Rabbi Meir Rosenboim, the rebbe of small but influential Peremyshlyany
hasidic sect, has a simple explanation for why haredim should not serve
in Israel’s military. The wars are not their fault, the rebbe claimed.
The wars and Israel’s defense needs are the fault of secular Jews, and
therefore secular Jews have to serve in the military but haredim do not.
Secular Jews Have To Serve In Israel’s Military Because The Wars Are All Their Fault, Hasidic Rebbe Says
Shmarya Rosenberg • FailedMessiah.com
Rabbi Meir Rosenboim, the rebbe of small but influential Peremyshlyany hasidic sect, has a simple explanation for why haredim should not serve in Israel’s military. The wars are not their fault, the rebbe claimed. The wars and Israel’s defense needs are the fault of secular Jews, and therefore secular Jews have to serve in the military but haredim do not, Ynet reported.
How’s that?
By not studying the Torah and keeping its laws, secular Israelis cause dangerous security issues for Jews, the rebbe asserted. Therefore, secular Jews have a greater duty to serve in the army than the haredim do, he said.
"On the face of it, [arguments for drafting haredim] sound convincing. Since everyone is made in God's image, why must one group serve and be a pawn to the army's requirements, and another group sit and study Torah? Where's the fairness?
"This requires us to understand and hone the reason why Torah students are indeed exempt from service."
"It's clear to us that the fact we live in fear of enemies in all our years here in the land of Israel – That's because of the simple people, those who don't study Torah, this country is filled with.
"Those who ask why they must enlist and fight must be told that this calamity, these security dangers, is because of them, because of their helplessness and their abstaining from studying Torah."
"Our right to be quiet and serene is only because of studying the Torah, without which calamity will befall the world.
"The simple people have only themselves to blame, for the calamity, the dangers and the need for an army which they bring upon themselves and upon us,” the rebbe said in a talk that was reported by the haredi Hamevaser newspaper.