Harav Aharon Feldman Shlita at Agudah Convention: Eretz Hakodesh Joining WZO Violated what Gedolei Torah said A Charedi Jew Should Never Do

Keynote Speech at the virtual Agudah Convention this motzei Shabbos.

See full video and partial transcript below.

"Eretz Hakodesh purports are received  from Gedolei yisroel for its actions. I and many others do not believe this. Eretz Hakodesh has now made it possible for the charedi public to believe that the whole opposition of gedolei yisrael to joining and cooperating with Zionism has been somehow rendered  null and void it has made it possible for a charedi public to believe that reform is a legitimate expression of Judaism.

To be sure Eretz Hakodesh hoped by joining the Zionists to garner funds for Jewish education and to fight the reform in Israel however it should be obvious that money is not a reason for compromising the foundational principles for which we stand. Had eretz hakodesh publicly refused to identify with the Zionism program and  to legitimized the reform it would have done much more for Judaism than the money it hoped to receive

The opposition of gedolei Torah to Herzl's vision was uncompromising from its very beginning the chofetz chaim said he rather lose a majority of the yeshivos than join forces with the Zionist Jewish agencey... Absent the centrality of Torah there is no Jewish people. The gedolim therefore held that "al tischaber larasha" do not join an evildoer applies to  Zionism we are not allowed to join their organization. The position of gedolei yisrael has never changed any definition of Judaism which does not revolve solely around Hashem giving us the Torah at Sinai is fraudulent and we must reject it. Zionism was successful in creating a state and we support the people living in that state and care deeply about their welfare and security and we will do everything in our powers to strengthen theese but never will we  accept the philosophy which led to the state and continues as its underpinning. If charedi Jews are a member of the Knesset this is because they are forced to do so as citizens of a country they must have representation in the governing body in order to protect their interest or else they will be legislated out of existence. However no charedi member of Knesset will say that he has accepted the Zionist ideology. In line with the views of gedolai yisrael

 Agudas yisrael issued a statement a few weeks ago deploring statements made by various organization and various newspaper columnists claiming that the ideology  of Zionism  has been accepted by charedi Jews. The reason for this claim was that Eretz Hakodesh an organization comprised of charedi jews recently became a member of the World Zionist Organization. When the membership of Eretz Hakodesh was challenged in a tribunal of the American Zionist movement with a charge  that Eretz Hakodesh is not a truly a Zionist group Eretz Hakodesh defended itself by stating that it believes in the goals of  Zionism as expressed in the Zionist program and that furthermore all the American charedi Jews who voted for it believe in it as well. This program states that Zionism is a national liberation movement of the Jewish people and that the state of Israel is central to the life of the nation. The program ignores the centrality of Torah to the life of the Jewish nation and instead makes a secular state which does not recognize Torah or G-d as its centrality. It is this program which Eretz Hakodesh proclaimed that it had accepted. With this it violated what the chofetz Chaim and Rav Chaim brisker and a century of gedolei torah said that  a charedi Jew should never do. In addition Eretz Hakodesh signed an agreement along with all Zionist reform and conservative movements in the WZO in which all signatories pledged a true partnership to advance our common goals on behalf of the Jewish people and its  state". Eretz Hakodesh has agreed to the allocation of funds which supports the assimilationist and heretical goals of reform and conservative Judaism as long as Eretz Hakodesh too receives its share of the allocation pie. By joining with the reform movement it violates a  stated position of the gedolei hador of America issued  70 years ago prohibiting any identification with  and certain acquiescence to reform movements. Eretz Hakodesh purports are received  from Gedolei yisroel for its actions. I and many others do not believe this. Eretz Hakodesh has now made it possible for the charedi public to believe that the whole opposition of gedolei yisrael to joining and cooperating with Zionism has been somehow rendered  null and void it has made it possible for a charedi public to believe that reform is a legitimate expression of Judaism. All of this stems from a failure by Eretz Hakodesh to have defined for themselves what a charedi Jew is. We are a nation dedicated to serve Hashem by keeping his Torah. 

If that definition would have been clear it would have been impossible to label those who believe that Jews are a nation without Torah, as partners. These movements are nothing less than imposters who have appropriated a name Jewish for their movements and we can not sit at the same table with them to address the problems of Jewry. When we lose our definition of who we are we turn into a ethnic group and are threatening our survival as a nation. To be sure Eretz Hakodesh hoped by joining the Zionists to garner funds for Jewish education and to fight the reform in Israel however it should be obvious that money is not a reason for compromising the foundational principles for which we stand. Had eretz hakodesh publicly refused to identify with the Zionism program and  to legitimized the reform it would have done much more for Judaism than the money it hoped to receive