In her July 9 blog post,
Shulamit Magnus pronounced that the staunch secularist, Avigdor
Liberman, is “doing God’s work.” The finance minister has decreed that
Israel will no longer give child care subsidies to families in which one
parent does not hold paid employment of at least 24 hours a week. The
measure targets the Haredi sector — specifically married men who claim
to study Torah all day. If Liberman’s plan holds, the families of such kollelniks will be denied these subsidies.
Magnus’ formulation accomplishes a
quiet, but highly significant, linguistic and conceptual shift. Note
that she did not argue on nationalist grounds that extending state subsidies to kollel families is unfair and wrong, she did so on religious grounds.
God may be present in the study halls of Bnei Brak, but God is also
present in the Knesset and government offices that make policy for the
Jewish state. God is at work in these “secular” ministries because of
the Torah’s commitment to justice, fairness and the welfare of the
entire Jewish people. Tsedek, tsedek tirdof! (“Justice, justice you shall pursue”) commands the God of Israel.
In other words, Haredim and their
politicians should not define Judaism for us. There is a widespread
dangerous illusion, particularly among secular Israelis, that even if
you do not agree with Haredim, they ”keep Israel Jewish,” and so the
Jewish state should accede to some of their demands. This is a bit like
Golda’s myopic statement, “I don’t go to shul, but the shul I don’t go
to is Orthodox.”
Let’s not allow the Haredi community to
kidnap the Judaism, which belongs to the entire Jewish people. That
would be a tragic theft. The idea that haredi’ut defines
Judaism is historically false and religiously wrong — and it does
violence to our Jewish identity. The truth is that many of the central
practices of the Haredi community run squarely against what God, the Torah, and the talmudic rabbis demand of Jews, and what will sustain Israel going forward.
The Mishna (Avot 2:2)
cites R. Gamliel, who counsels Jews to combine Torah study with a
worldly occupation, warning us that not having an occupation brings
about sin. Elsewhere, the Talmud (Kiddushin 29a)
quotes Rabbi Yehuda: A father who does not teach his son a trade in
effect teaches him thievery because when a person has no profession he
is likely to turn to stealing. Maimonides concurs, adding that one who
studies Torah exclusively and lives on handouts “profanes God’s Name”
(Mishneh Torah, Laws of Talmud Torah 3:1).
It is important to recognize
that the talmudic rabbis and those thereafter worked for a living. For
example, Shimon ben Shetach was in the flax trade, R. Yehoshua was a tailor, Rashi
was a vintner, Rambam and Ramban were physicians, and the Chofetz Chaim
ran a store. So working Israelis who contribute to Israel’s social and
financial structure are the ones following Jewish tradition and doing a
religious deed, while Jews who refuse to work are bringing sin to
Israel. The Talmud (Yoma 86a)
condemns the Torah scholar who buys merchandise and pays later, because
it appears to others that he is taking without paying. That scholar,
says the Talmud, cannot repent for his sins because, through his
behavior, he has caused people to despise the Torah. If so, what are we
to say of the current practice of some Jews who benefit from government
defense and subsidies, but pay no taxes and do not contribute to larger
Israeli society? Judaism demands that those who take also give, that
those who benefit also contribute.
Last week’s Torah reading provides
another essential criterion of correct Judaism: “Will your brothers go
out to war while you remain here?” asks Moses rhetorically (Bamidbar 32:6).
He was stunned by such an irresponsible request by the two tribes that
asked to settle on the other side of the Jordan River, and would not
countenance some Jews risking their lives, while others remained
comfortably ensconced in their safe homes, far from the battlefield.
Judaism demands that all of us defend our people. It is more than a civic duty; it is a religious obligation. Jewish religious law is clear: when the people of Israel fight an existential defensive war (“milkehemet mitsvah”)
everyone—without exception—must fight. Even a bride is required to
leave her chuppah to contribute to the national defense. So when
Israelis serve in the IDF, they should understand their service not only
in nationalist terms, but also as a truly Jewish religious act, a mitzvah.
The Mishna also demands that Jews not separate themselves from society (Avot 2:4).
Being a responsible and integral part of the Jewish collective is a
religious and moral imperative. Maimonides even rules that someone who
separates himself from the community has no share in the world to come.
Ultimately, the Talmud and the traditional rabbis categorically rejected
Shimon bar Yochai’s model of leaving the community to live a solitary
life in a cave and learning Torah to the exclusion of any practical
knowledge. They knew that such monastic isolation serves only yourself,
not God. Separatism is a selfish sin.
This is not a new insight. Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook understood it 100 years ago when he claimed that the early secular halutzim were
doing holy work by returning to the land God promised them, and that
religious quietists who stayed in the study halls of the diaspora were
actually contravening God’s plan for His people.
Similarly, all Israelis today —
religious and non-religious alike — should appreciate the dedication and
toil of those who serve in the IDF and those in government who demand
fairness and justice in Israeli society. They are “doing God’s work,”
whether or not they wear kippot. And as the prophet Micha tells us, following God’s demands does not mean growing payot, wearing
long coats, or voting for religious parties. God’s work means doing
justice, being compassionate, and acting humbly before God.
