חנניה ווייסמאן Chananya Weissman

The Chillul Hashem of Galus

In a recent Jewish Press article I asserted that the very presence of Jews in exile is the ultimate chillul Hashem, which cannot be neutralized by good behavior. I referred to Orthodox Jews who are not bothered by this, and are not actively striving to rectify it, as assimilated Orthodox Jews.

I wasn’t expecting a bouquet of flowers from diaspora Jewry, but some of the responses only illustrated how deeply entrenched the galus is inside them. The Jewish Press published three letters in response to the article, yet none of them offered an argument against the notion that remaining in exile is a desecration of God’s name. Two merely expressed indignation, and require no rebuttal. Several commenters on the Jewish Press web site expressed condemnations not befitting a response (they have since been removed).

A rabbi in North America wrote that I had made “quite an accusation”, yet went on to support it with one of many pesukim that directly equate exile with chillul Hashem. He offered no explanation for why my thus validated assertion is incorrect, for there is none. Instead, he noted that the Rambam does not include living in Israel as one of the 613 mitzvos (while noting that the Ramban disagrees), he cited Rav Yosef Dovid HaLevi Soloveitchik’s allowance for rabbis and educators to remain in exile, and cited Rav Moshe Feinstein’s statement that “the mitzvah to live in Eretz Yisrael is not an absolute obligation.”

The weakness of this reply from a clearly knowledgeable rabbi only strengthens my case. Firstly, his reply conflated two distinct issues: the chillul Hashem of Jews being exiled from their land, and the degree of halachic obligation for them to return to Eretz Yisrael. Were he to successfully prove that some or even all diaspora Jews were halachically exempt from returning for one reason or another, this would have no impact on the chillul Hashem of millions of Jews being exiled from their land. On the contrary, in lieu of a halachic exemption – assuming one applies – they would be obligated to return if for no other reason than to nullify the chillul Hashem.

This is indeed borne out by the sources he cites. The Rambam’s omission of the mitzva to live in Israel from the 613 is often mentioned as an excuse for Jews to remain in exile. This is irrespective of the fact that the Ramban includes it; diaspora Jews simply claim that they are obediently following the Rambam, as if that’s the reason they remain in galus. The reality is that if the opinions were reversed, they would simply become ardent followers of the Ramban instead. They first decided what they wanted the answer to be, then they conveniently found a source for it. This is not how an Orthodox Jew is supposed to make decisions; this is how breakaways from Orthodoxy operate.

In addition, the belief that the Rambam did not consider it a mitzva to live in Israel before Moshiach comes is a terrible misunderstanding. Rav Yissachar Shlomo Teichtal, may Hashem avenge his blood, thoroughly demolishes this position – an extreme minority – in Eim Habanim S’meicha beginning on page 149. Rav Teichtal proves that the Rambam did not include the mitzva of settling the land as one of the 613 for technical reasons based on how he enumerated the mitzvos, and that the mitzva to settle the land is too overarching to be enumerated with the others. It transcends the 613. It is only on this technical point that the Ramban disagrees; both titanic poskim agree that settling the land is a mitzva at all times.

Rav Soloveitchik’s exemption for certain individuals to remain in galus is merely a concession to the unfortunate reality that not all Jews in galus are able or willing to make aliya en masse, and they need spiritual caretakers to remain with them. It is in no way a lechatchila that rabbis and educators remain in galus; ideally they would fulfill the mitzva of settling the land. Their staying behind should be viewed as a tragic necessity, one that pains them every moment, and which they hope to rectify by bringing their flock with them to Israel at the earliest possible time.

Rav Feinstein’s famous ruling that living in Israel is not an “absolute obligation” is famous only because of its convenience to so many people who wish to remain in galus. However, it hardly justifies their conclusion. Wearing tzitzis is also not an “absolute obligation”. The obligation only applies to a four-cornered garment. If one chooses not to wear such a garment, according to the Torah he is completely exempt from the mitzva.

However, we recognize that it is Hashem’s will for us to wear tzitzis. We therefore go out of our way to wear a four-cornered garment just so we can fulfill the mitzva, to the extent that a man who does not wear tzitzis is not even considered frum! No Orthodox person will say that he does not wear tzitzis because it is not an “absolute obligation” – yet when it comes to the transcendent mitzva of settling Israel, which concurrently rectifies the most serious chillul Hashem, Orthodox Jews excuse themselves that it is not an obligation!

If only they viewed settling Israel with the same seriousness that they have for a mere minhag, such as having a fish head on Rosh Hashana.

What is most tragic is that I even need to “prove” that it is a chillul Hashem for Jews to be in galus. The two are equated throughout the Torah, and the concept should be too fundamental to have to debate with educated Orthodox Jews. This is only a “controversy” because of the deep attachment these Jews have to galus – which only demonstrates their spiritual assimilation in this respect.

The fact that many gedolim lived in galus throughout history is not a counter argument. Their presence in galus was involuntary, but still represented a desecration of God’s name. They are not guilty for this; no doubt they were deeply pained by the situation and devoted their lives to rectifying it however possible.

Today, however, the presence of Orthodox Jews in galus, with few exceptions, is voluntary. There is little evidence that they are deeply pained by the situation – on the contrary, the suggestion that they make aliya is met with indignation – and they dedicate their lives to cementing diaspora life for perpetuity instead of leaving it once and for all. This is indeed the ultimate chillul Hashem, and demonstrates an assimilated mindset that has lost sight of the big picture.

Indeed, we say in Shemoneh Esrei that Hashem will redeem up “for the sake of His name, with love”. Even if we do not deserve to be redeemed, Hashem must redeem us and will redeem us to cease the desecration of His name caused by our continued exile. How can the diaspora Jew willingly perpetuate this desecration and not be pained to the core?

As we enter the culmination of the three weeks commemorating the ultimate chillul Hashem, let us resolve not merely to mourn it, but to rectify it. It is time to leave galus and not look back.

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Readers who are interested in additional sources that illustrate the direct link between Jews living in galus and chillul Hashem may refer to the following list below. Some of the sources in Nach were found on Wikitext with the aid of a quick search. This list of specific sources is a small representation; a complete list would encompass the totality of the Torah.

My sefer Go Up Like a Wall, which expands on these topics, is available at no cost to those who request it.

Devarim 32:37

Shmuel I 12:22

Melachim II 19:34

Yeshaya 43:25, 48:9, 52:5

Yechezkel 20:9, 36:20, 36:23

Tehillim 14:7, 21:6, 44:27

Eicha Rabba Introduction Section 17

Avoda Zara 11B

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Assimilated Orthodox Jews

Assimilation is like a virus in many ways. It spreads primarily from close contact with those who are already infected, though casual contact is also dangerous. Carriers may exhibit a variety of symptoms, and may even be asymptomatic. Many get away with only mild cases of the disease – and tend to downplay it as a result – but many others suffer severe cases that lead to permanent damage and even spiritual death.

More parallels can be drawn, but let’s proceed to the main point.

We tend to think of assimilated Jews as those who have married gentiles. Until recently, that was the “test”; assimilation was equated with intermarriage. Most people would agree that Jews who are indistinguishable from gentiles, even if they marry another such Jew, can fairly be described as assimilated, though their chance of recovery is significantly greater.

The truth is that assimilation is a subtle and sinister disease. Even Jews who keep Shabbos, are strict about kashrus, and maintain the exterior trappings of a Torah-observant lifestyle can be infected with it. These cases are the most difficult to detect, which also make them the most difficult to cure. The intermarried Jew knows he is not living in the ways of his ancestors; he can have a sudden awakening and return. The assimilated Orthodox Jew can hardly be convinced by sage or even prophet that he is not in perfect health.

Here are four tests, in no particular order, to determine if you are an assimilated Orthodox Jew.

1) You live outside of Israel, with no intention to change that, and teach your children how important it is not to make a chillul Hashem.

The latter clause is not necessary for the assimilation aspect, but it sheds light on it. There is no greater chillul Hashem than the Jewish people living outside of Israel. This is irrespective of whether Moshiach has arrived, or the quality of life inside or outside of Israel. The definition of galus is the Jewish people exiled from Israel. It is a greater chillul Hashem for Jews to live in a pristine religious bubble outside of Israel than for them to live among idol worshipers inside their own land. This is because the banishment of Jews from their land is proof to the nations of the world that God has abandoned the Jewish people, or that He cannot protect them. This idea is emphasized throughout Sefer Tehillim.

So if you live in a nice Jewish community in the Diaspora and worry about making a kiddush Hashem in your interactions with gentiles, consider this. Your very presence there is the ultimate chillul Hashem; nothing else compares to it, and no amount of good behavior will make up for it. If this does not bother you, and you are not actively striving to rectify it, then you are an assimilated Orthodox Jew.

2) You take moral cues from the goyim.

Morality is not subjective, nor does morality evolve or progress from one generation to the next as does technology. That belief is incompatible with belief in God – Who alone determines what is right and what is wrong – and the Torah, where these determinations are immortalized.

Everyone lives by some type of moral code – even criminals, gangs, terrorists, and those who profess the vapid belief that there are no rules. As long as the world is populated by more than one person, there will always be rules. The only question is whether these rules will be based on the Torah, or invented by man. The morality of any particular rule or system is determined strictly by its fidelity to God’s objective truth.

Our very existence as Orthodox Jews is for the purpose of implementing God’s complete Torah in our land and spreading the basic Noahide teachings to the rest of the world. Moral enlightenment is supposed to flow exclusively from Torah to Jew to gentile, never the reverse. Knowledge of science and art may be obtained from a variety of sources, but when it comes to morality there is only one authentic source.

Many Orthodox Jews receive moral direction from gentile society. It is no coincidence that “new understandings” of a woman’s role directly parallel gentile movements awash with atheism, socialism, and a general rebellion against tradition. Orthodox Jewish women did not wake up one day and decide they are oppressed, kept down, unappreciated, abused, and erased by a barbaric patriarchy. These ideas seeped into the Orthodox world from impure sources and gradually poisoned people’s minds. Isolated cases of real crimes against women were sensationalized and blown out of proportion to create a false impression of a corrupt system, with the goal of undermining tradition and eventually burying it completely.

Sincere, well-meaning Orthodox Jews imported an impure goyish movement with a kernel of truth to address problems in Jewish society real, exaggerated, and even fabricated. The goyim decided there were to be new understandings of right and wrong, and the Jews followed.

The same is true with such causes as vegetarianism and veganism. Their explosion in popularity among Orthodox Jews directly followed new understandings of morality among “enlightened” goyim. These goyim believe that they are morally superior to those who eat meat, to the extent that meat-eaters are referred to as murderers. They have also decided that taking the life of a plant to sustain oneself is perfectly fine, based on arbitrary considerations. They simply make it up as they go along.

Needless to say, slaughtering an animal and offering it as a sacrifice on an altar is anathema to many Orthodox Jews, who maintain they want a Bais Hamikdash but seem to have forgotten what we actually do there. It’s not a Kotel with four walls.

Orthodox Jews who believe they are more moral than the Torah and those who transmitted it to us throughout the generations, based on goyish movements, are assimilated Orthodox Jews.

The same is also true with movements pertaining to “rights” of homosexuals and their ilk. A gradual erosion within the Orthodox world from the Torah’s clear positions on these issues, to eventual sympathy and even support for that which the Torah abhors, directly mirrors the “progress” of these movements in gentile lands.

We have lost the ability to be outraged by anything anymore, except at fellow Orthodox Jews who stubbornly cling to tradition in the face of new morality. Orthodox Jews are supposed to be the leading and most outspoken voice when it comes to moral issues, clearly and proudly articulating the view of the Torah. Instead, our voice is the very last to be heard, suppressed as long as possible, and then meekly attempting to reconcile the goyish morality of the day with the Torah’s eternal teachings.

Can there be any greater sign of assimilation than that? Can there be anything more humiliating?

3) You believe interlopers in our land should be given control over any part of our land.

I recently saw a film by Ami Horowitz called Interview With A Murderer in which he interviewed a senior Hamas terrorist. He asked the Arab if abandoning any part of “Palestine” would be a breach in the promise between Allah and the Muslim people.

The Arab replied as follows: “You are talking about our rights. Why abandon your rights? There is no way that you can abandon part of your home, willingly. It belongs to all the Muslims. We are talking about the Holy Land here. It belongs to every Muslim in the world. I cannot give away, Abu Mazen cannot give away, Yasser Arafat could not give away, nobody can give away any part of it.”

If you are an Orthodox Jew, and you do not firmly echo this response, with “Jews” and the names of Jewish politicians substituted where appropriate, then you are an assimilated Orthodox Jew.

4) You have a problem with the mitzva to wipe out Amalek.

The Torah’s position on this is crystal clear. Shaul lost his kingdom and his life primarily because he took pity on Amalek. King David repeatedly emphasized his desire to pursue the enemies of the Jewish people, which are synonymous with the enemies of God, and wipe them out.

The latter is the leader we pray for three times a day, which presumably means we should vote for him in an election.

Today a great many Orthodox Jews want nothing to do with this mitzva. Since Orthodox Jews cannot simply do away with an uncomfortable or inconvenient mitzva as do their more “progressive” counterparts, they simply define them into irrelevance. Amalek is transformed from an actual nation of actual people to an idea – preferably an amorphous one – that must be abolished, particularly from inside ourselves.

See, dear gentile, we Jews are good – based on your definition, of course.

More traditional Orthodox Jews will maintain that Amalek does refer to actual human beings that we are commanded to wipe out, but we cannot possibly know who they are and we probably never will. Even if we did know who they are, due to a number of practical considerations we would not be allowed to do anything about it.

That may be true, but they say this with relief, not regret. If Eliyahu Hanavi delivered Amalek to them, gave them a sword, invited them to perform the mitzva, and assured them that no Jew would suffer for it, the Orthodox Jew would want nothing to do with it.

This Orthodox Jew is assimilated. The same Jew who would run to wear techeiles if he were confident that the opportunity to perform the mitzva had been restored should run with the same eagerness to fulfill another mitzva that has been denied us for generations. If you are an Orthodox Jew, how can you claim there is a difference? How can you desperately wish to remain exempt from a mitzva that is fundamental to achieving our national destiny? It is only through assimilation.

If you exhibit any of these symptoms, then I am afraid that you have contracted the disease of spiritual assimilation. Fortunately, with early detection and an honest assessment, the chances of a full recovery are high.

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The Media’s War Against Orthodox Judaism

by Chananya Weissman

The Times of Israel and the Jerusalem Post are waging a journalistic war against Orthodox Judaism. They have dropped all pretenses of objectivity; not only are their editorials one-sided and biased against the more traditional segments of Orthodox Judaism, but they regularly publish thinly-veiled editorials under the guise of news items. There can be no doubt that their mission is not to report news and inform the public, but to manipulate their readers through propaganda, selective reporting, double standards, and lack of nuance.

Two examples from the last few days alone (there are many more) illustrate their lack of integrity and professionalism.

On July 2 the Times of Israel posted a news update under the title “Shas leader says he made sure synagogues can keep packing them in“. This is the sort of snarky title one might expect to find in a high school newspaper, not a professional media outlet. The article went on to relate that the Prime Minister had sought to limit synagogue attendance to 20 people, while allowing more in event halls, bars, and clubs, but “Deri canceled the evil decree.”

The Times of Israel then showed a stock photo from May 20 – six weeks earlier – with the caption “Ultra Orthodox Jewish men eschew masks while praying at a synagogue in Jerusalem”. Thinly veiled message to readers: please hate these people!

But it got even worse. The article, ostensibly a news update, continued as follows: “It can’t be that restaurants, bars and clubs, where the danger is larger several times over, can host 50 people and synagogues can only have 20. In clubs they don’t keep distances and nobody wears masks,” says Deri, who apparently frequents dance clubs.

The malice of the unnamed writer or editor at the Times of Israel was so pronounced that he simply could not hold himself back from taking pot shots at Deri and Orthodox Jews at every opportunity in this short “news update”.

Needless to say, there were no reports of Muslim imams seeking to “pack them in” at mosques with snide commentary. After all, in their own words, “The Times of Israel has no partisan political affiliation. It seeks to present the news fair-mindedly…”

On July 9 the Jerusalem Post published a news story with the inflammatory headline “Chief rabbi patronizes women studying halacha, says ReformJudaism is fake“. The article began with the following paragraph: “Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef has issued an all out attack on Reform Judaism, describing it as “fake” and “falsified Judaism,” while also casting aspersions on the ability of women to study Jewish law at an advanced level.”

As it turns out, this is misleading. The article goes on to relate that Rabbi Yosef specifically reacted to legal pressure being put on the chief rabbinate to essentially ordain women (albeit perhaps with a title other than rabbi), and he acknowledged that women can and do learn Torah on a high level.

The author, Jeremy Sharon, referred to the women seeking “accreditation” as being “overwhelmingly from the moderate wing of the religious-Zionist community”. However, he did not enlighten readers with the basis on which he considers them moderate and Rabbi Yosef extremist – particularly important considering the “moderates” are using the secular courts to try to impose their will on the rabbinate and attain something that has never been accepted in Orthodox Judaism. Clearly the Jerusalem Post does not want readers thinking about this, but to simply accept as fact that Rabbi Yosef is a tyrant seeking to keep down holy religious women from achieving what is rightfully theirs.

Sharon then “reported” that Rabbi Yosef “embarked on an anti-Reform diatribe”. This diatribe basically consisted of accusing them of falsifying the Torah. What does Sharon expect the Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel, a staunchly Orthodox Jew from a prestigious rabbinic dynasty, to say about Reform Jewry? Apparently, that they are free to interpret the Torah however they wish, make whatever changes they wish, and it’s all just as good or better. Ridiculous.

Needless to say, we don’t read about Reform pastors, radical feminists, homosexual activists, and cross dressers pretending to be of another gender launching into diatribes against Orthodox Judaism. The Jerusalem Post treats their utterances with the greatest of respect and sensitivity. They will also never report to us how Muslim religious leaders might deal with pressure from women to become imams, which is a shame – that would surely be an interesting story.

On July 11 the Jerusalem Post followed up this editorial posing as a news story with an actual editorial. This one ran under the headline “It’s time for Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef to step up or step down: The government needs to present Yosef with a choice – either help or get out of the way.”

It is unimaginable that the Jerusalem Post would speak of any religious leader from any other denomination or faith in such caustic terms.

The editorial went on to declare: “It was also the latest proof why the Chief Rabbinate as an institution has lost its way and needs to be defunded by the government and eventually shut down…The attacks on Reform Jews is another stage in the Orthodox world’s assault on progressive Jews…Sadly, matters of religion and state in this country continue to be held hostage by ultra-Orthodox radicals who refuse to accept that not every Jew will look like them or practice Judaism the same way that they do…People who want to travel on Shabbat do not have an option of public transportation and reforms in the country’s kashrut system are slow in coming…It is time that all this changes. The government needs to present Yosef with a choice – either help or get out of the way.”

Simply put, the editors of the Jerusalem Post demand that the Chief Rabbi of Israel stop being Orthodox and that Orthodox Jews stop “assaulting” those who want to destroy their way of life in Eretz Yisrael by resisting this takeover in any way. Orthodox Jews are “radicals” and those who trample on the Torah and tradition are “progressive”.

This is the official position of the editors of the Jerusalem Post; it is clearly stated in their editorials and reflected in their heavily biased news coverage.

It is time not only for Orthodox Jews, but all decent people who respect tradition and objective reporting of the news to hold the Times of Israel and the Jerusalem Post accountable for their lack of integrity and professionalism. Perhaps those who do not wish to see Orthodox rabbis, institutions, and communities defamed on a regular basis – like no other religious leaders or communities – should “defund” these anti-Orthodox media outlets.

I understand that Anglo olim like holding an English newspaper in their hands, and maybe they know someone who works there, but at some point it’s time to decide that it’s too little a price for your selling your soul.

There is a war being fought against Orthodox Judaism. It’s time to stand up and fight back.

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