Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi Yonah Metzger is under fire for simply telling it as it is. In an address last week the rav stated that more soldiers were killed during the Yom Kippur War of 1973 because there were less people learning torah.
The rav was speaking at the ceremony taking place in Yerushalayim on behalf of his son-in-law, Rabbi Shimshon Klein, who has been appointed as the new rav of the air force’s chareidi Shachar program.
Rabbi Metzger told the audience “When Am Yisrael sits and studies torah in yeshivos, this gives us strength. On the weaker days, such as erev shabbos and erev yomtov, when the population in the batei medrashim is down, we see there are more injuries and more fatalities”.
Military officials present at the event stated the rav should not have made such remarks which they felt were not viewed as acceptable by IDF commanders and may actually be viewed as insulting or worse by bereaved family members.
Metzger added the abolition of the Tal Law by the High Court of Justice and the ongoing efforts to replace the law must be accompanied by a realization of the contribution made by those studying torah as an integral part of the defense of the nation.”We are facing a difficult period and there are many branches of the military. I believe that just like there is a tank corps, paratroopers, there must also be Hashem’s Corps that defends us”.
Officials on the rav’s staff responded to the criticism by explaining there was nothing new stated by the rav in his address and that Chazal have told us that torah study protects and saves us.
There has been some criticism over the appointment due to the fact that Rabbi Klein is affiliated with the dati leumi tzibur and the Shachar program is uniquely designed for chareidim.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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3 Responses
There are lots of things that are “true” The question is always whether it is necessary or appropriate to speak of such “truths” at a particular time or to a particular audience. When giving a hesped a at a leviyah for one of his mispallalim, a rav wouldn’t focus on the all the truths about the life of the niftar, including the ways was not shomer torah umitzvot. To the IDF attendees at this ceremony the Rav’s comments must have conveyed the message that if you proceed to amend the Tal law and require all Israeli citizens to share in the sacrifice of miliatary service, you soliders will have in greater casualties in the next war.
Yes, if you amend the law so as to empty out the yeshivos, the soldiers will have greater casualties in the next war. Is this not a truth that must be told? Suppose the army were proposing to dispose of a weapon it thought obsolete, and someone knew that it was still filling a vital role, and that if it were not available when it was needed soldiers would be lost; what would you think of that person if he were to keep his mouth shut for fear of offending anyone? If soldiers were indeed lost as the result of his failure to warn anyone of what he knew, would he not be condemned for treason?
Kiddush Hashem. Most Israelis believe in Hashem,Its refreshing To see someone so highly respected to NOT make a politically correct speech. Hashem should bless him with long life.