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Religious Zionist movement |
Religious Zionism, or the Religious Zionist Movement (a branch of which is also called Mizrachi) is an ideology that combines Zionism and religious Judaism, basing Zionism on the principles of Torah, Talmud et al and authentic heritage.
It is often combined with Modern Orthodox Judaism, although they are not synonymous, as the Hardal branch of Religious Zionism rejects that philosophy, and is thus Haredi. Also, there are some Modern Orthodox Jews who are not Zionists. Therefore, not all religious Jewish Zionists may be associated with Mizrachi, since some may choose to be affiliated with other groups.
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Religious Zionists are a faction within the Zionist movement who justify Zionist efforts to build a Jewish state in the land of Israel on the basis of Judaism.
In 1862, German Orthodox Rabbi Zvi Hirsch Kalischer published his tractate Derishat Zion, positing that the salvation of the Jews, promised by the Prophets, can come about only by self-help.1
The main ideologue of modern religious Zionism was Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, although Haredi and not Dati Leumi, nevertheless justified Zionism according Jewish law and urged young religious Jews to support efforts to settle the land, and the secular Labour Zionists to give more consideration to Judaism.
Rav Kook saw Zionism as a part of a divine scheme which would result in the resettlement of the Jewish people in its homeland. This would bring salvation ("Geula") to Jews, and then to the entire world. After world harmony is achieved by the refoundation of the Jewish homeland, the Messiah will come.
Religious Jews believe that since the land of Israel (Eretz Yisrael) was given to the ancient Israelites by God, the right of the Jews to that land is permanent and inalienable. To generations of diaspora Jews, Jerusalem, also known as Zion, has been a symbol of the Holy Land and of their return to it, as promised by God in numerous Biblical prophecies. (See also Jerusalem, Jews and Judaism)
Despite this, some religious Jews were not enthusiastic about Zionism before the 1930s, and many religious organisations opposed it on the grounds that an attempt to re-establish Jewish rule in Israel by human agency is blasphemous, since only the Messiah can accomplish this. They considered it religiously forbidden to try to hasten salvation and the coming of the Messiah. They saw Zionism as an expression of disbelief in God's salvation and power, and therefore as a rebellion against God. Rabbi Kook developed a theological answer to that claim, which gave Zionism a religious legitimation.
Rabbi Kook's answer was the following:
Another big problem of religious Jews with Zionism is that Zionists were largely secular Jews, and in some cases were atheist in their point of view. The atheism of the early Zionists was imported from Marxism by Socialist Zionism which saw Zionism as an avant-garde effort of building an advanced socialist society in the land of Israel, while solving the antisemitism problem. The Kibbutz is a good example of Socialist Zionism: it was a communal settlement set to fulfill national goals, in which no Jewish law was observed (such as Kosher food). Rabbi Kook had an answer to this as well:
Professor Shlomo Avineri explains the last part of Kook's answer:
The first Rabbis who supported Zionism were Rabbi Yehuda Shlomo Alkalai and Rabbi Zvi Hirsch Kalischer. They argued that the change in the status of Western Europe's Jews following emancipation was the first step toward salvation (גאולה) and that therefore one must hasten the messianic salvation by a natural salvation — whose main pillars are the Kibbutz Galuyot ("Gathering of the Exiles"), the return to Eretz Israel, agricultural work (עבודת אדמה) and the revival of the everyday use of the Hebrew language.
The Mizrachi (a portmanteau of "Merkaz Ruchani" or "religious centre") is the name of the religious Zionist organization founded in 1902 in Vilna at a world conference of religious Zionists called by Rabbi Yitzchak Yaacov Reines. It operates a youth movement, Bnei Akiva which was founded in 1929.
Mizrachi believes that the Torah should be at the centre of Zionism and also sees Jewish nationalism as a tool for achieving religious objectives. The Mizrachi party was the first official religious Zionist party and founded the Ministry of Religion in Israel and pushed for laws enforcing kashrut and the observance of Shabbat - the Sabbath. It also played a role prior to the creation of the state of Israel in building a network of religious schools that exist to this day.
Major figures in the religious Zionist movement include Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook who became the Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Palestine in 1924 and tried to reconcile Zionism with Orthodox Judaism.
Mizrachi had a separate trade union wing, founded in 1921, called Hapoel Hamizrachi which represented religious Jews in the Histadrut and tried to attract religious Labour Zionists.
In 1956, Mizrachi, Hapoel HaMizrachi and other religious Zionists formed the National Religious Party to advance the rights of religious Zionist Jews in Israel.
The flagship religious institution of the religious Zionist movement is "Mercaz haRav" yeshiva (founded by Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook), which supplied the religious Zionist movement with most of its Rabbis and scholars.
Another branch of Religious Zionism is Kahanism, founded by the late Rabbi Meir Kahane. Kahanism blends Religious Zionism with the ideology of the pre-state Right Wing movements of the followers of Ze'ev Jabotinsky. Today, Hazit is the leading wing of such school of thought within the movement. Other parties and groups such as Gush Emunim, Tkuma, Meimad et al., all represent sectarian interests within the movement.
Religious Zionists are often called "Kippot Sruggot", which means knitted skullcaps, because of the knitted kippot worn by the men. In Israel, different factions of Orthodox Judaism can be distinguished by the style of dress of their members (such as Litvish Ashkenazi Haredi, Sephardi-Haredi, Ashkenazi-Hasidic, Religious Zionist, etc).
Most religious Zionists are right wing supporters. The main party representing them is the National Religious Party, but they also vote for Likud (Conservative party), National Union (nationalist party), Hazit and Shas. However, there is a minority of leftist religious Zionists, headed by Rabbi Michael Melchior and represented by the Meimad party (which ran together with the Israeli Labor party).
Many settlers in Judea and Samaria are religious Zionists, along with most of the settlers forcibly expelled from the Gaza Strip in August and September 2005. Many other religious Zionists are supporters of the pro-settlement movement Gush Emunim.
Military service is an important value among most religious Zionists.
Many religious Zionists take part in the Hesder program, whereby they are able to combine military service with Yeshiva studies. Others attend a pre-army Mechina, delaying their service by one year. 88% of Hesder students belong to combat units, compared to a national average of below 30%.
Female religious Zionists can be exempted from military service, but usually do a one to two-year national service instead (such as working at hospitals, schools and day-care centers). In recent years there have been a growing number of women religious Zionists who choose to serve in the military, although it is still considered controversial among the movement.
This is a list of current notable religious Zionist leaders. The list is sorted lexicographically according to the last name.
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