"Do everything you can to ensure the future of the people and the country."
Rabbi Haim Drukman established a generation and paved the way for the religious Zionist movement in many areas. Apart from the love of Torah and love of Israel, he has a great message here for today's youth
Influencing the values
the public
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YBA Chairman, Rabbi Haim Drukman |
It seems that in recent years the religious Zionist youth have strayed a little away from these things. The emphasis has shifted to the individual, the personal. Hasidism is gaining wide acceptance, and the path of Rabbi Zvi Yehuda Kook is less dominant. "I agree that there is more of a trend toward the individual today, the personal, and therefore youth are searching for these aspects," says Rabbi Drukman, adjusting his glasses on his face, "[But] one should see himself as part of society – this is the truth, and the need to educate to what is true. We shouldn’t under-estimate the value of the individual, but we have to see the individual as part of the whole. The correct way is for each individual to figure out how he can best help to benefit the whole of society and build on that. It is like the relationship between the hand and the body: Isn’t it unthinkable that the hand should speak for itself, as separate from the body? A body without a hand is crippled, but the hand without the body is worthless. When a person considers only himself, it may easier, more pleasant, but the truth is that he is part of the society. The individual does not become lost as part of the society: the individual takes on its real value as part of the society."
Is it still possible to
educate towards these values?
"I think so. I try
to learn from my mentor, Rabbi Tzvi Yehuda Kook, who reiterated dozens of times the
main principles that were important to him, and little by little they sunk in.
He did it on purpose. He understood that values have to sink in, to penetrate
all the armor that person has. The values have remained the same values, and we still need
to educate toward them, but we need to change the means of doing so because we cannot ignore the place
that Individualism is gaining. An educator needs to talk to the place where his
students are at. If he ignores this rule, his words will not be heard. It can
be compared to an adult and a baby who both want to drink. You give a glass or an open bottle to the adult, but for a baby you make a small hole in the bottle for
him to suck on, otherwise he might choke. The same holds true with students. We cannot speak in a language that would not be listened to; you have to
figure out a way to present these values to the audience in front of you."
Once a week, Rabbi Drukman devotes an entire evening to the questions of first year students at his yeshiva, Yeshivat Hesder Or Etzion. For years he was the senior rabbi at the Association of Hesder Yeshivot. But despite the fact that new Hesder Yeshivot have opened everywhere, many teens today are preferring to enroll in pre-IDF Mechina (preparatory) programs. "The Hesder Yeshiva [track] is by far the best path," said Rabbi Drukman, "but I supported the establishment of the pre-IDF Mechina academies because not every youth is inclined to attend a Hesder Yeshiva, and a year of Mechina before being drafted will strengthen him very much. There were those who thought that the Mechina programs would hurt the Hesder Yeshivot, because they might attract some boys who are on the border and could also be appropriate for yeshiva. But I do not think this is the right attitude. We have to worry about all of them."
But a high school senior
can say to himself: I will go to a Mechina, learn for a year, or a year and a half,
get stronger and then serve for a full three-years in the army, like everyone
else. What need is there for Hesder Yeshivot?
"The purpose of
Hesder Yeshivot is not to strengthen the guys so that they can succeed in
keeping their religious identity in the army. This is a very important goal, but it
is the goal of the Mechina programs. The Mechina programs do not pretend to
give rise to scholars. The role of the yeshiva is to train scholars. Those who
go to the Hesder Yeshivot contribute to the security of the whole of Israel,
its physical security and its spiritual security. Our mission is to grow scholars who also serve
in the army. Can we accept a situation in which Torah sages will grow only from
those who do not go to the army?"
But most Hesder Yeshiva
graduates do not continue into the rabbinate.
"Our sages long ago
taught us ‘A thousand students make one teacher.' In order to produce one exceptional
scholar, we need to have a thousand students studying the Torah. Moreover,
even those not involved in the rabbinate, but instead chose to go into other
areas, still should be Torah scholars. Is there not a qualitative difference between
those who learn Torah for one year and those who study diligently for a few years? I very much
appreciate the Mechina academies and think they are doing a great thing, but
you can’t come out a scholar after just one year in a preparatory program. There
is a great need for Mechina programs, but there is an even greater need for more Torah scholars, and its the yeshiva's role to cultivate them. "
Turn away from evil, do
good
It is doubtful that Rabbi Drukman
imagined that his nomination as Israel Prize laureate would bring back an old and
painful affair: the sexual harassment charges against the YBA Netiv Meir Rosh
Yeshiva, Rabbi Zev Kopolovitz. A few days after his nomination, there were
calls for the Minister of Education to revoke the award decision. A group of YBA Netiv
Meir graduates sent a letter to the Minister of Education, which claimed that
Rabbi Drukman knew of the criminal deeds of Kopolovitz - for which was sent to
prison - but did not contact the police, allowed him to continue teaching in the
institution and tried to cover up the story. "That's a false and fabricated story,"
thunders Rabbi Drukman, while sailing in his memory back to those
days. "At the beginning of the affair I was told that he was retiring
as head of the yeshiva because of health problems, and I regretted it. After a
while he returned to his post, and I understood that his health condition had
improved. Four years later, after I had become Chairman of Yeshivot Bnei Akiva, I
heard rumors about what he had done, and on the same day I suspended him from
his position. Truthfully, I did not know that I had to report it to the police.
In those days, 12 years ago, these things were not as salient as they are today.
It's not true that I knew and covered it up; that's a complete lie. I knew
nothing. And when I learned of the rumors, I suspended him from his position immediately. Indeed,
it was wrong that I didn’t report it to the police, and I regret that. "
How do you think the
religious community should treat sexual harassment in the community? What about
solutions such as the Takana Forum?
"Our public should
treat sexual harassment like any other public: through the police. We must not,
God forbid, ignore any such phenomenon or the need to deal with.
I do not think that the religious community is any different from the general
public in any way."
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Rabbi Drukman in his study |
You cannot ignore one of
the largest endeavors of Rabbi Drukman, one in which he has been involved since
ancient times: the Bnei Akiva youth movement. He was a member, and a
leader in his youth. The movement has undergone major changes over the years
- some would call them "extreme." Drukman has called them
"positive strengthening". The rabbi is happy to address the
subject and sets his eyes on the changes brought about by the Bnei Akiva
movement in Israel: "Of course there is tremendous progress in Bnei Akiva
compared to what it used to be. Naturally, since the Yeshivot Bnei Akiva educational
network was founded, which built high schools and encouraged youth to study
Torah, religious practice has been strengthening.
We always
knew in the Bnei Akiva youth movement that we are part of the people
of Israel. We understood that one cannot say 'I saved my soul,' but rather we should
take care of all the people. We understood that our job is to educate, and
the matter is progressing on an upward spiral. We understand the need for
patience and forbearance, even today. You can’t be anxious. We have to
understand that if you want to educate the people of Israel, it is necessary to
be patient, and we must not think that everything happens quickly. So it
is with education. Do not give up; believe in the big ideal and say, God
willing, we come to it."
Towards the end, as if
not enough words had already been spoken, I ask him what message he would like to deliver
to today’s religious Zionist youth. Rabbi Drukman pauses a moment,
thinking. "You must know that you are the future of Israel and the
State of Israel," he says, "It is very important that you do
everything you can to ensure the future of the people and the country. You should be
filled with values and identify more and more with who you are, be role models
in every way and try to ‘Love for the Sake of Heaven.' God asks us to love simple things: learning
Torah, good behavior and speaking graciously to others. These constitute Love for the Sake of
Heaven. You must always think about how you can bring heavenly love to people.
Just as we see great progress in our people, we see also a thirst for True
Judaism. You can help promote this process: the process of returning the nation
to its natural roots. This our mission today.”
Go to AFYBA Website
Go to AFYBA Website
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