Neturei Karta
[Guardians of the City of Jerusalem]

People tend to dismiss the actions of those they consider strange and radical, especially when they are a numeric minority. This reaction leads to apathy and to a lack of attention and vigilance. I have come to wake people up, because the opposite is true: the radicals teach us about the pure ideology of a large group which relies upon that same source of authority -- in our case Jewish law -- the commands of the G-d of Israel who "chose the Jewish nation as His own."

One who studies people's behavior in a united society, one in which religious faith is both the unifying authority and unifying power, will see that there is nothing to distinguish between the radical and the moderate except the connection between ideology and action, between pure faith and daily lifestyle, between what is desirable and what is possible: the radical realizes the ideas of faith in practical terms at every instance while the moderate waits patiently for the most appropriate time to realize the ideas of his faith.

People who share a common textual authority (the Torah, the Mishnah, the Gemara, and the rest of religious Jewish literature) have similar views, rooted in the same source, and are separated only by their view of reality versus the demands of the divine command. Another thing which causes differences between people who share a mutual sacred text is the interpretation of that text when it comes to life and reality. (Later on I will focus on this issue to explain the differences between religious Zionists and the religious anti-Zionists, despite their shared sacred text.) Therefore it is important to pay attention to the radicals who are called Neturei Karta, who met with the leader of a nation who will not rest until he witnesses the destruction of the State of Israel.

Rabbi Moshe Dov (Ber) HaLevi Beck, the leader of Neturei Karta, who lives in Monsey, NY (seen in the video in a gray frock-coat, sitting near the Iranian president) writes in a rousing letter: "The main anger was generated because of Zionism and enlightenment; the war against Zionism -- the war of G-d against Amalek -- remains in force until the just redeemer shall arrive, may it be speedily in our days, Amen." In this letter he explains to all our generations' scholars the relationship to the gentile and to the apostate. He writes:

1. "Assimilation between the Jews and gentiles is a serious prohibition, violating the command 'Do not follow in their ways, and I will separate you from amongst the nations…' It is our purpose to be Jews, separated from the nations, be it their science, their dress, their speak, or anything else about them."

   The rabbi took this idea from Maimonides: "We do not follow the gentile's laws nor do we resemble them in dress or hairstyle, etc., as is written: 'Do not follow the laws of the gentile…the Jew should be separate from them and obvious in dress and in action as he is separate from them in science and in thought…anyone who is like them in any of these respects or any like them is deficient." [1]

2. "Separation from the evil-doers amongst the Jews -- in Ethics of the Fathers chapter 1 it is written,' Do not befriend an evil-doer…' and in Psalms it is written, 'Those who hate You, O Lord, do I not hate?'"

   When he writes "the evil-doers amongst the Jews" he refers to people who do not fulfill the commandments and those who reject any non-human authority -- G-d -- as shall be made clear below.

The rabbi goes on to write:

Our [the Jewish people's] virtue is great and we do not belong at all to the class of general nations, not even to say that we are more important than they, that they are small and we are greater; we are a special creation, a treasure for His holy name and a nation of priests, and the nations are as nothing, as is written in the prayers: 'A person should always fear Heavens in private and in public…are not all heroes as nothing before Him and the notable ones as though they did not exist, the sages as without wisdom, the wise as without reason, for most of their actions are chaos and their lifespan nothing before You. Man has no advantage over the animal, for all is naught aside from the holy soul…all the nations are as naught before You…but we are Your nation, the people of Your covenant…happy are we when we go, early and late, to synagogues and study halls.' [from the morning prayers; Sephardim and Chassidim are more particular to say this prayer]. The nations of the world, with all their deep wisdom and manners, are unimportant; it is we whom the holy One, blessed be He, brought close to Him before Mount Sinai and to whom He gave completion.

Since gentiles and the evil of Israel have the same fate -- we must separate from both.

Why, then, did Neturei Karta see fit to support gentiles (the president of Iran) and object to the evil of Israel (the Zionists)? Answer: "Halacha rules that gentiles and the evil of Israel should not be aided. We do not birth nor nurse the children of gentiles and the evil of Israel, but for fear of enmity and to promote peace Halacha permits birthing and nursing gentile children but did not permit birthing and nursing the children of apostates and the evil of Israel [the secular]." (From a pamphlet published by that same rabbi, titled Derech Hatzalah.) According to Halacha one must completely separate from the Jewish apostate, but toward the gentile one must act in ways which promote peace lest one provoke them. The rabbi adds that there is Halachic permission to assist a murderer (in our case the Iranian president) if through this help a Jew can save himself or another Jew. Therefore the rabbi writes "Based on this one is allowed to tell the Palestinian that they have done well to kill, for because of these words salvation will arise for many Jews who oppose Zionism."

If you wonder what of salvation for Zionist Jews -- were they not also created in G-d's image? -- the rabbi answers:

There are three levels of causing people's death:

1. Believers and those who observe the commandments: we are concerned and pray for their salvation.
2. Jews who do not observe the commandments: we do not worry about their lives and we do not rush to their aid. [This refers to those secular who believe in the Torah but do not observe the commandments, as though they had been taking captive as infants.]
3. Apostate Jews, sinners, and those who have purposefully left religion: we pray three times each day that they be destroyed, the sooner the better, and are happy when they are destroyed [secular, atheists, or those who believe in a Higher Power which does not make its influence felt on Earth].

Thus is their ideology explained in clear and logical terms, based on Halacha itself, by one whom people overlook as though he were mad. One must note that all the rabbi's words are taken from the sanctified text -- the Gemara, Maimonides, and the Shulchan Aruch. A person could never reach these conclusions from the UN Charter, but from the Jewish bookshelf one not only can, it is the reasonable and natural conclusion. Therefore it is no wonder that these shocking words can also be found in Yated Ne'eman, the newspaper which serves as the voice of the Yahadut HaTorah representatives in the Knesset, those Charedi MKs which the public sees as "moderate."

Saving human life is the natural basis for cooperative life, and religious people admit that one may kill a person for his opinions, his views, and his faith. They have basically announced that they are not interested in cooperation and unity with the secular, but in waging all-out war against them -- not only a war about cultural life, but about life itself. Therefore it is no surprise to read in Yated Ne'eman an apology like this:

Apology and clarification: Unfortunately, an ad was inserted in the newspaper which has no place in Yated Ne'eman. The ad was sent by a group which wishes to cause a reconciliation between the secular and the religious. We must clarify that every Jew who believes in the 13 principles of faith cannot become friends with nor ever reconcile himself to those who deny faith in the Creator of the world…We can never forget and become reconciled to secularization…Have you ever heard of a person who is sentenced to death making peace with the hangman while the latter is tightening the noose?… (December 25, 2000) Reconciliation? Unity? Friendship? With those that deny the faith? Never!!! To bind them with ties of love, yes! That is, to try to bring them closer to us is proper. To try to accept them as they are and become reconciled to them -- heaven forbid.

In an article titled "War on Amalek," published in Yated Ne'eman, Rabbi Zev Wolf wrote: "We are witnesses to the truth of the words of the gaon Rabbi Chaim Brisker, may his memory be a blessing, that the goal of Zionism is not a state but the uprooting of the Torah. The state is only a means to this end…we must know that we are in a true battle and each of us is obligated to do his part. Though in the end the enemies of G-d will be vanquished…how long [the war] will take and how many, G-d forbid, casualties it will claim depends on our might. All will become clear in time."

In the Yated Neeman of January 9, 1999 the opinion of their leader, Rabbi Shach, was brought: "[Rabbi Shach] likened democracy to cancer, G-d help us…it's a terrible disease which spreads and destroys body and soul."

How do voters for the Degel Yisrael party live with this strong contradiction? On one hand they play the democratic game and send representatives to the Zionist Knesset, and on the other they call for an all-out war against Zionism and democracy and call the secular who support democracy "evil" and hope they will be destroyed. An answer to this question was given by a member of the Degel HaTorah rabbinical council, Rabbi Chaim Saul Karelitz, in Yated Neeman: "We must recall one basic thing -- the whole idea of the Knesset is against the Torah; the very fact that people get up and call themselves 'legislators' is against the teachings of G-d…even if the Knesset would vote in favor of commandment observance it would still be against the Torah…our representative in the Knesset are our activists. Sending them does not imply a recognition of any institution which calls itself a legislature" (May 31, 2000).

We see that there is no ideological difference between Neturei Karta and Degel HaTorah voters. Their disagreement is on tactics alone. The former -- called extremists -- cling to their goal without compromise. The latter -- called moderates -- are bound to the implementation of the idea and the goal, but through patience and strategy, working with the evil-doers until they are defeated and destroyed.

We must remember that the Charedi stream of Judaism, including all its factions, strongly opposed the Zionist movement and nothing fundamental has changed since then. Even today the vast majority of Charedi object to the existence of the state, but they make a living off the state and are protected by it. When the Zionist movement first began the Charedi began an organized struggle against it. They founded an organization named "The Black Office." At the same time, Rabbi Dov Ber Schneerson of Lubavitch (1773-1827) started a fund for the fight against Zionism. In an open letter dated 1899 the rabbis of Kovno wrote: "Everyone who looks can see that this view will be more harsh for the Jews than all the false messiahs who have arisen amongst our people…the new false messiah which goes by the name of Zionism, hiding under a cloak of nationalism and concern for our people's material needs, is based on the uprooting of the laws of Torah and the commandments…" Shlomo Zalman Landau and Rabbi Joseph Rabinovitch even published a book, Or LaYisharim, against the ideas of Zionism.

Thus do the Torah- and commandment-observant Charedi, who are represented in the Knesset by Degel HaTorah and Agudat Yisroel, relate to Zionism and the establishment of the State of Israel -- as a harsh reality which has come to destroy the foundations of their world -- the observance of Torah and the commandments.

And what of the Religious Zionists? They also have the sacred text which is the ultimate authority to determine their lifestyle and outlook. Answer: In their eyes, the establishment of the State of Israel is a process which is part of the Divine promise that the Jews would return to their motherland, their promised land. Motti Karpel, a leader in Moshe Feiglin's camp, [head of a group of religious people who have joined the secular Zionist Likud party] wrote, in his book, "The Faith Revolution": "We must be loyal to the state on condition that we can turn it around…the leadership of faith, as soon as it takes office, and still within the framework of the current regime, [will work towards] creating the conditions we outlined above -- the renewal of the Oral Torah, from which we can draw the appropriate form of government" (2003).

The principal and determining authority is G-d, and this authority is revealed in the Torah, the Talmud, and the rest of Jewish Halachic literature. Obedience to Israeli law stems from this authority and its ruling that "a country's laws are law," that one must obey Israeli law because Halacha permits it. In other words, Halacha has the upper hand and the laws of Israel are subordinate; when they contradict each other Halacha will win. And this only applies as long as they aim to foment a revolution.

The issue of state and religion is one of the most important and existential for Israeli society -- a society which (still) wants to give man the responsibility to set his lifestyle, without dependence on an external entity or "sanctified" text. The responsibility for man's happiness will be determined by social agreement.

In summary: Groups of people who are unified by the text of the Oral Torah -- the Mishnah, the Talmud, and the rest of the religious Jewish literature -- have a common goal: to perfect the world as the kingdom of G-d -- to bring redemption to the Jews and in its wake redemption to the entire world. This goal is to be implemented by removing apostasy and evil-doers on one hand, and on the other by strengthening the faithful. There are those who proceed with this task by joining leaders who wish to physically murder the apostates (the Zionists), there are those who proceed by using the apostates and their resources, in the hope that at the end of the day the faithful will triumph, and there are also those who proceed through political struggle towards a regime change in the State of Israel.

For more on this issue see:
HaDat Kamah al Yotzereihah, Yaron Yadan, Gevanim Press, 2007
HaKetz Hamegulah, Aviezer Revitsky, Am Oved, 1993
HaMahapecha HaEmunatit, Motti Karpel, L'Techilah, 2003
http://www.daatemet.org.il

[1] Laws of Idolatry 11:1.