With the situation in Eretz Yisrael growing increasingly perilous, many bnei Torah are seeking the advice of gedolim to know what to do, how to act/react.
As Operation Defensive Pillar got underway, Rav Chaim was asked by persons in the south if they should wait and see if the situation deteriorates or ride out the storm. The response was “first come here. You can always return”.
Beginning on Thursday morning, Rosh Chodesh Kislev 5773, as the fighting increased significantly, anyone inquiring as “What to do” has been told “come to Bnei Brak”.
YWN-ISRAEL reported that the Belzer Rebbe Shlita and HaGaon HaRav Aaron Leib Shteinman Shlita instructed talmidim in the south to move to a safer location and continue learning.
HaGaon HaRav Gershon Edelstein Shlita called for “strengthening limud Torah” in light of the situation. The rosh yeshiva added “this is the one thing that protects the IDF”.
“As we saw in the Gulf War when over 40 rockets were fired and there were almost no injuries, only to persons who were mechalel shabbos, this was all in the merit of limud Torah.”
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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13 Responses
In the gulf war, one person was killed, but who are we to say “Oh he was killed because he was Mechalel Shabbos”? It is up to Hashem who is killed. We can say that this man was killed in order to get Kapparah for being Mechalel Shabbos.
with due respect, the 3 people that were killed in this war were torah observant jews. maybe we shouldnt try to predict the reasons behind events , when we are not priveleged to understand them
It was a fact. On Shabbos, that man would ride his motorcycle in areas where yidden were observing shabbos b’dafka, and he would disturb the peace, and ride around mamish l’hachis.
It might be a fact that this person was killed on Shabbos and drove his motorcycle to annoy people, but (Dan Likav Zchus) maybe he was brought up told that the religious Jews are wrong. I have no idea, but all I want to say is that we shouldn’t be the ones to say why someone was killed and as 1818 said, 3 religious Jews (Lubavitchers) were killed. I don’t think that we can say we know why they were killed. It’s all in Hashem’s plan which we can’t say that we understand.
To comment #1
Rav Edelstein Shlita is Daas Torah and can make that statement. You are an am ha’aretz gornisht & we don’t need to hear your stupid boech svaros!
Thank you for calling me an Am Ha’aretz and using words that a person that learns in Yeshiva shouldn’t use, but while I may not be the Gadol Hador, do we supress what people want to say. Don’t I have the right to peacefully disagree with people above me? Don’t we see many cases in the Gemorah where people disproved others higher than they were and the Gedolim were happy to hear the truth? I’m not saying you have to agree with my opinion, but I don’t think that you can call someone an Am Ha’aretz for not thinking the exact same way as the Gedolim.
For example, without getting into politics: there are some Gedolim that think that everyone including Chareidim should go to the army, but Rav Shteinman thinks that Chareidim should not go into the army. Does that mean one of them is obviously wrong and is an Am Ha’aretz?
Just take the message: we need to have achdus, Ahavas yisroel, tefilla, and lots of limud Torah. May we see the coming of moshiach bemheira biyemeinu
I agree with ItsuptoHashem: Amen Kein Yehee Ratzon!
I thought in the Gulf War (and I was there) it was 39 rockets. Geddit?
Some suggested 39 rockets Kinegged 39 lashes
Maybe keneged 39 melachot of shabbat ? I don’t know.
Rav Edelstein did not say the person was killed because he was a mechalel Shabbos. Rather, he said that we need to appreciate that Hashem limited our loss by choosing such a person. In the zechus of Torah our loss was less severe.
Rav Porvarsky of Ponevitch said ‘Daven for our Chayalim”