- Family and Society
- Additional Lessons
147
Translated by Hillel Fendel
Question: How should I relate to great rabbis and Torah scholars, and even the generation's leaders, who ruled Halakhically that parts of the Land of Israel may be given over to autonomous gentile rule? For me personally, I find it hard to call them "rabbis" – but who am I in comparison to these great Torah giants?
Answer: To us, it is absolutely clear that according to Torah law, it is forbidden under all circumstances to give away parts of Eretz Yisrael to foreigners. Every such withdrawal is not only forbidden, but it also endangers life, as experience has shown us. Those rabbis who ruled that it is permitted to give away parts of the Land in exchange for so-called peace made a grave error, and we are paying a high price for their mistake.
Still and all, we are not permitted to insult or mock those Torah scholars. There are rabbis who were mistaken in this ruling, but they have great merits in teaching and disseminating Torah to many Jews.
Question: How should I relate to great rabbis and Torah scholars, and even the generation's leaders, who ruled Halakhically that parts of the Land of Israel may be given over to autonomous gentile rule? For me personally, I find it hard to call them "rabbis" – but who am I in comparison to these great Torah giants?
Answer: To us, it is absolutely clear that according to Torah law, it is forbidden under all circumstances to give away parts of Eretz Yisrael to foreigners. Every such withdrawal is not only forbidden, but it also endangers life, as experience has shown us. Those rabbis who ruled that it is permitted to give away parts of the Land in exchange for so-called peace made a grave error, and we are paying a high price for their mistake.
Still and all, we are not permitted to insult or mock those Torah scholars. There are rabbis who were mistaken in this ruling, but they have great merits in teaching and disseminating Torah to many Jews.
However, we should not rely on their rulings on matters of Eretz Yisrael, and perhaps in any matter that concerns the public at large, because they are apparently not familiar with the details of this topic and are liable to err again.
In order to get articles like this delivered straight to your inbox every week, subscribe to the Israel National Torah newsletter here.
In order to get articles like this delivered straight to your inbox every week, subscribe to the Israel National Torah newsletter here.
A Skin Disorder...Only in Israel?
Baruch Gordon | Nissan 30 5780
Explaining the Customs of Bris Milah
Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff
Raising Charitable Funds on Shabbat
Rabbi Daniel Mann | 5775
seudat hodaya
Rabbi Daniel Mann | 5772
Daf Yomi Makkot Daf 20
R' Eli Stefansky | 30 Nisan 5785
Tolerance but Not at All Costs
Ayn Aya Shabbat v, 73
Rabbi Ari Shvat | Iyar 5785
Daf Yomi Makkot Daf 19
R' Eli Stefansky | 29 Nisan 5785
