If the treasury has its way the new bill addressing the chareidi tzibur’s fulfillment of its national duties will be carried out by enlisting chareidim as police and firemen.
According to a report appearing in the daily Haaretz, the Finance Ministry does not wish to pursue a compulsory draft for chareidim, but feels the current reality is a preferential one considering the realities involved in the situation. The plan permits chareidim to continue learning torah, but to lower the service age from 22 to 20, and to continue with the customized units that meet the needs of a chareidi lifestyle but to permit serving in the police or fire department as alternatives to the IDF.
Treasury officials feel this may be more acceptable since the two agencies are still civilian as opposed to the IDF, which is a military framework. The plan would also offer financial incentives which would make joining police or fire more attractive.
In addition, the treasury plans to set quotas for yeshiva students for life, in line with the ruling of the High Court, and state funding will only be provided for students and yeshivos in line with quotas. The plan is to have chareidim join police or fire for full service of 19-24 months.
At present, there are 6,000 IDF soldiers ‘on loan’ to police, that is to say they are soldiers assigned to Israel Police. The plan would use the chareidim to fill these 6,000 slots, permitting those in the slots today to remain in a military framework.
Treasury officials are aware the plan would have to receive the approval of rabbonim, aware the difficulty would be is the enlistment age being lowered from 22 to 20, but this appears to be a non-negotiable point from the treasury’s point of view. One of the reasons is that chareidim get married earlier than the general population and enlisting them while they are single is significantly less complicated for many reasons, not to mention less costly.
Officials are aware that at age 20, chareidi males are immersed in torah and therefore, rabbonim are unlikely to accept this on face value, but whatever the outcome, they are of the opinion that an agreement can be reached for as long as efforts are made to promote dialogue and not attempt to compel the community to accept new unwanted realities.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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7 Responses
If they would be willing to work in law enforcement and as fire fighters…what would be the reason for exempting them from military service? They are trying too hard to squirm out of the armed foeces…while everyone else, frum and frei, has to serve.
Every community and most individuals have “needs” that could be asserted to dodge compulsary service…but the politics of Israel is such that the chareidim alone get away with it…not pretty.
The Gemoro says that the ideal age to get married is BEFORE one turns 20. Here’s a good reason for the Litvishe to try observing this too… (Rav Moshe Feinstien also has an explicit Tshuva where he makes it very clear that this holds today as well).
The Satmar Rov points out at the end of Ma’amar Yishuv Eretz Yisroel that working in clerical Jobs for the State can lead to identifying with the State because one’s Parnoso depends on them.
In any case, as the Satmar Rov prooved, if they have to pledge to the State (or probably even to just stand for their “Hatikva”) this would be permissible under no circumstances.
While police and fire in Israel are less problematic than the army since the people are civilians who go home to sleep, you still will have many problems. The solution of alternative service works well in places like Germany where you are dealing with pacifist who oppose all war (something that is clearly not a Jewish doctrine). Runing any secular agency so Orthodox Jews can fully participate means alienating the hilonim who will stream “religious coercion” when asked to accomodate frum coworkers, and one still has the problem of perhaps a quarter of Hareidim who are anti-zionist are are refusing to serve in the army on political grounds, even if they say they are busy learning in order to be non-confrontational.
Old Faassioned Jew, R’ Shlomo Zalman Auerbach worked for the Rabbanut HaRashit and as such he was on the government’s payroll and he wasn’t the only one. As you see, there have been g’dolei Israel who did not hold like the Satmar Rav. R’ Aharon Kotler and R’ Moshe Feinstein argued with the Satmar Rav on many other issues.
I an aware of several frum police officers in Eretz Yisroel. Some are involved with clerical or inservice employment.
#4. First, let’s get the facts streight. It happens to be Rav Auerbach did not work for their Rabbanut (althogh their were others who did.)
Second, it’s nice to quote names of Gdolei Torah and say “they did not hold like the Satmar Rov”. But do you know what they DID hold? Do you know what the ‘nekudas hamachlokes’ was? Are you sure that whatever you are following is really what they held? And finally, do you know what the position is based on?
Thirdly, Aharon Hakohen was probably greater than anyone we have mentioned, that does not mean the Eigel Hazahav was alright. So you have to know what the issues are.
If they would be willing to work in law enforcement and as fire fighters…what would be the reason for exempting them from military service?
Because they can live at home and surrounded by the good influence of their community, and have all their religious needs supplied from home, rather than in an atmosphere that is not conducive to kedusha, to say the least.
perhaps a quarter of Hareidim who are anti-zionist are are refusing to serve in the army on political grounds,
I doubt it’s anything like that many. But those people should be treated just like chiloni leftist objectors. Ideally, there should be no conscription, but they should not enjoy the benefits of citizenship, including the right to vote.
It happens to be Rav Auerbach did not work for their Rabbanut
No, Rav Elyoshiv did.
But do you know what they DID hold?
Yes. They held that it was perfectly OK to work for the Israeli government, just as it is to work for the US government or for any other employer.