HaGaon HaRav Moshe Sternbuch Shlita during a shiur in his Ramot yeshiva equated the hate that senior government officials and the judicial system have for Yiddishkheit to that of Amalek.
Rav Sternbuch referred to the recent cabinet decision allocating an egalitarian prayer area near the Kosel for the Reform Movement. He explained that such actions against Yiddishkheit are from “Amalek in our generation”. He mentioned a painful case in which a Jewish child is raised as a Jew and then given over by a court to the Arab father in line is Islam, ignoring halacha totally. He blasted the judge, who handed down the verdict this week, deciding to ignore the fact the boy’s mother is a Jewess, preferring to address the fact that his father is a Muslim.
The rav cried over the fact that this innocent neshama which now leads a frum life of Torah and Mitzvos, will be given over to the father R”L to be raised as a Muslim.
The rav explained that the system realizes the chareidim are not going to be stopped so for the judges, the main thing is not to permit the chareidi child to be raised chareidi, preferring to give him to the Muslim father. He adds it does not matter, for the chareidim will continue as we are firm and committed in the derech of Torah.
Rav Sternbuch quoted HaGaon HaRav Chaim of Brisk Z”TL who explains that the mitzvah of eradicating Amalek is not specifically the descendants of Amalek but the “זכר עמלק” which includes “kofrim who battle against HKBH”.
“In our generation we see the growing hate of religion among the heads of government and judicial system in Eretz Yisrael. Their entire mission is to bring us pain and hound us, and they are literally like Amalek whose entire mission in their wars was just to bring pain to Hashem’s nation and they are the ‘zecher Amalek’ in our generation”.
The rav stated the way to strengthen our hand is by increasing limud Torah, which also weakens the opponent.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
9 Responses
Reb Elchonon Wasserman ZT”L HY”D, a talmid muvek of the Chofetz Chaim, in his sefer Kovetz Mamorim quotes the Chofetz Chaim as saying the Zionists are the offspring of Amalek.
R’ Elchonon, ZT’L was a holy, genius, incredibly learned and exemplary leader and gadol. One of his greatest strengths was that he was human, and thus fallible. R’ Elchonon forbade his talmidim from accepting Visas offered by Beis Midrash L’Torah in Skokie and YU in New York, saying it was no better to go from a sakonoh gashmius to a sakonoh ruchnius. The ksav yad of his letter is searchable online. Clearly this was not the opinion held by others, like the Satmar Rebbe, who took the aid of a Zionist to escape. One can be respected and revered and yet recognized that there may have been other, stronger opinions.
Way to go Zalman ! I find it amusing that everyone is crying about missing Rav Belsky and he never said anything remotely like that about a fellow yid, Zionist or not.
Zalman:
If the Chofetz Chaim said this at all, he said it more than 100 years ago and was referring to secular Russian communists of more than 100 years ago. Not sure why you’d think he would say the label applies today, to zionists who are neither secular nor communists.
You refer to Rav Elchonon being a talmid muvhak of the Chofetz Chaim. You refer to the period from 1907 to 1910, when he studied in the Kollel Kodshim in Radin.
While at the kollel, Wasserman studied with Rabbi Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman, who would later become the rosh yeshiva of the Ponevezh Yeshiva, for eighteen hours a day, and who was also a talmid muvhak of the Chofetz Chaim.
In contrast to Rav Elchonon, Rav Kahaneman ordered that an Israeli flag be flown in Poneviz Yeshiva on Yom Ha’atzama’ut.
To No. 1
You and Sternbuch’s followers need to recognize that it is a two way street. As long as Chareidi and secular yidden are living together in EY, they will have to find a way to co-exist peacefully and respectfully. While we don’t and will not accept their hashkafah and life-style, we in turn, should not expect them to change either (although we should try to introduce them to the beauty of a torah lifestyle). Sternbuch should also speak out against the fringe elements of the Chareidi tzibur that act violently against those with whom them disagree.
Please don’t lump all so called “zionists” into one box.
Being tzioni does not mean being anti frum or anti Chareidi.
There are tziyonim who are truly truly frum (think merkaz harav) and then there are tziyonim who see Israel as a nationalistic place disconnected from Torah.
Hmmm… A wayward thought!
you are able to say what you want from that side of the world , but here in E”Y things are 100% clear (to any one that wants to see ),the chofetz chaim said it and he meant it.PERIOD
#4 shlomo it is not “if” the chofetx chaim says this quoted by reb elchonoin wasserman in sefer kovetz maa’morim in the maa’mar titled omer ani maa’say lemelech so you can forget the if.
secondly the chofetz chaim is referring to any jews who hate shomrei torah and are therefore rodeif ppl who are shopmrei torah and try to get in the way of their lifestyle those self hating jews the chofetz chaim says are zerah amalek, look it up.