Israel Must Integrate Ultra-Orthodox
Akiva Eldar writes that Israel is being distracted from the real ultra-Orthodox issue: Integration into civil society is more urgent than being drafted into the army.
The two texts I cite below were written rather recently by ultra-Orthodox Jews. The first is an opinion piece by Knesset Member Israel Eichler of the Yahadut HaTorah party. It appeared on the “BeHadrei Haredim” website under the title, “God Will Settle the Score with Anyone Who Hates the Torah.” The second consists of select quotes from an email that appeared in my Facebook mailbox. It was written by Yossi S., an ultra-Orthodox Jew who lives within the ultra-Orthodox world, but who still manages to see things differently somehow. Yossi writes that he is a loyal follower of my columns, in which I "mock the nationalism, zealotry, and arrogance that consume every positive aspect of Israel.” The difference between these two texts sheds some light on a murky corner of the debate surrounding what is called “sharing the burden.”
This is what Knesset Member Eichler wrote:
“Loyal Jews in the Land of Israel are living in a time of harsh decrees, and no one can foresee how it will end. Ultra-Orthodox Jews are entering their bunkers, and the One who settled the score with the generation of the Flood and all haters of Israel throughout the generations will similarly settle the score with anyone who harms the world of the Torah. It is time to put on the table their [secular] lie of bearing the burden. The army doesn’t create Jewish identity. The compulsory draft serves as a melting pot, intended to transform young people into slaves of the secular regime, just like in Cuba and North Korea, or the Soviet Union and China. There is no moral justification for forcibly drafting people, unless there is no other option. In this case there are plenty of other security options, apart from compulsory drafting of civil servants. It is forbidden to enter any melting pot that causes Jews to abandon their religion. [Exposing them] to the drafting of girls, violations of the Sabbath, and the lewd environment that one finds among the goyim [Gentiles] is anti-religious coercion, and not some security prerequisite. Therefore, this is not a security debate but a spiritual war of survival.”
This is what Yossi S. wrote:
