The Torah Im Derech Eretz Society: 2025

Thursday, October 9, 2025

Minhag Ashkenaz Kenes, Bene Brak, Thursday Oct 9, Mincah 5:50 PM

Also available online via Google Meet

https://meet.google.com/bfm-qjvh-xxs

Followed by talk in Hebrew by Rav Hamburger, followed by Maariv, followed by Chazanus.

Also available online via Google Meet

Tuesday, September 30, 2025

A great quote from Amira Hass

"Israel and its collaborators from right-wing organizations have drummed it into the public that all Palestinian resistance is terrorism and every means of resistance is an illegitimate, actually antisemitic, weapon. It's not just bombs and rocks that constitute terror, but also diplomacy and popular protests, lawsuits in international courts, agriculture, hooking up a water line, building a tent, expanding a school, adding a balcony, speeches and mere words."

Opinion | The Oslo Accords Are Alive and Well and Perpetuating the Israeli Occupation, Haaretz

Fantastic quote except that it's not just right wingers. Most Israelis and all Zionists talk this way. And so do nearly all Orthodox Jews. Why? Because that's what they were taught as kids, so it must be true. They never question it. The assumption is built in part on notions of Jewish superiority in all matters. But it's not just an assumption of superiority, it's absolutism. We are good; they are bad. It's self-worship. Nationalism allows for that. Nationalism, as Yaakov Shapiro explains, was a European invention that first replaced the Pope with the King and then the King with the people. We don't obey a religious figure anymore. We rule. Identity went from being a Catholic to being a Frenchman, which is laden with all kinds of mythology. It's all a kind of self-worship. So while the Tanach talks about how low Jews can go, Zionism uses the Tanach to say the opposite, that we are always wonderful. Even after a two-year onslaught in Gaza, we still are wonderful. Evidence doesn't matter. Facts don't matter. Even reports from soldiers don't matter. We are always right, always good, no matter what. The notion is taken as a kind of religious faith. So what nationalism did to Europeans - secularize them - Zionism has done to us. We now worship ourselves. We are infallible. Or so we think.

Monday, September 22, 2025

Rav Schwab on Sefer Melachim

Thursday, September 18, 2025

R. Hirsch and the Details of Mitzvot Rav Yitzchak Blau

Shiur #09: R. Hirsch and the Details of Mitzvot

In last week’s shiur, we noted that R. Hirsch rejects practical or hygienic explanations for mitzvot, as well as historically contextual explanations. He is also critical of explanations that ignore the details of mitzvot or the Oral Law’s elucidation of the mitzvot. In this shiur, we will move from the general overview to concrete examples of his method.

Ta’amei ha-mitzvot (rationales for commandments) play a major role in R. Hirsch’s commentary on the Torah, in his Horeb, and in a long essay he wrote on “Jewish Symbolism” that appears in the third volume of his Collected Writings (Feldheim: New York, 1984). In that essay, he explains the commandments of brit mila, tzitzit, tefillin and the mishkan. The difference between R. Hirsch’s and Rambam’s approach emerges quite sharply.

Rambam explains that tefillin and tzitzit belong to a category of commandments that remind us to acknowledge God and to love and revere Him (Guide of the Perplexed 3:44). He views circumcision as a commandment intended to weaken sexual desire and to provide a bodily marker of Jewish identity (Guide of the Perplexed 3:49). Questions such as why circumcision must take place during the daytime or why we put on the tefillin shel yad (the tefillin worn on the arm) before the tefillin shel rosh (the tefillin worn on the head) do not interest him in the slightest. Indeed, as we saw in the last shiur, Rambam writes that we should not search for reasons for the details of mitzvot (Guide of the Perplexed 3:26).

In contrast, R. Hirsch insists that an adequate explanation must work out the details as well. According to his understanding, the tefillin shel yad represent dedicating our actions to God, while the tefillin shel rosh represent dedicating our thoughts to God. We lay phylacteries on the hand first to demonstrate that in Judaism, religious actions are more significant than theoretical speculation. We have already encountered the primacy of practice as an important theme for R. Hirsch.

In the same vein, seemingly technical details teach important messages. The four passages in the Torah that mention tefillin comprise the text that is found inside the boxes of the tefillin. All four passages are in one compartment in the shel yad but in four separate compartments in the shel rosh. R. Hirsch writes that this indicates that our thoughts incorporate a variety of distinct and important themes but those disparate themes must be united in one purposeful life of Jewish practice. We place the parchment in batim (literally = houses, the term in halakhic literature for the boxes of the tefillin) because a house symbolizes stability and permanence. Those batim must be square because while nature can produce round items, only the human being called upon by tefillin is capable of producing square objects.

The Torah explicitly says that tzitzit remind us to adhere to the commandments. R. Hirsch points out that humanity adopted garments as a result of the first sin. Thus, garments appropriately remind us to keep God’s word. The fringes of the tzitzit unite the white of universalism with the blue of Jewish particularism. Each fringe has a knotted section and a part that hangs loose to symbolize that the Torah restrains humanity but also allows for human freedom to flourish.

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Monday, September 15, 2025

not by your own power

The land that He is now giving to you so that you may take possession of it was already promised to your fathers. You are receiving it only as an inheritance from them so that you may pass it on to your children. You did not gain possession of it by your own power. You owe the land solely to your forefathers loyalty to their covenant with God, and only if you will transmit this same loyalty to your own children as a spiritual heritage will you be able to bequeath to them also the land as an inheritance.

R. Samson R. Hirsch, Devarim 25:19

Friday, September 12, 2025

Judith Grunfeld

Judith Grunfeld born Judith Rosenbaum (18 December 1902 – 14 May 1998) was a Hungarian born Jewish German teacher who spent much of her life in the United Kingdom. She was a pioneer of the revolutionary Bais Yaakov girl's education movement.^[1] She taught teachers in Poland and then led a Jewish school of girls, which was evacuated throughout the war to the small town of Shefford.

Germany and Poland

Grunfeld was born in Budapest in 1902, but she was educated and raised in Frankfurt where she attended the Hirsch Real Schule before going on to Frankfurt University.^[2]

In 1924, Jacob Rosenheim of Agudat Yisrael persuaded Grunfeld to abandon her dreams of going to Palestine and instead to go to Krakow, Poland and join Sarah Schenirer's fledgling school that was trying to teach girls from Jewish backgrounds.^[2] Schenirer did not have an extensive Jewish education but she was to change the way that women were regarded within Jewish culture.^[3] They aimed to teach girls and their teachers and get them to appreciate their culture and religion. For five years from 1924 she was involved with teaching teachers at the Beit Yaakov teachers' Seminary. She also had to raise the funds and this would involve some travel. In 1929 the school was adopted by the Orthodox "Agudat Yisrael" now that Rabbi Jacob Rosenheim was its President.^[2]

She married lawyer Isidor Grunfeld on 22 November 1932. He was a lawyer in Würzburg until 1933.^[4] The Nazis' rise to power prompted them to move to Israel, they moved to London in 1933 because they struggled to find work in Israel.^[5]

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Wednesday, September 10, 2025

Philosophy, Categorization of Mitzvot, and Rationales for Mitzvot Rav Yitzchak Blau, etzion.org.il

MODERN RABBINIC THOUGHT

By Rav Yitzchak Blau

Shiur #08:

Philosophy, Categorization of Mitzvot, and Rationales for Mitzvot

One of R. Hirsch’s most significant contributions to Jewish thought is his intensive effort to find rationales for every aspect of each mitzva. He outlines the foundation for such a project in The Nineteen Letters and carries out this project in great detail both in Horeb and in his commentary on the Torah. The Nineteen Letters and Horeb, R. Hirsch’s two early works, both set forth R. Hirsch’s unique and innovative six-part classification of mitzvot.[1]

The choice to focus intellectual efforts on analyzing the reasons for mitzvot fits R. Hirsch’s general worldview. R. Hirsch had little interest in metaphysical speculation about God, favoring more practical kinds of philosophic activity. “Judaism has no regard for the kind of speculation that does not aspire to contribute to active productive life” (The Nineteen Letters, letter 15, trans. Karin Paretzky, revised by R. Joseph Elias). In letter 18, he criticizes Rambam for introducing foreign modes of thought into Judaism, rather than analyzing it from within. For example, according to Rambam, “Knowledge of God was considered an end in itself rather than a means toward the end.” Clearly, for R. Hirsch, knowledge of God is not the end goal.

This practical bent emerges clearly from his analysis of the eighth chapter of Tehillim.[2] The second verse of that chapter says: “O God, our Lord, how glorious is Your name in all the earth.” One would expect the subsequent verses to outline in detail God’s grandeur; instead, they turn to a discussion of humanity. R. Hirsch argues that this psalm reflects a characteristic Jewish truth.

Knowledge of God is not a metaphysical insight into the existence, essence and metaphysical attributes of God. The true knowledge of God is the ethical insight into the essence of man, his calling and his task rooted in the concept of God and His relationship to the world.

Moreover, R. Hirsch contended that any knowledge of divinity is rooted in revelation and that human speculation could tell us very little about God (commentary on Shemot 19:4). Letter 15 states that “we are warned against misconceiving our intellectual powers and probing into bottomless depths, no matter what glittering constructions and theses such a quest may produce.” According to R, Hirsch, the eighth psalm mentions “out of the mouths of babes” to teach that the mind of every child is sufficient to understand what we need to know about God. “The maturest mind of a philosopher knows no more about the essence of God than the simple mind of a child” (cited in I. Grunfeld, page xlii).

The above idea finds powerful expression in an essay written by R. Hirsch about Shavuot and revelation.[3] There, he objects to calling Judaism a “religion” or a “theology.” He rejects the former term because “religion” refers to the inner thoughts of man rather than to outward physical expression. Other religions are made by man and their external religious acts merely attempt to realize those inner thoughts. In the case of Judaism, however, God gave us the commandments and we try to understand the divine thought manifest in those commandments. The commandments constitute the primary essence of Judaism.

R. Hirsch continues to explain that Judaism is not a “theology” either:

For, whilst theology contains the thoughts of man on God and things Divine, the Torah contains the thoughts of God on man and things human. There is little said in the Torah which refers directly to God and things Divine; and of the inner essence of the Godhead and the supernatural we find in the Torah nothing at all…. The Torah does not want to tell us how things look in heaven, but how they should look in our hearts and homes (ibid., p.189).

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Tuesday, September 9, 2025

Letter to Jewish Action about R. Hirsch's view of evolution

Saturday, September 6, 2025

The Meaning of the Mitzvot according to Rabbi S.R. Hirsch -- Rav Baruch Horovitz of Dvar Yerushalayim

The Meaning of the Mitzvot according to Rabbi S.R. Hirsch

https://dvar.org.il/the-meaning-of-the-mitzvot-according-to-rabbi-s-r-hirsch/

Rav Baruch Horovitz
(posted with permission)

Adapted from a lecture at the Rabbi S.R. Hirsch Centre of the Jerusalem Academy, Pesach 5749. (With thanks to Rav A. Carmell, Prof. M. Breuer and Prof. L. Levi for their comments, some of which have been included.)

1. THE UNIQUENESS OF TORAH

The major characteristic of the teachings of Rav Hirsch in his time, and also for our time, is his demonstration of the uniqueness and unity of the Torah.

This approach of “Gaining a deep understanding of every aspect of the Torah, and also of life, by studying the Torah’s outlook from its own sources (sich-selbst-begreifendes Judenthum)”, characterised every aspect of his educational and communal activities. This is related to the absolute truth of the Torah as God’s word; other human, relative knowledge is true only in relationship to Torah1.

Explanation of the Tenach

In contrast to other modernist commentators, who compared aspects of the Tenach to situations in the environment, Rav Hirsch explained both the simple and deeper meaning of every word and phrase by comparing it to other phrases throughout the Tenach. He demonstrated a psychological ‘close reading’ of the narratives. Taking as the basic axiom the Divinity and authenticity of the Written and Oral Traditions he showed how these were not two separate aspects, but were intertwined one with the other, and that the nuances of the verses were explained through the Oral Tradition2.

Analysis of the Hebrew Language

He went to the root of every word comparing it to similar roots that were phonetically connected in Tenach, Talmud and Midrash, formulating a “Speculative Etymology”, demonstrating a deep understanding of language in general and of the Hebrew roots. Every Hebrew word-root has three letters which go back to two basic letters, the third one being a variant. He built up a unified outlook upon life according to his system of the psychological and philosophical roots which are expressed in the Hebrew, without reference to comparative philology3.

Understanding the Mitzvot

Nearly all Jewish thinkers declare that the Mitzvot have reasons. These were often found in environmental factors. For example, Maimonides explained many Mitzvot as opposing idolatorous practices of the time. Rav Hirsch, however, made a detailed study of the Mitzvah trying to understand it from its structure and from its sources in Tenach, Talmud and Midrash, elucidating the symbolic significance, based on its root4.

Torah with Derech Eretz

The Torah is a total system of how to answer all the problems of life for Jew and Gentile, for the individual and the nation, producing a dynamic unified harmonious approach. This is the deeper meaning of his principle of Torah im Derech Eretz which is often (mis)understood to be a synthesis and fusion of Judaism with the humanism of his day. However, he understood the Torah to be the guide for all aspects of life. By applying the yardstick of the Torah to different situations one sees the Torah in action, with the Derech Eretz being the transitory element in every age, group and environment6. One should dedicate oneself to Torah not only in the Bet Hamidrash, but also in business life, in the use of technology and in politics. This is not a combination between Torah and secularism7, for Torah im Derech Eretz means sanctifying all that is secular8.

In Rav Hirsch’s time and environment therefore Derech Eretz also meant teaching Schiller9. Today, however, if we are going to be true to Rav Hirsch’s principle we must reject the morally bankrupt German culture and apply Derech Eretz to our scientific, post-Holocaust, ecology-conscious nuclear age, with its completely different problems. Dr. Yitzchak Breuer developed the concept of Torah and Derech Eretz Yisrael10. The renewed life here in Eretz Israel with its national environment gives an opportunity to act out Torah and Derech Eretz far more completely in accordance with Rav Hirsch’s initial teaching than was ever possible in the educational program of the Hirschian Schools where there was an imbalance with far less Torah than culture11. Now in Eretz Israel, more time can be spent on mastering Torah subjects in order to apply the Torah’s criteria to the study of nature, history and other subjects.

The Jewish Community

Why should a Torah community be dependent upon a larger community that is not guided by Torah values? This was the basis for “Austritt”12. If we are to translate Rav Hirsch’s communal approach from Frankfurt to the present situation in Eretz Israel, it means as far as possible being independent of a national communal structure and government which oppose Torah values. The Torah community would gain self-respect and respect from others.

All the above aspects of his teaching share the common factor of understanding and application of Torah ‘from itself with consistency, thoroughness and independence. This, and not preconceived terms of reference from prevailing cultures, is the true science of Judaism.

2. THE SYMBOLIC MEANING OF THE MITZVOT

The Nature of the Symbol

We are surrounded in life by “natural” and “conventional” symbols. “Natural” refer to the sounds, facial expressions and bodily gestures that we and animals make to express feelings. There are also many “conventional” symbols, including language, artistic expression, clothing, the handshake, flags and other social gestures13.

Symbolism in the Torah

Examples:

“Let there be light-giving bodies in the firmament of the heavens and they shall be for signs”14. The symbolical significance of the sun, moon, and the stars is mentioned before their function as time-guides and light-givers.

God established a covenant of “peace” after the flood with the sign of the rainbow15. This could mean that rainfall and clouds have a “silver lining,” that we should never give up hope when we experience destruction. Or it represents a “bow” which is not turned against the earth, as a sign of armistice and peace. Or the various colours of the spectrum symbolise different shades of human beings and character that all contribute to the pure light of Hashem16. There are many more such symbols instituted by Hashem mentioned in the Tenach. Most dreams related in the Tenach, both those that are direct prophecies and others, contain ideas and messages connected with symbols17. There are also prophecies which are not dreams combining a prophetic message with a symbol18.

The Mitzva as an Explicit Symbol

It is not surprising that Mitzvot are described in similar manner. There are some Mitzvot where the symbol and the meaning are explicit:

Some are called ot, a sign: - Circumcision - milah - is described as a “Sign of the Covenant’, the meaning of which is contained in the phrase “Walk in front of Me and become perfect.’’19

The tefillin “should be a sign on your arm and a remembrance between your eyes, so that the teaching of God should remain in your mouth.”20

The Shabbat is described as “an everlasting covenant. Between Me and the children of Israel it is a sign forever that in six days did God create heaven and earth, and with the seventh day he ceased and withdrew.”21

The Mitzvah as an Implicit Symbol

Those Mitzvot where a reason is stated, although the term ot is not used, are also symbolic. Rav Hirsch in his writings analysed the details of the above and the following categories of Mitzvot, basing himself upon the reasons declared or implied:

After Yaakov’s struggle during the night of his encounter with Esau, it is written: “therefore the children of Israel do not eat the sinew on the joint of the thigh.”22

The precept to eat matza and refrain from chametz is to remember that “in haste did you go out from the land of Egypt; that God delivered you with strength of hand.”23

“God slew all the first-born... therefore do I offer to God every first-born male.” 24

“Take the beautiful fruit, the branches of palm trees, myrtles and willows, and rejoice before God.” 25

“You shall dwell in huts for seven days, so that your generations will know that I caused the children of Israel do dwell in huts when I took them out of the land of Egypt.” 26

“This shall be to you for tzitzit so that you may see them and remember all the commandments of God and do them.” 27

There is a view that where the reason is mentioned there is a Mitzvah Min HaTorah to be conscious of this reason when fulfilling the Mitzvah. 28

The Apparently Super-Rational Laws (Hukkim) 29

Whilst the above two categories of Mitzvot and Edot (“testimonies”) have a rationale, there are other laws in the Torah where there is only a general motif of “holiness,” Kedushah, “purity” or Divine closeness. This includes the sexual and dietary code, the prohibition of intermingling species, the Priestly Code, the offerings, and the laws of purification. 30

The Sages say that hukkim are those Mitzvot opposed by the nations of the world and the Evil Inclination (yetzer hara) saying they do not have a reason. 31 According to Gentile culture and materialism they do not seem rational. Ramban32 and others, explain that they all have reasons though it may be difficult for us to understand them, hence they are not mentioned explicitly. Rav Hirsch analyses them deeply showing that these also have a moral symbolic significance.

Addressing himself to a generation that considered these laws obsolete and meaningless, he elaborated upon their detailed meaning is relationship to religious, moral and social principles, and a constructive approach to the animal and plant world, demonstrating that they are relevant today. 33

The Rational Law

The rational law includes the humanitarian social code of the Torah — justice and charity; love of man, kindness to animals; personal morality and self-discipline; improvement of character and the religious “direct” mitzvot of faith, awe, love and worship of God.

These are the principles of life which form the spiritual foundation for the symbolic pattern of the other Mitzvot.

The Talmud relates: a non-Jew came to Hillel and said “Teach me the whole Torah while I am standing on one leg.” Hillel replied, “That which is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow man. This is the whole Torah, the rest is commentary; go and learn.” 34

Is this the whole Torah? Rashi explains: “Robbery, theft, adultery and most Mitzvot.” How is the love of man involved in most Mitzvot? According to Rav Hirsch’s symbolic interpretation, every Mitzvah, including hukkim, improve our character. Drawing nearer to Hashem means to come closer to the moral idea of kedushah (holiness), which is ‘wholeness’ and saintliness. It means developing moral characteristics to their highest potential. So Hillel’s dictum means that all the mitzvot strengthen our attachment to Hashem, who is the moral ideal, and improve our character in relationship to our fellow man; some directly, but others indirectly through the power of the symbol. 235

3. PATTERNS

Time

The day represents independence and activity; the night, dependence and weakness. Rav Hirsch explains: the emphasis of the Torah is not that we should feel our weakness and our dependence upon Hashem; instead He wants each human being and the people of Israel to reach the highest level of activity. Most symbolic Mitzvot, that are meant to develop character, are only done in the daytime. 36

The months have a special significance in that all the festivals are based upon the lunar calendar. Just as the moon reflects the light of the sun to the earth and waxes and wanes, so also Israel should reflect the glory of Hashem to the world, as they have the ability of renewal, failure and rejuvenation. 37

The seasons of nature also teach us the meaning of spiritual seasons. For example, the festival of Pesach is in Spring, the time of the awakening of nature. So the spirit of Israel, every year, should be reawakened from winter slumber. 38 “The Jewish calendar is the catechism of the Jew. 39

Numbers

The six days of the creation of the material world and the seventh day of Shabbat, the eighth day of Milah, the seven times seven days of counting the Omer, followed by Shavuot, reveal the symbol of six as the world of nature, seven as nature pervaded by the power of Hashem, and eight being supernature40. The eighth level of creation is that of Klal Israel and Torah which is a ‘metahistorical’ phenomenon. The fiftieth day comes after the seven and represents the supernatural level of the giving of the Torah. This is why seven days are the days of purification, culminating in the eighth day when a person brings the offering in the Sanctuary and reaches his highest, almost supernatural, level. As Shavuot is after seven times seven days, so Shemini Atzeret is the eighth day after Succot, representing the spiritual preservation of Israel through the joy of the Torah. The Shmittah and Jubilee years extend the symbolic pattern to the Land and State of Israel. The eight threads of the tzitzit and the High Priest’s eight garments represent transcendent sanctity as the ultimate mission of Israel. This is why there are eight days of Chanukah, celebrating consecration of the Menorah and the Temple, which represent dedication to the metahistorical powers of the Torah. 41

Species

The origin and variety of species of animals and plants has puzzled many who have studied the environment. Rav Hirsch emphasises the principle of lemino (“after its kind”), which is emphasized at the beginning of the Humash; the plants and animals were given a blessing that they should multiply and develop “according to their species” 42. The law not to mix varying types of seeds, not to crossbreed animals, nor even to use them together, not to eat milk and meat cooked together, and not to wear a mixture of wool and linen, are based on the awareness of the unique function of differing species. This is to teach us that human beings have a unique specific task, just like the other species. He developed this concept in contrast to the theory which became popular in his time, that one species develops from another; that man descended from the mammals and the plants. The varied groups within mankind have specific functions, and especially the people of Israel have their unique function, outlined in the Torah43. Priests, Levites, men and women, each have a specific role44.

Man has within him levels in common with the plant and animal world. The “vegetable,” “animal,” “human” and “divine” levels are contained within the personality. The divine level should rule the human, the human should rule the animal, and the animal — the vegetable; and not vice-versa. The plant element (feeding and reproduction) should be subjected to the animal element (perception, motion and emotion) which should be subjected to the human element (mind, and creativity) which should be subjected to the divine soul — (conscience, transcendence, and awareness of God45).

Wool, an animal product, and flax, a plant product, when together, represent a creature whose perception and emotion are devoted entirely to food and sex. In man the food and sex instinct should be separated and subjected to perception and emotion, which in turn should be placed at the service of God46.

So also with milk and meat. Meat as muscles and organs of motion represents the specific animal side, and milk which is the specific food for carrying on the species. characterises the vegetative side within the animal. Their separation symbolises that vegetative be subject to animal and both submit to the human spirit. Just as in his upright position, in contrast to the horizontal position of the animals, the animal part of man is above the vegetative aild the human part above both, that is, the head which rises heavenwards; so in man, his animal forces are not to sink to vegetative allurements47.

Colours

These are mentioned in connection with the priestly garments, the coverings and curtains of the Sanctuary, and the Tzitzit.

Techelet (blue-violet), whose Hebrew root is k-l-h, “to come to end,’ is the colour at the end of the spectrum. It represent the tachlit (same root) — that “end” to which all is striving. This symbolises the divine element in man. Shani (scarlet) is the animal aspect. Argaman (purple i.e. red and blue together) represents the human aspect. Then the shesh, white linen, represents the purified vegetative element48.

These are just a few symbolic patterns amongst many.

4. SOME QUESTIONS

Commandments of God or Reason?

If a person fulfils a Mizvah because of some reason or because it represents a moral concept is he really doing it for the purpose of fulfilling the will of God?

Rav Hirsch writes: “If one asks why should you do this and not do that there is but one answer: because it is the will of God and it is your duty to serve him. But the Torah calls upon you by deep reflection to trace the wisdom of God in his word, to understand why God commanded us to fulfil them. With Edoth this deeper penetration into their significance and interpretation of all their parts adds to their proper fulfilment50.

We Jews are the pilots of a space-craft called “the earth.” We have been given a book of instructions — the Torah — which shows us how to keep the Earth running smoothly, and to keep all the passengers, including ourselves, safe and sound. The pilot may also investigate the reasons for the instructions, prepared by the Divine Engineer. However, if he is to act upon his understanding, thinking he may disregard the detailed instructions, then he is likely to bring the spacecraft to disaster.

The Mussar of the Mitzvot

Faced with the challenge of modernism and emancipation, it was found necessary in the Nineteenth-Century traditional communities to emphasize that Torah observance does not mean just studying Tenach, Gemarah, Shulchan Aruch and keeping the Mitzvot. Hassidut emphasized the inner depths of the Torah: to study and experience some of the deeper qualities of the service of God, communion with God, and closeness to the Rebbe51. In the non-hassidic circles in Eastern Europe, the Mussar (ethical) movement arose. Rav Yisrael Salanter and his disciples introduced into the Yeshivah program and also for the Ba’ale Habatim — the working populace — the daily learning of Mussar books. These stress the improvement of character and behaviour, increasing an awareness of God and of responsibility towards fellow men. In Mussar the text studied is the personality of the student for self-improvement in light of the ethical aphorisms52.

Rav Hirsch taught that Mussar is contained in each Mitzvah. In most Yeshivot one learns Gemarah, sometimes omitting the Aggadic passages, and one learns Shulchan Aruch and Mussar, as three different subjects. Rav Hirsch pointed out the unity of all these — that they are one and the same53.

Rabbi Yisrael Salanter said, “Learn Mesilat Yesharim ‘Path of the Upright,’54 and ‘the Duties of the Heart55 to improve character”. Rav Hirsch illustrated that all the Mitzvot are uprightness and that the “Duties of the Heart” are contained within the duties of the “Limbs”.

It is written: “Love your neighbour like yourself, I am God. Keep my statutes, do not crossbreed your animals, do not mix seeds in your fields, do not wear shaatnez — a mixture of wool and flax.”56

In order to develop true love of one’s fellow-man one must have an awareness of one’s specific mission in life, as shown by the principle of separation of species outlined above. You can only love your fellow man if you learn to discipline your own desires in favour of helping your fellow man. When man learns that the animal aspects of motion and perception should rule over his food and sex instincts (shaatnez — as explained above)57, only then he can love his fellow man.

“The love of man” is understood today in many circles to mean that you should treat everyone in the same way. There should be no difference between Jew and Gentile, men and women, adult and child, between one person and the other. This has developed the concept of “unisex”; and in some families the children are given the same vote as the parents. (So in large families parents will be out-voted.) In such an egalitarian society a uniformity is introduced, although some are often more ‘equal’ than others. But the Torah says “Love your fellow man,” “Keep my hukkim and do not mix.” Each seed, each animal and even each type of grain has its specific purpose. “Love” does not mean that everyone is to be treated equally. A husband cannot treat his wife as he would treat himself or vice-versa. He should know that a woman is different in character and role to a man, as parents are to children. Each group has a different role to fulfil: Priests, Levites, Israelites and Gentiles. This is not an egalitarian, but a functional approach, to love a person according to his role, and not to make a blanket rule that everyone is the same58.

Ethics is the essence of the laws of mixing, as it is with the laws of the Sanctuary, of Impurity, and of Diet. Mussar is the warp and woof of all the Mitzvot.

Intention-Kavanah

How can the mitzvot have this symbolic significance when many do not require intention.

The Talmudic debate on this59 refers to having the intention to fulfil the Mitzvot and has a limited application. Awareness of meaning is essential for prayers. “Prayer without heart and head, is like a body that is dead”60. But, for example, does one need to know when wearing Tzitzit that the eight threads represent the eighth dimension, the eighth creation, and the people of Israel? That the knots represent the need to tie and discipline ourselves? That one-third of the Tzitzit is knotted and two- thirds are left free to teach that one measure of self-discipline will lead to a double measure of creative freedom?61 If a person is not aware of this is his fulfilment incomplete? There are more complex symbols with the offerings and the Bigdei Kehuna (priestly garments). Do we have to assume that the Kohanim understood the symbols? There is no hint in the Gemarah that the Kohanim or the Kohen Gadol were aware of the symbolic significance of the animals, textiles, colors or numbers. Does the Jew need to have an awareness of the subtle symbolic distinctions between meat and milk, wool and flax?’ Rav Hirsch regarded his system as being scientific and as being proven by consistency with all the details of the Halachah62. How can we assume a complex symbolism as the basis of the Mitzvah when we fulfil the Mitzvah completely without any knowledge of that complexity?

The relationship between dream symbolism and mitzvot symbolism (as desribed in the Tenach, in the Talmud, and by Rav Hirsch) shows that the concept is not just conscious but also subconscious. It is a principle, exphasized by the author of Sefer Ha-hinuch63, that the purpose of many Mitzvot is to influence character by means of actions. Performing certain deeds in a specific manner, frequently, even though we do not think of their meaning as rooted in symbolism, will affect our subconscious mind. Rav Hirsch avoided discussions about the subconscious self in order to emphasize the importance of conscious moral awareness. But his symbolic system cannot be explained without assuming the subconscious impact. It is implied in his comments on incest, the prohibited animals, and the laws of impurity64.

Mysticism-Kabbalah

Although Rav Hirsch does not refer explicitly to the Kabbalah as a basis for his system we do know from his notes that he studied the Zohar and other Kabbalistic sources65. He gives symbolic interpretations similar to those given by some of the Kabbalists. The basic approach of the mystics is that the actions which we do here below have a cosmic impact — they affect the higher worlds66. Rav Hirsch spoke to a generation that, for many reasons, was far removed from such concepts67. But it is not surprising that the symbolism to which he refers as being conscious moral education or self- education has its parallel in the Kabbalah, although he was non-Kabbalistic in the substance of his thinking68.

Moral Autonomy and Heteronomy

Should we strive for virtue because it is good or because God wants us to follow virtue?

This is referred to philosophically as moral autonomy v. moral theonomy. Moral autonomy means, according to Kant and others, that a person’s action cannot be considered virtuous unless it is done out of his own free will. But if he does it because a gun is put in his back or because he thinks God or his parents are telling him to do it, then it is not virtuous. This is moral heteronomy, or with Mitzvot — theonomy versus autonomy69.

This is discussed in the Talmud70. Rav Yoseph who was blind said: “Originally, if someone would have told me that the blind are not obliged to fulfill the Mitzvot, I would have made a celebration as I perform the Mitzvot voluntarily. But now that I have heard that Rav Chanina said, ‘One who is commanded to do something is greater than one who is not commanded to do something, I will make a celebration if someone tells me that the blind are obliged to fulfil the Mitzvot.”71 For the commandment implies that this is his Divinely appointed task, or because he has to overcome rebelliousness against Divine authority.72 On the other hand, there is greater spontaneous free-will spirit involved in that which is not commanded, and the ideal saint fulfills all the Mitzvot because he recognizes that they are innately good73.

The answer to this question is given in the Ethics of the Fathers, “You should make your will to be like the will of God.” You have to do it because God commanded you to do it, but you should try to bring yourself to the level where you so much identify with and understand the will of God, that you also do it out of your own free will. Make an equivalence between autonomy and theonomy.

A person may be in a situation that he does not feel like “davening” (praying), so he says, “Hashem says I have do daven now.” He forces himself to daven and the experience brings him into a mood in which he wants, and is happy, to daven75. A person does not want to give charity, but Hashem says he has to make a habit of it until he brings himself to the level where he will want to give.

It is written in Shemot Ch. 23: — “If you meet the animal of your enemy going astray you should return it to him. If you see the ass of one whom you hate lying under its burden, you should hasten to his aid76.” In Devarim Ch. 22 it says: “You should return your brother’s animal to him and help your brother’s animal which has fallen77.” Why does it say in the earlier passage of the Torah “your enemy” and in the last book of the Torah “your brother”? Why is there such a large separation between the two otherwise similar passages? The answer could be that when beginning Mitzvah observance, you may not want to help your enemy, so the Torah says you have to help him. Through frequent deeds of this nature, and continuing right through the Torah and all the Mitzvot, you will reach the level when your enemy will become like your brother and you will want to help him. The Torah says: “Take it on as a Mitzvah even if it is difficult for you, and in the end, it will train you in doing kindness until your enemies become your brothers78”.

This applies even to the Hukkim which we cannot understand easily but also have an ethical purpose. They also do not pose a contradiction between autonomy and theonomy79.

The Torah discipline becomes a self-discipline, and what was at first a Mitzvah ultimately becomes part of one’s character. It is also true that good characteristics (Middot) lead to Mitzvah fulfilment. It works in both directions: The more good Middot one has, the more Mitzvot he wants to do, he will want to increase the challenge: he will want to do Mitzvot that are difficult for him, and that will, in turn, raise his level of Middot80.

Sow a deed, reap a habit,

Sow a habit, reap a character,

Sow a character, reap a destiny.

5. RAV HIRSCH’S TEACHING FOR TODAY AND TOMORROW

Nineteenth Century Germany

Some have claimed that Rav Hirsch was influenced by Kant, Hegel and Nineteenth- Century German ideas81.

He possessed a thorough understanding of German idealistic philosophers. He read widely, but primarily studied deeply all Torah sources, developing his independent approach82.

The Most Comprehensive Symbolism

Rav Hirsch’s symbolism represents a more systematic attempt at explaining the details of the Mitzvot than can be found elsewhere. Philo’s symbolic interpretation was philosophical. The Sefer Hahinuch’s educational, Recanati in his Ta’amei HaMitzvot, mystical, and the Remah in his Torat HaOlah explained rationally and kabbalistically details of many of the Mitzvot; but nobody dealt with the subject comprehensively as did Rav Hirsch.

Further Development

It is written84 “One generation to another should praise your actions.” A Hirschian-like interpretation of the word “Yeshabah” is given by the Malbim: le-shabbe’ah ‘to praise’, is connected to the word ‘shevah’ — ‘improvement’.” Leshabbe’ah means to praise a person in the sense of improving on what is already known about him, or to praise Hashem on a higher level, according to the greater knowledge that has been gained.88 In this way we can today build up the teachings of Rav Hirsch and reach a more comprehensive and deeper approach to the understanding of the Mitzvot.

Kabbalah

In our generation the inner tradition of Jewish thought found in the Kabbalah is widely accepted as part and parcel of the deeper aspects of Torah, and can be understood much more easily because of the spread of Hassidut, Mussar, and the intermingling of varying Torah approaches86. There are many aspects in Kabbalistic literature that are related to symbolism87.

In Depth Psychology

There are today many differing schools of in-depth psychology which connect the symbols of life with man’s inner feelings. This is shown in the analysis of dreams, myths, language, and symbols used by groups and nations88. By a deeper study of in-depth psychology, one can come to a better appreciation and application of Ray Hirsch’s ideas.89.

Parapsychology

Today many assume that the human being is more than a psychosomatic unity. The mind of man is connected to matter but also extends further than his own person. The mind of one person is connected to the mind of another, as shown by hypnotism, telepathy and other parapsychological phenomena, such as near-death experiences. These have shown the existence of the power of the mind outside the body and the material world90.

Archetypes

There is a parallel between times, sounds, numbers, colours, bodies, objects, and the feelings that they engender within us and within other people. When Jews of many generations in many countries all wear tzitzit, put on tefillin, observe the Shabbat in a special manner, this creates archetypes: basic national, and sometimes also universal principles that enter into many areas of life91.

For example: the impact of the sound of the Shofar on the New Year is called zichron teru’ah — ‘retrospection from the broken sound’92 - it should arouse within us national memories. The sound of the Shofar has an impact upon Jews, joining their minds and hearts with the minds of Jews from previous generations. It happens that a young person experiences in a dream something which took place some generations ago in the family or in the nation although he could not have heard or read about it from anybody. This is an archetype experience. The sound of the Shofar arouses within Jews the memory of the experiences of Mt. Sinai where there was the sound of the Shofar93 arousing their hearts. The symbolic subconscious power of the Mitzvot arouses the mind and heart to span time and space, and reach closeness to God.

Kedushah

The Mitzvot create, consciously and subconsciously, for the individual and for the nation, a power of kedushah, holiness and wholeness. As we say in many blessings:

“Sanctify us through Your commandments”94 This is the ultimate purpose of Torah life.

NOTES

1.The Nineteen letters, Letter 2 & 8; S.A. Hirsch ‘Jewish Philisophy of Religion of S.R. Hirsch; the parallels to Hegelian concepts outlined by N. Rosenbloom in Historia Judaica XXII. no.1, demonstrate no indebtedness, as shown by Dayan Dr. Grunfeld, Introd. to Horeb p.XLI, and applies equally to N.R.’s remarks in his ‘Tradition in an age of reform’ 174 ff. On Absolute Truth, Comm. on Bereshit Ch2, v.19; Ch9, v.27.
2.Introduction by Dayan Dr. Grunfeld to English Edition of Rabbi S.R.H.’s Commentary on the Torah.’
3.Rabbi S.R.H., Jüdische Welt- und Lebeasanschauung, Gesammelte Schriften V 143ff. T. Thas Thienemann. The Interpretation of Language.
4.R.S.R.H. in 18th Letter preferred Mendelssohn to Maimonides in the approach and not in general, as implied by chief Rabbi Lord Jakobovts, The Timely and the Timeless, 253.
5.Prof. M. Breuer, Torah Im Derech Eretz of R.S.R.H., 1970.
6.C.R. Jakobovits’ claim of contradiction to not admitting foreign influences in interpreting Judaism (ibid.255) is therefore invalid.
7.Comm. Of R.S.R.H., Devarim Ch.4, v.6
8.Nineteen Letters, 2nd letter; The Festival of Revelation in Coll. Writings I 183 ff.
9.Schiller Gedenkrede, Ges. Schriften VI, 308 ff.
10.Essay in Nachlat Zvi, Vol. III 338 f.; Weltwende 152.
11.M. Breuer, Jud. Orthodoxie im Deutschen Reich 106 ff.
12.Ges. Schriften IV ff; Historia Judaica, X, 2; Prof. M. Breuer’s vie, .in lecture this year at Jerusalem Academy, that according R.S.R.H. there should be separation of Religion and State in Israel. Chief Rabbi Jakobovits, R.S.R.H. sees contradiction to re-claiming estranged Jews; but his independent model-role brought respect and attracted them.
13.As above (3) & Collected Writings Vol III 3 ff; Dayan Dr. Grunfeld, Introduction to Horeb. CVII ff.; A.N. Whitehead, Symbolism, E. Cassirer, Symbo1ic Forms; Symbolism in Religion and Literatue.
14.Bereshit Ch. 1, v. 14. Shemoth Ch. 12. v.2. Commentary of R.S.R.H.
15.Bereshit, Ch. 9, v.12 ff. Commentary of Ramban.
16.Comm. of R.S.R.H. ibid.
17.Bereshit, Ch. 20, v.3, Ch,40 v.5 ff Commentary of R.S.R.H.
18.E.g. Bereshit, Ch.16; Ch. 28 v. 11ff Comm. of R.S.R.H.
19.Bereshit, Ch. 17, Comm. of R.S.R.H. & Coll. Writings IV 65 ff.
20.Shemot, Ch. 13, v. 1-6; Devarim Ch. 6, 4-9, Ch. 11, 13-21, Comment. of R.S.R.H. & Collected Writings, III 140 ff.
21.Shemot, Ch. 31, v. 17, Commentary of R.S.R.H.; Der Juedische Sabbath, Ges. Schriften I, 170 ff.
22.Bereshit, Ch. 32 v. 33, Comm. of R.S.R.H.
23.Shemot, Ch. 12, 14-17, Ch. 13, 3-9, Commentary of R.S.R.H.
24.Shemot, Ch. 23, v. 24, Commentary of R.S.R.H.
25.Vayikra, Ch. 23, v. 40, Comment, of R. S. R. H.
26.Vayikra, Ch. 23, v. 42-43, Comment, of R.S.R.H.
27.Bamidbar, Ch. 15, v. 37-41, Comment, of R.S.R.H., Coll. Writing III, 111 ff.
28.Bach & Bikure Ya’akov on Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim, 625.
29.Nineteen Letters, Letter II. Horeb, Section 4.
30.Comment, of R.S.R.H. on Shemot & Vayikra
31.Bamidbar, Ch. 29 v. 2. Comm. of Midrashim and Rashi
32.Ramban ibid & on Devarim, Ch. 22. v. 6.
33.This explains his especially detailed exposition of the Sanctuary & the priestly service — the offerings — laws of purity and intermingling; Jewish Dietary Laws by Dayan Dr. Grunfeld.
34.Shabbat 3la
35.Comment. of R.S.R.H. on Vayikra Ch. 19, v. 18
36.Collected Writings III, 86 ff.
37.Comment. of R.S.R.H. on Shemot Ch. 12, v. 2. Bamidbar Ch. 28, v. 15, Comment. of Seforno and R.S.R.H.
38.Comment, of R.S.R.H. Shemot Ch. 12 & Vaykra Ch. 23.
39.Judaism Eternal I Ch. l. (p.3)
40.Coll. Writings III 96 ff.
41.The concept of metahistory was developed by R.S.R.H’s grandson, Yitzchak Breuer, Concepts of Judaism.
42.Bereshit ch. 1.v.11-13, Comment. of R.S.R.H.
43.Vayikra Ch. 19. v. 19, Comment, of R.S.R.H.
44.Devarim Ch. 22, v. 5-11, Comm. of R.S.R.H.
45.Coll. Writings 111 p. 181.
46.Coll. Writings III p. 175 ff. Vayikra Ch. 19, v. 19. comments, of R.S.R.H.
47.Shemot, Ch. 23. v. 19, comment. of R.S.R.H., Dayan Dr. Grunfeld: Jewish Dietary Laws 1.
48.He identifies the four levels &.colours of the ‘Cherubim’- tapestry of the Sanctuary — The pure vegetative element shesh with shor the form of the ox in Yecheskel 10:20; the crimson shani animal level with ari ; the purple human argaman with adam; and the sky-blue godly level techelet with nesher . This seems to contradict his view in Commentary on Bereshit, Ch. 1, v. 26 & Ch. 9 v. 15. that adam the red one is nearest to the godly as the least broken ray of the spectrum — nearest to the pure ray of light of God, & techeler the most distant from the pure light, losing itself in darkness.
49.Dayan Dr. Grunfeld, Introduction to Horeb cvii ff.
50.Foreword to Horeb
51.Movements in Contemporary Judaism, R. Joseph Elias, New York
52.The Mussar Movement, R. Dov Katz.
53.R. Yechiel Weinberg, Das Volk der Religion; ‘Seride Esh’ IV 372 ff.
54.By R. Moshe Chaim Luzzatto
55.By R. Bachy Ibn Pakuda
56.Vayikra Ch. 19v. 18-19
57.Coll. Writings 111. 175 ff. Comment. on Devarim Ch. 23 v. 11-12.
58.The Meaning of Kashrut — B. Horovitz, Jewish Study Magazine 12, p. 17.
59.Berachot 13 b; Pesachim 114 b; Rosh Hashana 28 b.
60.Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 98; Rav A. Carmell, Concentration in Prayer, Jewish Study Magazine 20, p. 12; B. Horovitz Jewish Prayer, Jerusalem Academy Publication.
61.Collected Writings I I I 111 ff.
62.Nineteen Letters, 18th Letter;Foreword to Horeb; M. Munk, Zum Problem ein. jud. Symbolik, Fests. Realschule, 1928
63.By R. Aharon Halevi of Barcelona; A Philosophy of Mizvot G. Appel.
64.Dayan Dr. Grunfeld, Introduction to Horeb p, cviii R. Dr. B. Cohen, Ex Profundis, Nachlat Z’vi I, 137 ff, 297 ff; Comm. of R.S.R.H. Br. Ch. v. 24, Vay. Ch. 11-12, 18; Bam. Ch. 19.
65.R.J. Breuer Aus den Vorarbeiten zum Horeb, Nachiat Z’vi V 142 ff mentions more sources from Zohar than from any other text. Dayan Dr. Grunfeld “Introd. to Horeb” cxx ff. There are many parallels to teaching of Maharal. Chief R. Jakobovits sees contradiction in H.’s admiration of Ramban the Kabbalist and H’s criticism of Kabbalah; but he opposed the abuse of Kabbalah.
66.Dayan Dr. Grunfeld, The Jewish Dietary Laws, 12 ff.
67.Dayan Dr. Grunfeld, “Introduction to Horeb,” cxxiii.
68.E. Munk. R. Hirsch als Rationalist der Kabbalah, Nachlat Z’vi 111.54 ff.
69.Dayan Dr. Grunfeld. Introd. to Horeb lx ff, B. Horovitz, Law & Morality, Jewish Study Magazine no. 14, 5 ff.
70.Kidushin 31 a, Bava Kama 38 a, 87 a.
71.Maharal, Tiferet Yisrael, 20.
72.Maharsha, Tosafot & commentaries on Kidushin 31a.
73.Magid Mishna on Rambam. Mishneh Torah, end of Hilchot Sukah.
74.Ch.2,4.
75.B. Horovitz, Jewish Prayer.
76.v. 4-5. Comm of Rashi, R.S.R.H. Torah Temimah.
77.v.-4, Commentary of Rashi, R.S.R.H. & Meshech Chochmah.
78.Bava kama 32 b — ‘To overcome his evil inclination of hatred’ — Tosafoth.
79.Devarim Ch. 4, v. 6— ‘will hear these hukkim, and will say only a wise and understanding people.’ (Comment. of R.S.R.H. Malbim)
80.Gaon of Vilna. Even Shlema, commentary on Mishle.
81.N. H. Rosenbloom, Tradition in Age of Reform, 152 ff. and throughout; M. Breuer, Juedische Orthodoxie, 62 ff.
82.Dayan Dr. Grunfeld, Introduction to Horeb, lxxix If. This explains his preference for Yehuda Halevi against Maimonides, despite the former’s nationalistic views.
83.Dayan Dr. Grunfeld. The Jewish Dietary laws. I Ch. 1.
84.Tehillim Ch. 145, v. 4 Commentaries of Malbim & R.S.R.H.
85.M. Breuer. Juedische Orthodoxie 51ff.
86.Dayan Dr. Grunfeld, S.R.H. & the Kabbalah, Introd. to Horeb. cxx ff.
87.E. Munk, R. Hirsch alr Rationalist der Kabbalah, Nachlat Zwi III 54ff. M. Breuer J. Orthodoxie 71-2.
88.Works of C. Jung; E. Fromm, The Forgotten Language; T. Tass-Thienenman The Interpretation of Language.
89.RB. Cohen. Ex Profundis, Nachlat Zwi 137 ff.
90.Y. Neumann. Judgement After Life, Jew Study Mag 31.
91.Works of C. Jung; R.B. Cohen, Ex profundis, Nachalat Zvi 1,137 ff.
92.Vayikra Ch. 23, v. 24. Comm. R.S.R.H.
93.Shemoth, Ch. 19, v. 16, H. Wouk, This is my God.
94.Shabbath Synagogue Service.

Sunday, August 31, 2025

Yosef Blau, author of Orthodox rabbis’ letter calling out Israel, responds to critics - interview- JPOST

Rabbi Yosef Blau urges moral clarity in Israel’s response to Gaza, advocating for responsibility in addressing hunger and violence, despite critics within Orthodox circles.

By ANDREW SILOW-CARROLL/JTA

AUGUST 28, 2025 22:55

For 48 years, until he moved to Israel earlier this year, Rabbi Yosef Blau was the “mashgiach ruchani” at Yeshiva University, a revered figure who served as a sort of spiritual guidance counselor to students at Modern Orthodoxy’s flagship seminary.

In that role, he said this week in an interview, his job was to be “available to help students on issues that bother them, rather than issues that bother me.”

Earlier this month, he told the world what was bothering him, and the world took notice. Blau, 86, is the author of “A Call for Moral Clarity, Responsibility, and a Jewish Orthodox Response in the Face of the Gaza Humanitarian Crisis,” an open letter signed by 80 Orthodox rabbis. The letter forthrightly condemned Hamas, but took the Israeli government to task for its halting response to what most of the world sees as a hunger crisis in Gaza.

http://www.toratchayimrabbis.org/gazahumanitariancrisis.html

(This statement was authored by Rabbi Yosef Blau and signed by many Torat Chayim rabbinic members although he is not a member and some of the others below are also not members)

The humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza is one of the most severe in recent history. While it began with the horrific terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7, 2023—a brutal act that justifiably demanded a strong military response and demand for the release of the hostages—this does not absolve Israel’s government from assuming its share of the responsibility for the profound suffering of Gaza’s civilian population.

Hamas’s actions have repeatedly shown a cynical disregard for the lives of the people it claims to represent, using civilians as human shields and rejecting ceasefire proposals. However, Israel’s prolonged military campaign, now approaching two years, has devastated Gaza. The death toll is rising with very significant losses of lives, and Israel’s limiting of humanitarian aid, at times completely halting the entry of food and medical supplies, has raised the specter of coming starvation. We affirm that Hamas's sins and crimes do not relieve the government of Israel of its obligations to make whatever efforts are necessary to prevent mass starvation.

There have been months when Israel blocked humanitarian convoys on the mistaken premise that increased suffering would bring about Hamas’s surrender. Instead, the result has been the deepening of despair. The justified anger toward Hamas has dangerously expanded by some extremists into blanket suspicion of the entire population of Gaza—children included—tarnished as future terrorists. Meanwhile, in Yehuda and Shomron (the West Bank), extremist settler violence has resulted in the murder of civilians and has forced Palestinian villagers from their homes, further destabilizing the region.

Amid this devastation, the absence of a clear post-war vision from Prime Minister Netanyahu has allowed the most extreme voices in the Israeli government—including ministers from the religious Zionist community—to fill the vacuum with disturbing proposals. These include the forced “voluntary” exile of Palestinians from Gaza and the sacrifice of remaining Israeli hostages in the pursuit of an elusive “total victory.”

This moment demands a different voice—one grounded in our deepest Jewish values and informed by our traumatic history of being victims of persecution.
Orthodox Jewry, as some of Israel’s most devoted supporters, bears a unique moral responsibility. We must affirm that Judaism’s vision of justice and compassion extends to all human beings. Our tradition teaches that every person is created b’tzelem Elokim—in the Divine image. We are the spiritual descendants of Avraham, chosen to walk in the path of Hashem, “to do righteousness and justice” (Bereshit 18:19). Allowing an entire people to starve stands in stark contrast to this teaching.

As we reflect on Tisha B’Av, the words of our prophets ring with renewed urgency. The Haftorah of Shabbat Chazon reminds us: “Zion shall be redeemed through justice, and those who return to her through righteousness” (Yeshayahu 1:27). And on the morning of Tisha B’Av, the voice of Yirmiyahu echoes through our prayers: “Let not the wise glory in their wisdom...but in this: that they understand and know Me, that I am the Lord who practices kindness, justice, and righteousness on the earth—for in these I delight” (Yirmiyahu 9:23).

These are not just poetic phrases. They are the foundations of our ethical obligation—to demand policies that uphold human dignity, to provide humanitarian aid wherever possible, and to speak out when our government’s actions contradict the Torah’s moral imperatives, no matter how painful this may be to accept.

The future of Israel depends not only on its military strength but on its moral clarity. Let us be resounding voices for justice, righteousness, and peace for all people—even and especially in the hardest of times.

List of signatories

Rabbi Yosef Blau
Rabbi David Bigman
Chief Rabbi Michael Schudrich
Chief Rabbi Michael Melchior
Chief Rabbi Jair Melchior
Rabbi Joav Melchior
Chief Rabbi David Rosen (former CR)
Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz
Rabbi Dr. Yitz Greenberg
Rabbi Hyim Shafner
Rabbi Daniel Landes
Rabbi Herzl Hefter
Rabbi Shua Mermelstein
Rabbi Yoni Zolty
Rabbanit Mindy Schwartz Zolty
Rabbi Frederick L Klein
Rabbi Yosef Kanefsky
Rabbi Dr. Jeremiah Unterman
Rabbi Barry Dolinger
Rabbi David Silber
Rabbi Yonatan Neril
Rabbi Ysoscher Katz
Rabbi Isaac Landes
Rabbi David Polsky
Rabbi Baruch Plotkin
Rabbi Mikey Stein
Rabbi Elliot Kaplowitz
Rabbi Ariel Goldberg
Rabbi Ben Birkeland
Rabbi Ralph Genende
Rabbi David Glicksman
Rabbi Dr. Donniel Hartman
Rabbi Dr. Martin Lockshin
Rabbi Dr. Pinchas Giller
Rabbi Avidan Freedman
Rabbi Daniel Raphael Silverstein
Rabbi Dr. Shalom Schlagman
Rabbi Dr. Daniel Ross Goodman
Rabbi Aaron Levy
Rabbi Chaim Seidler-Feller
Rabbi Dr. Mel Gottlieb
Rabbi Dr. Joshua Feigelson
Rabbi Jonah Winer
Rabbi Dr. Michael Chernick
Rabbi Dr. Eugene Korn
Rabbi Hanan Schlesinger
Rabbi Elhanan Miller
Rabbi Joel Hecker
Rabbi Michael Gordan
R. Sofia Freudenstein
Rabbi David Levin-Kruss
Rabbanit Myriam Ackermann-Sommer
Rabbanit Ramie Smith
R. Shayna Abramson
Rabbi Zachary Truboff
Rabbi David A. Schwartz
Rabbi David Jaffe
Rabbi Steve Greenberg
Rabbi Gabriel Kretzmer Seed
Rabbanit Rachel Keren
Rabbi Benyamin Vineburg
Rabba Dr. Lindsey Taylor-Guthartz
Rabbanit Leah Sarna
Rabbi Dr. Wendy Zierler
Rabbanit Sarah Segal-Katz
Rabbi Shimon Brand
Rabba Melissa Scholten-Gutierrez
R. Emily Goldberg Winer
R. Dr. Erin Leib Smokler
Rabba Adina Roth
R. Dr. Meesh Hammer-Kossoy
Rabbi Drew Kaplan
Rabbi Dina Najman
Rabbi Emile Ackermann
Rabbi Daniel Geretz
Rabbanit Tali Schaum Broder
Rabbi Max Davis
Rabbi Tyson Herberger
Rabba Aliza Libman Baronofsky
Rabbi Professor Samuel Lebens
Rabbi David Kalb
Rabbi Asher Shanabrook
Rabbi Dr. Alon Goshen-Gottstein
Rabba Amalia Haas
Rabbi Michael Ascoli
Rabbi Ezra Klein

Others:

ROME - David Grossman, one of Israel's most prominent authors, told Italian daily La Repubblica he has decided to start using the word "genocide" to describe the situation in Gaza.

"For years, I refused to use the word 'genocide.' But now I can't hold back from using it, after what I've read in the newspapers, after the images I've seen and after talking to people who have been there", he said in the interview published in the paper's print edition on Friday.

Grossman said coming to the realization that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza was an extremely painful process on a personal level, but that he now found such conclusion inescapable.

"I want to speak as a person who has done everything he could to avoid having to call Israel a genocidal state. And now, with immense pain and a broken heart, I have to say that it is happening before my eyes. Genocide," he said.

In mid-July, an opinion piece titled "I'm a Genocide Scholar. I Know It When I See It" in the New York Times by Professor Omer Bartov, an Israeli professor of Holocaust and genocide studies at Brown University, made the case for the use of the word genocide.

“When I entered Gaza the Israeli military had a rule: I was only allowed to bring in three kilos of food. As I was weighing out protein bars, trying to get under the limit, I said to my husband: ‘How sinister is this?’ I’m a humanitarian aid worker. Why would there even be a limit on food? I’ve worked in many places with extreme hunger, but what’s so jarring in this context is how cruel it is, how deliberate. I was in Gaza for two months; there’s no way to describe the horror of what’s happening. And I say this as a pediatric ICU doctor who sees children die as part of my work. Among our own staff we have doctors and nurses who are trying to treat patients while hungry, exhausted. They’re living in tents. Some of them have lost fifteen, twenty members of their families. In the hospital there are kids maimed by airstrikes: missing arms, missing legs, third degree burns. Often there’s not enough pain medication. But the children are not screaming about the pain, they’re screaming: ‘I’m hungry! I’m hungry!” I hate to only focus on the kids, because nobody should be starving. But the kids, it just haunts you in a different way. When my two months were finished, I didn’t want to leave. It’s a feeling I haven’t experienced in nearly twenty years of humanitarian assignments. But I felt ashamed. Ashamed to leave my Palestinian colleagues, who were some of the most beautiful and compassionate people that I’ve ever met. I was ashamed as an American, as a human being, that we’ve been unable to stop something that is so clearly a genocide. I remember when our bus pulled out of the buffer zone. Out the window on one side I could see Rafah, which was nothing but rubble. On the other side was lush, green Israel. When we exited the gate, the first thing I saw was a group of Israeli soldiers, sitting at a table, eating lunch. I’ve never felt so nauseous seeing a table full of food.”

Aqsa Durrani is a pediatric doctor and board member of Doctors Without Borders USA, with nearly twenty years of experience in humanitarian projects

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Lt. Colonel Tony Aguilar on the food relief sham:

Talking to Tucker:

Professor Mearsheimer on the Israelis in Gaza:

IDF soldiers mocking orphans:

Jewish podcasters talking about response of average Israeli to Gaza:

Soldier desiring to kill everyone because "they all are Hamas"

But there are Jews with a conscience:

Former PM:

Former dep. head of Mossad

Haaretz:

Across the entire Gaza Strip, an estimated 70 percent of all buildings have been completely destroyed or damaged to the point where they are no longer habitable. This is in addition to the vast majority of public buildings, roads and infrastructure. The United Nations estimates that all the rubble in Gaza amounts to about 50 million tons, or 137 kilograms per square meter. Removing it will take at least 21 years, it predicts.

“Compassion is the feeling of sympathy which the pain of one being awakens in another; and the higher and more human the beings are, the more keenly attuned they are to re-echo the note of suffering, which, like a voice from heaven, penetrates the heart, bringing all creatures a proof of their kinship in the universal God. And as for man, whose function it is to show respect and love for God's universe and all its creatures, his heart has been created so tender that it feels with the whole organic world bestowing sympathy even on beings devoid of feeling, mourning even for fading flowers; so that, if nothing else, the very nature of his heart must teach him that he is required above everything to feel himself the brother of all beings, and to recognize the claim of all beings to his love and his beneficence.” R' Samson R. Hirsch, Horeb,125

One drop of innocent blood shed

The land of the Divine Torah is there for the people who live in it. Its most valuable product, the purpose and goal of the whole of God's Blessing directed to it, is every human life nourished by it, through its means able to dedicate itself to making God's Torah into a realisation. The land is only given on the condition of every human life respected as being unassailably sacred to the Torah. One drop of innocent blood shed and no notice taken of it drops a stitch in the bond which connects the land with the nation and both with God. (see verses 33 and 34). This holding human life to be so sacred is to be made evident immediately on taking possession of the land in the division of it by instituting the arrangement which the Torah had already referred to in the fundamental laws of Torah social life. (Ex. XXI, 13). Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch on Bamidbar 35:10

R' Joseph Breuer, zt'l, 1882-1980

"Anyone who has but a fleeting insight into the life and work of Rav Hirsch will realize that his Torah im Derech Eretz formula was never intended by him as a Horo'as Sho'oh....As for us let us do our best to promote and fulfill the Torah im Derech Eretz ideal in its true spirit and let us protect it from regrettable misuse and interpretation. A personal footnote: on the day before he passed away, my father told me: 'I am firmly convinced that the way shown by Rav Hirsch will be mekarev ha'geulah.' A sacred testament." ("The Relevance of the Torah Im Derech Eretz Ideal")

"The definition of a gadol be'Yisrael is one who is great in Torah and great in piety, one whose personal views and conduct are based exclusively on those twin pillars. Such a person is acknowledged as a peer by the other great men of his era. Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch was revered by the Chassidic leaders of Galicia and by the rabbis of Lithuania. That his views did not accord with theirs was immaterial; his philosophy grew out of his G-d-fearing understanding of Torah, and therefore it was legitimate for him. So it was with Rabbi Salomon Breuer and so it was with Rabbi Joseph Breuer. Their greatness transcended community. They belonged to Klal Yisrael, so they were honored by Klal Yisrael, all of it."

R' Shlomo Wolbe

Full article

The brave German Jewish communities

"...in Germany where there was so much assimilation, a number of German Jews decided they are going to fight for the preservation of the Torah. And they built up an Orthodox kehilla that was excellent in every detail. They were machmir in everything. In some respects, they were more frum than the Jews in Russia and Poland were. And they had organized kashrus. Strict hashgacha. Not rabbanim who gave heksherim and were paid for it. No. The kehillias gave hashgacha and were very strict in every detail. And so the minority that withstood the test were a glorious fulfillment of the prophecy that the Am Yisroel will continue forever despite any circumstances."

Rav Avigdor Miller, Recording #855 - "The Kiss of Esav," 11:48

R' Miller on Great Kehillas

"Satmar they are devoted to avodas Hashem. They go all out to serve Hashem. Lubavitch, all out to serve Hashem. No question about that. They are not the only kehillas. I have plenty to say about the German kehillah. I love the German kehillah. As a boy I davened every Shabbos in a German shul. I can sit four hours in the afternoon, Shabbos afternoon, in a German shul. These kehillas we have to appreciate. And all the things that are said against them we have to learn how to refute. Vehitzidku es ha tzadick." R' Avigdor Miller, Loving His People 2, #528 1:06.

The Torah Im Derech Eretz Society

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