Amid reports that IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-General Gabi Ashkenazi and Chief of Personnel Branch Major-General Avi Mizrachi have recommended the closure of the Har Bracha Hesder Yeshiva due to the hard-line position of its rosh yeshiva, HaRav Eliezer Melamed, Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Tuesday will be meeting with hesder representatives in the hope of reaching an understanding.

Science Minister (HaBayit HaYehudi) Rabbi Dr. Daniel Hershkowitz sent a letter to Barak, requesting that he reject calls to close hesder yeshivot, warning such a move would have the adverse impact, resulting in increased opposition and insubordination.

The fury stems from reports quoting Rav Melamed calling upon his soldiers to refuse orders that contradict halacha as the yeshiva’s hashkafa interprets it, to refuse to remove Jews from homes anywhere in Eretz Yisrael.

While known for his hawkish views on the Greater Eretz Yisrael issue, Rav Melamed in recent days stated the media habitually misquotes rabbonim and others, stressing his commitment to the “mitzvah” of serving in the IDF and the importance of maintaining the nation’s army. That said, he added rabbonim are not puppets who will automatically rubber stamp government policy, calling on the cabinet and the IDF to avoid issuing orders that are simply incorrect from a religious, moral and ethical point of view.

Most roshei yeshiva affiliated with hesder have released statements reflecting a moderate tone, seeking to bring this confrontation with the IDF to an end and to return to the long-standing arrangement that permits the students to serve the military in a five-year program that entrails about 18 months of military service while the remainder is spent in the halls of a beis medrash.

Sadly, the secularists, led by the mainstream media, are jumping on the bandwagon, interviewing those who favor shutting down hesder entirely, seeking to portray the hesder yeshivot as a threat to the future of the democratic state, when in actuality, the existence has been nothing short of an ongoing kiddush Hashem. The opponents of the Torah existence in the IDF are seeking to paint an image of hesder roshei yeshiva as fanatics and leaders of a cult rather than the responsible rabbonim they are, whose students are committed to a Torah lifestyle along with their dedication to the State of Israel, having proven over and over again their willingness to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Barak has exhibited a measure of self-restrain publically concerning the closure of hesder yeshivot, perhaps due to his awareness of the vital service they serve and as a former IDF chief of staff, well-aware of the high quality of soldiers produced by the hesder system.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)