An approximately eight minute film, produced by Hamodia, delivers a powerful and frightening realistic picture of the rapidly growing poverty in the chareidi community of Eretz Yisrael. This is according to many at the heart of the debate as to how much the Government of the State of Israel is responsible to fund and when do avreichim have to realize they must begin working, even part time, towards generating additional revenue.
Placing the political agenda aside and taking Yesh Atid and its coalition partners out of this discussion; the question still remains as to who will support the families and feed the growing number of hungry chareidi children? More checks are bouncing and a growing number of credit cards are no longer being honored. The well is running dry.
Some posit that that leaving fulltime limud is not the answer, for the limud Torah is the true shield of defense which protects not only Eretz Yisrael, but the Jewish People around the world. These people feel that the limud and the accompanying modest lifestyle cannot be compromised and those who work must undertake this burden and see to it that the children are feed and that kollel families have the minimum to exist.
Others would disagree and they posit that even while the parents are willing to live a life of poverty and mesirus nefesh, it is now beginning to impact the children’s health. With a growing number of chareidi children living under the poverty line, diagnosed with vitamin deficiency due to a poor diet, some who support fulltime learning feel that now, due to new realities existing in Eretz Yisrael, the time has come to stand and help ourselves.
Others correctly point out that even if thousands of avreichim try to find employment, there are not enough jobs available and for them. In addition, for many their salaries would not exceed kollel stipends for at best, they would be given menial labor positions.
The debate is becoming more poignant as the poverty level among the chareidi tzibur continues to climb and many avreichim and their families do not even have challos for Shabbos.
Put aside the hidden agenda of the current government regarding the effort to draft chareidim. The question remains what the frum community is to do as the tzibur at large is sinking in debt and growing poverty. With winter approaching more families than last year will not have the money to heat homes. This may chas v’sholom lead to more illness and the collapse of shalom bayis in some homes.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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14 Responses
When the Taaniim and Amoriam were poor, did that cause a collapse of Shalom Bayis in their homes?
If not, then if it would in some homes today, is it possible that perhaps the learning full time may not be producing the benefits and closeness to H-sh-m that it is supposed to accomplish?
If a person has to work but has set time each day for at least a few minutes of learning, and if that is all he can accomplish, then I was taught that, his whole day is considered to have been for Torah.
The lives and health of children are in danger and for life and death issues anything that can be done to save them must be done.
How about setting up Charedi colleges so they can get degrees in medicine and other areas that pay well, without them having to go into anti-Torah environments?
In the meantime, perhaps those who can find jobs should do so.
That would reduce those in need and help the children of those families, immediately.
The fewer who are in need would be easier to help, till a long term solution could be found.
“Others correctly point out that even if thousands of avreichim try to find employment, there are not enough jobs available and for them. In addition, for many their salaries would not exceed kollel stipends for at best, they would be given menial labor positions” – the answer to that, of course, is training and education. There are many types of jobs in Israel that have far more demand than supply. Yes, they are primarily blue collar, even physical, but they pay respectable wages – far and away and without compare more that a kollel stipend. Training for them can be done in a year or less and does not require attending an institution of higher education. Bennett has repeatedly pledged generous funding for such training for charedim. The time has come to take him up on his offer.
This article leaves out a pretty important fact.
Most of the gedolim in Eretz Yisroel are not against working, in fact amongst the Chassidim they are very pro-working (The Satmer Rebbe was against kollel).
However they do not want frum yeshivleit going to an army whose entire core is adverse to the Torah life.
If yeshivleit would be allowed to work without going to the army plenty of them would be out working.
Those are the facts.
And this BTW ignores the fundamental problems with earning a living in the isreali economy which at it’s core remains socialist.
They should work…like we all do.
“The question remains what the frum community is to do as the tzibur at large is sinking in debt and growing poverty”
The answer is TESHUVA, how much tzaros can you watch happening & not do something about it? how much longer will it take for klal yisroel as a nation to start doing teshuva?
do YOU even know why the economy is so bad?
every tragedy that occurs has a message i.e. wake-up call STRAIGHT from Hashem (won’t find in a sefer or newspaper, neither am I a navi}
get ready for the entire country to collapse, this news doesnt shock me due to the other side of the story (Hashems side & reason)& message being:
for thousands of years for every generation we have has avoda zara (idols) from the molech to the Baal to haman etc… Todays Avodah zara is money…. we bow down to money … we let money talk & depend on it like an idol…. we let it run our lives … thus we leave Hashem no choice but to take it away from us. BUT YOU CAN STILL SAVE YOURSELF, if you can show Hashem that all this money hashem gave you, is not your money (even though you did earn it through working) it is just a loan from Hashem to get you through the year & support your family, then you are the perfect person to hold onto Hashems money. (thus showing Hashem that its not avoda zara to you & when you need Anything you turn straight to Hashem for help, as we say in bentching, vdorshei Hashem…. for one that seeks out Hashem-& his help-lacks nothing)
May we all do teshuva ASAP
ask who profits and who is hurt. the cuts are a pittance compared to the wealth of chassidic courts and now even some lithuanian dynasties. the wisdom of the mishnah is yet clearer. volozhin did not have a CEO.
The film brings up an issue, yet w/ no clear solution or direction to take. Is this taking anyone by surprise that there are poor families in EY? Now what?
Great question. I believe those promoting and insisting on this lifestyle while ignoring the fact that it couldn’t possibly keep going on without a guaranteed support system, figure out the solution because they won’t back down and they keep promoting it no matter the consequences.
Maybe an end should ne declared to the ideology of not working and not learning secular subjects.
What you failed to mention that even most Israelis who work FULL TIME do not make enough to pay their bills. The gap between the “haves” and “have nots” is so wide. I work 10 hours a day and I earn 60% of what I need. I am educated. I am a professional. And I am “charedi” whatever that means.
Poverty in Israel is great while money goes to help out Philippines. Goes to show who the Zionists really are. As if the world will love Jews more with their distorted actions.
The chareidim need to educate themselves to get decent jobs. There is no way around it. They system, as it exists now, is imploding.
This video, which is now blocked on vimeo, was rightly derided by much of Orthodox Jewish society. The video opens with intentionally misleading statistics, quoting poverty figures in Israel, but neglecting to state that the figures include Arabs, the elderly and secular Israelis, whom Agudah has no interest in helping. The video only says that “many” are Chareidi. So be honest… what percentage?
The entire concept would be laughable if it weren’t sad. An entire society preaches that work is not a good way of life, and that those that work are not really part of the Torah world. The article itself refers to limmud Torah as being the true shield of Israel. If the man who works full time to support his family and give to his community, but only learns a couple of hours per day or week, isn’t part of the shield, then go elsewhere for your charity! You cannot insult the working frum world and then turn to it with your hand out.
This video proves how unsustainable this NEW lifestyle is (off the derech, reform, call it what you will). Most of Jewish society is meant to work, with a few scholars, teachers and rabbonim receiving support for their contributions to the Jewish world through leadership, guidance and education. When the entire society chooses not to work, contrary to mesorah, it will lead to the exact situation presented in the video.
#3, you are motzi shem ra on many of our finest citizens. The IDF is Hashem’s shaliach to defend EY and Am Yisrael, including people like you who deride it. Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach said that when he wanted to go to kivrei tzaddikim he went to the military cemetery on Har Herzl. As for the Israeli economy, it is becoming freer, especially with Nafatli Bennett as Economics minister, while America under Obama is becoming more socialistic.