Yeshivish Zionism
By Larry Gordon
Two things occurred over the last few days that warrant some attention and analysis. The events are mostly disconnected from one another but then again there are also scant overlapping similarities.
The first is the film, “October 8th,” produced by Hollywood actress Debra Messing. The second is the gathering in Lakewood by students of Bais Medrash Govoha to protest against the participation of Torah organizations in the current World Zionist Congress vote to allocate over $2 billion in Israel government funding possibly to yeshivas in Israel, the U.S., and communities around the world.
This World Zionist Congress election takes place every five years. Founded by Theodore Herzl over 120 years ago, the WZO Congress has influence over Israeli policy on land use, immigration, and religious affairs through its control of institutions such as the Jewish National Fund and the Jewish Agency. The WZC also distributes about $1 billion a year to Jewish causes.
Back in 2020, during the midst of the Covid crisis, several new organizations that represent Orthodox Jews emerged and through a great international effort managed to gather 25,000 votes, which gave them a seat at the WZC table and a say in how millions of dollars were allocated.
The goal this year—by at least one group, Eretz Hakodesh—is to garner 100,000 votes, and thus quadruple their influence in the decision-making process and the distribution of what could ultimately be tens of millions of dollars.
The so-called yeshiva world is for the most part okay with the millions of dollars being distributed through this process. What they are largely uncomfortable with is the attachment and focus of the word “Zionist” to the process. In fact, there was a group that contacted us a few weeks ago whose position was that it is prohibited by Torah law to vote in this election. Though they are free to express their views, we did not think it was a good idea to help them promote what could be a very unpopular and even counterproductive position.
On the other hand, there is a significant segment of the Torah world that is very comfortable with their understanding of Zionism, and they see absolutely no reason to be hesitant about being involved in the system and procedures involved in the allocation of a large sum of money like this.
The way they see it, if people choose to separate themselves from or boycott this process, all they are doing is strengthening groups who seek to undermine the foundations of society that Torah Jewry hold dear and which they seek to strengthen and incorporate into daily life both in Israel and abroad.
It’s sad to say that those who stand in opposition to this vote embolden the enemies of the Jewish people. Just because you vote does not necessarily mean you subscribe to the positions and philosophies of the WZO, nor do you have to agree with 100% of whatever their statement says. If you voted last year for Democrats like Kamala Harris, does that mean you are someone who believes in late-term abortions and same sex marriage? I don’t think so.
And therein lies a tangential similarity to the theme of the Messing film—October 8th. The title refers to the events that occurred in the aftermath of October 7th, hence the film title. The centerpiece and main thrust of the film are the shocking international street protests against Israel after 1,200 of her people were massacred, while another 250 were taken hostage, with about 60 still being held in brutal captivity in Gaza, and about two-thirds of the hostages dying while in captivity.
The anti-Israel protests were and sometimes still are violent, with Jewish students prevented from attending classes and occasionally advised by college administrators at Columbia University to stay at home and participate in classes via Zoom.
Now, with Donald Trump back in the White House, the crackdown on sending billions of dollars to these institutions that tolerate and encourage Jew-hatred is putting these schools in panic mode as their federal funding is being withheld for violating the Civil Rights of their Jewish students.
Even more shocking is the hesitation on the part of Ivy League schools like Columbia, UPenn, Barnard, and Cornell, amongst others, to adopt policies that admonish anti-Israel student protestors and others involved in these ugly displays of hatred and discrimination targeting Jews exclusively. That was until this week when at least Columbia did a reversal and accepted sweeping policy changes as demanded by the Trump administration, which includes prohibiting the wearing of masks in public forums.
From our internal perspective, it is difficult to unsee the presence of what appears to be Chassidic men with long beards and payos marching with those who support the murder of Jews.
To many of us that is a horror scene and an extreme brand of chillul Hashem that does nothing but embolden Arab terrorists and their supporters who can say, “Look, we have Jewish support.” The same lowlifes can be seen with signage attacking Israel and Zionism on the Columbia campus as well as others.
Not that I’m comparing the horror show that is Neturei Karta with those who feel that the World Zionist Congress election is too closely affiliated with nationalistic Zionism. But it is a mistake for even the most deeply Observant Jews to distance themselves so publicly from anything having to do with Zionism.
It is truly a miscalculation because we may be able to discern the nuances from the inside looking out, but everyone out there will see us as one people despite our differing philosophies.
We express in our davening every day that Hashem should shine his holy countenance on Zion and that is a beautiful wish and desire. Just because a nationalistic, land-based brand of Zionism has evolved over the last hundred years or so doesn’t mean we should shy away from any reference to Zion.
Is the Torah world going to allow the secularists to chase us away from the very essence of what it means to be a Jew in this world? And that is both about strengthening Torah observance and securing the attachment between Jews and the land of Israel.
The film referenced above is entitled “October 8” for a specific reason. We all know what took place on October 7th. But the next day before it was even certain what had taken place, protests erupted against Israel (the victim) and in support of the terrorists who committed the atrocities, which we know today included at least twelve employees of the UNRWA, with about ten percent of the agency’s Gaza staff having ties to Islamist militant groups.
As former Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg said at the end of the film, what we thought we knew on October 7th is what October 8th tells us loud and clear about what existed on October 6th and every day before that. And that is the Jew-hatred that was always there was nothing new except that it exploded in an out-of-control fashion and, despite opposition, continues to this very day.
So, the Israeli government is prepared to distribute $2 billion through the World Zionist Congress. The money can easily go to branches of Jewish life that want to sidestep Torah values and water down and even ignore the holiness of our people and our attachment to Torah and Hashem.
Or because the word Zion or Zionism is a part of the process, yeshiva students are induced to leave their studies and protest a proper way that these funds can be used to strengthen Jewish life. The good news is that groups like Eretz Hakodesh, ZOA, and Mizrachi as well as a few others have the right idea.
We pray that G-d oversees our return to Zion in a proper way. Protesting against the strengthening of our religious institutions helps the enemies of Israel and the Jews. And that is not good.
This week my family marks the eighth yahrzeit of my dear mom, Sora Rosa bas Ahron. A week later we will observe the yahrzeit of my father-in-law, R’ Aharon Tzvi ben Moshe Osher.
They passed away, as some readers might recall, a week apart from one another in 2017. Sandwiched between the two levayas was the wedding of our children, Shayna and Nison, may they be well and a continued source of great nachas.
Their oldest child—Sora Rosa—as you can see, was named for my mom. Their youngest child, born just a few months ago, is Aharon Tzvi, named for my father-in-law. So now eight years later in my immediate family there is one Sora, several Rosies, as well as three Aron Tzvis.
My memory of both my mom and father-in-law are clear, vivid, and indeed vibrant. They were both in their mid-90s and as you can imagine, the recollection of those days is striking to say the least.
My mom passed away on the Saturday night after my son’s aufruf. The levaya was the next day on Sunday. My two brothers and sister flew to Israel for the burial in Bet Shemesh. On Wednesday evening of that week was the wedding. At the time I was not sure how I was going to do this, but as you can see somehow, I persevered and endured.
I’ll get back to the wedding in a moment. The Shabbos of sheva berachos was both beautiful and grand. But then, as soon as Shabbos concluded, we were told that on that same afternoon of the simcha, my father-in-law returned his soul to his Maker.
They both lived deeply meaningful lives. I was looking at my mother’s birth certificate recently and saw that she was actually born in New York at Lenox Hill Hospital in 1921. She met my father at a wedding of a mutual friend in 1944 in New York, and they were zocheh to grow a family from that point on.
My father-in-law, as was the case with my mother-in-law (whose second yahrzeit will occur on PesachSheni), was born in Poland and endured the hell of the Holocaust. He managed to make it to Siberia with his Yeshiva, Novardok, while my mother-in-law was hidden in homes mostly in her hometown of Tishevitz.
They were both sole survivors of large families and were matched up by his Rosh Yeshiva’s Rebbetzin on a ship that was making its way to New York with a stopover in Paris where they and many other young men and women were married.
The struggles both emotionally and physically were no doubt nearly impossible. But they made it and grew a family that now numbers in the hundreds, and they were able to do that because they were survivors. They apparently had that survival instinct that made pushing ahead doable.
Eight years later, I’m still trying to reconcile the juggling and balancing act that was a great simchasandwiched in between two levayas. Hashem has His unique way of presenting challenges, all we need to do is figure out how to rise to the occasion, mourn, celebrate, and figure out how to persevere as the weeks, months, and years move on.
On Wednesday of that week, the midpoint of the shiva process, we locked the front door to the house. I went upstairs, took a shower, shaved, put on a clean new shirt, suit, and tie, and we were off to the hall for picture taking preceding the chuppah.
My rabbis told me not to compromise the simcha of the chassan and kallah in any way. Some said to not shave, others said not to wear shoes, but the message I received from the poskim I consulted was not to let on to any aveilus in the course of the wedding whatsoever.
So now it’s eight years later and all I can do aside from remembering them and saying Kaddish is to replay that very special week that they created for us.
That last year or so of her life, my mom was more or less at home and in a wheelchair because it was more convenient for her aide and for her to get around. I remember now sitting with her and telling her that my son, Nison, named after my dad, was getting married and I would make sure that somehow, I would get her to the wedding.
When I said that, she smiled and said, “You really think so?” I said to her, “I promise you Ma, I will make sure that you will be there.”
Well, I couldn’t keep that promise. She was not there. Or at least, if she was, I couldn’t see her.
Read more of Larry Gordon’s articles at 5TJT.com. Follow 5 Towns Jewish Times on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for updates and live videos. Comments, questions, and suggestions are welcome at 5TJT.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.