). He has been on it for many years. 

And then there was the late Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, a physicist of note and prolific writer on a variety of Torah topics. A favorite of the Charedi world. 

Rabbi Kaplan wrote a paper using classic and accepted sources making a strong argument that the age of the universe was about 15 billion years old. He presented it at a conference of the Association of Orthodox Jewish Scientists. During the course of his presentation, he actually ridiculed those that did not accept the science that proved the same. 

Suddenly, this view which was what Rabbi Slikin’s books also promoted was determined to be Kefira (heresy). 

I recall talking to one of the CCK Roshei Kollel about this ban. He basicllay said he was flummoxed by it, and quite upset. But he neverthless abided by the ban since it was issued by a man that was considered by Charedim to be the Gadol Hador.

Then came the Kol Korei, a published ban signed by 24 prominent Charedi leaders on both sides of the Atlantic.

Rabbi Slfkin was up to that point somewhat of a celebrity in the Charedi world because of his astounding knowledge about the animal world and its relationship to the Torah. (He was affectionately known as the Zoo Rabbi.)

Suddenly he went from being a celebrity to being accused of promoting Kefira!  He was relentlessly attacked (verbally) from just about every corner of the Charedi world. A world that treated Daas Torah as the infallible word of God.  And of course no one had better insight to that then the Gadol HaDor. Although there were a few courageous prominent rabbis that did not abandon Rabbi Slifkin, most rabbis that once supported him now abandoned him like rats from a sinking ship.

Then there was the way this ban happened. Rabbi Slfkin’s books were written in English. Rav Elyashiv did not read English. Apparently the contents of those books was related to him by one of his trusted activists. Based on that he banned the books.

How could all these prominent rabbis support him one day and reject him the next based on the view of - even a highly respected Rav who based his ban on second hand information - is still a mystery to me. On the other hand, I suppose  if you believe that the Gadol HaDor’s view is the closest thing we have to God, challenging his views is like challenging God, I suppose.

Aside from leaving Jews educated  in both Torah and science out in the cold, the damage done to Rabbi Slfkin and his family was enormous. I cannot imagine for example what it means for religious parents who are proud of their son’s accomplishments in the Torah world to suddenly see his writings considered heresy. As Rabbi Slifkin points out in his post today, the animosity towards him by some rabbinic leaders was fierce and ongoing. About 10 years ago YU (Yeshiva University) was accused by a leading Charedi publication to be lacking Daas Torah because they supported him. And then there is this: 

And eighteen years later, a Lakewood Rosh Yeshiva declared that there is a litmus test for which rabbis Rav Elya Ber Wachtfogel, one of the most prominent Litvishe Rosh Yeshiva in the US, will hate: it’s those who fail to be “hot and angry” against Slifkin. 

That is really infuriating. Let them disagree and leave him alone. Why must they continue to ‘beat him to death’?! And why have they not done the same to Aryeh Kaplan whose views surely fell within the scope of Rav Elyashiv’s ban? Why is he still so accepted and his memory so honored by them while Rabbi Slifkin is so viscously smeared? 

I’m happy to see that Rabbi Slifkin has long ago  moved on with this life quite successfully and in positive ways. Fortunately he is not seen as a heretic by the most of the rest of the Orthodox world. 

Here are some questions with which I will end this post.  If Charedi leaders still feel that Rabbi Slifkin’s views reconciling Torah and science are considered Kefira - how can they trust the Hechsher of the OU whose rabbis are mostly YU trained? How can they permit eating at their homes, count them for a Minyan, trust their Batei Din (religious courts for Gitin (religious divorce) and not consider children of a remarried woman divorced that way –  Mamzerim?  

Is America Becoming More Antisemitic?

White Nationalists screaming 'Jews will not replace us (ABC)

The sky is not falling. There are, however, a lot of people making noises that sound like it is. At least with respect to the rise of antisemitism in this country. The latest of which comes from Bret Stephens in a New York Times opinion piece that seems to indicate that it is.

The truth is that anitsemitmism has increased. Many would say at an exponential rate since Israel’s response last October to the most horrific attack against the Jewish people since the Holocaust. I wouldn’t argue with that ether

Although I still feel pretty safe walking the streets in my heavily Jewish neighborhood of West Rogers Park here in Chicago, I admit that being attacked by antisemite has crossed my mind on occasion. When - for example -  I traverse the streets on the way to and from Shul on a Friday night. West Rogers Park is also home to a large Muslim population whose neighborhood is adjacent – and even overlaps my Jewish one. We often cross paths with each other as we walk to our destinations.

But whatever fear I might have is minimal and mostly fleeting fueled mostly by the media reports about the massive increase of antisemitism. I don’t recall hearing about any physical altercation between a Muslim and a Jew in this neighborhood. Palestinian protests take place in locations at various other locations across the city, usually where it will get more media attention. Mostly on college campuses. (We had a nice break from that during summer vacation when school was out. Now they are back at it.)

As I have said so many times, it as been my long held belief that the vast majority of Americans are not antisemitic. I still believe that. I feel as welcome in this country as I always have. In fact I think it is truer today that it was before. That was more than amply demonstrated by the massive outpouring of support from all corners of the American public after the Tree of Life Synagogue attack. I do not believe that disappeared after October 7^th, If anything I saw an increase in American support for the Jewish people at both the RNC and DNC convention.

So how is the dramatic increase in antisemitism explained?  

Here is what I think. The increase in antisemitism is issue specific.  And mostly found in the hallowed halls of academia. What was once a bastion of objectivity and critical thinking has devolved into an amoral ethos that divides peoples of the  world into 2 groups: The oppressed and the oppressors.  As this applies to Israel and the Palestinians, guess who is considered the oppressed and who is considered the oppressors? And it isn’t too much of a leap to go from there to antisemitism disguised as anti Zionism. Which they define as a colonialist movement - an evil foisted upon an indigenous oppressed people called Palestinians.

This is what  lot of influential faculty members preach to their students as though it was objective truth. A lot of these them hired with the good intention of creating diversity, Thus hiring teachers from all walks of life whose world view were not exactly mainstream. That is how an antisemite like Ibrahim X Kendi and his ilk can become  tenured professors with a lot of influence on the young minds full of mush attending their classes.  

Which is also why you will find many of these young ignorant students (some of whom are Jewish!) protesting Israel (the oppressors) and supporting Palestinians (the oppressed) and in some cases supportig their liberators, Hamas. Is there any wonder why universities have become bastions of antisemitsm instead of bastions of learning?

There is, also, the Muslim community in America. They have grown in unprecedented numbers in recent years with the media giving them an outsized voice. That this generates a lot of antisemitism shouldn’t surprise anyone.

Then there are the good old fashion right wing White Nationalists and the like that still exist at the fringes of society and preach  hatred as an article of their Christian faith. 

And a few black antisemites mesmerized by the likes of Louis Farrakhan whose venom against the Jewish people is well documented. 

And finally there are a few antisemitic celebrities like Kanye West; media personalities like Candace Owens; and even members of congress like Marjorie Taylor Greene on the right who believe in conspiracy theories about us that would have made Henry Ford proud. And Ilhan Omar on the left.  whose anti Israel venom is well articulated.

Put them all together and they are still just a small fraction of the American people. But with a very loud voice and a very active media presence. Many of them have become violent.  Which is why I have the abovementioned fleeting thoughts of being attacked.

But most Americans are like those who showed up at the 2 conventions last summer. They welcome us as equals. And we have complete freedom to pursue the American dream with access to everything we need to achieve it. 

Including access to the top universities in the country. Although the atmosphere there lately has been challenging, I am convinced that members of both parties in congress will not put up with tolerance of antisemitsm disguised as free speech. That was demonstrated at congressional hearing on the subject that resulted in the resignation of presidents of tops schools who did not rise to the task. 

Those schools have a long way to go.  In the meantime, no Jewish student is denied an education because of their faith.

This  does not mean we should ignore the antisemitism that does exists. We should fight it with everything we’ve got.  I think we are doing that. 

I don’t see our acceptance by the vast majority of American people changing any time soon. What I do see is that Since the Holocaust we have been increasingly shown affection by our fellow citizens. Many times.

Hostages or Winning the War - A False Dichotomy

Some of the hostages still being held by Hamas (AJC)

If your number one concern is not the safe return of the hostages kidnapped by Hamas (exactly one year ago, today) then your priorities are messed up. That should be the first order of business of the Israeli government.

A lot of people are therefore extremely upset that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seems to have a different priority – winning the war against Hamas and lately Hezbollah, or perhaps more importantly destroying Iran’s ability to ever hurt Israel again, Iran is after all responsible for all terrorism against Israel by those two entities as well as other of its proxies.  

Hostage families are angry. I have often said that I can’t really blame them for feeling this way. Especially now after a year of pure mental torture. These families wake up every morning with thoughts of dread about what the hostages themselves must be going through. Many of these families along with sympathetic protestors fill the streets of Tel Aviv on what seems like a daily basis increasingly angry  - cursing Netanyahu for unnecessarily prolonging the war instead of ending it with some sort of deal for the release of the hostages. 

I of course completely understand how these families feel. I cannot imagine what they have been going through for an entire year now! 

However, with respect to the protestors that have been joining them I can’t help but feel that they are blaming the wrong person for their own selfish reasons. It wasn’t Netanyahu that kidnapped these hostages. Although he may share some of the blame for the security lapse that allowed it to happen, it was an Iran supported and funded proxy, Hamas - led by Yahya Sinwar who kidnapped them. I never hear a single protester blaming Hamas or Sinwar for that. Just Netanyahu - blaming him for ignoring the hostages and prolonging the war for his own selfish reasons.

Here the truth. Netanyahu agreed to a hostage deal last November that freed many hostages at the expense of a temporary cease fire and the release of many Palestinian prisoners. And  with respect to recent negotiations, he has agreed to a lot of Sinwar’s demands. But every time Netanyahu agrees, Sinwar adds more conditions. This is a fact stated – not by me – but by Biden administration officials involved in the so-called negotiations. Unlike the Netanyahu hating Israeli protesters (and their American sympathizers), Biden administration officials have been blaming Sinwar a lot more than Netanyahu.

It is quite obvious to me that those protesting along with hostage family members are the same Netanyahu haters that protested him before October 7^th of last year. The language they use about him is so vile, you would think they were talking about Sinwar. It is almost as though to them - Hamas had nothing to do with it!

OK. Let us grant that the protesters know that they can have no influence on Sinwar. And are protesting the only person that might respond to public pressure.

But in almost every instance when a protester is asked about what Netanyahu should do, the answer is invariably to demand a cease fire in exchange for the hostages . ‘Whatever it takes’ to bring them home! Arguing that the war has gone on long enough.

Well, I’m pretty sick of the war too. Too many good people have died or suffered severe injuries battling Hamas - and now Hezbollah. I want to see it all end now too. No wants peace more than I do.

‘Make a deal and bring them home!’ is a nice slogan. But Israel cannot make a deal that would involve self destruction.  And that is the only deal that Sinwar will agree to. He wants to empty Israeli prisons of Palestinian terrorists with blood on their hands. He wants Israel to leave Gaza. And he wants to open up its Gaza’s borders - the purpose of which is to reconstitute Hamas to its former glory. Only this time with the additional terrorists (freed by Israel) at his disposal.

It is therefore imperative for Israel to fight to the finish rather than to agree to a deal that will harm more Jews that it will free hostages.

Netanyahu is right to carry on the war on all fronts against those who would annihilate Israel given the chance.  

Those like the protesters - who disagree, see Netanyahu as a self serving politician whose only goal is to stay in power; thereby prolonging the war towards that end; and could not care less about the hostages. They will not be convinced. To them he is warmonger who would sell his soul to the devil to retain power and whose polices will usher in world war III.  

I do not see him that way. And thankfully there are a lot of Israelis that do not see him that way either. And actually support what he’s doing. Don’t know if they are a majority or not but the country is pretty evenly divided. Polls have shown an increase in his popularity recently too. 

There are also  a lot of good people in the US that support what he’s doing. The vast majority of conservative politicians and Senator John Fetterman have been urging him to ‘finish the job’ and criticizing the Biden administration for putting the brakes on Netanyahu. Military experts have been saying the same thing. At least the ones I have heard interviewed. 

They all seem to agree, for example, that Iran should pay a heavy price for attacking Israel. And that Israel has many legitimate options in that regard that the US should support. Like bombing their missile launching sites, bombing their above ground nuclear development sites, bombing their oil fields...  And yet while President Biden agrees that Iran deserves a severe response for attacking Israel with 200 missiles last week, he doesn’t think they should do any of those things because it will widen the war.   

As the conservative politicians and military experts have been saying, ‘Don’t hole Israel back! Let them finish the job’.

Meanwhile, what about the hostages? Hopefully there can be anther successful IDF rescue. I’m sure Israel is working on it. But it does not seem like a viable option. Sad to say, I have no good answer for that. The one thing that Netanyahu cannot do is make a deal that will hurt his nation. Which is the only deal Sinwar will accept. In light of this, Israel must continue to work on a plan to rescue the hostages in other ways and to destroy Iran’s capability of ever hurting Israel again - whether directly or through their proxies. Whatever it takes.

A Jarring Discrepancy Between 2 Religious Communities

It’s really hard to argue with Rabbi Slifkin’s latest post. I cannot imagine what it must be like to know that while your loved one is risking life and limb defending the people of Israel there is one segment that is relatively free from any such worry. 

I am not in the habit of excerpting large segments of other peoples words. But paraphrasing him will not do it justice. If his description of how the 2 religious communities in Israel experienced Rosh Hashana this year is accurate... there are no words. Here is what he said: 

When I went to shul, which is normally very crowded for Rosh HaShana, I was struck at how many empty seats there were; then I realized that it was because so many young men had been called back into the reserves. My son’s hesder yeshivah is half empty. During davening on Rosh HaShana morning, there were tears shed as even more young men were called out of shul. The Rav was crying during his speech. 

Similar scenes took place at every dati-leumi shul in Israel. But for charedi shuls, generally speaking, there was no significant difference between this Rosh HaShana and every other one. Everyone was home with their families as usual, except for those who were in yeshiva or Uman… 

How can it be that we’ve been at war for a year, with so many millions of people’s lives turned over, and yet for the charedi community it’s just life as normal? How can it be that there is a severe IDF manpower shortage when there are so many able-bodied men available? How can it be that endless thousands of non-charedi men are suffering from being away from their lives and jobs and families for months on end and risking life and limb, while charedim continue their studies or their jobs as usual, and do not even provide any physical or material assistance to the soldiers or their families or others affected by the war?

These questions have been troubling me too. I have always felt that Charedim should be just as subject to the draft as everyone else. With a reasonable number of exemptions just like there are for Israelis  in other segments of the country. What the numbers or percentages of Charedi exemptions should look like can be discussed. But in no way should every single Charedi automatically be exempt.

This is of course especially true now at a time of war against enemies sworn to our destruction. In my mind, there is no way there can be any moral justification for exempting an entire segment of the Israeli people. And yet, if the above description of Rosh Hashana in the 2 communities is accurate, it is almost as if the Charedi world doesn’t care about what happens outside of their own Daled Amos – their narrow isolationist world. In all of the Charedi world was there really not a tear shed for the sacrifices of life and limb by soldiers fighting our enemies?  Can they be that callous? That evil? 

Clearly that is not true. Who can forget the gut-wrenching description by Rav Asher Weiss of his visit to an IDF soldier hospitalized after losing his legs and an arm? That hardly describes someone that doesn' t care. And yet I doubt Rabbi Slifkin made up the scenes he described in Charedi shuls this Rosh Hashana. 

To his credit Rabbi Slfkin  rejects the notion that there is any evil intent by the Charedi world in their lack of any references to the suffering by families in the Dati world. He attributes it to what he calls the perfect storm of Hashkafa and politics. Which he explains in detail.

 Like I said at the outset, it’s hard to argue with any of this.  I even agree that the ideology of the Charedi world needs to change. Something I have been saying for what seems like forever. With no avail so far.

That said,  I disagree with the kind of harsh measures he suggests as a solution. Frankly I think it would have the opposite effect.  Making life financially miserable for them is just going to make them mad - and more determined than ever to resist in every way they know how. 

Charedim are not prone to violence, But there are sizable numbers of them that have resorted to violence in reaction to government policies they didn't like. Will draconian measures Rabbi Slifkin suggests see Jew fighting against Jew in bloody battle? That will surely not bring a resolution to the matter.

There is also the fact that there are many Charedim – even in Israel that privately do not agree with the hard line against army service expressed by their leadership. I have spoken to some hard core Charedi Mechanchim in Israel that have admitted to me that there are a lot of Charedim in Yeshivos that shouldn’t be there. There have also been reports that at least one Charedi leader, Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch, who has expressed the view that Charedim that do not study Torah full time should be subject to the draft.

While we are along way off from compromise, I still believe that is a better route to pursue justice on this issue than to bring Charedim to their knees financially. Hard to win friends and influence people that way

Rav Hirsch’s apparent change of heart supporting a path for some Charedi to serve in the IDF would be a good way to start a conversation with  the government about a possible solution where the abovementioned contradictory Rosh Hashana experiences would never happen again.

What we need now more than ever is unity. Elusive though it may be - it must be a goal. It is the only way to achieve compromise. 

Here is something to think about. Perhaps it was disunity that contributed to massacre on that day of infamy last October 7^th.  Our enemies saw a country divided. Maybe they saw it as an opportune time to attack. 

The  portion of the Torah portion that was read on that very day makes the following comment (33:5) He (God) became King over Jeshurun (Israel) when the numbers of the nation – the tribes – are gathered unity. Put another way:  United we stand. Divided we fall.

We are now once again in a state of disunity.