Religious Zionist leader: We'll be far stronger if we stop making idle threats
Rabbi Shlomo Aviner believes Religious Zionist sector can have even greater impact on Israeli society if its members unite, change their tone of discourse
In a article written for a synagogue newsletter, entitled “Beha'hava ve Emunah (“With Love and Faith”), Rabbi Aviner noted that the Religious Zionist sector is far more powerful than its numbers indicate, but needs to change its tone of discourse and unite its rank and file.
Aviner also stated that if action is taken “contrary to the wishes of” Religious Zionism, this is not part of a grand conspiracy against the movement, but merely a by product of a very complex reality.
Rabbi Aviner begins his article with a question posed by a fellow Religious Zionist who laments that “the sector is attacked on all fronts. Gush Katif, the yeshivot hesder (a yeshiva program which combines advanced Talmudic studies with military service in the Israel Defense Forces), military service, and so forth, and it deeply saddens me. Everything around us seems to be crumbling, but our leaders act as if it's business as usual—which upsets me even more.”
'We are in the midst of a battle'
Thing are from being so bleak, responds the Rabbi. “We are not faltering; on the contrary, we are constantly gaining in strength in every respect. We may only comprise 10% of the Israeli populace, but our impact on Israeli society far outweighs our numbers. We present to the Jewish people the key to revving the religious identity of the chosen people on their holy land.”
How can Religious Zionism continue to grow in strength and influence? Unity and civility are the key, according to Rabbi Aviner. “We need to take the advice of a prominent professor, an expert on social processes, who admonishes our movement to stand united and stop laying blame on one another,” he says. “We also need to stop speaking in a vague and threatening manner that alienates others.”
Rabbi Aviner also explains that religious zionists must understand that not all events adversely affecting the movement are a grand conspiracy against them. “Sometimes adverse events occur not as a result of a grand conspiracy targeted at us, but merely as a byproduct of a highly complex reality,” he notes.
Misery, despair and sadness play into the hands of our enemies, says the rabbi to religious zionists. “We are in the midst of a battle, and that is no place for tears. We believe in ourselves, in the Jewish nation, and in the State of Israel. We will not allow weakness to destroy our faith.”
