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| Image for illustration purposes (Cross Currents) |
I think that the proprietary attitude of the Charedi world of that term is why there is such a wide chasm between them and the rest of the religious world. They have so strongly believed in their Daas Torah that when a rabbinic leader of another religious segment disagrees with their it, they do not say Elu VeElu. They instead completely reject it as invalid. This is not the way the rest of the observant community looks at their Daas Torah. We respect it even when our leaders disagree with it.
That attitude is precisely what was expressed by a comment at Cross Currents. It was in a reply to an open letter from Rav Yitzchak Sheilat Rosh Yeshiva of the Hesder Yeshiva of Ma’aleh Adumim. Translated from the original Hebrew it was republished on CC by Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein.
In that letter that Rosh Yeshiva respectfully suggested a modest change in attitude in the Charedi world with respect to army service. Espeicaily at this time of war when the need is so great. He peppered his argument with biblical and rabbinic sources (both ancient and recent) to make his point.
Here in part is the not so respectful – in fact arrogant and insulting (!) reply from someone who is clearly Charedi:
Why don’t you go meet with Rav Dov Landau and Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch? Rav Hirsch speaks a fine English. They aren’t afraid to engage and answer the tough questions. Instead of serving as a useful idiot for those who seek to conform chareidim society to their own ideals get the truth from the leaders of the Torah world. Honestly, what’s stopping you. Rav Sheilat may be a great scholar but he’s not a man d’omar in this discussion. Societal change will be led by chareidi leaders, not soapbox lecturers. If you’re passionate enough, you’re not too old to clean the latrines or work in intelligence, go sign up.
Rabbi Adlerstein is too much of a gentleman to respond in kind. Although he did respond to his challenger with the following:
Great idea! But I beat you to it. I did have the private conversation. Weeks ago.
I don’t know what transpired between Rabbi Adlerstein and the Charedi ‘Gadol’ he spoke to. But my hunch is that this ‘Gadol’ was unmoved by what Rabbi Adlerstein had to say.
If that is indeed the case that this Gadol rejected any change in the Charefdi attitude about army service, he is certainly not alone. The Sephardi Chief Rabbi just expressed a similar attitude in the most hyperbolic way:
Chief Sephardic Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef warned Saturday that ultra-Orthodox Jews will leave Israel en masse if the government ends exemptions of mandatory military enlistment enjoyed by the community.
“If they force us to go to the army, we’ll all move abroad,” Yosef said during a weekly lecture. “We’ll buy a ticket… We’ll go there.”
If there is a better way to alienate the non Charedi public (both secular and religious) I don’t know what that would possibly be. The lack of sensitivity to the masses of those serving, dying, or injured is so disturbing, that I can’t believe anyone that is considered a dispensor of Daas Torah would ever say such a thing. It’s an affront to every mother that mourns the loss of a son or daughter fighting in the current existential war. An insult to every parent that can’t sleep because they are filled with worry whether a son or daughter will ever be coming home. It think it is an affront to every single Jew in the world that is not Charedi. Religious or not. I wouldn’t even be surprised if there were more than a few Charedim that were disturbed at these comments as well.
Unfortunately this comment continues to show the intransigence of Charedi leadership on this issue. Even as a disproportionate number of religious Jews have been killed during this war.
First I want to briefly respond to Rabbi Yosef’s biblical argument that:
The [biblical] tribe of Levi was exempted from the army,” he noted by way of comparison, referring to the biblical tribe from which the priesthood was drawn in Temple times. “They didn’t take them; absolutely not.”
If I recall correctly this exemption does not apply to a Michemes Mitzvah (an existential war). But even if it does, it only applies when there is a Beis HaMikdash. But let us even say that it always applies. Then fine .Let us exempt the Leviim and require every other Jew to serve.
True - Gedolim – from whom Daas Torah emanates - are not a monolithic group from which all decisions for the entire Jewish world are made. Chasidim have their Chasidic Rebbs to look to. Sephardim have their their Chacham. And even modern Orthodox Jews (Centrists) have our own.
But the term Daas Torah is used almost exclusively by the Lithuanian Yeshiva world whose numbers have exploded exponentially over the last few generations. And it is the Israeli Gedolim who are considered the most authoritative in that realm. (I believe the deference for Israeli Gedolim began in the Rav Shach era and continues to this day.)
How does one become a Gadol in the Lithuanian Yeshiva world? Of course it begins with a lifetime of Torah study and being reconized for it. In most cases they become Rosh Yeshiva and/or a Posek . But I also believe that age has very much to do with that. The older they are the more deference they get from their community. That is why the aforementioned Rav Dov Landau and Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch are so widely seen as the new purveyors of Daas Torah
I do not believe that being in one's nineties makes someone a Gadol. Even though they might otherwise qualify because of their Torah knowledge. Not when their ‘logic’ is so harmful to the fabric of the Jewish nation. Not when their logic tends to save their community’s own skin while others sacrifice theirs.
It cannot be the case that all Charedim must be exempted for army service. Any Gadol that says that under current conditions has in my view lost the right to be considered a purveyor of Daas Torah. It cannot be that such a divisive and even destructive stand is Daas Torah. Not when so many religious Jews are dying on the battle field. It cannot be Daas Torah when Charedi mothers do not have to worry about a son or daughter coming back alive from battle while the majority of non Charedi mothers do.
It’s not that Torah study isn’t as important as they say it is. It’s just that their intransigent attitude about army service doesn’t contradict that. I don’t see how anyone can accept that as Daas Torah. In fact I have to believe that in their heart of hearts neither does the typical mainstream Charedi. Except for people like the abovementioned commentator on Cross Currents. Hopefully he is in the minority. Probelm is that it wont really matter how the majority feels since no one will chalengre the view of the Daas Torah of newly minted elderly Gedolei Hador.
Just telling it like it is.