There's a Good Reason Israel's Ultra-Orthodox Don't Serve in the Military | Opinion

Israel's Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Tuesday that Haredi (often called "Ultra-Orthodox") men studying Jewish religious texts full-time will no longer be deferred from army service, an exemption that dates back to the state's founding.

The decision references the "urgent need for additional personnel" in the military, as Israel seeks the destruction of Hamas in Gaza and faces a threat from Hezbollah, another terrorist group, on its northern border.

The decision is significant in both the societal and political realms. A large majority of Israels favor the drafting of students in yeshivot (Torah-study institutions) and welcomed the decision. And it may have consequences for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government coalition, which depends on Haredi parties' inclusion.

What might seem to be the main issue, the need for soldiers, isn't clear-cut. While political leaders trumpet that need, some military commanders are less enthusiastic about large-scale Haredi troops, who will require an array of religious accommodations.

The immediate effects of the decision are largely financial, as funds for yeshivot in which draft-eligible men study will be slashed. But the Haredi community will somehow manage to make up the shortfall. And Haredim can be expected to ignore conscription notices, maintaining their objection to compelled military service.

There are Haredim, to be sure, who feel they aren't "cut out" for full-time Torah study and have enlisted in the armed forces; and others who will do so. But the great majority of Haredi men will resist being forced to serve in the military.

It's not that they don't value the army. Most Haredim are as entirely appreciative as any other Israeli of those who serve in the military, as pained by casualties and as concerned with rescuing those kidnapped by Hamas and still alive.

In fact, the names of hostages have been visually projected on the main street in Bnei Brak, a largely Haredi city near Tel Aviv, along with a plea for prayers that they be released. Yiddish notices are hung in the Haredi Jerusalem neighborhood of Mea Shearim, requesting that people recite Psalms and pray fervently for the return of the hostages.

Pamphlets with the pictures and names of the hostages have been circulated in the Haredi community, where everyone is given the opportunity to "adopt" a hostage until they return.

But being forced to leave the study hall is simply not something Haredi men will consider. And the reason is not often offered, much less appreciated.

The essential reason for the Haredi resistance has nothing to do with fear of mortal dangers, a charge hurled by some who disapprove of Haredim in general, secularists who have long derided their religious fellow citizens as "parasites" and "draft dodgers."

To begin with, danger isn't something faced only by soldiers, as has been evident in the countless terrorist attacks on Israeli civilians, including the massive one of Oct 7. What is more, some military personnel, like intelligence analysts and drone operators, work in secure environments, free of any battlefield threats.

That latter fact is most pertinent. Because the overriding issue is equal dedication to the country's security. All citizens should be expected to contribute to ensuring the safety of the citizenry.

Therein lies the crux of the matter. Haredim believe—deeply, strongly and sincerely—that religious devotion in the form of Torah-study, no less than the actions of foot soldiers or intelligence officers, is important for Israel's security. Indeed, a vital, essential part of it.

A secular-minded person will surely scoff at that idea but it is, as it always has been, a most basic Haredi belief. The Talmud, for example, states (Sanhedrin 49a) that "If it weren't for [King] David's Torah study, [his military commander] Yoav would not have succeeded in war; and if not for Yoav's effort in battle, David would not have been able to learn Torah."

And so, while Haredi men who choose to not engage in intensive Torah study will continue, as many have, to enlist and serve in the military, those who see their role in life as contributing to Israel's spiritual strength will not forsake that mission, even in the face of a Supreme Court ruling.

So the angst and anger born of the Haredi insistence on preserving a sizable cadre of men engaged in full-time dedication to Torah study need to be tempered by an acknowledgment that, at least in Haredi eyes, those dedicated Jews are not evading public service but contributing to it—and in a way that, they sincerely believe, is essential to the safety and security of all their fellow Jews.

The Jewish people have persevered over the ages, through attacks, pogroms, and attempted genocide. That miracle is... well, a miracle. Haredim believe that miracles don't just happen; they need to be merited. And they see their wholehearted embrace of the Jewish religious tradition, including the Torah study that has always been at its core, as part of earning that merit.

Rabbi Avi Shafran writes widely in Jewish and general media, serves as Agudath Israel of America's public affairs director and is a columnist for Ami Magazine.

The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.