Rabbi Levinstein marks new target: The Supreme Court
Controversial religious-Zionist rabbi slams Supreme Court ruling under former chief justice Aharon Barak: 'the court determined that same-sex couples were equal to normal couples'; makes new disparaging remarks against women in the IDF: 'An army is required to show strength, mental fortitude and camaraderie, which have always been very masculine values.'
Rabbi Yigal Levinstein, who previously made controversial remarks against LGBT persons and women serving in the IDF, was in hot water yet again on Thursday, this time for attacking Israel's Supreme Court.
The article, titled "A Jew at home and on the street," was published as part of a booklet of commentary against women serving in the IDF written by the heads of Yeshivot Hesder (a program combining advanced Talmudic studies with military service) and army preparatory schools. Tens of thousands of copies of the booklet will be distributed to yeshivot, midrashot (an institute of Jewish studies for women), and army preparatory schools.
Levinstein, who heads the Bnei David army preparatory school in Eli, attacked former Supreme Court Chief Justice Aharon Barak and the judicial revolution he led.
According to Levinstein, the Supreme Court rulings led by Barak turned Israel from a Jewish nation state to a state of all of its people, "or in other words, from a democracy based on the rule of the people to a democracy based on liberal postmodern values."
Levinstein pointed to several rulings that in his opinion led to this outcome.
Primarily, the Katzir Ruling from 2000, in which Barak ruled in favor of an Arab couple who sought to build a home in the communal settlement of Katzir, which was established within the Green Line on state lands allocated to the Jewish Agency. The couple were rejected by the community, which only accepted Jewish members. Barak determined that this policy constitutes discrimination on the basis of religion or nationality.
The ruling, Levinstein claimed, "determined that Zionist settlement, meaning the establishment of communities in the Galilee and Negev for the purpose of Judaizing them, is discriminatory. In this, he put a halt on the possibility of establishing Jewish communities in places where Jews are a minority, so we could continue to settle the Land of Israel."
Levinstein also had qualms against what he called "hurting the traditional family" in the Danilowitz Ruling from 1995. Jonathan Danilowitz, a senior in-flight service manager in El Al, sued the airline when it refused to recognize his same-sex partner as his common-law spouse. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Danilowitz, ordering El Al to grant Danilowitz's partner the same benefits it grants heterosexual couples.
In this verdict, Levinstein wrote, "of the flight attendant with the opposite orientation from El Al, the Supreme Court determined that same-sex couples were equal to normal couples."
"And so, without us noticing it, a state of all its citizens was established. If David Ben-Gurion established the Jewish nation state 70 years ago based on the decision of the majority, then Aharon Barak established the state of all its citizens in the dead of night, without the people having decided this," Levinstein charged.
"This is perhaps the source of the bad sentiments felt towards the Supreme Court by large parts of the population. According to Barak, even though the majority doesn't believe in his enlightened liberal values, it is the duty of the enlightened minority to 'educate' the people to these 'enlightened and progressive' values."
In his article, Levinstein declares the religious-Zionist public has no intention of conceding to Barak's liberal revolution. "The strong public is the hardest nut to crack, and that is why the postmodern movement views it as a threat and tries to neutralize it wherever possible in a manner that eliminates its influence on the discourse over values."
Returning to the topic of the integration of women in the IDF, Levinstein writes: "The IDF, being a fighting army, highlights the masculine advantage and makes a natural distinction between the sexes. A fighting army is required to show strength, mental fortitude and camaraderie, which have always been very masculine values. 'It is a man's way to conquer, but it is not a woman's way to conquer.'"
Pointing to what he believes was the reason the IDF decided to incorporate women into combat units, Levinstein writes "Today, the army is working under the basic assumption that the postmodern values are the values of the majority, even if these are not the majority's values, democratically speaking."
To remedy the situation, Levinstein proposes that "We must redefine what 'integrating into society' means while maintaining our Jewish identity. Integration and not assimilation. This means—'Be a Jew in your home and on the street.' Don't be afraid to pay a personal price for protecting the Jewish identity, even if this could halt promotion or lower status. Piety must come before the postmodern perception."
Levinstein recently praised Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked for her selection of judges to the Supreme Court. "We were blessed with a justice minister who chose to advance Israel and appoint Jews to the so-called Supreme Court. At least this time three real Jews were appointed—settlers, a religious woman, serious and healthy people," he said.
Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman has recently called on Levinstein to resign, threatening to remove Bnei David from the Defense Ministry's list of recognized army preparatory schools. Levinstein ignored the calls, prompting a letter from the ministry's director-general Maj. Gen. (res.) Udi Adam, threatening sanctions.
