A recent glimpse into the true chasm

Haredi politics versus the State of Israel

A glimpse into the ultra-Orthodox parties' rhetoric describing the growing public criticism of religious coercion and the ultra-Orthodox insistence on exemption from the IDF draft.

27/11/2019 23:58

Tags: Yated Neeman ·  Haredi ·  rhetoric ·  Avigdor Liberman

Avigdor Lieberman, source: Wikipedia

We recently published a post reflecting upon the ultra-Orthodox parties' rhetoric describing the growing public criticism of religious coercion and the ultra-Orthodox insistence on exemption from the IDF draft - all while demanding public funding for draft dodgers and schools that refuse to teach core curricular studies - as hatred of the ultra-Orthodox. We stressed that this is not the case, but rather "democracy defending itself".

A further glimpse into the true chasm came this week in Tuesday's Yated Ne'eman (Ultra-Orthodox newspaper), in which most of the op-eds and the editorial dealt with current controversies. Following is a selection of quotes from those articles and editorial that illustrate the point. It is this: at the base of why we so strongly stress the importance of neutralizing the deleterious impact that these extremist religious parties have on any government coalition they are part of, particularly upon the portfolios and Knesset committees that they receive as pay-offs for rounding out the number of votes needed to form a Knesset majority. Needless to say, none of their political partners (now or in the past) from right, center, or left have seen the need to provide a principled response as to their unwillingness to bond with theological parties whose principles are so antithetical to that of Israel's civil parties and the majority of its public.

One of the articles challenges the legitimacy of labeling Israel as a Jewish state. It claims that a state in whose public domain the Sabbath is being uprooted is not a Jewish state, but rather an anti-Jewish state. The article covers two current controversial issues: 1) Sabbath laws, and 2) the pending charges against the Prime Minister for bribery. As to bribery, it states that this is just an example of the distorted vocabulary used by legislators who are fabricating human-created laws, while the only true meaning of bribe, in its halakhic framework, is when it aims at subverting judicial process or buying public office. Accusing Netanyahu of bribery, therefore, is falsehood and deceit because there is no governmental reality not based on advancing different interests and different individuals with interests. Deciding when to call it a bribe and when to call it favoritism, according to this article, is but a whim of lawyers who follow their personal biases.

The harshest example of distorted vocabulary, says the author of this piece, is the attempt to call Israel a Jewish state. “Judaism is observance of the Torah and Mitzvot and nothing else... a state in whose public domain any reminder of Sabbath observance is uprooted and the plaque of Judaism is removed from it - it is not a Jewish state; it is an anti-Jewish state... If somebody who desecrates the Sabbath in public is judged as a non-Jew, any animal he slaughters is considered non-kosher, and his wine is prohibited for drinking, all the more so - [public] authorities that carry out such a public act of uprooting the Sabbath openly as a revolt and embezzlement are surely shedding off of themselves any link to Judaism and are cutting off their minimal connection, to the extent that it existed, to the Jewish people.”

The fifth column [are those who] oppose a state that brings about assimilation by taking away control over conversion from the Chief Rabbinate, that opposes desecration of the Sabbath and non-kosher food, that opposes import of Western culture and its maladies.

Another article, alludes to Avigdor Liberman's recent characterization of the Arab parties as a "fifth column", and implies that the true fifth column are the likes of Liberman himself and those who have recently been demanding greater religious freedom (which the writer describes as haters of faith and of Judaism), crowned by desecrating the sacred Sabbath in public (referring to launching of public transportation on Shabbat in metropolitan Tel Aviv). The author writes: “The fifth column [are those who] oppose a state that brings about assimilation by taking away control over conversion from the Chief Rabbinate, that opposes desecration of the Sabbath and non-kosher food, that opposes import of Western culture and its maladies.” He goes on: “Who needs a state like that? There are plenty of such states throughout the West, including [Avigdor Liberman's] country of origin.”

The writer suggests that to understand the true fifth column, we need to open the Book of Joshua and read 23:12-13 and the Book of Ezra 9:14. Essentially, the article claims that those want religious freedom are the fifth column because God said that intermarrying and failing to observe the Torah will result in the annihilation of the People from its Land. He writes: “He who brings about assimilation, he who brings about destruction of Judaism, he who brings about turning the Jewish people into another people, he and only he is the 'fifth column'.”

This last point was further picked up in the editorial, which expanded its assault in the name of preserving Israel's security to Zionist Orthodoxy as well. “So long as the Torah governs the Jewish people, it will have the upper hand; but when the Torah is pushed to the corner, when its rule is unstable, 'Esau's hand' grows stronger.” … “When Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed” (Ex. 17:11).

“This is many times more important at a time alien sects are attempting to invade Jewish communities and destroy them from within. Even among those who call themselves 'Orthodox' horrible phenomena are developing. Throughout the Jewish world there are 'rabbis' who hold truly heretical views and 'Orthodox' entities ordain women as 'rabbis' who are trying to break the tradition, invade any opening…”

One can easily understand the anger and frustration among Israelis who hear or read this rhetoric, especially when the politicians who represent this theology demand that their men not be drafted into the IDF because it is the Torah and yeshiva studies that ensure Israel's security… while they blame the IDF soldiers who are actually protecting the State for desecrating the Sabbath when they come home to visit their families.