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Beit Midrash
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- Family and Society
- A Nation and its Halachot
- The Israeli State and Goverment
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Asher Ishaayahu Ben Rivka
When I reflect on the extreme loyalty to the Land of Israel displayed by the religious-Zionist camp, I cannot help but ask myself, "What is its source?" Does it spring from a sense of religious obligation, or is it the fruit of nationalism, and hence no different than the nationalist drives exhibited by other nations for which religion serves as a mere decorative veil. I understand that the religious-Zionist community recently organized a public fast in reaction to the government's willingness to relinquish parts of Eretz Yisrael. If the reason for your taking up the cause of Zionism is that it constitutes a religious obligation, why did you not first organize a public fast in response to the severing of our nation's spiritual limbs, i.e., the great ongoing desecration of Torah commandments in Israel today, a number of which are, in the words of our Sages, "equivalent to the entire Torah"? Does, in your eyes, the entire Jewish religion boil down to the Mitzvah of settling the Land of Israel?
Response:
Were our government to pass a law which, Heaven forbid, called upon the Israeli public to violate a Torah commandment - say, the observance of Sabbath, the performance of "Brit Mila" (religious circumcision), or some other practice - clearly we would all be obligated to oppose such a decision and to fast and pray for its speedy repeal. This is exactly what is taking place today with regard to the Land of Israel. The government wishes to prohibit the Jewish people from fulfilling the Mitzvah to settle Israel in profoundly meaningful parts of the country. This represents a general nullification of a Mitzvah and dissolution of the land's sanctity. In this respect, the commandment to settle Eretz Yisrael is incomparable to any other aspect of the Torah. True, as you pointed out, not everybody in Israel is Torah-observant today, but our government does not force these people to transgress Mitzvoth. In the case of Eretz Yisrael, the government is authorizing the relinquishment of portions of the Land of Israel, and this amounts to a decree to violate the Torah. Forfeiting land also involves a serious threat to human life. In summary, the struggle for Eretz Yisrael is a religious one, and it is indeed bewildering that there are learned and observant Jews who refrain from taking part in it.
Question:
You claim that your loyalty to the Land of Israel stems from religion. How can you rely on the position of the Ramban (Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman) regarding the obligation to settle the land when, in fact, the Ramban never said anything about the existence of a state? According to this eminent Torah scholar, fulfilling the Mitzvah to settle the land of Israel does not depend on the establishment of a Jewish state at all. This commandment can be fulfilled even under Arab rule.
Answer:
In order to understand the Ramban's position, we need only examine his words (in Ramban's glosses on Maimonides' Sefer HaMitzvoth, Positive Commandment 4): "We are commanded to inherit the land that the almighty God gave to our forefathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and not to leave it in the hands of other nations or in desolation, as it says, 'Inherit the land and live in it, since it is to you that I am giving the land to occupy. And settle the land…' " (Numbers 33:53).
The Ramban continues: "And this implies what the Sages refer to as an obligatory war." This means that there is a Mitzvah to conquer the land, and that the land be in our possession and not in the possession of some other nation. In the words of the Ramban, "We are not permitted to leave it in their hands..." - i.e., in the hands of the seven nations; "…and not in the hands of other nations in any generation." Clearly the Ramban is referring to national sovereignty. He even reiterates a number of times the fact that we are "not to leave it in the hands of other nations." In other words, the commandment is to conquer and rule over the land. And the Ramban adds, "The commandment which the Sages so highly acclaim (i.e., the settling of the land of Israel), to the point where they say: 'Anybody who leaves [the Land of Israel] to live outside of the land is to be considered like an idolater,' is a positive commandment: We have been commanded to inherit the land and live in it." The language of the Ramban makes it unmistakably clear that the Mitzvah is to conquer and settle the land; the commandment is to rule over the land, and not to allow others to rule therein. True, merely living in the land of Israel is also a Mitzvah, even if not under Jewish national sovereignty. Nevertheless, the essence of the Mitzvah is that there be full Jewish rule over the Land of Israel, and only in this manner is it completely fulfilled.
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Shlach Lecha "Why So Many Don't Make Aliya?" - Parshat Shlach
This short article deals with the weird phenomena that every single time Am Yisrael is meant to enter the Land of Israel, throughout the Tanach, 2nd Temple and until today, they "chicken out" and look for excuses. What's the problem with this mitzvah that proves so challenging. The article, based on sources, suggests that the difficulties of Eretz Yisrael is precisely her secret and beauty!
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 4
The class deals with Islam and how the Muslim tries convincing the King of the Khazars, and why he was also rejected.
Beha'alotcha JEWISH STATE= GUIDE TO G-DLINESS & SELFLESSNESS
A Jewish State not only is a good idea, but educates us towards selflessness, altruism and G-dliness in our daily lives.
Ein Aya In Zion Even the Smoke of the Bark is Sweet
Just as Jewish nationalism is different from others, so too our capitol of Jerusalem is totally different than other national capitols. Rav Kook beautifully explains the passage in the Talmud that the trees of Yerushalayim were cinnamon trees.
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 3
The second speaker invited to convince the Khazar King is the Christian, who presents their beliefs. Even before the questions of the King, "between the lines", the author R. Yehuda HaLevi already begins disproving them.
Ein Aya "Intimacy: Love, Life & Giving or Egocentric Taking & Expiration"
Today, many confuse between intimacy in marriage, based on love, giving and life which are diametrically opposed to empty "sex", pornography and prostitution which destroyed the Beit HaMikdash. The practical importance of clarifying this topic in today's western society is obvious, especially for young adults.
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 2
The King of the Kazars, in his search for truth, starts by inviting the philosopher. This is a "crash-course" on Aristotelian philosophy and the reasons why the king is not convinced. Through this dialogue, R. Yehuda HaLevi already foreshadows some of his central ideas that will appear later.
Shavuot "Love of Torah = Love of Israel"- for Shavuot
People often identify Judaism as just a religion, but upon examination, we see, even halachically and explicitly in the siddur, that the Torah is dependent upon Am Yisrael, Jewish nationalism.
Ein Aya The Middle-Child & Anti-Tzni'ut Syndrome- Negative Attention
Although tzni'ut is for men just like women, Rav Kook deals here with the sources in Yishayahu and the Talmud which deals with the special problem of lack of tzni'ut in women's dress and actions, where it's not just a problem of midot and character traits, but also can include practical, social and national ramifications, as well, which caused the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash and exile from Israel. The class continues the previous one (Ayn Aya Shabbat vi, 29), and is a must for all educators and parents of high-school aged and young adults.
P'ninat Mishpat P'NINAT MISHPAT: A Mess of Loans, Repayments and Grievances – part II
based on ruling 83033 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts
based on ruling 83033 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts