Rabbi Eliezer Melamed, head of the hesder yeshiva in Har Brachah in the Shomron, wrote in B'Sheva last week that despite the apparent threat posed by the large numbers of non-Jews in the wave of immigration from the former Soviet Union, the large wave of aliyah [immigration] is a cause for rejoicing:
"Our teacher Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda Kook (son of Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Kook, first Chief Rabbi of pre-modern day Israel) would always remind us of the words of the Jerusalem Talmud (Kiddushin 4,1): "Sanctification of G-d's Name is greater than the desecration of G-d's Name." This sentence obviously requires clarification, in that it does not seem to tell us anything we did not know before. The explanation is that there are special situations of great and complex matters, in which we encounter both Sanctification of G-d's Name and desecration of G-d's Name. This is what we have at present in the public and social situation here in our country.
"There are aspects of desecration of G-d's Name in this situation, which is the worst thing that can be in the world. On the other hand, the purpose of all the Commandments and the Torah is to increase Sanctification of G-d's Name. [How must we act in such a case?] Some say that the preferred option is to 'sit and do nothing.' However, our Sages teach us that if we know that there is truly a situation of Sanctification of G-d's Name, with an aspect of desecration of G-d's Name getting in the way - what is needed is strength and vigor to do the Sanctification of G-d's Name, despite the aspects of desecration of G-d's Name. This is the Halakhic [Jewish legal] ruling, said Rabbi Kook, that the side of Sanctification of the Name outweighs the considerations of the desecration of G-d's Name.
"At the same time, we must do everything we can to absorb the Jews who have immigrated to Israel, and to bring them closer to Torah and the Jewish People and Land. We must actualize the full tremendous potential within them, from both the intellectual and the nationalistic standpoints. They bring with them new strengths that could sprout into healthy, natural, Jewish patriotism. Regarding the children of Jewish fathers who wish to convert, as well as any fair-minded non-Jew who truly wishes to do so, we must bring them closer with bonds of love. We learn this lesson from Hillel the Elder, who brought close those who wished to convert, and saw that they truly wished to join the People of Israel, even though they had grave misconceptions about Judaism.
"We must also act to change the instructions that are being given to the people of the Jewish Agency, who today are trying to get non-Jews to come to Israel. They must receive new instructions telling them to act only to have Jews immigrate, or their relatives who truly wish to adhere to the Nation of Israel and its traditions."
"Our teacher Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda Kook (son of Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak Kook, first Chief Rabbi of pre-modern day Israel) would always remind us of the words of the Jerusalem Talmud (Kiddushin 4,1): "Sanctification of G-d's Name is greater than the desecration of G-d's Name." This sentence obviously requires clarification, in that it does not seem to tell us anything we did not know before. The explanation is that there are special situations of great and complex matters, in which we encounter both Sanctification of G-d's Name and desecration of G-d's Name. This is what we have at present in the public and social situation here in our country.
"There are aspects of desecration of G-d's Name in this situation, which is the worst thing that can be in the world. On the other hand, the purpose of all the Commandments and the Torah is to increase Sanctification of G-d's Name. [How must we act in such a case?] Some say that the preferred option is to 'sit and do nothing.' However, our Sages teach us that if we know that there is truly a situation of Sanctification of G-d's Name, with an aspect of desecration of G-d's Name getting in the way - what is needed is strength and vigor to do the Sanctification of G-d's Name, despite the aspects of desecration of G-d's Name. This is the Halakhic [Jewish legal] ruling, said Rabbi Kook, that the side of Sanctification of the Name outweighs the considerations of the desecration of G-d's Name.
"At the same time, we must do everything we can to absorb the Jews who have immigrated to Israel, and to bring them closer to Torah and the Jewish People and Land. We must actualize the full tremendous potential within them, from both the intellectual and the nationalistic standpoints. They bring with them new strengths that could sprout into healthy, natural, Jewish patriotism. Regarding the children of Jewish fathers who wish to convert, as well as any fair-minded non-Jew who truly wishes to do so, we must bring them closer with bonds of love. We learn this lesson from Hillel the Elder, who brought close those who wished to convert, and saw that they truly wished to join the People of Israel, even though they had grave misconceptions about Judaism.
"We must also act to change the instructions that are being given to the people of the Jewish Agency, who today are trying to get non-Jews to come to Israel. They must receive new instructions telling them to act only to have Jews immigrate, or their relatives who truly wish to adhere to the Nation of Israel and its traditions."