Rabbi Meir Tzvi Bergman: Nobody Should Be Denied Opportunity To Learn Torah, This Is Non-Negotiable

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — In the wake of the crisis around the draft law and the attempts to reach a compromise, Rabbi Meir Zvi Bergman, the son-in-law of Rabbi Elazar Shach and head of the Rashbi Yeshiva in Bnei Brak, issued a sharp letter in which he explained his viewpoint on the matter.

Rabbi Bergman wrote that “When errant brothers come in their foolhardiness and try and damage the holy yeshivos which are the basis of our existence and our inspiration, attempting to reduce the number of Torah scholars and yeshiva students, it is our duty to declare that “What you imagine will never happen” and to strengthen ourselves with the knowledge that whatever happens the nation of Hashem will never leave the holy Torah.

Rabbi Bergman added that “The Torah remains perfect and we are not its owners. Just as we have no right to change one of its letters or tags, there is no right for anyone to disturb those who learn it. We cannot stand by and agree to the theft of even one soul in Israel, we will stand resolutely and ensure that no member of Israel who wishes to learn Torah will be denied that opportunity, this is not open to negotiation.

I wrote in 5761 in the name of esteemed father-in-law of blessed memory, who told me that if it would actually happen, it should be said in his name that a decree to draft yeshiva students is a decree of shmad (destruction) and we must give up our lives for it, as explained in Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah. This is what must be done if we are tested in this manner. If we will be strong, those errant brothers will internalize that there is no point in their actions and attempts to threaten the world of Torah and they will leave us in peace.’

Rabbi Bergman, who at 94 is the eldest rosh yeshiva in the Council of Torah Sages, also related that in his youth, when the yishuv tried to persuade the members of Lomza yeshiva to go out and defend the land of Israel due to the threat of the Arab armies, the Chazon Ish said that we shouldn’t answer their claims but simply stress that all we want is to study Torah, and not add anything else, no more explanations, since merely negotiating with them is to fall into their trap and can lead to grave consequences.”

It should be noted that the Sephardic Rosh Yeshivas issued a similar directive this week, stating that not one charedi will be drafted, even those not studying in the yeshivas. Political pundit Avi Blum says that the goal of these letters is to prevent the charedi representatives from conducting negotiations under threat and to ensure that they will obtain the maximum from the government in the event of a draft law being legislated.