Religious Zionist rabbis defend Chetboun
Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, who is chief rabbi of the city of Tzfat; Rabbi Elyakim Levanon, who is chief rabbi of Samaria (Shomron); and Rabbi Nahum Nerya, who heads the Torah B’Tzion yeshiva, all expressed support for Chetboun on Thursday.
The three signed on to an advertisement in Arutz Sheva’s weekly paper, B’Sheva, saying, “To the (reserves) Major decorated by the Chief of Staff Citation, who loves the land and the nation, the Torah and its scholars, the honest man, MK Yoni Chetboun – something real is beginning.”
The advertisement concludes, “Hazak v’ametz,” a traditional blessing for strength to continue in the same path.
The phrase “something real is beginning” is a play on the Jewish Home’s campaign slogan in the last election, “something new is beginning.”I wonder what percentage of Jewish Home party voters agree with Chetboun, Just saying....
Labels: draft, God, Haredim, IDF, Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, Torah, Yoni Chetboun
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:18 PM
6 Comments:
Basically Chetboun and these "Zionist Orthodox" rabbis are anti-Haredi and anti-Israel, as are you, if you support keeping them sheltered from secular knowledge and the world.
Why anti-Haredi? Because ultimately the proof is in the pudding, so to speak. Haredi life is marked by dire self-induced poverty. Huge numbers of Haredim do not starve to death because they receive subsidies from both the state and from other outside sources. This is no way to run any sort of sustainable society. Anyone can realize this who rationally evaluates the situation. Left to its own devices - without outside help via welfare or other - Haredi society would quite literally implode upon itself and outright collapse.
Why anti-Israel? Because of the high Haredi birthrate, Israeli society itself will collapse under the burden of supporting Haredi society via welfare stipends, as well as having huge numbers of Haredim who do not pay into the tax base. Moreover, the taxpaying citizens of Israel (Chilonim and Datim) disproportionately end up leaving Israel out of disgust for the system which demands they work hard in order to support an idle class. My own Chiloni family has frankly had it, as an example. This only means ever higher percentages of Haredim remain.
There are also problems with the Arab Israelis, whose wives are often not working, and also who take from welfare. Also the non-Bedouin and Druze Arab Israelis do not serve in the IDF. But at least the Arab Israeli educational system allows adult Arab Israelis to search for work! At least they are not kept purposefully ignorant and sheltered from the world in order to prevent them from having a chance of making it in society!
This entire way of life has to change for the welfare and betterment of Haredim and Israeli society. This system cannot be sustained, period. I understand you like Torah study, but Torah study under these conditions is not healthy, and nor is it sustainable.
As an aside, as a religious Jew, I am also baffled as to why you would support an institution like the State Rabbinate that I view as actually making Israel a far LESS Jewish State. Israel would be far MORE of a Jewish state if it did not have a vestige from Ottoman times known as the Office of the Rabbinate, which ought to be abolished.
This is true, b'derech hateva, if you take G-d out of the equation. Just saying....
RT, you have my sympathies. The solution is to indeed take away any taxpayer funded subsidies.
However, that goes for sports, theater, homosexual "safe" houses and all "culturaL" institutions and events as well.
I'm not saying this as a threat to secular causes. I believe with all my heart - and head - that this is what needs to be done across the board in Israel.
Along with such budgetary cuts would include eliminating the government fat which exists solely to keep this money drain pumping.
I believe that anywhere up to 70% of Israel's municipal, regional and national government is nothing but bloat and has to be dismantled.
And then the savings must trickle down to Israel's citizens in the form of massively reduced taxes. Then let the people decide what they wish to donate to and upkeep out of their own pockets.
This will resolve the problems you talk about. It will give everyone who until now is dependent on handouts in one form or another the freedom of choice to continue their lifestyle or choose otherwise. Either way, dependents will generally no longer be at the expense of others.
The picture is much bigger than Haredim or Arabs or Druze. Death to big government. Death to bureaucracy. Death to the nanny state.
Shy Guy,
Do not get me wrong - I am opposed to MOST taxpayer funded subsidies, especially included taxpayer funding for Israeli cinema, much of it being anti-Israel drivel. That said, safe houses for gays seems like a worthwhile thing to fund. Gays are far more likely to commit suicide and it is noble to fund them a place to go if they face honor killing from their Islamic family, or ostracization from their Haredi family. They may otherwise end up on drugs or turning tricks on the street. I am not saying I support gays being given permanent subsidies because of their status as being gay (obviously not!). But they do need a safe house to turn to temporarily and it probably is ultimately a cost savings for society to provide it to them.
Anyway overall yes - death to big government and the nanny state!
RT, The system can be sustained. As commented above, you are relying on government in place of Hashem. Hashem will support those who support Torah. No one has ever gone poor from giving tzedakah, including, IMHO, the state of Israel. Once you stop supporting Torah, that money that they thought they were going to save is just not going to be there.
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