The Slabodka rosh yeshiva has voiced concerns regarding the push to conscript chareidim into the military, suggesting that some proponents harbor animosity towards religion. He emphasized the community’s obligation to safeguard Torah study, foreseeing a potential need for significant sacrifice.
Rav Moshe Hillel Hirsch made these statements during a gathering at Slabodka Yeshiva in Bnei Brak. His remarks followed the recent ruling by the High Court of Justice, which mandated the cessation of government funding to chareidi yeshivos for talmidim eligible for IDF enlistment, as the legal basis for deferring their military service is set to expire soon.
This ruling marked a significant escalation in the longstanding dispute over draft exemptions granted to chareidi individuals, many of whom devote their time to Torah study rather than military service. Opponents of these exemptions argue for a more equitable distribution of the defense burden across the populace.
Addressing his yeshiva, Rav Hirsch lamented that the court’s decision effectively nullified their right to engage in Torah study within Eretz Yisroel, at least temporarily. He underscored the likelihood of needing to make sacrifices to preserve Torah learning, though the exact nature of such sacrifices remains uncertain.
“We will need self-sacrifice for the Torah,” he said, adding that “it is impossible to know in exactly what form.”
Rav Hirsch went on to explain that there were two types of people “who are pushing to cancel the matter of Torah with us.”
The first, he said, don’t hate the chareidim or even religion in particular, but rather, as non-believers, they “don’t realize that the Torah is what is saving us” and the country from enemies in the region.
But, Rav Hirsch said, the second type of people don’t care about equality, “they hate religion, they hate Torah” and those who dedicate themselves to its study.
“There is proof” of that “in what happened in recent days but I don’t want to specify here,” he said. “It was only because of hatred. Against us. Hatred of religion. Hatred of the Torah. And hatred of Torah scholars.”
“They want to destroy us and we will need to stand against them. And there will be self-sacrifice. I hope we don’t come to that. But it could very well be that we will come to sacrifice when we need to stand against them. And this is not the time to specify.”
{Matzav.com Israel}