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Wednesday, July 15, 2026
Hashkafa Q & A
Hashkafa with Rav Gershon Ribner shlita
A dignified noble scion reduced to solicitation
Youngerman goes from rags to riches
The Rabbis escape the Holocaust as their communities perish
Strategic investing in your religious portfolio
Another replay of Rabbi Ribners clip about Zionism? I guess that is because that always gets the most responses here so I’ll oblige with one that I know will be controversial . Perhaps the reason is because the kibbutz galoyus was done through them. In the 1880s when the czar threw Jews out of Moscow and it’s environs the Chofetz Chaim told his son R’ Leib that this is the beginning of kibbutz galayus of before Mosiach (see his biography of his father for more on that and his fathers views on Zionism – it is NOT what you would expect reading anti-Zionist literature alone) . The Chasam Sofer asks what was the big nechoma told to Rochel of וְשָׁבוּ בָנִים לִגְבוּלָם there were plenty of nevouas about Mosiach before that? He answers that this is unique in that it was saying Klal Yisreol will return and repopulate Eretz Yisroel even before Mosiach comes. While some anti-Zionist haskafa does not believe that the fulfillment of neveuos can be done through Zionists that does not seem correct. King Yeravem ben Yoash (not to be confused with Yeravem ben Nevat) was a tremendous Rasha but the posuk still says ה֗וּא הֵשִׁיב֙ אֶת־גְּב֣וּל יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל מִלְּב֥וֹא חֲמָ֖ת עַד־יָ֣ם הָעֲרָבָ֑ה כִּדְבַ֚ר ה, אֱלֹ' יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אֲשֶׁ֣ר דִּבֶּ֗ר בְּיַד עַבְדּ֞וֹ יוֹנָ֚ה בֶן־אֲמִתַּי֙ הַנָּבִ֔יא So apparently even Rashyim are capable of being the fulfillment of these type of Nevuoas.
'twas a mistake. check the title. Bringing proofs from past disasters appears sly superficially, but ain't very shrewd. The definition of insanity is ..
The Steipler said after he was interrogated during Eipho yossele saga: this place operates the precisely like Soviet Union. & he had previously served in the Red army!
I've seen plenty about Yossele Schumacher but this is the first time I ever seen anyone claim the Steipler was interrogated during it. When was that added to the story? Who did he make that alleged comment to afterwards?
Obviously you aren't well informed re: yossele Schumacher. Hardly some surprise. Yet you pontificate. You probably don't have a clue either as to the set up the mossad did to a Rav in London- retrieved from an very secular inside source
As a former died in the wool adherent of the extreme anti-Zionist movement myself, believe me I heard most allegations. And believed them too. Yes, I do know the story of the Mossad and the Rav in London. But this one about the Steipler being interrogated was not commonly claimed when I was a member of the movement. Nor are some of the predictions that were said back then that didn't materialize still being said today...
Do you really think that (e.g) Iran closing down the Otzar HaTorah school system (the only Jewish school system in Iran) in the 1980s and then requiring the new Jewish schools they controlled to be open on Shabbos is better than the Zionists? It wouldn't surprise me if you do. When your religion revolves around (anti) Zionism it makes sense to think that way.
Nobody has been imprisoned for the “crime” of learning Torah! That is sheker vechozov. Plenty of IDF soldiers learn Torah. Some of those who refuse to shoulder their responsibilities to the rest of Klal Yisroel have been arrested. You can argue whether or not that is the wisest approach, but don’t perpetuate the falsehood that there is a campaign to wipe out Torah
It must be that in anti-Zionist beliefs shmad is defined differently because in halacha any law that is applied across the board to all citizens (like a draft) is not considered shmad. Even if it does prevent kiyum hamitzvas.
The mesora in the yeshiva velt from R' Chaim Brisker: People think that the point of Zionism was to settle the land and agav they also wanted to shmad klal yisroel, but actually the whole point of (secular) Zionism was to shmad klal yisroel and settling the land was only a tool to get to it
Does ayon beleive that had the Stepler had the choice between serving in the Israelis army or the Russian army like he did which he would have chosen the Russian army . I don’t even mean Heseder or the Chasmonioim, I mean the secular parts of the Israeli army in an all male unit. According to the Stieplers biography he did participate in things like learning how to shoot a gun on Shabbos. The gadlus was that he learned to shoot holding the gun upside down so it was k’lacher Yad. But he participated it on Shabbos. You won’t see this in anti-Zionist literature but the official Israeli policy is that chilul shabbos involving other people is not allowed on Shabbos on army bases, Making a barbeque can get you in trouble. They certainly do not have training exercises on Shabbos. They also are required to give frum soldiers time off to daven if not in active combat etc. But tell me again that the Steipler would have chosen forced chilul Shabbos and no accommodations for frumkeit over that.
First off the people even if Rav Chaim Solovachick said that the people he was referring to are long dead. Secondly according to Penenei Rabbuinu HaGriz and other such sources, Rav Chaim Solovachick also said that from all the secular Jewish movements in his time the Zionists are the worst (some versions claim he said they are by the far the worst) There is no way to say that he lived to see what the Yevsektsiya did he would have been still saying that .V’Dai L’Maven but I don’t want to say it directly.
6:40 He was drafted & briefly served in the polish army too.R Ch Shmuelevitz would give a shiur on the polish army base when feasible on Sunday.
Won't need to give a definitive answer to your rhetoric.Nonetheless the old attitude used to be: if/when aino yehudim force us into something- nu, yet another part of the continued sorrow of golus 'may it end soon'. When instad you are coerced by those who have connived that they are of your own, even if/when the coercion can be contrasted to technically nitpick to be less severe, the impact invariably will hit worse & the searing betrayal will tear all humans to pieces.As it ought to.
What heter is there to join an army that calls itself Jewish, yet tramples all over the Torah, and whose leadership is/will always be decidedly secular,basically anti-religious? The new battleground over mixed gender units — because we’ve become desensitized enough to the atrocity of women fighting in an army that dares refer to itself as Jewish, even if they **** in tanks with men — has made it even easier for Religious Zionists, those most willing of sacrificial lambs, to further pretend the most essential question isn’t even a question. No, anyone who celebrates women in the IDF is a spiritually diseased person, a total disgrace to the Jewish people. I’m not talking about the heter for that. It’s a non-starter.
What heter is there to join a yeshiva that calls itself Jewish, yet tramples all over the Torah to promote its selfish one-sided anti Torah agenda (claiming to be Torah oriented.)?
No jewish army ever contained women. An oxymoron. Out of the gate,non-starter. Irrespective of any size of enemy being confronted.Not Bar Kochba. Not Midian. Nor vs Local enemies-Philistines,etc. Not Conquest of EY. Not Amalek. Therefore considering the ever present & worsening agendae, anybody who contends there presently is a mitzva in such a scenario has no concept of [to paraphrase R M Meiselman] what that even is Jews are conveniently being baited to hate each other over IDF service so they won’t hate the ones pulling their strings and causing them all the suffering in the first place. Why hate the people who brought you October 7 and made the IDF stand down, for example, when you can hate yeshiva students who refuse draft orders from the same people who brought you October 7 and made the IDF stand down? I’m not even talking about women “serving” in the IDF — halacha strictly forbids, even though fake-religious loudmouths cherry-pick a single line from Chazal about a bride leaving the wedding canopy during a milchemes mitzvah, take it literally in a way exactly zero classical poskim understood it, practically apply it in a way exactly zero Jewish armies historically ever applied it, and pretend the halacha is on their side, as if the Rambam would have sent his wife and daughter to the IDF.
Another replay of Rabbi Ribners clip about Zionism? I guess that is because that always gets the most responses here so I’ll oblige with one that I know will be controversial . Perhaps the reason is because the kibbutz galoyus was done through them. In the 1880s when the czar threw Jews out of Moscow and it’s environs the Chofetz Chaim told his son R’ Leib that this is the beginning of kibbutz galayus of before Mosiach (see his biography of his father for more on that and his fathers views on Zionism – it is NOT what you would expect reading anti-Zionist literature alone) . The Chasam Sofer asks what was the big nechoma told to Rochel of וְשָׁבוּ בָנִים לִגְבוּלָם there were plenty of nevouas about Mosiach before that? He answers that this is unique in that it was saying Klal Yisreol will return and repopulate Eretz Yisroel even before Mosiach comes. While some anti-Zionist haskafa does not believe that the fulfillment of neveuos can be done through Zionists that does not seem correct. King Yeravem ben Yoash (not to be confused with Yeravem ben Nevat) was a tremendous Rasha but the posuk still says ה֗וּא הֵשִׁיב֙ אֶת־גְּב֣וּל יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל מִלְּב֥וֹא חֲמָ֖ת עַד־יָ֣ם
ReplyDeleteהָעֲרָבָ֑ה כִּדְבַ֚ר ה, אֱלֹ' יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אֲשֶׁ֣ר דִּבֶּ֗ר בְּיַד עַבְדּ֞וֹ יוֹנָ֚ה בֶן־אֲמִתַּי֙ הַנָּבִ֔יא So apparently even Rashyim are capable of being the fulfillment of these type of Nevuoas.
'twas a mistake. check the title.
DeleteBringing proofs from past disasters appears sly superficially, but ain't very shrewd. The definition of insanity is ..
The Steipler said after he was interrogated during Eipho yossele saga: this place operates the precisely like Soviet Union. & he had previously served in the Red army!
DeleteI've seen plenty about Yossele Schumacher but this is the first time I ever seen anyone claim the Steipler was interrogated during it. When was that added to the story? Who did he make that alleged comment to afterwards?
DeleteObviously you aren't well informed re: yossele Schumacher. Hardly some surprise. Yet you pontificate.
DeleteYou probably don't have a clue either as to the set up the mossad did to a Rav in London- retrieved from an very secular inside source
As a former died in the wool adherent of the extreme anti-Zionist movement myself, believe me I heard most allegations. And believed them too. Yes, I do know the story of the Mossad and the Rav in London. But this one about the Steipler being interrogated was not commonly claimed when I was a member of the movement. Nor are some of the predictions that were said back then that didn't materialize still being said today...
Deletesince the days of Stalin the shmad hasnt been worse
ReplyDeleteDo you really think that (e.g) Iran closing down the Otzar HaTorah school system (the only Jewish school system in Iran) in the 1980s and then requiring the new Jewish schools they controlled to be open on Shabbos is better than the Zionists? It wouldn't surprise me if you do. When your religion revolves around (anti) Zionism it makes sense to think that way.
Deletethe " JEWISH state" has imprisoned Torah learners for the "crime" of learning Torah
DeleteWas a common refrain: when kapos hit you, the hurt was much worse than when the nazis hit you. & the betrayal.
DeleteNobody has been imprisoned for the “crime” of learning Torah! That is sheker vechozov. Plenty of IDF soldiers learn Torah. Some of those who refuse to shoulder their responsibilities to the rest of Klal Yisroel have been arrested. You can argue whether or not that is the wisest approach, but don’t perpetuate the falsehood that there is a campaign to wipe out Torah
DeleteIt must be that in anti-Zionist beliefs shmad is defined differently because in halacha any law that is applied across the board to all citizens (like a draft) is not considered shmad. Even if it does prevent kiyum hamitzvas.
DeleteThe mesora in the yeshiva velt from R' Chaim Brisker:
DeletePeople think that the point of Zionism was to settle the land and agav they also wanted to shmad klal yisroel, but actually the whole point of (secular) Zionism was to shmad klal yisroel and settling the land was only a tool to get to it
Does ayon beleive that had the Stepler had the choice between serving in the Israelis army or the Russian army like he did which he would have chosen the Russian army . I don’t even mean Heseder or the Chasmonioim, I mean the secular parts of the Israeli army in an all male unit. According to the Stieplers biography he did participate in things like learning how to shoot a gun on Shabbos. The gadlus was that he learned to shoot holding the gun upside down so it was k’lacher Yad. But he participated it on Shabbos. You won’t see this in anti-Zionist literature but the official Israeli policy is that chilul shabbos involving other people is not allowed on Shabbos on army bases, Making a barbeque can get you in trouble. They certainly do not have training exercises on Shabbos. They also are required to give frum soldiers time off to daven if not in active combat etc. But tell me again that the Steipler would have chosen forced chilul Shabbos and no accommodations for frumkeit over that.
Delete
DeleteFirst off the people even if Rav Chaim Solovachick said that the people he was referring to are long dead. Secondly according to Penenei Rabbuinu HaGriz and other such sources, Rav Chaim Solovachick also said that from all the secular Jewish movements in his time the Zionists are the worst (some versions claim he said they are by the far the worst) There is no way to say that he lived to see what the Yevsektsiya did he would have been still saying that .V’Dai L’Maven but I don’t want to say it directly.
6:40
DeleteHe was drafted & briefly served in the polish army too.R Ch Shmuelevitz would give a shiur on the polish army base when feasible on Sunday.
Won't need to give a definitive answer to your rhetoric.Nonetheless the old attitude used to be: if/when aino yehudim force us into something- nu, yet another part of the continued sorrow of golus 'may it end soon'.
When instad you are coerced by those who have connived that they are of your own, even if/when the coercion can be contrasted to technically nitpick to be less severe, the impact invariably will hit worse & the searing betrayal will tear all humans to pieces.As it ought to.
Mr NB Is your distinction based on Gemora and Rishonim or boich svoras? If the former please enlighten as us as to where.
DeleteWhat heter is there to join an army that calls itself Jewish, yet tramples all over the Torah, and whose leadership is/will always be decidedly secular,basically anti-religious?
ReplyDeleteThe new battleground over mixed gender units — because we’ve become desensitized enough to the atrocity of women fighting in an army that dares refer to itself as Jewish, even if they **** in tanks with men — has made it even easier for Religious Zionists, those most willing of sacrificial lambs, to further pretend the most essential question isn’t even a question.
No, anyone who celebrates women in the IDF is a spiritually diseased person, a total disgrace to the Jewish people. I’m not talking about the heter for that. It’s a non-starter.
What heter is there to join a yeshiva that calls itself Jewish, yet tramples all over the Torah to promote its selfish one-sided anti Torah agenda (claiming to be Torah oriented.)?
DeleteNo jewish army ever contained women. An oxymoron.
ReplyDeleteOut of the gate,non-starter. Irrespective of any size of enemy being confronted.Not Bar Kochba.
Not Midian.
Nor vs Local enemies-Philistines,etc.
Not Conquest of EY.
Not Amalek.
Therefore considering the ever present & worsening agendae, anybody who contends there presently is a mitzva in such a scenario has no concept of [to paraphrase R M Meiselman] what that even is
Jews are conveniently being baited to hate each other over IDF service so they won’t hate the ones pulling their strings and causing them all the suffering in the first place. Why hate the people who brought you October 7 and made the IDF stand down, for example, when you can hate yeshiva students who refuse draft orders from the same people who brought you October 7 and made the IDF stand down?
I’m not even talking about women “serving” in the IDF — halacha strictly forbids, even though fake-religious loudmouths cherry-pick a single line from Chazal about a bride leaving the wedding canopy during a milchemes mitzvah, take it literally in a way exactly zero classical poskim understood it, practically apply it in a way exactly zero Jewish armies historically ever applied it, and pretend the halacha is on their side, as if the Rambam would have sent his wife and daughter to the IDF.