Parashat Hashavua: Closeness and Combat on the Way to the Divine

Beit Midrash

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Chemdat Yamim
Parashat Hashavua

קטגוריה משנית

Torah Portion and Tanach
Vayikra
Achrei Mot

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After Nadav and Avihu tragically failed to draw close to Hashem through incense, our parasha teaches that the closest man can get to Hashem is the kohen gadol on Yom Kippur. He brings the incense into the Holy of Holies – but he must follow the rules precisely. Even then, it does not bring atonement for sins between man and man. We learn from Aharon’s sons’ mistake that it is not enough to "want to draw close" to Hashem.
The Jewish People know that Eretz Yisrael is the ideal place to draw close to Hashem, but this was close to impossible for 2,000 years. 250 years ago, the Vilna Gaon exhorted his disciples to build Eretz Yisrael, physically and spiritually, and hinted about a historical window for this, which would close in Elul 1939. Hundreds, including R. Menachem and R. Yisrael of Shklov, heeded the call; most of our nation did not.
Around 150 years ago, Herzl started expounding the idea of political Zionism. Few followed the practical plan he set forth at the first Zionist Congress. In the religious camp, most saw him as delusionary and his ideas as weakening the Jewish future. On the other hand, the true visionary and independent-thinking giant of Torah, Rav A.Y. Kook zt"l, emerged, after moving to Eretz Yisrael, as a supporter of political Zionism.
There are mainly three religious grounds to reject Zionism: 1. Herzl and other secular Zionists act as a Satan. 2. The Talmud (Ketubot 111a) forbids organized Jewish mass-settlement in Eretz Yisrael, which should occur through miraculous divine steps. 3. Cooperative work with secularists is spiritually dangerous and contradicts closeness with Hashem.
The first two grounds, which we link to Satmar Hasidut, have been disproven by the blessing in the spiritual as well as physical success of the State of Israel. We have seen that the path toward the divinely ordained liberation employs a "reawakening from below." The halachic claims against mass settlement are rejected by almost all halachic authorities after the foreign mandatory authorities left the Land (see Rav Zevin’s L’or Hahalcha Hamilchama I:7). However, such greats as the Chofetz Chaim and the Chazon Ish opposed Zionism based on the grounds of partnership with irreligious groups, and this has been the accepted Charedi approach for many years. The Chazon Ish led this community in the efforts to build the "world of Torah" in Eretz Yisrael, rather than the physical/political infrastructure, including service in the IDF.
However, in the past few decades there has rarely been an Israeli government without significant Charedi participation, and Charedi communities have taken major parts in building the Land. The disconnect continues primarily in regard to army service. The main complaint is about the religious difficulty of serving and the long-term impact on religious life.
However, these objections are overpowered by three points: 1. All are required to take part in a defensive war. 2. The Chashmonaim Brigade now gives a perfect response to the religious needs of Charedi soldiers. 3. The requirement to join in defense of the Jewish community is a mitzva between man and man, in a way that one cannot get close to Hashem without it. We hope that the Charedi young men will learn from the example of Rav Kook’s spiritual descendants and sanctify Hashem’s Name by distinguished service in the army.

Achrei Mot

Parashat Hashavua