On Thursday night, the expanded and newly renovated main Dushinsky Beis Medrash was filled to capacity and beyond, as thousands of bnei torah gathered under the leadership of Admorim, Rabbanim, and members of the Badatz of the Eidah HaChareidis to hear the Shabbos Shuvah drasha from Harav Moshe Shternbuch shlit”a.
The annual drasha has long been a source of hadracha and chizuk to the masses of Yerushalayim. This year, despite the Beis Medrash doubling in size through extensive renovations, the venue was still unable to contain the immense crowd that streamed in from all over the city.
For nearly an hour, Rav Shternbuch spoke divrei halacha and aggadah before the overflowing crowd. At the front sat the members of the Badatz, the Admor of Dushinsky seated with his characteristic simplicity among the mispalelim, and numerous Rabbanim and dayanim representing kehillos across the Eidah HaChareidis.
Opening his words, the Gaavad spoke with heartfelt emotion about the plight of the bochurim who have been imprisoned in recent months due to the gezeiras hagiyus. “Many bochurim are sitting now in detention, for the sole reason that they gave their lives not to go into their army. We must strengthen them—ashreichem that you were caught for the sake of Torah. Stand strong with mesirus nefesh against them.”
From there, he turned to the government, decrying its actions in extraordinarily sharp terms. He compared today’s decrees to the darkest periods in Jewish history. “The heads of the government act worse than the nations, like the Inquisition in its time, which persecuted Jews only because they kept Torah and mitzvos. And woe to us that this is what has befallen us in our days, when they seek to disturb our avodas Hashem. The entire world must be shaken over this.”
The entire Beis Medrash was visibly moved when the Gaavad suddenly burst into bitter weeping. In a voice choked with tears, he exclaimed: “These days we say Avinu Malkeinu, kallei dever v’cherev v’shmad mei’al bnei brisecha. We must have kavana in these tefillos that Hashem should annul this gezeiras shmad! Their entire goal with drafting bnei Torah is to uproot shmiras haTorah, chas v’shalom.”
Concluding his drasha, Harav Shternbuch issued a clear psak regarding yeshiva bochurim and the draft. “I have said many times, and I repeat: according to halacha it is absolutely forbidden to go into their army. This is not a chumra or a middas chassidus, but pure halacha. Bochurim who receive draft notices must discard them immediately. Do not argue with them, simply say clearly: we are following our Rabbanim, who have forbidden joining the army.”
As the drasha ended, the throngs of participants accompanied the posek hador out of the Beis Medrash and onto Rechov Shmuel Hanavi, singing a thunderous rendition of “Ki Orech Yamim” that echoed through the night.
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15 Responses
Do you see those words? Which evil clown is going to get up and deface the words of Rav Shternbuch? He’s not one of your ignorant friends that never opened a book in his life. He’s one of the biggest righteous rabbis of the generation and there’s no dispute about his reputation and what he spent his life on, and the depths of his knowledge. So I ask again which evil torahating sicko is going to get up and speak up against him? I already know who and it’s the same misguided Wicked people who keep posting here anything they can against the rabbi’s holy words automatically Without Shame. But in the end it will be the rabbis laughing at them
“They gave their live not to go into the army”, Am I missing something here?
Perhaps he meant that hundreds of Jewish men and women gave up their lives in the army while defending all Jews
The Eida has its historic Shita – but that has not ever been the Shita of other Chareidi groups. At least the Eida has been intellectually consistent.
an Israeli Yid
Really? It is the equivalent of a modern day Inquisition? Does the Rav understand what occurred during the Inquisition? I certainly don’t. What unnecessary incendiary rhetoric to bring more chaos to a country fighting its survival. Israel is surrounded by 100 million plus Jew haters and this tiny country wants to implement an inquisition?
Still not clear from the article. Who shouldn’t go into the army: “yeshiva bochurim”, or all chareidim?
I am just a simple Yid, I live in Flatbush I learnt in yeshivah though unfortunately I do have to work so I can pay my bills. With my Torahdik background I must say it is beyond my ability to comprehend how Gedolim can speak against the government, army etc when these are the people fighting and risking their lives to defend the country you live in and call your own.
@cowdoc
the zionists and their army are the ones causing the wars. if they would put down their guns and pursue peace with the non-jews, they could organize a safe emigration to different lands, allow a peaceful transfer of power to a non-Jewish government, or simply trust in Hashem to protect the Jews in gulis. So, no, the army is not in any way “defending jews”, they are only giving up their lives to keep the zionists in power.
@Flatbush Tzadik
See above. The zionist government is not “ours” despite their militant control of our neighborhoods and their theft of our monies. The Eidah Chareidis, the organization the Rav Shternbuch heads, fought desperately to prevent the zionists from taking control, petitioning the British government, the US government, the King of Jordan, and the UN. The zionists murdered them in the streets.
The zionist government is Amulek in our days as many gedolei Torah have expressed, and so too many have taught that the zionist state will fall before Moshiach comes. The brisker Rav said that we will wake up one day and the zionist state will be gone.
The zionists and their state are who we ews are thinking of when we daven three times a day in “v al malshinin” that their evil pseudo-kingdom should be destroyed and fully uprooted from klal yisroel, may it happen soon, quickly, and peacefully.
@anIsraeliYid – “The Eida has its historic Shita – but that has not ever been the Shita of other Chareidi groups. At least the Eida has been intellectually consistent.”
This is an historically inaccurate statement.
With the exception of the Dati leUmi faction, all Torah-observant Jews have opposed the drafting of Yeshiva bochrim into the IDF. The Chazon Ish, The Brisket Rov, Rav Shach, Sefardim, Litvish, Chasiddish, etc. Even Rav Shteinman only allowed those not learning to enter special units. Unfortunately, for the most part, these units did not receive the cooperation from the government as promised. Perhaps that is or will change. But until our leaders change their psak, . . . Lol HaKavod to those who follow their Daas Torah and fight to protect theory brothers and sisters. For the most part, they don’t want anyone to leave the Beis Medrash. They view it as a partnership. But to say that it is the minority who hold like Rav Sternbuch is just not well informed.
instead of defaming the government, i wish the learned rabbi would just point out the pasuq which says that one is exempt from the army to study torah. if such a pasuq exists.
somejewiknow:
Thanks for defending the honor of Hashem and his Torah and its scholars. Tavo alecha baBeracha.
“The Brisker Rav said that we will wake up one day and the zionist state will be gone.” It could be that the Brisker Rav said it, too, but I am aware of that having been said by the Chazon Ish, not the BR.
Shuali:
1. “Dati Leumi” is not a faction of Torah-observant Jewry. As Rav Elchonon and all the others wrote, Dati Leumi is A”Z mixed with religion. Rather, Dati Leumi is a faction of Zionism that happens to also keep much of the Torah.
2. “Even Rav Shteinman only allowed those not learning to enter special units.”
No, he did not allow that, of course. He allowed those who were already on the streets doing drugs and being mechalel Shabbos – which is anyways a chiyuv kareis R”L L”A – to enter a special unit in the Zionist shmad army, since at that point maybe they could possibly save themselves from physical destruction by entering that framework, if I understand that rationale. Regardless, it is not in any way kosher to join the Zionist army, not according to the Torah and including Rav Steinman Zatza”l.
To:
הקטן
Thank you for a wise and true comment.
@HaKatan
thank you for the gentle correction. I am not one who puts much weight on stories, only leveraging them to buttress already well established Torah points when helpful. As such, you are likely correct that I confused the source of the comment.
It’s sad that people can just simply question the gadol.hador to his face even after admitting they’re either just a regular working person or someone who learns but hasn’t learned even half of a percent of a percent of rav shternbuch, yet everyone who questions him essentially places a question mark on him as an idiot. And that’s a crime you’ll have to pay for. The most you could say is you don’t understand. Which I don’t really believe either given the easily traceable statistics of how many people leave religion because of Army service and the amount of secular culture they purposely force on the recruits. Who doesn’t know who the zionists are by now? All these evil Russians and Polish people who came and hijacked the land with their communism and still poisoning it today. Learn a little history they’re still at it now and the rabbis are way ahead of you
During the inquisition Jews were burnt at the stake. Comparing that to what is currently happening in the State of Israel is shall we say incomprehensible.
HaKatan, given your feelings towards traditional (DL and Centrist orthodox) Jews, make sure your affairs are in order.
rebEmes, perhaps you and some distinguished rabbis need a history lesson