Page 22 - HaMizrachi Pesach 5783 USA

“A Great

On Israel vs. the Diaspora

Unfortunately, the way modern Judaism, even frum In the Land of Israel, the Orthodox have a fighting
Judaism, is developing in the Diaspora, it is missing this chance. The character of Jewish life there will not
three-dimensional perspective. It is limited to lines and crystallize in two or three years. It will be generations
planes. Judaism has become fossilized in the beit midrash, before a portrait of the Yishuv will come into focus. And
cemetery, and ceremonial forms. I am not saying that if we want the foundations of social life in the Land
these things are unimportant, but they are very far of Israel to be Torah foundations, then we can fight
removed from reflecting the beauty and splendor within ideological battles with the secularists. That is how the
Judaism. This is Judaism without gusto, profundity, and prophets behaved, and that is how Chazal behaved in
loftiness – flat, monotone, and gray. Is it any wonder that the Second Temple period. In a Gentile environment, by
the younger generation does not want to hear from us, contrast, you have no ability whatsoever to wage war
and it is difficult to entice its members to come to the against idolatry. On the contrary, go fight the spirit of
synagogue? The young people going out into the street, Christmas, which inundates every house here… Here,
full of sociopolitical problems and doubts, philosophical you can shut yourself off, isolate yourself from the
questions and queries, hear nothing from our modern street, but you cannot fight it. In the Land of Israel, you
rabbis and non-Orthodox clergymen but a couple hack- have an opportunity to fight for Judaism.
neyed phrases and banal sayings. Why is that? Judaism, (“He Sets His Sights on Wisdom, Knowledge, and Skillful Enter-
instead of being a worldview, has become a cult religion, prise”, January 1948)
that which Judaism despises to no end.
In my opinion, it is here that the religious conception We often say that we, the Jews of exile, dare not mix
of the ideology of the return to Zion lies hidden. I do ourselves into the affairs of the Land of Israel. This is
not refer simply to the mitzvah to settle the land or simply because, in a formal-legal sense, we are citizens
to other mitzvot connected with the land. Much more of another country! On a social-philosophical level,
depends on this: the entire character of Judaism and too, will the Jew in exile have nothing to do with the
its essence. Will Judaism remain a unidimensional line political nation-state that, over the course of time, will
or a two-dimensional plane, or will it be transformed appear in the Land of Israel? Does this mean that there
into an all-encompassing space – long, wide, and deep, will be a split in the Knesset Yisrael, and we will be classi-
with distant horizons and unending boundaries – in a fied into two groups? Heaven forbid! The Knesset Yisrael
word: a true worldview? I believe that, even with the must remain united. “And who is like Your people Israel,
best of intentions, Diaspora Jewry cannot accomplish one nation on earth?” (Shmuel II, 7:23).
this. Observance can exist but not a multidimensional (Jewish Sovereignty and the Redemption of the Shekhinah,
Jewish society. June 1948)
(“And a Man Wrestled with Him until the Break of Dawn”,  Special thanks to Rabbi Dr. Aaron Rakeffet-Rothkoff for pro-
May 1946) viding photos of Rav Soloveitchik for this article.

Rabbi Soloveitchik, Rabbi Chaim Heller and Rabbi Rabbi Hershel Schachter with Rabbi Soloveitchik. Rabbi Soloveitchik and Rabbi Samuel Belkin at a
Theodore Adams. Yeshiva University Rabbinic Almuni conference, 1966.

22 |