By Steve Kramer
ALFE MENASHE, Israel — It’s not just the Arabs, Iran, the United Nations and the EU which present Israel with problems. There are internal ones as well. I’m not talking about a lack of democracy or sidelining of minorities or the shrinking middle class. Israel is one of the most vibrant democracies in the world; mistreatment of minorities is far less than in most countries, even other Western ones; the economic phenomenon of the shrinking middle class is worse in both America and Australia than in Israel.
I’m referring to the problem with Israel’s ultra-Orthodox population, known here as haredi/haredim (“those who tremble” before God). Constituting about 10% of the country’s population, the haredim (plus the Bedouin) are Israel’s most prolific, with a birthrate two or three times the typical Israeli family’s three children.
Having large families in itself is not a problem. Israel is proud that it has the West’s highest fertility rate. The worry is that haredim are at odds with the majority of Israelis in many crucial areas: education, work, and army service.
Mainstream Israelis deeply resent that most haredim follow their chosen lifestyle dependent on financial input from the government and handouts and, adding insult to injury, shun mandatory military service. I, for example, don’t care if haredi men want to pursue lifelong study of Torah at yeshivas, but I do object to having to subsidize their choice. I don’t care that haredi schools do not teach secular subjects that would prepare their students to join the workplace, but I do resent financially supporting that educational network and the poor families that are its result. I do care that many Israelis (especially privileged ones) find ways to avoid military service, but the only community that makes shunning the army a badge of honor is the haredim.
Of course, I’m generalizing. The haredim have many wonderful qualities, especially volunteering, sharing, and helping to preserve the Jewish religion. Many haredi wives work, despite having large families. Some of the men have jobs and study Torah in their spare time. There are military-age youth who volunteer for the army (but are ridiculed and sometimes even attacked in their neighborhoods). In all cases, the percentage who participates in the workforce and the army is much lower than that of the average Israeli. (In workforce participation, the least likely Israelis to join the workforce are haredi men and Arab women.)
I have long felt that this problem would rectify itself. Why? If the haredi population grows so rapidly that the public coffers cannot keep up with the amount of money needed to subsidize their lifestyle, then haredim will of necessity change their lifestyle to suit the circumstances. Israel’s current government has decreed that young haredim must join the IDF or participate in national service or face penalties, financial and otherwise. However, instead of compromising even a bit, the senior haredi rabbis have resisted and declared “war” against the government, fomenting violence in their communities against the state. (For their part, the rabbis believe the state has started a war against them and against their true Judaism.)
In the Jerusalem Post (27 Dec.) I read that certain Hassidic rabbis are planning to travel to America to enlist scores of thousands of their brethren to attend mass rallies “to generate diplomatic pressure on this wicked government.” I don’t understand where they get the nerve to expect security, subsidized housing, subsidized education, and larger child allowances from a country that they consider “wicked.” (The excursion has since been canceled, due to fear that the trip would be “misunderstood” and might “stir up” anti-Semitism.)
One of the leading rabbis of the haredi “Shas” political party, Rabbi Moshe Shafir, warned of “anarchy” or “chaos” if haredim lose their exemption from army service. (Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion gave the original military exemption to a small number of yeshiva students shortly after Israel’s independence, never dreaming that the number of exemptions would become thousands per year.)
Shafir said (July, 2012), “Not one haredi will enlist without the authorization of the rabbis. We’ll devote our lives to the Torah at any price.” Shafir warned of mass ultra-Orthodox demonstrations and said, “lawsuits in the UN and the international courts, such as those filed by Israel’s Left, will be effective.” He also warned that the haredim may resort to a “tax revolt” and launch strikes that will “make spaghetti of your country.” Shafir also warned of a mass haredi exodus “which will gradually turn you [non-haredi Jews] into a minority in the face of an Arab majority.” (www.ynet.news.com)
Does Rabbi Shafir imagine that there is another country that would welcome a mass influx of Jews who demand rights without earning them? Good luck with that!
Where did these rabbis get the idea that devoting one’s life to Torah study, at others’ expense, and leaving the defense of their country to others is a proper Jewish idea? Certainly not from the Maccabees, a priestly family that led the revolt against the Greeks who had defiled the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. And assuredly not from Maimonides, who was a rabbi, scholar, physician, and philosopher. Nor did this idea come from Hillel (woodcutter), Shammai (engineer), or Rashi (grape grower), all great sages of Judaism.
Another large but contrasting religious grouping in Israel is the National Religious. They are no less observant than the haredim, but they go to university, volunteer for the army, (where they are the backbone of the officer class), and constitute some of the most industrious and successful citizens of Israel. They ask for no more from the state than they deserve. The National Religious are a model that commands respect because they are givers, not takers.
The haredim contribute much to Israel. However, if they do not replace their myopic, intransigent rabbis with ones who identify with the State of Israel, there is indeed a lot to worry about. One hopes that these more sensible and practical rabbis will arise among them, and that they would recognize that following the norms of the Jewish State would guarantee them the best, most secure life. Or, they could migrate to the cities of New York or Baltimore, which are sure to welcome them with open arms …
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This article was previously published by the Jewish Times of South Jersey. Author Steven Kramer is based in Alfe Menashe, Israel. His works may also be read on the website, www.encounteringisrael.com