The large conference room at Agudath Israel national
headquarters in Manhattan was filled to capacity last
Wednesday night as dozens of Am Echad activists came
together to hear reports on the current military and
political situation in Eretz Yisroel, and to discuss how
American Orthodox Jewry might play a constructive role in
those urgent matters.
The Am Echad meeting came mere weeks after thousands who
attended Agudath Israel of America's national convention
heard the Modziter Rebbe call for an American response to
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak's declared desire to
promote "civil reform" at the expense of Jewish tradition in
the Jewish State, something the Israeli press dubbed a
"secular revolution." That announced assault on Judaism in
Israel was reduced, during the current Arab violence, to
simmering on the "back burner" of the Israeli consciousness,
but is expected, in the wake of Mr. Barak's resignation and
new campaign for his former office, to be brought soon once
again to an active boil.
The meeting was chaired by Am Echad chairman Avrohom
Biderman, and opened by Rabbi Shmuel Bloom, executive vice
president of Agudath Israel of America, who presented an
overview of up-to-date developments on the political scene
in Israel and then introduced Rabbi Yitzchok Dovid Grossman,
rav of Migdal Ho'emek. Rabbi Grossman reported on the
incredible openness of the Israeli masses to their spiritual
heritage, providing a number of colorful accounts to make
his point. He placed the blame for the anti-religious
sentiment that paradoxically coexists with Israelis'
receptivity to Judaism squarely on the shoulders of the
media. Even the media, however, he insisted, can be utilized
to spread awareness of Torah and Yiddishkeit among
Israeli Jews.
Mr. Biderman noted that, in the current political campaign
for Prime Minister in Israel, it is likely that Mr. Barak
will seek to gain some of the popular support he has lost
over recent weeks by trying to re-ignite anti-Orthodox
sentiment. The issue of chareidi deferments from military
service, he contended, is most likely the cudgel he will
choose to wield.
Rabbi Bloom noted that the upcoming Agudath Israel Yarchei
Kallah, which plans to bring scores of American Orthodox
activists to Eretz Yisroel for the sole purpose of immersing
themselves in Torah study at this crucial time, should serve
as a symbol of both the solidarity of American Orthodox Jews
with Jews in Israel and of the immense value placed by
observant Jews on the study of Torah, both inherently and as
a means of meriting Hashem's protection of His people.
Among those in attendance at the meeting was long-time
Agudath Israel activist Julius Klugmann, who spoke
passionately about the threat posed to the Jewish nature of
the Jewish State by Israel's High Court. Another well known
American Agudath Israel askan, Mr. Shlomo Werdiger,
stressed the importance of letting the chareidi community in
Eretz Yisroel know that their American counterparts are at
one with them; and Rabbi Pesach Lerner, executive vice
president of the National Council of Young Israel, relayed a
message from Rabbi Simcha Hacohen Kook, the chief rabbi of
Rechovot, to mobilize the American Jewish community to help
provide personal security materials to Israeli communities
that have come under Arab attack.
A suggestion was made by Dr. Paul Rosenstock to append an Am
Echad component to the Agudath Israel Yarchei Kalla, with
the purpose of interacting in a private forum with members
of both the international press based in Israel and the
Israeli media. Mr. Nochum Stein emphasized the importance of
having a clear and organized public relations plan, and not
relying on ad hoc opportunities and "hit-or-miss"
efforts.
After summarizing the various points and suggestions made at
the meeting, Mr. Biderman referred the recommendations to an
executive committee for follow-up discussion and
development.
