From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, June 26, 2024
Top Shas rabbi: Army service forbidden also for Haredim who don’t attend yeshiva
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleCanaan Lidor is a former Jewish World reporter at The Times of Israel
A top spiritual leader of the Shas Haredi movement reiterates his opposition to military service by any member of his community, including those who are not studying Torah.
“It’s forbidden for those who don’t study to go to the army. Those who do will end up violating the Shabbat,” Moshe Maya, a senior member of the Shas Council of Torah Sages, tells Kol Baramah radio following the High Court of Justice’s ruling Tuesday ordering the army to begin drafting hitherto exempted Haredi yeshiva students.
Maya, who also opposes enlistment for yeshiva students, repeats positions outlined in a letter he had undersigned with other top Shas rabbis in April.
The exemption by government decree that the court declared nullified applies annually to tens of thousands of students of yeshivas, religious seminaries.
Thousands of Haredim who do not attend yeshiva are also believed to be exempted under false pretenses. Some view their enlistment as an interim step toward resolving the Haredi draft controversy.
The rabbis’ letters indicate a divergence between the movement’s old guard and the younger and more pragmatic political echelon.
Maya, an 85-year-old former lawmaker, expresses the commonly-held view in Haredi circles that the study of Torah and prayers for Israeli soldiers and hostages constitutes a major contribution to the war effort.
“If not for the Torah students, there would be many more fatalities,” Maya says.
The Times of Israel Community.