HaGaon HaRav Shmuel Aryeh Levine of Argentina is currently in Israel. Rav Levine is viewed as a prominent talmid of HaGaon HaRav Shach ZT”L ZY”A.
On motzei Shabbos Parshas Yisro Rav Levine addressed talmidim in Ashdod. He told the talmidim “We had a leader, who is now gone, and there are those trying to eradicate his derech”. Rav Levine spoke out against Degel Hatorah and MK Moshe Gafne.
Rav Levine then addressed that unfortunately today, there are those who align with the Rosh Yeshiva, referring to HaGaon HaRav Shmuel Auerbach Shlita and this results in their being thrown out, citing the case of an avreich from Kiryat Sefer who was thrown out of kollel because of this. “We know just how much Maran Rav Shach valued Rav Auerbach. This is a reason? This is why an avreich is thrown out of kollel and everyone remains silent. My heart hurts.
“We are talmidim who were close to Maran R’ Shach and we know and remember how much the rav toiled to establish Yahadut Hatorah. Today they have taken over and it is the opposite of what it was…”
Rav Levine explained how Rav Shach was moser nefesh for Degel Hatorah and today there is a draft law aimed against chareidim.
Rav Levine added “After the party’s first success in elections Maran cried and said ‘How did I accept responsibility for all of the Torah World to build Degel Hatorah and chas v’sholom if we don’t succeed’. Understand from this the responsibility felt by the gedolim”.
Rav Levine explained Maran told him ten years prior to the establishment of Degel that he needs to establish a new Agudas Yisrael but he was simply too tired. He told the talmidim that today, there is a draft law and Degel Hatorah officials has handed over lists of talmidim eligible for the draft to military authorities. “Mossrim! And no one opens his mouth. We must know the world is not hefker” he added.
Rav Levine drew an analogy of a Stalin regime, under which one may not speak out or express an opinion. He spoke of how Moshe Dayan tried to persuade Rav Shach to accept a ceiling on the number of lomdei Torah to receive a draft deferment but Maran rejected it yet there was no draft law to take everyone as Dayan threatened yet today there is.
The rav explained Rav Auerbach has been warning of the IDF’s efforts, which he calls “Shmad”, and one may not compromise in any way, acknowledge some do not agree with this. “Rav Shach told us not to be afraid since we know HKBH runs the world”.
He spoke of how much Rav Shach worked and supported limud Torah together with the Chazon Ish, citing Lakewood as a success story. “I am not here to determine who is correct but when there is another opinion then listen to eat and don’t ban them like yayin nesach…Don’t pasul us from being baalei tefilos. And why? Because we cling to the derech of Rav Shach?
Rav Shlomo Lorentz wasn’t good for Gafne who shouted “He is serving as an MK for 30 years already and it’s time to step down. Today Gafne is serving 30 years and I am shouting enough regarding him”.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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17 Responses
Strong words. Definitely two opinions with great Gedolim on both sides.
However, one thing we should remember to keep clear: The opinions are those of the living only. We cannot compare what Rav Shach said to today’s situation. Hashem gives living leaders to every generation, which presents different realities on the ground.
I’m not getting involved.
If you are hareidi you have the following options:
1. Support a hareidi party that is willing to oppose conscription from “within the system” (Yahadut ha-Torah or Shas, and perhaps Yachad)
2. Support a party that supports conscription and considers it a mitzvah to serve in the IDF (Bayit Yehudi and perhaps Yachad)
3. Support the Eidis hareidis position, which includes rejecting government funding and attempting to be neutral in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (which means probably be willing to support the Arabs against the Zionists if the Arabs ever make serious offer to respect Jewish autonomy in a post-zionist entity – which isn’t all that likely).
#3 Since when has yahadut hatorah and shas opposed conscription from within?
They sat with Shaked to ‘sort things out’. They both agreed to a ceiling number of conscriptees
ps. there is a 4th option. Taking Rav Shmuel Auerbach’s side (which is not completely like the Eida)
“… if the Arabs ever make serious offer to respect Jewish autonomy in a post-zionist entity …”
If the Arab promises to rob and kill you, believe him he is willing and eager to rob and kill you.
If the Arab promises to respect your right to life and your possessions, DON’T BELIEVE HIM!!!
If you haven’t this from the past 14 centuries of Islam, then you Islam’s next korban.
For years before the zionist state came around the palestinians (arabs) and jews lived peacefully. The hatred started after the zionists came and threw the arabs out of thier homes. Also were not talking about muslims, were talking about palestinians. I would also be pretty upset if someone came into my home and just kicked me out!
This article helps push me toward Yachad. Thanks!
I have seen enough “machlokos L’sheim Shomayim” I’m waiting to see some Achdus L’man Hasholom
#6 Learn accurate facts and history of Palestine/Israel including pogroms & massacres in the late 1800 & early 1900 hundred. You were feed inaccuracies and anti-Jewish info.
Zionflag. There is eidus from R’ Baruch Kaplan (husband of Reb. Vichna Kaplan) [also recorded] who was in Chevron Yeshiva during the pogrom said that people think the reson the attack happened is because the arabs didnt get along with the jews. The real truth is that they were friends with the arabs but the zionist came and bothered them and said that they were gonna come and kick them out. R’ Kaplan has said also many stories in this recording of how good they got along. Im sorry to tell you that you were sadly misinformed by zionist propaganda.
notwhouthinkiam, have you heard of the Chevron Yeshiva’s massacre in 1929? How about the massacre of the Jews in Tzfas? They were charedim, they didn’t kick anyone out of anywhere. On the contrary, they gave Arabs lots of business. The Arabs came with knives and axes, in good Arab tradition, and murdered 67 Kedoshim, all shomrei Torah U’Mitzvos in Chevron and 18 in Tzfas. Just cut out your anti this and anti that political postures. To Arabs, just as to Nazis, a good Jew is a dead Jew. They won’t spare you for speaking against your brothers. They will laugh at you. An Arab is a killer. He kills Jews, Arabs, whoever he gets his hands on. Look what has been going on in Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Sudan, Yemen, etc. etc. etc.
The problem is not to go into or not to go into the IDF, what is going on here is that certain rabel rousing rabbis don’t want their boys to even bring the papers that would give them a deferment from the army like every one else does, since G-d forbid they might see a girl (aahahahaha!)
Amen! The truth hurts to some ppl.
I can’t understand how so many people claim that life was wonderful living under Muslim rule. While there was never anything as bad as the Inquisition or the Shoah, and there were times such as the Golden Age in Spain and the early Ottoman Empire where Jews were really treated well, there were also periods of severe persecution and this existed long before modern Zionism existed. Most if not all Jews I’ve met who are from Muslim countries were very happy to be able to get out.
When the shelloh halodosh ran away from yerushalayim to teveria there were no zionists. When rebbi chaim vital ran away to damesek there were no zionists. And when rebbi yehua halevi was trampled by an Arab when he kissed the ground in eretz yisrael there were no zionists. The massacre in hevron happened for the same reason that there was a massacre in Europe. Rashbi explained it. Halachah yeduah esav sonah lyakov.
It’s hard to differentiate some of the comments here from our arab cousins.
At the Jewish community in Argentina there is a system of political parties that is similar to the Israeli one, and there are elections every couple of years to elect the had of the community.
A couple of years ago, the whole frum community, agudas, yisroel, chabad (which is very large),sfardim, and bnei akiva (mizrahi) yidn, got together for the elections and won them.
I think that it is about time and hope that this Rabbi speaks about his experience in Argentina to apply the same in Israel.
Today if all the frum in Israel get together, they will probably be already the biggest party. It can be a technical union to win, but they will win.
The Arabs/Muslims weren’t our best friends for the last 2,000 years prior to zionism (circa early 1900s) but they were far far better than the European/Christian/Church butchers were to us. The European/Christian/Church were butchering us for thousands of years beginning from the churban beis hamiksash through the Crusades throug the pograms through Inquisition through tach v’tat through the Holocaust and everything else I missed. Meanwhile, the Arab/Muslims *by comparsion* were very very good to us most of the thousand+ years we lived under their rule.
That all changed in the beginning of the 1900s with the advent of zionism riling up the Arab/Muslims into butchering us.