In a passionate address to the Knesset plenum on Monday 19 Tammuz 5772, MK (Yahadut HaTorah) Moshe Gafne, who chairs the Knesset Finance Committee, delivered a powerful message — telling MKs that the situation is growing worse by the day as the recommendations of the Plesner Committee will most likely be approved on one form or another.
“Chareidim will not begin enlisting in national service. It will not happen” Gafne stated, adding former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert recognized the value of those studying torah, as did his predecessor, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, “May HKBH look over him and return him to health”, quoting Olmert as saying “without the yeshivos there simply will not be an Israel.”
Gafne attacked MK (Kadima) Yochanan Plesner, referring to him as “the young Kadima MK”, speaking as if he is Ehud Olmert, reprimanding Kadima officials for their actions, trying to overturn the 64-year-old status quo regarding yeshivos and those whose learning is their life. He condemned Plesner in Olmert’s name as well for daring to upset the delicate situation that has long been accepted.
“What, because of populism, your decline in the polls, this is why you go after the chareidim? This is how you refer to avreichim, like criminals? Learning torah is now a criminal act? There has not been a situation like this since the Romans, labeling those who study torah ‘criminals’. This was Olmert, not me, for I would say harsher things” Gafne concluded.
He then targeted Kadima leader Deputy Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz. “In the onset you announced everything must be by mutual agreement. Did you forget? Is this because you want to get me out of the coalition? Because the chareidim are with me, because we have an agreement?”
Gafne continued speaking in Olmert’s name, singing the former prime minister’s praises, yearning for his return, emphasizing that today, there simply is no leadership.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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9 Responses
adding former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert recognized the value of those studying torah, as did his predecessor, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon—-Are you dreaming MK Gafne?
He would have passed Plesner’s draft without batting an eyelash if his job was on the line, at least Bibi is trying to regulate & moderate the bill.
Why am I not surprised that Gafne “misses” Olmert. He forgets that his hero was found to have engaged in fraud and tax evasion among other serious crimes while in office. Not a role model for a public servant, notwithstanding his ability to play the usual political games in EY of buying support among the religious parties to assure a majority in Knesset.
Rav Gafne, get out of the Keneset with all frum MK’s and all frum yiden in EY shall stop participating in the elections and stop taking financial assistance for yeshiva, cut all ties with State of Israel
one way or another hashem will give the chilonim a message that they will not dictate how much torah 1 should or should not learn. they with all of their corruption and immorality will not dictate how chareidimk are to live. it will not happen. lets hope that they figure it out on their own before it is too late
Olmert IS a criminal. So was Arik Sharon. Praising them will not make them tzadikim.
Gafne should be very careful before praising Olmert and Sharon. When Olmert made the unholy alliance with Tommy Lapid and left the charedi parties and Shas out of the loop. Besides, association with a criminal like Olmert will make us even less savory and more suspect to the regular Israeli.
Mr. Gafne, what’s the basis in the Shas for coercing a sector of the population to pay for the Torah learning of another sector? Issachar-Zevulun pacts were always on a volunteer basis. The non-frum sector doesn’t want to pay for Torah learning. It’s a disaster, but they have a say in how their tax money to be spent. By-the-way, I recall in Tanach that melech Chizkiahu enected a decree by which all citizens had to learn Torah. Too bad we don’t have a righteous king as our ruler.
takingabreak (#4): In all truth, the chilonim, with few exceptions, don’t care how much Torah you learn and don’t want to dictate how you should live. All they care, they should not have to pay for your Torah learning and for life style. They also want you to shoulder the defense burden. Do you honestly find that unfair or unreasonable? Rashi worked. So did Rambam, Ramban, most of the Rishonim, Amoraim, and Tannaim. If they did it, we also must learn to both learn and support ourselves. You know, when the Arabs come to kill, they don’t differentiate between chareidim and chilonim. All the Yiden killed in Chevron in 1929 where among the best chareidim. They were the talmidim of the heilige Alter of Slobodka. We need the Torah to defend us, but we are also expected to do our hishtadlus.
#8, Rashi did not work for a living; he was a full-time rosh yeshivah and lived from the yeshiva’s income. And the Chevron massacre wouldn’t have happened in the first place without the zionist provocation at the Kosel.