How do I see the situation in Israel?

Why This Generation MUST Reject Truth

Let us take a faith-based look at our generation, through the prism of the teachings of the Land of Israel's first modern-day chief rabbi, Rav Kook.

The Footsteps of Mashiah

Rotten on the Outside, Perfect on the Inside

How can the contradiction be explained, between what is seen on the outside and what we really are on the inside? How can there be such an acute contrast between our inner essence, so complete and perfect, and our external trappings which appear to be the exact opposite?

Why Such an Emphasis on the Land of Israel?

Why did the religious-Zionist camp take upon itself the commandment of the Land of Israel as such a primary and important project, while ignoring all the other commandments?

Our Direction After Gush Katif and Amona

Our opinion is that we need to express our pain in the staunchest way possible. We need to express our difficulty in accepting a decree which goes against the Torah and which undermines the commandment to settlement the land of Israel.

When Shall We Answer the Request for Forgiveness?

The IDF insists on blind obedience and compliance with orders even if they run counter to the soldier's beliefs. It has turned soldiers into unfeeling slaves with no right to exercise objective thought and no right to remain true to their principles.

Laundry Day

Recent episodes of corruption and anti-democratic activity by Israel's leadership appear quite frightening at first glance. However, such phenomena herald the beginnings of spiritual cleansing. Faithful perseverance will bring ultimate blessing.

To the Settlers of Gush Katif

People of Gush Katif, you are presently paining and perplexed, and we share in your suffering. Yet we are full of faith that by enduring these trials and understanding that they are “pangs of the Messiah,” you will ascend to a new and better reality.

Outwardly Lacking - Inwardly Perfect

The schisms which tear at the nation of Israel and rend it to pieces conceal the essential inner oneness which unites Israel more than any nation. Outward weakness conceals an inner greatness, the outward disavowal hides an enormous inner of faith.

The Refusal to Follow Orders Strengthens the IDF

Rabbi Tzvi Yehudah loved the state of Israel with all his heart. For him, Torah and the state were not disparate values which conflicted. They constituted a single value—Torah. By virtue of the Torah, the state receives its great and profound worth.

Freedom

We, the Nation of Israel, must protect our uniqueness. We must throw off all foreign and coercive influences and become what we really are. What we really are is written in the Torah, which was given to us by the Creator Himself, He Who chose us.

An Alternative Plan

We must focus our concern upon the very issue for which the state of Israel was established - we must return to Israel's scroll of independence. We have to think about how to create a bond between the Jews of the Diaspora and the land of Israel.

People Who Care

People vary in nature. Some people care; others do not. Some people care about what happens to the Jewish people and what happens to the Land of Israel; for others, these matters are not high up on the list of their priorities.

A Long-Term Conflict

The conflict between Israel and the Arabs runs very deep. It is a religious conflict to which there exists no solution at present. We must presently pour our energies into transforming Israel into a state for all of the Jewish people in the world.

Regarding the Consensual Acceptance of Judges

On the biblical verse, “These are the laws that you must set before (the Israelites),” the Gemara states, “‘Before them’ - but not before the nations; ‘before them’ - but not before unordained judges.”

Joseph and His Brothers

The Settlers and the Israeli Left

Relations between Israel's left and the settler community seem to mirror the sort of relations that existed between Joseph and his brothers. The settlers, like Joseph, dream messianic dreams about the redemption of Israel; the brothers are spiteful.

Don't Cause a Rift in the Nation

If one letter is removed from a Torah scroll, it is incomplete; similarly, if one portion of the land of Israel is removed, it is lacking. He who stabs a knife into the heart of the land, in effect stabs a knife into the heart of the nation.

Tension in the Persian Gulf

I prefer to look for the positive side of this atmosphere of tension which is overtaking the public; for, every circumstance in the world contains an essentially positive aspect by virtue of which it is granted existence.

Israeli Rule: A Mitzvah

"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?' "