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2 JEWISH ACTION Summer 5766/2006 Jewish Action THE MAGAZINE OF THE ORTHODOX UNION http:/www.ou.org [email protected] Editor Nechama Carmel Literary Editor Matis Greenblatt Assistant Editor Dassi Zeidel Kashrut Editor Rabbi Eliyahu Safran Contributing Editors Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein, Dr. Judith Bleich, Rabbi Emanuel Feldman, Rabbi Hillel Goldberg, Rabbi Joseph Grunblatt, Rabbi Sol Roth, Rabbi Jacob J. Schacter, Rabbi Berel Wein Design KZ Creative Advertising Deborah Lieber (212) 613-8135 fax: (212) 613-0772 Subscriptions Eva Holczer (212) 613-8137 Israel Representative Lisa Rubin 972-054-721-1968 Orthodox Union Jewish Action Commission Gerald M. Schreck, Chairman Joel M. Schreiber, Chairman Emeritus President Stephen J. Savitsky Chairman, Board of Directors Harvey Blitz Vice Chairmen, Board of Directors Seymour J. Abrams Morry Weiss Chairman, Board of Governors Martin Nachimson Vice Chairman, Board of Governors Jay L. Schottenstein Executive Vice President Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb Director of Communications and Marketing David Olivestone © Copyright 2006 by the Orthodox Union. 11 Broadway, New York, NY 10004. Telephone (212) 563-4000 Periodicals Postage Paid, New York, NY and at additional mailing offices. Printed in Canada Letters American Jews and the Disengagement I read with interest the debate between Rabbi Emanuel Feldman and Rabbi Yosef Blau (“Did American Orthodox Jews Forsake Their Israeli Brothers?,” winter 2005), regarding the failure of American Jews to react to Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza. Rabbi Blau pur- ports to speak for American Modern Orthodoxy in saying “Territorial compro- mise is halachically acceptable if it pro- motes security.” Despite my reverence for my mash- giach and for the Rav, whose views Rabbi Blau accurately reproduces, my views on the subject differ. Since the Oslo Accords, I have felt shock, gradually changing to anger, disappointment and disgust at the Israeli government’s actions. Rabbi Blau is well aware, as are we all, that territorial compromises have never led to peace and security. In the 1990s, I felt angry at the Peres/Rabin government for leading Israel toward self-destruction. Like many American Zionists, I looked to Sharon as a savior, a hard-line right-wing hawk who was a friend of the settlers. It is now clear that he was no better, if not worse, than his predecessors. Personally, I feel more betrayed than ever. I suspect there are many who agree with me. Perhaps that is why more and more American Modern Orthodox Jews, after spending time learn- ing Torah in Israel, “return to the United States [to] … settle permanently.” Rabbi Blau’s statement that “American Religious Zionists have always publicly supported the Israeli govern- ment” effectively consigns American Jewry to being a blind ostrich, rubber-stamping its approval while Israel self-destructs. We have no obligation to agree with the Israeli government in this foolish and dangerous decision. Ariel Fischer, MD Suffern, New York When Duncan Hines and Stella D’ora threatened to go dairy, the Orthodox community sprung into action and fought the “travesty.” And what hap- pened when thousands of Jews were cruel- ly thrown out of their homes, over thirty shuls burned to the ground and pieces of Eretz Yisrael handed over to our enemies? If such a significant and traumatic event didn’t touch a raw nerve in the Modern Orthodox community, then indeed, American Jews should keep to themselves and let Israeli Jews worry about the big issues facing Am Yisrael. As Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik, z”l, himself wrote in Kol Dodi Dofek (Hebrew ed., p. 84; my trans- lation): “I fear that we, [American] reli- gious Jews, are to this day entrenched in a blissful slumber.” Chaim Leichman Jerusalem I found it astounding that only a handful in the Orthodox community understood what the disengagement was all about. It was not about security or eco- nomics or not being able to live with Arabs, but about ridding this country of the religious members of society and inca- pacitating them by expulsion. There is a struggle for the soul of Israel, as both writers note. However, the soul of Israel is alive and well in the reli- gious youth who are willing to defend their right to be. It is the total letdown by the religious leaders, both here and in America, which is the saddest part of it all. Yes, there are now groups aiding the expellees, but it is too little too late. In fact, I have received more mailings from
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2 JEWISH ACTION Summer 5766/2006
Jewish ActionTHE MAGAZINE OF THE ORTHODOX UNION
http:/[email protected]
EditorNechama Carmel
Literary EditorMatis Greenblatt
Assistant EditorDassi Zeidel
Kashrut EditorRabbi Eliyahu Safran
Contributing EditorsRabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein,
Dr. Judith Bleich,Rabbi Emanuel Feldman,
Rabbi Hillel Goldberg,Rabbi Joseph Grunblatt, Rabbi Sol Roth,
Rabbi Jacob J. Schacter, Rabbi Berel Wein
Design KZ Creative
AdvertisingDeborah Lieber
(212) 613-8135 fax: (212) 613-0772
SubscriptionsEva Holczer (212) 613-8137
Israel RepresentativeLisa Rubin 972-054-721-1968
Orthodox Union Jewish Action CommissionGerald M. Schreck, Chairman
Joel M. Schreiber, Chairman Emeritus
PresidentStephen J. Savitsky
Chairman, Board of Directors Harvey Blitz
Vice Chairmen, Board of DirectorsSeymour J. Abrams
Morry Weiss
Chairman, Board of Governors Martin Nachimson
Vice Chairman, Board of GovernorsJay L. Schottenstein
Executive Vice PresidentRabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb
Director of Communicationsand MarketingDavid Olivestone
© Copyright 2006 by the Orthodox Union.
11 Broadway, New York, NY 10004.Telephone (212) 563-4000
Periodicals Postage Paid, New York, NY and at additional mailing offices.
Printed in Canada
Letters
American Jews and theDisengagement
� I read with interest the debatebetween Rabbi Emanuel Feldman andRabbi Yosef Blau (“Did AmericanOrthodox Jews Forsake Their IsraeliBrothers?,” winter 2005), regarding thefailure of American Jews to react to Israel’swithdrawal from Gaza. Rabbi Blau pur-ports to speak for American ModernOrthodoxy in saying “Territorial compro-mise is halachically acceptable if it pro-motes security.”
Despite my reverence for my mash-giach and for the Rav, whose views RabbiBlau accurately reproduces, my views onthe subject differ. Since the Oslo Accords,I have felt shock, gradually changing toanger, disappointment and disgust at theIsraeli government’s actions. Rabbi Blau iswell aware, as are we all, that territorialcompromises have never led to peace andsecurity.
In the 1990s, I felt angry at thePeres/Rabin government for leading Israeltoward self-destruction. Like manyAmerican Zionists, I looked to Sharon asa savior, a hard-line right-wing hawk whowas a friend of the settlers. It is now clearthat he was no better, if not worse, thanhis predecessors. Personally, I feel morebetrayed than ever. I suspect there aremany who agree with me. Perhaps that iswhy more and more American ModernOrthodox Jews, after spending time learn-ing Torah in Israel, “return to the UnitedStates [to] … settle permanently.”
Rabbi Blau’s statement that“American Religious Zionists have alwayspublicly supported the Israeli govern-ment” effectively consigns American Jewryto being a blind ostrich, rubber-stampingits approval while Israel self-destructs. Wehave no obligation to agree with the Israeli
government in this foolish and dangerousdecision.
Ariel Fischer, MDSuffern, New York
When Duncan Hines and StellaD’ora threatened to go dairy, theOrthodox community sprung into actionand fought the “travesty.” And what hap-pened when thousands of Jews were cruel-ly thrown out of their homes, over thirtyshuls burned to the ground and pieces ofEretz Yisrael handed over to our enemies?If such a significant and traumatic eventdidn’t touch a raw nerve in the ModernOrthodox community, then indeed,American Jews should keep to themselvesand let Israeli Jews worry about the bigissues facing Am Yisrael. As Rav YosefDov Soloveitchik, z”l, himself wrote in KolDodi Dofek (Hebrew ed., p. 84; my trans-lation): “I fear that we, [American] reli-gious Jews, are to this day entrenched in ablissful slumber.”
Chaim LeichmanJerusalem
I found it astounding that only ahandful in the Orthodox communityunderstood what the disengagement wasall about. It was not about security or eco-nomics or not being able to live withArabs, but about ridding this country ofthe religious members of society and inca-pacitating them by expulsion.
There is a struggle for the soul ofIsrael, as both writers note. However, thesoul of Israel is alive and well in the reli-gious youth who are willing to defendtheir right to be. It is the total letdown bythe religious leaders, both here and inAmerica, which is the saddest part of it all.
Yes, there are now groups aiding theexpellees, but it is too little too late. Infact, I have received more mailings from
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American religious organizations askingfor aid for victims of Katrina than for aidfor the Gush Katif expellees.
Dr. Pesach AcemanEditor, www.katif.net Yishuv Bar YochaiIsrael
Rabbi Blau’s “rejoinder” to RabbiFeldman, while rich in background mate-rial, is rather poor in relevance. In trueyeshivah fashion Rabbi Blau presents thedifference between American ReligiousZionists and their Israeli counterparts asemanating from a well-known machloketRishonim, namely that between RavAvraham Yitzchak HaKohen Kook, z”l,and his son, Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda Kook, z”l,and Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik, z”l.However, the “Messianism” of the formerand the preference of the latter for “thepeople over the Land” do little to shedlight on the issues raised by RabbiFeldman. Indeed, shortly after the SharonPlan was made public, Rav Ovadiah Yosef(not known to be a follower of RavKook), in a derashah in Jerusalem, urgedall MKs to vote against the plan on thegrounds that its implementation wouldclearly endanger the lives of large seg-ments of the Jewish people (not merelythe settlers). And, Rav Yosef added thatthe Torah tells us “lo ta’amod al damre’echa, you shall not stand aside whileyour fellow’s blood is shed” (Vayikra19:16).
This was Rav Yosef ’s judgment afterhe personally received the views of differ-ent military experts including those ofDefense Minister Shaul Mofaz. Onemight have expected the avowed followersof Rav Soloveitchik to have voiced thesame concerns. After all it was the “peo-ple,” our brothers and sisters, who wereinvolved. And in matters of pikuachnefesh, we rule lechumra and shaiv ve’alta’aseh adif (abstention is preferred).
We American-born rabbis in Israelwho led congregations in the UnitedStates certainly appreciate the sensitivity ofour colleagues in America who, in spite oftheir feeling “at home,” fear the charge of“dual loyalty.” This might explain theirreluctance to organize large-scale public
demonstrations on Israeli issues. My com-plaint, however, is that a greater effort wasnot made by these rabbis to truly under-stand the Sharon Plan in all of its ramifi-cations, to penetrate the media “spin” andto convey this information to their con-stituents. Nor did these rabbis take astand.
Rabbi Blau juxtaposes RabbiFeldman’s “certainties” (which today arealways suspect) to the politically correctposture of the American ReligiousZionists with their tentative “concerns” forthe arguments in favor of the SharonPlan, which he pronounces “legitimate.”Well, “legitimate” they certainly are, butare they valid, valid enough to support aplan that clearly endangers the lives ofentire segments of the Israeli people?
A bit of thought beyond the sloganswill have shown the following:
1. Withdrawing from Gaza and set-tlements in Northern Shomron has donenothing to change the “demographic reali-ty.”
2. There is no advantage to having“defined borders” if they are not recog-nized by your neighbors. (The Sharonwithdrawal was unilateral.)
3. If the choice is between our rul-ing over one-and-a-half-million hostilePalestinians or their being free to bomb usto bits, I for one have no moral problemin choosing the former.
Our fear is that the differencebetween us Modern Orthodox ReligiousZionists here and you Modern OrthodoxReligious Zionists there is not one of “pas-sion” but one of interest. I hope we arewrong.
Shubert SperoIrving Stone ChairBar-Ilan University
Rabbi Blau respondsThe passion of the letter writers
reflects a certainty that unfortunately I donot share. The Israeli elections demon-strate that the broader Israeli populationalso does not agree with their perceptions.Even after Prime Minister Sharon becameincapacitated, after Amona and afterHamas won the Palestinian elections, thevoters selected the parties that supported
the disengagement, while those whoopposed it did poorly. The number of reli-gious Knesset members increased whilethe anti-religious party Shinui disap-peared, indicating that religion was not anissue. It is illogical to assert that mostIsraelis and their political candidates,including former generals and heads ofthe Israeli secret service, simply do notunderstand the security ramifications ofthe disengagement.
Social concerns regarding the agedand the poor were important to voters, asthey are in Judaism. This should havehelped Mafdal-Ichud Leumi, as two of theMafdal candidates had shown leadershipin legislating on behalf of the handicappedand elderly in the last Knesset. The per-ception that Religious Zionism is primari-ly concerned with territory ironically ledto the two not being re-elected.
Those who are convinced that keep-ing land is a halachic absolute, and wholisten only to those security experts whoagree with their approach, dismiss anyonewho has an opposing perspective. Sincethey assume that no rational person coulddisagree with them, they conclude thatanyone who does not see retaining everymeter of the land as the supreme value isacting either out of hatred to Judaism orbecause of monetary gain. This is bothabsurd and dangerous. As I indicated inmy article, the real issue to contend withis the Jewish character of the State.Tragically, the members of the ReligiousZionist community who are critical to thisstruggle are out of the mainstream ofIsraeli political life.�JA
Correction:A photo essay in the winter
2005 issue entitled “JLIC ProgramEndowed in Honor of Heshe andHarriet Seif” neglected to mentionthe OU’s partner organizations inthe JLIC (Jewish Learning Initiativeon Campus) program–Hillel: TheFoundation for Campus Life andKollel Torah MiTzion, both ofwhich are integral to JLIC’s success.
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