If Everyone Just Sits and Learns...

Rav Aharon Feldman

It was the best of times and the worst of times. Charles Dickens’ opening line from his classic work A Tale of Two Cities could not have been more prophetic for the Jewish people in our time. While I applaud the positive developments that resulted from the war, my spirits are not lifted. I am profoundly disappointed by the negative ones.

I am not talking about the military victories Israel’s armed forces have achieved over the last two years. The fruits of those victories have changed the face of the Middle East for the better in ways that no one could have ever imagined. But as exhilarating as that is, it came at a very high cost — both in Israeli blood and in the increased world enmity toward Israel and the Jewish people. It is no coincidence that there has been a spike in antisemitism because of that.

But that is not what I was referring to. I was referring to the impact on Israelis by the event that precipitated the war. Israelis that were not particularly observant if at all. Tragedies like the massacre of 1,200 Jews on October 7^th tend to unite all of us as a people and open up a clear path toward outreach. Without getting into details, there was a huge spike in mitzvah observance among Israelis from a variety of backgrounds. This enabled increased and successful outreach on a scale not seen since the 6-day war in 1967. On that level, it is the best of times.

But here comes the worst of times. Honestly, as good as I should feel about the increased interest in observance, the ‘worst of times’ is so depressing that it overwhelms any positive feeling I might otherwise have.

I have no illusions about how divided the Jewish people are. This has been the case for as far back as I can remember. I am not talking about the division sowed by breakaway movements like Reform and Conservative. Sad as that is, at least it is understandable why observant Judaism rejects philosophies that either deny the mandatory nature of Halacha or bend it to fit the times. I am talking about the increased divide within observant Judaism. That is what aggravates me now more than ever.

This is not a new phenomenon. There have always been differences among observant Jews who had different ways of understanding the Torah’s demands. While those differences were often quite strong, we somehow always managed to get along. We lived together as one family;  in the same neighborhoods; davening in the same shuls; sending our children to the same or similar schools; intermarrying with each other; and generally trusting each other on matters of kashrus.

On that last point, nowhere was this kind of integration more evident than in the OU, where halachic questions about supervised products were decided jointly by a Torah Vodaath Rosh Yeshiva, Rav Yisroel Belsky, and a YU Rosh Yeshiva, Rav Hershel Schachter. Both respected each other’s decisions as those of knowledgeable Talmidei Chachamim and devout Jews.

It has become apparent to me that this kind of cross-fertilization may soon come to an end. Aall because of what’s going on in Israel right now. The issue is the Charedi leadership's refusal to allow any of their young men to be drafted into army service. While there may be some willing to compromise, it has become increasingly more common for Charedi rabbinic leaders to reject any army service at all, even for Charedim who do not learn in any yeshiva.

Ironically, the reason for this strident opposition was succinctly stated by Rav Aharon Feldman, Rosh Yeshiva of Ner Israel, probably the most moderate Charedi yeshiva in America. As noted in the following:

One prominent representative of this group is R. Yitzchak Yosef, former Sephardic Chief Rabbi. He has insisted that no Charedi person should enlist, whether or not they are in yeshiva; he also declared they will leave the country instead.

R. Aharon Feldman, along with R. Malkiel Kotler and R. Elya Ber Wachtfogel, wrote a letter to R. Yitzchak Yosef wholeheartedly endorsing his approach, describing it as “the only true approach.”

Why does he feel that way? Because he believes that “at least half” of religious Jews who join the IDF abandon mitzvah observance.

I don’t question Rabbi Feldman’s sincerity. But I do question where he gets his information. First, there is the Hesder Yeshiva program. I do not believe that half of those soldiers ‘abandon mitzvah observance’. If any at all do.

But even without factoring in Hesder, the IDF has established Charedi military units where Charedim can serve without compromising their values.

The complaints I sometimes hear about the IDF not living up to its promises to Charedim are beyond ridiculous. In most cases, these are mistakes that the IDF is happy to correct. Surely it is not their intent  to undermine Charedi recruits - thereby discouraging any further Charedi enlistment. The intent was to increase recruitment among a community that is extremely under-recruited. 

Why would they undermine a program designed to solve such a serious IDF manpower problem? And in cases where these ‘mistakes’ were deliberate, I doubt they were the actions of anyone other than a tiny minority of IDF commanding officers with extreme animus towards Charedim.

Rav Hershel Schachter

And then there is this. Rav Hershel Schachter was recorded saying that the recent anti-draft prayer rally was utterly ridiculous. The country is at war! And no one wants to go to the army? No one from YU would participate in such an atzeret. The(Charedi leaders in Israel) are big Talmidei Chachamim. But they exaggerate so much that nothing else counts for them. Torah is important. The war is important. Everything is important. They shouldn’t exaggerate that everything depends only on Torah. The Jewish people have to have an army. If everyone just sits and learns, the enemy is going to kill all of us.”

I agree with Rav Schachter. These Charedi leaders do exaggerate. And completely ignore the reality that: ‘If everyone just sits and learns, the enemy is going to kill all of us.’

Do Rav Feldman and company not believe this? Do they think Rav Schachter is now an Azuz Panim - an apikores even? Will the exponentially growing Charedi world now throw Modern Orthodoxy and Religious Zionism into the trash heap of history along with Conservative and Reform Judaism?

I would never have thought this possible. But at this point, who knows. 

That being said, I don’t think we are there yet. Hopefully we never will be. But we are heading in that direction. And unless someone with enough stature in the Charedi world steps up and says, ‘The emperor is wearing no clothes’ we may eventually get there. A lot sooner than anyone thinks.