Mobilization of the Order
Hello Rabbi.
First of all, a big thank you for all of the Rabbi’s work, I learned a lot from you!
I am a student in the first year and recently, partly in light of the issue of ultra-Orthodox recruitment, I thought about the appropriateness of the “Seder” track in which I am part of the yeshiva.
From what I understand, the main argument is that there are two values here – Torah and security, both of which are important and come at the expense of the other, and therefore they found some kind of balance between the two.
Another claim that comes on top of the first claim is that studying in yeshivot instills in young men an idealistic spirit that contributes to both spirit and motivation in the army and to society as a whole afterwards, and it can truly be seen that the army greatly values the young men from the Hesder yeshivot and benefits from their spirit and maturity.
My first question is why the fact that both values are important and come at the expense of each other is partially exempt from service? (Economics is also important and we don’t exempt master’s degree students or anything).
And even if we assume that society is ready for this agreement because it contributes to the spirit of the soldiers, for example, (which might have been true even without this agreement because this is an idealistic public overall and would probably go to yeshiva even if they had to enlist for 3 years), is it not right that today, when there is a shortage of soldiers, and people with families and business owners have been serving in the reserves for a long time, that we – young men without too many external obligations – will do this work? Isn’t this what we would want to happen when we have families? Isn’t this what society wants to happen today, except that there is no political power or no desire to quarrel with a public that is considered “effective” and harm its devotion to the army and the state? Is it appropriate that today, during a war that is expected to last in the near future, it is not right that we enlist for 3 years?
I don’t think there’s any point in dwelling on these questions. These are nuances. There’s also a difference between a soldier in the military intelligence unit, an IDF spokesman, an infantryman in a patrol, and so on. There are also days that are utilized more and less in the army. In the army and in the state, tasks are divided, and there are considerations of motivation and giving people the opportunity to act in a framework that suits them, while serving in a meaningful way. It should be remembered that the number of years of regular service is not dramatic in the more general perspective. There are also dozens of years of reserve service. Therefore, as far as I’m concerned, even half a year of a ‘central’ arrangement can be considered.
The considerations you wrote are certainly significant. The army and the state should also have Seder yeshivas. This means a higher percentage of combat soldiers, motivation, etc. And the study is also significant and beneficial, of course, as long as it is done in reasonable proportions.
By the way, the army, in any case, since the beginning of the current war, has been using
and assisting the Beinish in unpaid service as a fighting force even while they are supposed to be in yeshiva,
In addition to this, just these days some of the Beinish who were supposed to return from active service to yeshiva during Elul were announced to have their service extended to 4 months (at least for now).
So the army very quickly saves the hesitation about what is appropriate or not..
In contrast to the differences between a Shekhamist and a patrol fighter, which are accidental and depend on general civilian characteristics, and the selection process is carried out by the military blind to religious belief and origin, etc., the settlement track is inherently unfair, as it is only offered to people who belong to a certain type of religious community.
True, but despite the difference between a combat soldier, an intelligence officer, and a broadcaster on the Israeli Broadcasting System, what they all have in common is that they do the maximum they can and serve where they are most useful (as long as they don't intentionally fake a profile..). On the other hand, a Seder student is able to enlist for another year and a half like everyone else, and doesn't do so. Even if, as a rule, this arrangement pays off for the army, does it dismiss a private individual who knows that waiting for the first class won't increase his motivation?
In addition, today, following the war, the IDF is exploiting the soldiers - including the Sederniks - to the fullest, whether by extending service or in the reserves. In other words, the IDF says that it needs all its soldiers, even after the normal discharge time, and if I were to enlist now (first class) for the Seder, it is quite clear that the IDF would keep me in the service. In other words, the army says that it cannot work with the settlement track now, and it needs everyone now, for as long as possible. So, if all those who are eligible are being drafted regardless of their release date, what justification is there for waiting two years and only then enlisting? (Of course, if we take into account the war that is likely to break out with Lebanon)
Thank you, Rabbi
To the writer,
The settlement track is based on the Nahal track, which is also aimed at a designated group (graduates of the pioneer youth movements) and is not open to everyone. These tracks are quite small in terms of numbers and one can live with them.
Not that I support the existence of the Nachal track, but what you wrote is incorrect: the Nachal track is open to everyone (a year of service and a mission chapter are available to everyone regardless of religious belief, race, or gender), but the Hesder track is actually only open to national religious men (the state is not allowed to distinguish between institutions based on religious belief and gender, for example, so for this purpose the Hesder Yeshiva Union serves as a selector, since the rabbis who are members of it are a guild that protects itself very well.)
This is absolutely not true, in order to get into the Nahal track, you have to be associated with the Nahal core before enlistment. In practice, the Nahal core is a clique no less closed than the Seder yeshivot. And the Nahal track also does very short service.
In the 19th century, the Hesder track brings motivated soldiers to the IDF, who are available for emergency call-ups even during the 19th century, and who continue in reserve service for many years.
And for the army, it would benefit if all soldiers were given a combination of a year and a half in the army with three years of state-funded studies (religious or academic). This would greatly increase the motivation to serve in a combat unit. And the soldier would not end up in mental distress after his long military service, requiring him to travel abroad to "disassemble himself."
Why is it considered a ‘week-by-week’ service for cooks, which is actually a ‘year and a half net’ for full military service, and not for fighters?
Jobbers who sit in the office from 8 to 4 will do three years and be free to study in the afternoons, and fighters who ’work nights like days’ – deserve to have a year and a half considered full service!
Best regards, Fish”
On the 19th of Tammuz (65 years since the passing of Rabbi Herzog) P.D.
The arrangement was built according to the example of the Nachal, in which in those days the working settlement was a value of the highest order, and therefore it was worth it for the state and the army to shorten the military service period in order to establish the establishment of new settlements. In those days, the kibbutzim were the leaders of the Zionist spirit and the first to volunteer for elite military missions.
Today, to a large extent, religious Zionism is the leading force in strengthening the Zionist spirit in the army. The kibbutzim in his military service is similar today to the kibbutzim of that time in increasing the motivation and spirit of the entire army, as a "great Talmud who brings about action" and invigorates and intensifies the spirit of heroism in his comrades as well.
Best regards, Fish”l
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