When Rabbi Sturn and your Chairman asked me about what I wanted to speak, my first impulse was to say “about five minutes.” When this suggestion was rejected, however, I decided to choose the topic of “The Crisis in Contemporary Hebrew Literature.” The reason for my choice should be obvious. Here is a topic which has come to the fore as recently as this past Chanukah – a topic which has broad significance for all of us and which encompasses all the major cultural and social movements and all the political nuances which are shaping up in the great drama of Israel today. For literature is more than art. Art can, at the most, after all is said and done, only reflect the undertones of the civilization which produces it. Literature, however, is more than a mirror, more than merely an instrument which passively tells us what has occurred or what is occurring; literature can be and should be a dynamic force in the life of a people. It must direct, mold, create and shape the main current of the life of the society from which it springs. And the function of literature is even more pronounced when it is considered in the setting of a people whose lives have been renewed and reinvigorated by great national events and when this people stands at the threshold of a new era in history and does not know where to turn. It is confused, bewildered and perplexed. Its future social life, political orientation, religious form and cultural character are one big question mark. This, my friends, is Israel today. A nation on the verge of a great historical epoch, knowing that destiny has knocked on its door but not knowing where destiny wants or should want it to go. Such a situation is fertile ground for a man of letters with ideas and ideals. A literary movement sparked with zest and vigor can either lift Israel up to its former historical stature or can level it off until it is no more than a dull, near-Eastern replica of the disgustingly average inhabitant of this planet of ours. But be…

We who are gathered here today stand united in the cause of Israel and the advancement of the bonds that tie Jews everywhere to the State. Our interest in Israel is more than in just another piece of real estate first parcelled out to Father Abraham and repossessed by his heirs in 1948. If the State of Israel is precious to us, it is because the Holy Land is sacred to us. More than the nation’s domain, it is our religious home and the source of our spirit. When we invest in Israel, it is not only because it is wise, but also because it is a mitzvah – not only that the property of Israel gain in value, but that the people of Israel gain in stature. What we give of our substance, we receive in greater measure in our spirit. The bonds we buy and sell serve only to strengthen the bonds that link Jews to each other and all of us to God. Grant, O Lord, that we ever enjoy the pride we feel in Medinat Yisrael; that as the leaders of the UN gather in our city this week, they listen carefully to the echo of the message of universal peace and equality proclaimed by Thy prophets on Mount Zion; that all of us here gathered on behalf of the Bonds for Israel – and especially the gallant, public-spirited fellow Jew whom we have come to honor – and all Israel and all humanity be blessed with a year of health and happiness, inner tranquility, and everlasting peace. Amen. Almighty God, we ask Thy divine blessing upon all those here gathered – students, teachers, and guests – all mutually devoted to the cause of mercy. It is Moses who taught us that mercy is one of Thy major attributes, O Heavenly Father. It is therefore man’s noblest mission and loftiest ambition to imitate Thee and act with love and compassion toward his fellow man. Bless Thou those here assembled that they might take counsel together the better to be able to practice the art of mercy. Teach them to remain sensitive to the individual and his uniqueness; to listen not only to the heartbeat but also for the whisper o…

I. 1. June '67 = turning pt in theology that most Am, continental theologians (non-J) not yet aware of 2. For several yrs: "G-i-d". Hegel → Ntzsch → Hideggn\Sartre major import: g, if ever was, now abandoned world; f. all pract-purpose – Ntzsch's Zarathustra "killed" off g. 3. But 6-day war, reunif'n Jer., reac'n many Israelis – heralded evidence reentry Gd stream J. hist SI: "g-i-d – Ntzshe; Nietzsche is Dead – g-d" Events June knocked new chr. theology (J; mit's) coded yarmulke 4. These 2 lectures – changes wrought by these events: Theol, Halkhic 5. Powerful symbol: song ירושלים של זהב

In a broad sense, Zionism has always been an integral part of Judaism. Although the majority of Jews were away from the Land of Israel throughout most of the 3,500 years of Jewish history, ארץ ישראל has always loomed large, indeed, indispensable, in Jewish religious thought. It began at the beginning — with the divine promise to Abraham, and the blessing, which centered about the relation of God, People, and Land. Thus, the Talmud considers the settlement in ארץ ישראל as a mitzvah or obligation, and the overwhelming majority of authorities hold that this obligation is in force today too. This relationship between Israel the People and Israel the Land transcends historical memory or religious ideal or legal obligation. It is all these and more—a long, painful, and glorious love story. In the (Lev. 26:32) we read: "And I will bring the land into desolation; and your enemies that dwell therein shall be astonished ( ) at it." means more than "astonished" some translate; "appalled." Even more accurate, according to Jewish tradition, would be "desolated" so the Land will be desolate that even the enemy will not be able to flourish in it. The Sages found a consoling element in this prediction of doom: "This represents a good quality for Israel that the enemies will find no satisfaction in the Land, for it will be desolate of its inhabitants." People of Israel and Land of Israel are like two lovers, husband and wife, who have had bitter arguments and left each other. But it is a lover's quarrel—they are angry with each other, they have separated, but neither will give its love to any other. The People will not transfer its ultimate commitment to any other Land—neither Uganda nor Birobidjan. And the Land will not yield its secrets nor offer itself up to any other lover. Only Jews have ever succeeded in settling the Land and making it flourish—not the Germans in days of the Kaiser, not the Turks or English or Arabs. Of course, with such a glorious history of mutual love, lon…

כריתת ברית חדשה עם אבינו שבשמים – נאום בישיבת־הפתיחה של הכינוס העולמי של ארגוני בתי־הכנסת והקהילות בירושלים – מכל קצווי־תבל באנו לאכסניה נכבדה זו בכדי להפגין גם את מרכזיותה של ארץ־ישראל בהשקפת־העולם שלנו, וגם את חיוניותה, ערנותה והתעצמותה של היהדות־הדתית בתפוצות. אבל לא רק לשם הפגנה, בחינת "ברוב עם הדרת מלך", באנו, אלא גם לטכס־עצה בחינת "אשר יחדו נמתיק סוד". אמת נכון הדבר – הרבה הישגים נכבדים יש לזקוף לזכותנו: רשתות של בתי־ספר כל־יומיים, ישיבות ובתי־כנסת מפוארים, חיים ציבוריים דתיים, ואורח חיים דתי בקרב רבבות בני עמנו, עמידה במערכה בלתי־פוסקת נגד מכלול כוחות שליליים שהם בעוכרינו, ובעיקר נגד זרם ההתבוללות ונישואי־תערובת. אבל לא באנו לכנס זה לתקוע בחצוצרות תעמולה ולהסתפק במחמאות הדדיות. אם יהיה לדיונינו כאן ערך ותועלת, עלינו לדבר בגילוי־לב וללא צביעות מנומסת. מי שעיניים פקוחות לו לראות את מצבנו היום, יזדעזע למראה הסיוט הנורא של התנכרות יהודים ליהדות עד כדי ירידת דור שלם לטמיון ושל ריסוק הזהות היהודית גם בארץ – וקל־וחומר בחו"ל. תסלחו לי על כך שאיני ממתיק את האמת המרה. עלינו להודות קבל־עם־ועדה על האמת הנוראה שבימינו נמצא כל העם כולו באמצע תהליך של שואה איומה – שואה רוחנית חשאית – שהקרבנות "מתנדבים" אליה להקריב את עצמם על מזבחה. זכינו למדינה ריבונית, אבל בעיית היהדות העולמית טרם באה על פתרונה. באנו אל הנחלה, אבל עוד לא אל המנוחה. שואת־הגוף, נוסח פורים – "להשמיד להרוג ולאבד את כל היהודים" – נסתיימה לפני כחצי־יובל שנים. אולם שואת־הנשמה היהודית, נוסח חנוכה – "להשכיחם תורתך ולהעבירם על חוקי רצונך" – היא בעיצומה. גל של עם־הארצות מציף את קהילותינו, מבול של זימה ונישואי־תערובת ושטפון של התנכרות והתכחשות עובר על ראשינו. אם במעט־מה הצליחה היהדות האורתודוקסית להתבצר ולהתחזק – אין זה פוטר אותנו מלדאוג ולהצטער ביגון מר, עד דכדוכה של נפש, על סכנת אבדון של חלק הארי של המוני העם. אנו שהיינו עדי־ראייה בשואה הראשונה לחטא הדממה ופשע האדישות – אנו באנו לכאן להצהיר שלא נוותר אפילו על נפש אחת מישראל, שלא יידח ממנו נידח. באנו להתייעץ בצוותא כיצד לעמוד בפרץ, כיצד לעצור את המגפה הרוחנית הזאת, כיצד להתקיים ולהמשיך ולהתאושש לקראת חיים יהודיים שלמים יותר.

Yeshiva University is exceedingly proud of its alumni, both men and women, in Israel: their idealism, their personal deportment, their families, their professional achievements, and their varied contributions to the State of Israel. I have met our graduates in every part of this country and they are engaged in a dizzying variety of professions and businesses. In all cases, they have given us cause for pride and “nachas.”But these accomplishments are, for the most part, personal, the result of individual efforts and successes. What has been missing is the collective voice of the Yeshiva University graduates in the State of Israel.The time has come for Yeshiva University, through its alumni, to become a clear and articulate moral force in this country. Our alumni must become a cohesive group united not only by a common alma mater, but by a comprehensive Torah outlook which, without keeping to any party line, will be idealistic yet realistic, both youthfully energetic and mature, assertive but balanced, and combining enthu­siasm with sanity.A wave of extremism is sweeping the world, and America and the American Jewish com­munity have not remained unaffected by it. But the negative results are far more palpable and consequential in Israel for a number of obvious reasons: it is a smaller country; this is a highly politicized and informal society; people here suffer from a low threshold of frustration because of the accumulated military, political, and economic pressures; and the country lacksan established tradition of civility in public discourse.Yet, these are only explanations, not excuses. The situation is too serious to ignore when it sometimes seems, at least to this observer, that the lunatics have taken over the asylum.At times of this sort, we all stand under a holy imperative: do not let the center collapse!What Yeshiva has taught us, both in theory and in practice—the joining of Torah learning and Western culture under the rubric of Torah U’Mada; openness to …

דברים בטקס קבלת תואר "עמית כבוד" בכנס ארגון המורים הדתיים בישראל נחום לאם נשיא "ישיבה אוניברסיטה," ניו יורק הפלא ופלא: הנה מדינה אשר בעית השלום היא כמעט הנושא היחידי בכל כנס, בכל אסיפה, בכל פגישה מקרית, אפילו בשיחה קלה שבין איש ואשתו. ישראל היום היא חברה שהיא כקדירה רותחת שאינה נחה מרתיחתה אפילו לרגע. והתקופה היא עידן שפוליטיקה ומדיניות נוגעות ישירות לחיי כל אזרח ואזרח. מידת החום של הויכוחים עולה משעה לשעה, והמתח והכעס והדאגות מתגברים, והכל בקולי-קולות. ובסביבה שכזאת מתאסף קהל נכבד של אנשים נבונים במעמד נכבדי האומה, לגמור את ההלל על מספר אנשים ונשים יקרים, שכל מלאכתם נעשית בצנעה ובהשקט, וכל חייהם מוקדשים לנושא צנוע ושליו: החינוך. היתכן דבר שכזה? האם אינו אבסורדי? והתשובה היא, ייתכן וייתכן, ואין שום אבסורד בו! אדרבא, מגיע לכם יישר-כוח על הכישרון לגזול שעתיים מן ההווה הרועש והסואן לטובת העתיד המעורפל לטווח ארוך, ולהכיר שהעתיד הזה ייחרץ לפי טיב החינוך של בנינו ובנותינו לא פחות מאשר על ידי ההחלטות הגורליות במישור המדיני והפוליטי. הנושא שלכם־-שלנו הוא: נשמת העם כולו. אסור, וגם אי אפשר להזניח, ואפילו לדחות את דרישות הנפש היהודית לעוד שנה ולעוד שנה. תשואות חן חן לכם! רק דבר אחד אינני מבין: מדוע בחרתם בי, איש הגולה, לכבדני ברשימה המרשימה הזאת של "יקירי החינוך הדתי". יודע אני שיש גדולים וטובים ממני שמגיע להם כבוד זה של "עמית כבוד". אלא שבכל זאת קיבלתי את הצל״ש הזה מפני מעשה שהיה. מספרים על הרי טרומן, שהיה אז נשיא ארה״ב, שהזמין אדם למשרדו למנות אותו כראש מחלקה חשובה בממשלה. הלה התפאר בכבוד שניתן לו, אבל מתוך נימוס התחיל לסרב ואמר, "אני מכיר לפחות מאה אנשים חשובים ממני שמגיע להם הכבוד הזה." הנשיא טרומן השיב, "אמנם כן, אבל טלפנתי לכל אחד מהם, וכולם סירבו"... האמת, לא ענווה פסולה, ואף לא ענווה כשרה מדברת מתוך גרוני, כשאני אומר שכבוד זה שחלקתם לי, לא לי כיחיד מכוון, אלא לי כנציג ציבור חשוב בארה״ב, כלומר, החינוך הדתי שהוא מקביל, בערך, לחינוך הדתי-לאומי בארץ. ואני מברך אתכם על ההכרה שיש להדק את הקשרים עם זרם חינוכי זה בארה״ב, קשר שיש בכוחו להביא תועלת למוסדות החינוך השונים, לעם כולו, ובעיקר - לתלמידים גם הכא גם התם. מה טיבו של החינוך בזרם זה שלנו בארה״ב? רובו ככולו של החינוך היסוד…

The most Jewish way to begin this historic conference is, appropriately, with “thanksgiving” – to the Almighty שהחיינו וקימנו והגיענו לזמן הזה. Now, that is an interesting ברכה. Two of the three verbs are self-explanatory: שהחיינו, He let us live, despite all persecutions and material obstacles. והגיענו, He allowed us to reach this day, overcoming all cultural, spiritual, and psychological pressures on us. But most interesting is the middle verb: וקימנו, usually translated as "He let us exist." But if we already say that He let us live and reach, why is it necessary to add "exist?" It has been suggested that the word is a halakhic term. וקימנו comes from קיום, and in the Halakha the word for affirmation or authentication of a שטר or document is called קיום שטרות, whereby witnesses testify to the authenticity of the signatures on a document. Hence, וקימנו means, "He has justified and authenticated our approach, our mission, our דרך.* For the last 50 or more years, savants and sages, sociologists and social philosophers and community "machers," have predicted the imminent demise of Orthodox Judaism and the disappearance of Orthodox Jews as a significant part of the North American Jewish community. But we are to say, "We are here!" By the grace of the Almighty, וקימנו, He has, through history, vindicated our essential outlook, and so we are very much alive if beset by problems, very much vigorous if more than a bit contentious. And what greater reason to thank Him than for legitimating who and what we are. And, indeed, it is appropriate to ask two questions, to which I intend to address myself this evening: First, who are we – we who have convened and are participating in this conference? And second, what do we want and why have we gathered here at this juncture of our history? Who are we? First, we are Jews; and we are joined by a common history and common national and ethnic experiences to all other Jews, as partners in what the Rav זצ"ל has called the ברית גורל, t…

In Halakha-difference between אנינות ואבילות-disbelief/onset of pain... A this very hour/Jerus/being led to קבורה; & we-still in state of shock, & just beginning to feel full impact of grief. So – is too early to take full measure of man, just enough for expression of initial grief and the bare beginnings of assessment of R. for us/historyBegin with an interpretation of this past Shabbat's Sidra: לך לך מארצךוממולדתך ומבית אביך...אבות פ״ה-עשרה נסיונות...ורמב״ם-א׳ מהן "לך לך". אבל קשה-רש"׳ --"לטובתך ולהנאתך"...אלא שהנסיון היה שאברהם הבחין בצער הנשארים....So: his passing-no matter which side of the political divide we stand on-leaves us bewilderd, grief-stricken, deeply vexed.אבלות contains within it an element of תשובה...It is therefore appropriate for us to examine ourselves & learn if we in any way can improve what we are doing/how acting so as to avoid such catastrophes in futureLet me begin these few ruminations by saying that in addition to shock and grief, I for one experienced a vital element of תשובה, and that is: בושה...It was one of us-a religious student, who did it-even if he is a mad man...We have been civilized-by Torah, by social sanctions, by parental training, by moral conscience. That constraining inhibition is powerful in most people. I But in some it is exceedingly weak. A person so poorly endowed can lead an otherwise normal life for a long time, but place him in an environment which is permissive of violence, which exposes him to harsh talk, to hype, to unrestrained overstatement, to irrational and undisciplined expression-and anti-social urges buried deep within his sick psyche will explode in an unspeakably ugly display of hostility that turns men into monsters, society into a jungle, and civilization into chaos.Our responsibility is to avoid such an environment, never to be guilty of having, knowingly or unknowingly, encouraged such bestiality.Our responsibility is to be responsible, to recognize that violent rhetoric invariably l…

They planned the assassination with few doubts in their mind as to the justice of the terrible deed they were about to perpetrate. They just knew they had to get rid of him, that only that way would they protect the integrity of the people of Israel from his egotistical designs. Their animosity drew from two deep, dark, irrational sources: their hatred for the man – who did he think he is to lord it over them, to tell them what to do? – and their envy: they were deeply jealous of him, and therefore mistrusted his vision, his dreams, his plans for the future. And so they decided to murder him without thought as to the consequences. They were lucky – at the last moment their eldest brother intervened, as Reuben pleaded with them to spare Joseph's life and he stalled for time by recommending that they sell him into slavery instead. And so Reuben saved Joseph from the brothers of whom we readi that וישנאו אותו and ויקנאו בו אחיו (Gen. 37:4,11). But when it came to the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, no Reuben was to be found in time to save him. The Reubens of our time – the Rabbis and the Roshei Yeshiva and the academicians and the journalists and the politicians and the pundits and the intellectuals – were too busy, they were engaged in more important things and could pay no attention to the escalating verbal violence all around them, to the wild epithets shot like bullets by and on all sides in the increasingly bitter polemics. And so this בעל החלומות. this dreamer, reviled and envied by some and admired and revered by so many others, was murdered in cold blood and lowered into the בור, to his final resting place. The Midrash [איכה רבה (וילנא) פתיחתות] describes what went on in Heaven on the day the First Temple was destroyed: אמר הקב״ה לירמיה אני דומה היום לאדם שהיה לו בן יחידי ועשה לו חופה ומת בתוך חופתו, ואין לך באב לא עלי ולא על בניי לך וקרא לאברהם ליצחק וליעקב ומשה מקבריהם שהם יודעים לבכות... מיד הלך ירמיה למערת המכפלה ואמר לאבות העולם, עמדו,שהג…