THE DRAFT

In mid-1991, while I was in my matric year, I received call-up papers to serve in the South African Defence Force. I obtained a deferment while I was studying in yeshiva and by the time I graduated as a rabbi, obligatory military service had been abolished. I have often considered how different my life would have been had I been an Israeli citizen. I would have been required to serve no less than three years in the IDF and then return for miluim duties. Had I been in a combat division, I would very possibly have participated in a number of very dangerous missions, including operations in Lebanon and Gaza. I could also have opted for the hesder (“arrangement”) format of army service that combines yeshiva studies with military training over a five year period. Many fine officers have emerged from the hesder system and have served their country with great courage, pride and distinction, including in the current Gaza war. But I could also have selected a third option – to avoid army service altogether by claiming that I was a full-time yeshiva student and thereby subject to the torato umnato (“his Torah study is his profession”) exemption. It is this option that has been the centre of so much controversy in Israel and the Jewish world. It has once again become a hot topic as the war against Hamas and Hezbollah drags on with Israel in need of about another 7000 soldiers. Many are demanding that those soldiers be drafted from the Haredi (“ultra-Orthodox”) population.

Rabbi Alfred S. Cohen, writing in the Journal of Halacha and Contemporary Society (No XXIII, Spring 1992, Pesach 5752), provides some background: “When the state was created, the then Prime Minister, David Ben Gurion, came to an agreement with leaders of the religious parties, whereby 400 [ultra-Orthodox] yeshiva students were to be exempted from military service so that they might continue their Torah studies without interruption. After the government lifted restrictions on the establishment of new yeshivot, the number began to mount steadily. According to current figures, 18,400 yeshiva students were exempted from military service in 1988… [Note: last year some 66000 Haredi men received exemptions from the army. Over 540 have enlisted since 7 October]. The exemption of boys and men involved in learning Torah from serving in the army has, at times, aroused much resentment. It is a practice that has been, and continues to be challenged, not only by secular Jews but even by many observant and dedicated Jews, even by some who benefit from the exemption. We are dealing here with a very emotional issue. The families of soldiers who daily risk their lives are far from tolerant when they see yeshiva students strolling casually through the streets. There is anger, too, at the rabbis who instruct their students in the yeshiva to stand at attention on Yom Hazikaron to honor fallen war heroes – but at the same time teach their students not even to consider serving in the army. And there is frustration and bitterness in the yeshiva homes as well, where people live in privation all their lives in order to dedicate themselves to the ideal of learning Torah, and yet have to bear the contempt of their fellow citizens.”

Rabbi Cohen provides a cogent summary of the different viewpoints in this debate which goes to the very heart of Israeli society. He cites the rather surprising view of Rabbi Kook, the first Chief Rabbi of Israel [prior to the proclamation of the state] who “felt strongly that students in the yeshiva should not be called to the front, for in their batei midrash, through learning Torah, they were assuring the spiritual welfare of the nation, and ultimately, we rely on our spiritual superiority to save us, not on our military might.” “Others”, he writes, “scoff at such an argument: “Will you send your brother to war, and yourselves sit at home?” rails [the late illustrious author and halachic expert] Rabbi Zevin, in his call to yeshiva students to take up arms equally with their secular brothers. “Is your blood redder than theirs?” he wants to know.  Yeshiva lives and families are being threatened the same as everyone else’s, and he feels no person can excuse himself from the fray. He cites rabbinic dicta that in times of war, “all go out to fight, even the bridegroom from his chamber and the bride from her chuppah.”

There are two passages in the Rambam’s Mishnah Torah, one of which is connected to our parasha, that cast light on this knotty problem. The first is a very strongly-worded ruling against Torah scholars who refuse to seek gainful employment (Hilchot Talmud Torah 3:10): “Whoever takes to heart that he will engage solely in the study of Torah and not do any work but live off charity – such a person has desecrated God’s Name, disgraced the Torah and extinguished the light of the religion. He causes harm to himself and forfeits his life in the World to Come because it is forbidden to benefit from the words of Torah in this world…any Torah that is not accompanied by work will eventually cease and will cause sin, and in the end this person will steal from others.” Rabbi Yoseph Caro (in his Kesef Mishneh) goes to great lengths to justify the practice of paying rabbis and Torah judges a salary in light of the Rambam’s somewhat unequivocal ruling. However, in another passage, the Rambam seems to contradict himself (Hilchot Shmittah V’Yovel 13:12-13):

“Why did the Tribe of Levi not merit an inheritance in the Land of Israel and the spoils of war together with his brethren [Bamidbar 18:20-24]? It is because he was set apart to serve God by ministering [in the Temple] and instructing the masses in His upright ways and righteous laws…therefore he was set apart from the mundane matters of the world – he does not wage war like the rest of Israel; he does not inherit [a territory] nor acquire property through his own power, rather he is the legion of God…But this does not apply only to the tribe of Levi, rather any person whose spirit inspires him…to set himself apart to stand before God and serve Him, to know God and walk in an upright path as God made him, and he throws off from his shoulders the yoke of human considerations which most people see, this person becomes sanctified as the holy of holies…”

Here, the Rambam appears to praise a person who, like a Levite, is supported by the other Tribes so that he can dedicate all of his time to the service of God. There is, however, no contradiction. The Rambam makes it clear that he is speaking of a rare individual, someone who is completely committed to Torah study and community involvement. This is not necessarily your average yeshiva student but rather an outstanding scholar. For such a person, an exception should and must be made.  It is possible that when the original deal was struck between the religious leaders and Ben Gurion, it was made only for a specific time – to resuscitate and revitalise the Torah world that had been decimated in the Holocaust. This would take a generation to achieve and because of the circumstances, all men would be exempt. But that reality has now changed.  Thank God there are now hundreds of yeshivot and tens of thousands of people studying Torah. In such an environment, some claim, only the very best scholars – and they are one in a thousand (Midrash Kohellet Rabbah parsha 7) – should be completely exempted from the army. The remainder should be required to serve their duty before returning to the study hall.

Lee, Chani Merryl and Naomi join me in wishing you Shabbat Shalom!    Rabbi Liebenberg Link to Rabbi’s YouTube message for Shabbat: https://youtu.be/2XWoXS7bXgk?si=KIb23cj36__vQqqL