How To Be A Religious Zionist

In a blog (7/16) entitled “7 Ways to deny reality,” the American blogger Failed Messiah ridicules the baal teshuvah (repentance) group Aish. He says “Aish.com has one of the most foolish articles about the new war in Israel I've seen. Entitled "Seven Ways You Can Help Israel," the article is long on feel-good spirituality and short – very short – on tachlis (practicality).The seven ways you can help? Here they are, in order just as Aish lists them: 1. Pray 2. Cry 3. Study Torah 4. Believe 5. Repent 6. Do Good. Okay, so there are only six ways. The seventh, stated at the end of the article, is get on a plane and come to Israel today, presumably to do much more of numbers one through five. When Jews face danger, prayer is natural – and correct. But it is not the be all and end all Aish makes it out to be. God wants us to do the most we can in the here and now to make things better. Doing what we can do to help Israel, from going there and helping out, to sending money that will help offset the tremendous financial losses taken by Israelis in a time of war, comes first. Extra time praying and learning should happen as well, but not as a first choice or even as a second. Practical help always comes first. But by all means do not spend excessive time learning or praying until you are certain every Israeli has food and a safe place to sleep. That is what Jewish law – and common sense – expects and demands.”

I certainly agree that the war has caused serious economic disruptions, and now is the time for American Jews to step up to the plate. Nevertheless, this particular blog rubbed me the wrong way. First of all, the Aish group does recommend doing good which presumably includes writing a check, and they did list going to Israel to help as #7. Failed Messiah, hip as he may be, covers his religious ass by also saying “Extra time praying and learning should happen as well.” So there is no practical difference between his position and the group he is ridiculing. What sticks in his craw is that the first actions listed appeal to heaven. They are insufficiently active Zionist, let’s take the initiative and do what must be done. So here we have a religious blogger criticizing another religious group in the name of secular Zionist values. He is so upset at charedi passivity that it irks him that a Jew prays before writing the check. I could understand a blogger who doesn’t believe in the efficacy of prayer. Such a person would in general write about some topic other than Ultra Orthodoxy (UO). Maybe sports or skin care. A blogger who concentrates on UO only to push secular values is special.

There are many such people on the internet and in life. Their sustenance comes from being more secular, more Zionist and more modern than the UO. Take the UO away as a comparison and they have nothing to say, and no particular claim to fame. They usually are Modern Orthodox or formerly frum. They aren’t particularly secular; they aren’t particularly cool or edgy. If they were they wouldn’t be obsessed with criticizing charedim. There were people just like this in Eastern Europe. They were called maskilim, enlighteners, full of constructive ideas and helpful tips for their Orthodox townsman. They should trim their beards, learn Russian, French or German, read French novels…endless suggestions. They couldn’t understand why the Chasidim didn’t take their proposals seriously. After all, they had been to Warsaw and St. Petersburg. They knew about life in the modern world. When these people left Eastern Europe and settled in Paris or the Bronx, they finally realized they had nothing to offer. They were now immigrants with the same accent and provincialism as their less enlightened landsleit. There wasn’t much point in recommending the study of French to a Frenchman.

Returning for a moment to my blog of the other day about AIPAC... when you think how so many American presidents ended up supporting Israel even when they had no previous connection to Zionist aspirations, it is nothing short of miraculous. Similarly, it is miraculous that after 1900 years of persecution, Evangelical Christians come to the belief, just at the right time, that it is in their interest and America’s interest that Israel prevail. For close to two millennia Christians said God hated us. All of a sudden we are big shots in the divine scheme of things. The entire history of Israel from day one until today has an uncanny quality about it. The Aish 7-step program may be a bit unsophisticated, as all self- help programs tend to be, but it understands and tries to give expression to the magical aura that surrounds Israel. Every Jew, even secular Israelis feel there is some mystical enchantment that envelops Israel. The enchanted aura is essential for Israel’s survival. Without this mystical quality that makes Israel special, it is just one more small country in a nasty neighborhood. I have no idea how to give a naturalist account of how a country can be so uncanny and so enchanted.

Next blog Friday.