The Ultra Orthodox (only a minority of Ultra Orthodox according to some) complaint against the Army

Can't see images? Click here... Yehuda Lave, Spiritual Advisor and Counselor Joy at Overcoming Obstacles My email is different today.If you don't like what I have to say today, remember you might like it tomorrow. I am sumarizing some of the many opionions I have read about the Charadi rioters last week in Jerusalem and other cities in Israel where they shut the city down and no one could get to their destinations or even ambulances to hospital. The underlying problem is that those that want to walk in the way of G-d are supposed to respect the authority of their own country, the only country in the world where Jews are a majority and are respected. Because these radical groups belive they have the right to live in the country and not defend it from our multiple enemies, we have a fifth columunist group among our own followers of G-d.   A disciple of the Chozeh of Lublin was walking on the road to visit his rabbi. All of a sudden, a heavy rain came pouring down, and the disciple began to sing and dance. He explained: "When people would walk to the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, no inconvenience along the way could deter them - because of their joyous anticipation of being in Jerusalem. Similarly, I greatly anticipate being near our great teacher - and therefore any difficulty simply increases my joy!" Love Yehuda Lave The two sides of the story on the Ultra-Orthodox protest against the army you decide Respecting the police is a Mitavah One reason that people are  upset with Hasidim fighting with the police has not been pointed out. This writer from a letter to the Jerusalem post, points it out below. In Parashat Shoftim, it is a mitzva to appoint shotrim (police). They are part of God's outline for how we are meant to conduct our civil society, and this certainly applies to us in Israel today. So when any citizens, including haredim, disobey the police or other authorities who function to protect us and run our society in a civil manner, and when these authorities are even just verbally abused, the demonstrators are breaking a mitzva. Their leaders who encourage them are equally guilty. DAVID AMINOFF  Jerusalem  SHOCKING FOOTAGE: Peleg Protesters Refuse To Allow Ambulance On An Emergency Call To Pass October 19, 2017 It is shocking to see but even a Magen David Adom ambulance on an emergency call has to back out of a street as Peleg faction protesters on Thursday afternoon, 29 Tishrei, refuse to open the Jerusalem street to permit the emergency vehicle to pass. One can only wonder what the reaction would be among these bnei torah if others blocked a Hatzalah response vehicle or ambulance on its way to an emergency in their area. Peleg-affiliated rabbonim continue to decry violence and attacks, yet they remain silent as we are witness to the unfolding of a fourth consecutive day of closing down roadways, the Jerusalem light rail and simply causing anguish to so many tens of thousands of people. OPINION: The protestors are not Chareidim Zev Stub   Sunday, 22 October 9:16 AM       A Janglo user asked us to post this article by Rabbi Avraham Edelstein The protestors are not Chareidim The protests blocking streets in Israel on Thursday were organized by Peleg Yerushalmi, some five percent of the Chareidi public. They are a marginal group, not tolerated by mainstream Chareidim. Chareidi yeshivot and other institutions will not hire such people, and their association with us (in the mind of the broader public) is causing untold damage to the wider ultra-Orthodox community.  This group have created an issue – that they are fighting to be able to sit and study Torah. Chareidim can already do that, and have done that since the foundation of the State. As a Chareidi, I want to thank the State of Israel for creating the various laws that have allowed this, even though it is a hugely contentious issue. I am not here to discuss the merits of this law here, or its fairness to others, only to point out that there has always been such a law. But, there are many Chareidim who are not sitting and studying in a yeshiva. The late Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, the great sage of the generation, was clear that these people have a choice – they can leave Israel or go to the army. Indeed, an increasing number of Chareidim have chosen to go to the army. The army has special frameworks for them which includes Mehadrin Kosher food, prayer times and an hour of Torah-study every day.   The two Chareidim arrested for draft dodging were of this latter group, i.e. not studying in yeshiva. The police do not raid yeshivot and drag students to the army.  But the extremists have gone further in stoking the fires. They refuse to even go and get their exemption when learning full time.  They are deliberately making themselves illegal. This is a new idea, not acceptable to the main-stream Chareidim. Chareidim always got their exemptions legally. They didn't challenge the State. They didn't promote anarchy.  This new group represents a dangerous distortion of the beautiful and wise and sensitive Judaism I know. Theirs is a religion of us verses them, of protests and intimidation, of things that are anti-Torah. Mine is a Judaism of kindness and giving, of unity and spirituality, of softness and gentleness.  Please don't call these people Chareidim. Don't even call them Orthodox.  Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, one of the leaders of the ultra-Orthodox community, attacked the Jerusalem Faction over the battle its members have been waging against the draft law in recent days, calling them an "empty and reckless flock without a shepherd." Haredi leader lambasts anti-draft protesters A renowned leader of the Orthodox Jewish community slams recent anti-draft protesters, calling them 'empty and reckless' street youth who 'publicly desecrate' the Torah.Kobi Nachshoni and Yishai Porat|Published:  20.10.17 , 23:11   Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky, one of the leaders of the ultra-Orthodox community, attacked the Jerusalem Faction over the battle its members have been waging against the draft law in recent days, calling them an "empty and reckless flock without a shepherd."   Kanievsky is considered one of the "greatest (rabbis) of his generation" and the second-most influential rabbi in Lithuanian Judaism, led by Rabbi Aharon Yehuda Leib Shteinman.   In a letter to the Orthodox Jewish weekly newspaper Yated Ne'eman, the rabbi implicitly criticized the leader of the faction, Rabbi Shmuel Auerbach, and describing his students as "a flock without a shepherd," who lack piety and commit acts of desecration of the Torah.    Despite the open rivalry between Kanievsky's mainstream Lithuanian faction and Auerbach Jerusalem Faction, Rabbi Kanievsky's criticism of Rabbi Auerbach and his followers is an unusual step, as the Jerusalem Faction has been largly ignored within the Orthodox community, dismissed as a mere vocal minority.   The change in Kanievsky's tone took place following recent a disturbance caused by ultra-Orthodox youths associated with the Jerusalem Faction, who barged into the mainstream Ohr Yisrael yeshiva during one of their recent anti-draft protests and disrupted a Torah lesson held there.   "I have been sick to my stomach over recent harm to the sanctity of the Torah, which has been degraded to the very depths of hell by some empty and reckless (youths—ed)," Kanievsky wrote. "Woe to us that this is the case today."     In an editorial published by the newspaper Yated Ne'eman following Kanievsky's letter, the members of the Jerusalem Faction were called an "inflamed mob" and "public desecrators," who act as "street youth" and cast fear on the general public.    The demonstrations culminated on Thursday, with the arrest of 120 ultra-Orthodox demonstrators during the "Day of Wrath" protests in Jerusalem.     The detainees, all belonging to the Jerusalem Faction, protested against the enlistment of yeshiva students and the detention of deserters.     90 detainees were released Thursday night under restrictive conditions and received fines.     About 30 other detainees were brought to the Jerusalem Magistrate's Court Friday, but it is not clear which of them will be brought for a remand hearing or whether it will be decided to release them under restrictive condition.     This week's ultra-Orthodox protests were sparked by the arrest of two Jerusalem Faction yeshiva students, who returned from the Dead Sea to Jerusalem and were flagged down for routine check by police. When the officers ran their names, they found they were defectors from the army and arrested them.   Rationalist Judaism Exploring the legacy of the rationalist medieval Torah scholars, and various other notes, by Rabbi Dr. Natan Slifkin, director of The Biblical Museum of Natural History in Beit Shemesh Monday, October 23, 2017Was the "Charedi Day Of Rage" Charedi? Last Thursday saw the "Charedi Day Of Rage," in which thousands of charedi demonstrators blocked roads across Israel and engaged in mass protests, some of which turned violent. This was in response to the arrest of two yeshivah students who had not registered for an army exemption, and were caught after being pulled over for dangerous driving on their way back from the Dead Sea (no doubt visiting one of the many yeshivos there). It was organized by Rav Shmuel Auerbach's "Peleg Yerushalmi" faction. This was a very serious event. In the words of one participant, "We'll fight with every fiber of our being; we'd accept death before transgression on this. We'll fight to our last drop of blood. We will not give up. We'll die before joining the army." They will leave yeshiva and engage in violent warfare rather than leave yeshivah and serve in the Israel Defense Forces! (I saw it reported in the name of one cynical Rosh Yeshivah that halachically, they should not choose to die; instead, they should simply amputate their hands and be exempt from army duty.) On a serious note, though, this was a terrible enterprise, causing problems for countless thousands of people, as was the intention - the official summons to protest announced that וכל הגולה כולה תבער כמדורת אש.   To what extent can this horrible event be called a "charedi" phenomenon? Rabbi Avraham Edelstein argues that it was not a charedi event at all. He states that the Peleg faction is only 5% of the charedi community, and does not represent the values of mainstream charedim. He concludes, "Don't call these people charedim. Don't even call them Orthodox." It is certainly true that there is a deep division in Israeli charedi society between the mainstream Rav Steinman camp and the Rav Shmuel Auerbach camp. I am also fairly certain that many, perhaps even most, Israeli charedim were disgusted by last Thursday's event. It is therefore misleading and even defamatory to consider it as representing mainstream charedi society. Still, to completely disavow any charedi aspect of the Day Of Rage is incorrect, for two reasons. First is that the Peleg group does not exist in a vacuum. As discussed previously in a post on Charedi Extremist Violence, there is a continuous spectrum in the charedi world of opposition to the State and the IDF. There was Rav Steinman and others referring to the government as Amalek. There was the entirety of charedi society turning out for a rally in which they recited Shefoch Chamascha - referring to the government. Yes, the Peleg faction is more extreme than the rest of charedi society, but they are clearly on the same spectrum.  The second reason why it is incorrect to deny any charedi aspect to the Day Of Rage is that the rest of Charedi society is not condemning it (or even mentioning it). Rabbi Edelstein is writing a kiruv piece for non-charedim. Have Yated or HaModia or Ami or Mishpacha condemned Rav Shmuel Auerbach (and have they even reported on the Day of Rage)? The mainstream charedi press has no qualms in calling out the excesses of Open Orthodoxy as demonstrating that they are not Orthodox. But they are not going to do the same here. Because, ultimately, they see Open Orthodoxy (and Modern Orthodoxy, and Religious Zionists) as "other," whereas they see Rav Shmuel Auerbach and the Peleg faction as "us." Let's be honest about what the societal problem is. Open letter to a Peleg Yerushalmi rioter: Thanks for the 'lessons The Peleg Yerushalmi anti-draft registration riots as a learning experiece Isaac Kohn is SVP of HealthPoint Acquisitions Hi there: To introduce myself, please know that I, too, and my entire family are categorized as "hareidim".... We wear the black hats, jackets and most of our boys wear the tzitzis hanging on the sides of their hips. The Yeshivas we went and go to are all kosher ve'yosher, in the hareidi category or even a bit towards the hasidish trend. Now you have my calling card As such, though I am definitely not a member or even a close acquaintance with the Peleg Yerushalmi you belong to, the pictures, videos and simple sights of the demonstrations / riots you perpetrated this last week, have left me with an indelible understanding of who you are. Let me state here emphatically that everything I witnessed you doing, must have been meant, at least in your opinion, Le'shem Shamayim - for the sake of Heaven - and a tremendous uplifting of the Jewish spirit.  Well, almost everything... I want you to know that you taught me a number of very important lessons which I intend to impart to my children and grandchildren to follow in the future. What did I learn? I learned that it is OK to waste precious time from the 'learning' you are clamoring for. I learned that every dollar donated to the upkeep of the yeshivas you attend, is a dollar thrown away. You taught me that in Peleg Yerushalayim a 'Ben Torah' and a 'Ben Sorer U'moreh' (Rebellious son in the Bible, ed.) are one and the same....cut from one ugly mold. I learned that young fellows like you, barely out of elementary school, learn quickly the art of chutzpah and that individualism in your cult comes way and above the good of the general populaton. Is this what your parents instilled in you? Your actions taught me that to raise my hands and feet to hit and kick women, is not only your right but also must be a declared mitzvah emanating from the directives of your cult. You also demonstrated quite clearly that stealing phones from others who do not agree with your outrageous stupidity, is a G-d given right. Bravo. Thank you too, for demonstrating to one and all that fighting with girls comes hand-in-hand with loud nivul-peh. Doing so, while the wild, unruly crowd swarmed around you, showed me how spineless you are. Spineless. Do you know how many doctor and hospital-bound people you prevented from reaching the help they needed? Do you care that thousands of working people were late to their jobs because of you? Do you care to know how many people missed their flights due to your outrageous behavior? Do you know how many shiurim were delayed or canceled because of you? Obviously you don't. I believe the security forces didn't do a proper job in ending your outrageous antics. I believe that they treated you with silk gloves, rather than the iron-fist needed to stop the outrage at its birth. What a shame. Some people say you are crazy, nuts, stupid, wild, sick, disturbed, unbalanced and many more descriptive titles which they pinned on you and your friends. Others say you are morons, idiots. They are wrong. None of those describe you properly. You are nothing more than reshaim – evil persons following an evil path. If Moishe Rabbeinu was here today, he'd smash the second tablets too. PS... Don't forget to call the police – those you insulted this week – if you need help anytime during the rest of your life. In case of enemy hostilities, don't forget to quickly hide behind the back of the brave soldiers, you cursed yesterday. You'll be safe behind their back. They will not treat you in the manner you behaved towards them.   Thanks for the life-long lessons. See you tomorrow Love Yehuda Lave Rabbi Yehuda Lave Your mailing address Contact Phone Website LIKE TWEET FORWARD You received this email because you signed up on our website or made purchase from us. Unsubscribe