Hareidim

Israeli Dislike of the Ultra-Orthodox? (4 February, 2015, 15 Shevet, 5775)

Contents:
1. Introduction. Media Incitement combined with Inferiority Complexes
2. The Torah  Learners
3. Hareidi Economics
4. Way of Life
5. Ideology and Practice
6. Ecological Benefits
7. Injuries etc on Shabat
8. Health in General
9. Crime and Sexual Disfunction
10. Children
11. Army Service
12. Comparisons with the National Religious
13. Comparisons with the Secular
14. Conversions
15. Conclusion. Avoid Contention

Additional Notes
Community Affiliation of Hareidim
The Buses
Second Tithes and a Torah Scholar in Every family
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1. Introduction. Media Incitement combined with Inferiority Complexes

Our activities are mainly concerned with the Ten Tribes of Israel meaning people in Western Nations. We try to minimize our involvement with other issues. Nevertheless we live in Israel and belong to Israeli society. We also present news features and general interest Current Affairs articles concerning Israel and the world. Our readership seems to want this and requests it of us whenever we are lax about it. Anyone who takes an interest in Israel will come across comments concerning the Ultra-Orthodox i.e. Hareidim.  Sometimes a negative impression will be received due to Media Prejudice and Left-Wing Secular Stereotyping.
Is the Media and Left Entirely Responsible for the Hate? Not exactly, most Secular Israelis are involved in it to some degree. Why do Israelis Dislike the Ultra-Orthodox?
A simple answer to this question would say that left-Wing Media manipulators and secular libertarians who may be Jewish but still hate the Jewish people are responsible.
There may be some truth in this but rational excuses are made for the exhibited hatred.
The hatred remains though the rationale changes indicating that something more basic is the answer. Some of the claims made against the Hareidim will be seen to parallel those of the Gentiles against Jews in general.
It could be that the Secular dislike the Hareidim out of jealousy and an inferiority complex and a sense of identity failure, and other reasons.
Nevertheless, here and there are those of us who may be misled or unconsciously influenced by the negative reports and hostile atmosphere.
We have therefore made a list of positive contributions made by the Hareidim alongside reasons given for hating Ultra-Orthodox Jews. We have proposed answers to the claims made.
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2. The Torah  Learners

Jews who learn Torah full time are to be found amongst the National Religious, Modern Orthodox, and Ultra-Orthodox communities.
The Ultra-Orthodox are also known as Hareidim.
In the case of the National Religious, and Modern Orthodox, they whose primary occupation is Torah learning are exceptional.
Amongst Hareidim it is considered the general rule even though in practice it involves slightly less than half the adult males.
This present article provides a more positive perspective on Torah Scholars in general but the emphasis is on the Hareidi world.
We shall also emphasis some economic and sociological factors.
Spiritual issues such as the value of Torah etc that may well be more important than anything else are hardly dealt with.
In the eyes of the Hareidim Torah learners are in effect the frontline soldiers for Jewish existence.
They comprise the intellectual aristocracy of the Jewish nation.
Jewish predominance in intellectual occupations is an outcome of Torah learning.
People are led to dislike full-time Torah learners under the pretext that these people do not work but instead take money from the government. The impression is that they live at public expense.
It will be shown below that the pittance the Hareidim receive from the public purse accounts for only a fraction of their needs and the Government gets all the money it puts out back with interest almost immediately.
Most of the money the Hareidim live on comes from their own efforts and private benefactors.
The public does not suffer, on the contrary.

As an analogy take the case of crime and law enforcement.
Hareidim comprise only 0.2% (sic, one in 500!) of Israelis in jail despite them being more than 10% of the population.
Hareidim almost do not need the police.
Take the number of unemployed criminals, and half-criminals such as debt enforcers, etc, and the damage done to the economy by crime etc, together with the cost of law enforcement including ca. $1000 per week needed to maintain every prisoner in jail etc., and you get a large budget. This money comes from the community at large including the Hareidim who in effect help subsidize the sicknesses of the secular world all along the line.
The analogy is that about 60% of the general economy is relatively speaking superfluous and in secular media terms parasitical.
[We do not agree with this. Everything has its place. Jewellery has value.]

Examples of superfluous employments include:
Girl soldiers in the IDF and Sherut Leumi .
Bureaucrats in Government Service.
Overseas Tourism (Israelis traveling overseas and those who help them)
Entertainment.
Media
Most Restaurants.
Much Bank Activity
Loan Sharks

We repeat these occupations are only parasitical according to the criteria applied by the secular to Hareidim.
An individual goes to work, gives of their time, and free will and works and deserves what they are paid and more.
If there is a problem then it is probably the fault of the employer or of society in general.
Nevertheless a problem exists:
If, for instance, Bureaucracy causes the building of a house to take an average of 10 years (out of eleven) of extra building time instead of 10 days then something is wrong.
The bureaucrats work. They are not responsible for the work they have to do.
The fact is that much of this work is superfluous and has a negative effect on society and the economy.
If the people in question would learn in Yeshiva then they would be giving more to Israel and mankind than they are doing. If this learning would be mostly at their own expense (as it is in the case of most Yeshiva students) then we could be especially thankful.
Girl soldiers often work hard and save lives. If however a civilian employee could do the same at half (on average) the cost then the difference is a negative deduction against society.
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3. Hareidi Economics

Most Israelis do not earn very much by Western standards. The average is much different from the median. There is a great inequality in income levels. Israel in this matter is comparable to a third world country and not a western one.
Hareidim are a low-income group.
A bit more than 50% of hareidim do not work. They learn instead.

# Their commitment to Talmudic studies means that only about 46 percent of working-age men in the community were employed in 2011, compared with 78 percent of all Israeli adult males. # [What does the 22% of non-Hareidi Israelis who do not work actually do?].

Many hareidim do not pay income tax but neither do most Israelis. Income tax is only taken from workers whose income exceed a certain minimum amount. The majority of Israelis have not merited to reach the required level.
Hareidim however do pay taxes.
They consume most of their income almost immediately. About 25% (and up to 50%) of their income goes to the government in the form of direct and indirect taxation. This consumes more than what they receive from the Government in support, e.g. in the form of child and income adjustment allowances etc.

For example, VAT:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxation_in_Israel#VAT
# Value-added tax (VAT) in Israel, is applied to most goods and services, including imported goods and services. The standard rate was raised to 18% from 17% on 2 June 2013,[7] which it stood at after being raised from 16% on 1 September 2012. #

One pays VAT on everything purchased. The people selling it to you have also paid VAT on what they are selling. So have the people who sold to them. And all the costs and payments all the way along the line from raw material to final product have had VAT paid on them. In effect this means that in practical terms about 50% of what you buy goes to the government. And there are other taxes.

Hareidi families live close to the edge of their basic needs i.e. money received is spent straight away on necessities. It is not wasted, invested, or put away for an overseas holiday.
This means that for any money the government gives a Hareidi family about half of it comes back straight away through VAT and other taxation.
On average, less than 25% of Hareidi family needs comes from government allowances, etc. The rest comes from work of the wife or part-time of the husband, part-time business, support from the extended family, private benefactors,  or other sources.
Jews who learn full-time in most cases are members of a collel meaning an organized group who learn together under the same auspices.
A collel student receives a small but crucial amount of money from the government, money from the collel, money from the work of his wife or in some cases from his extended family.
The government therefore through taxes receives half of Hareidi income but only provides less than a quarter of it.
This quarter that the government does give is very important and can make all the difference especially in borderline cases.
[We are dealing here with average cases. Exceptions exist. You can also find cases where some rely mostly on the government and others who take nothing at all.]
The government is not losing by what it gives! For every shekel it gives, it gets two shekels back. That is in the first round, further along the line the governments keeps getting more and more.
Housing for instance in Israel is very expensive. Hareidim have to live in houses like everybody else. More than 70% of the cost of a house in Israel is due to governmental taxation or government manipulation with the cost of land, etc.

Hareidim also benefit from other sources:
Certain manufacturers give a portion of their products as tithing to Hareidim, or they use the Hareidim to offload surplus or slightly below standard products.  This too has economic value.
Hareidim are intelligent and organized. They help each other and have consumer consciousness and clout to prevent excessive exploitation by monopoly suppliers of basic necessities. Due to Hareidim poor people all over Israel (not just Hareidim) enjoy more benefits and the cost of living is lowered.
Hareidim comprise a consumer segment of society that is positive.
More than 50% of Hareidi males and slightly more than 60% of the females work.
Hareidim contribute to the food industry through their haksherim (certificates of KOSHER) and in other ways.
This is a serious earner of foreign exchange in which Israeli companies almost have a monopoly due to Hareidim.  Many non-Jews also prefer kosher products.
Hareidim contribute towards the diamond industry in Israel, hi-tech, sale of religious articles, and in other ways.
The Yeshivah World is also an industry in its own right.
This involves buildings, maintenance, and the upkeep of Torah scholars and instructors in Yeshivot and Girls Seminars. Many come from Overseas to learn in these institutions. All this requires money that moves across continents. The State of Israel benefits from this. It also increase support for the State of Israel and strengthens international contacts. 
Support for the State of Israel is increased due to the learning of Torah, there is less assimilation of Jews everywhere and the general Jewish population increases or diminishes at a lower rate. This is due to Torah learning.
It should also be mentioned that Hareidim who want to work are virtually barred from Government Service, the largest employer in Israel, and face prejudice from employers in general.
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4. Way of Life

By learning full time it means that the husband learns and does not work.
The wife will usually work at least in the early years of marriage.
The women typically work as teachers or in offices or in shops. They will have learned in their own Hareidi educational institutes for women that often reach high levels of scholastic achievement.
The family will often have a large number of children.
As the family grows the wife may stop working, or work for less hours, while the husband may look for additional income. Or he may not.
Income will be provided from the wife's earnings, contributions from extended family members and others, jobs on the side and part-time businesses, etc.
In some circles it is considered an honor for a Jewish family to have at least one Torah scholar in its ranks.
Government allowances will also be utilized BUT these account for only about 20% (or less) of the needs and this money is returned with interest almost immediately, as explained above (see Hareidi Economics).
Hareidim will also often benefit from their community organizations that act to obtain cheaper housing, clothing, and food products.
This is sometimes thanks to Charity but more often due to the Hareidi Market serving as an Insulated Safety Valve to absorb goods and surpluses not slated for the general public.
Hareidim live frugally but often quite well. On the whole they are very happy as they are.
Is there something wrong for a community being prepared to work less, consume less, but learn Torah more?
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5. Ideology and Practice

In principle Judaism is in favor of a man working, supporting his family, and learning Torah in his spare time.
The ideal of someone learning full time always existed but in the past it was often relatively rare.
[Contrary to popular opinion however the concept was always there, in the Torah and the Sources.
The Tribe of Levi received a tithe of the produce. It was a good deed to support the Sages and provide for Torah scholars.]
During the Holocaust much of the Torah world was obliterated.
There was therefore a need to replenish the ranks of Torah Scholars.
Consequently a much larger number than had existed previously of Ultra-Orthodox Jews were encouraged to learn full time.
There are more Jews learning Torah today than at any other time in History.
Instead of this phenomenon being considered as a de facto outcome of an exceptional situation it is perceived to be highly positive in its own right.
The State of Israel and the Jewish people in general is benefiting from this.
There is a Cultural War going on.
There are elements amongst the Jewish People who want to destroy Torah observance.  This however is not the worst enemy. Western Culture in general with its permissiveness and materialism and the blurring of moral boundaries has a pernicious effect.
The Hareidi  Island of Torah Learning whose inhabitants remain relatively unaffected by the general  degradation helps everybody retain a degree of sanity.

Haredi Judaism
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haredi_Judaism
Haredi Judaism (... also spelled Charedi, plural Charedim) is a stream of Orthodox Judaism characterized by rejection of modern secular culture.[1] Its members are often referred to as strictly Orthodox or ultra-Orthodox in English.
Their communities are primarily found in Israel, North America and Western Europe. During the Holocaust, their numbers were devastated, with whole communities wiped out. Their estimated global population currently numbers 1.3-1.5 million and due to a virtual absence of interfaith marriage and a high birth rate, their numbers are growing rapidly.[6][7][8][9] Their numbers have also been boosted by a modest number of secular Jews adopting a Haredi lifestyle.[10][11][12][13]

Lifestyle and family
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haredi_Judaism#Lifestyle_and_family
Haredi life, like Orthodox Jewish life in general, is very family-centered. Boys and girls attend separate schools and proceed to higher Torah study, in a yeshiva or seminary respectively, starting anywhere between the ages of 13 and 18. A significant proportion of young men remain in yeshiva until their marriage. After marriage, many Haredi men continue their Torah studies in a kollel. Studying in secular institutions is discouraged, although educational facilities for vocational training in a Haredi framework do exist. In the United States and Europe, the majority of Haredi males are active in the workforce. For various reasons, in Israel, around half of their members do not work, and most of those who do are not officially a part of the workforce.[40][41][42] Families are usually large, reflecting adherence to the biblical commandment "Be fruitful and multiply".

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6. Ecological Benefits

Hareidim and Religious Jews do not travel or work on Shabat or Holy Days.  Their influence in this matter affects the whole of Israel. No religious Jew works on Shabat but the Hareidim are more often concentrated together leading to an end to motorized and other activity in their areas.
This is ecologically beneficial giving the atmosphere and environment a chance to recuperate from the fumes and burden of ordinary work and traveling days.
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7. Injuries etc on Shabat

Seculars travel on Shabat. About 50% of all accidents occur on Shabat and Yomim Tovim (Holy Days).
Accidents cause death, injury and damage to property.  Everyone pays for this. It includes loss of working hands as well as expenses of recovery and recuperation and additional strain on hospitals, health services, and social welfare agencies. Accidents on these days have caused almost as much damage to Israeli society as all the Arab Wars.
Hareidim often demonstrate against profanation of the Sabbath.
This too is Patriotism.

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8. Health in General

Hareidim get sick the same as everyone else. Relatively speaking they get sick less. They are more healthy, physically and mentally, and live longer.  There are exceptions but we are dealing here with statistical averages. Hareidim put less strain on health services. They also look after the sick and those around them much better. They have emergency rescue services such as Hatzalah that serve ALL of the community. They also provide meals etc  on Shabatot  for relatives and friends [including non-religious ones] of the sick who are in attendance at hospitals.
They work to provide medicines and orthopedic aids, wheelchairs etc, at reduced cost or no cost, for all Israelis through Yad Sarah and other organizations.
Nearly every Israeli who has ever been in a hospital has benefited in some way or other from Hareidi beneficence.

On the other hand, in a Knesset discussion it was pointed out that Hareidi women are statistically less healthy than Hareidi men. The women are more susceptible to cancer but the men live longer.
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9. Crime and Sexual Disfunction

Hareidim comprise ca. 10% of the Israel population but only 0.2% of those in prison, for every Hareidi in prison there are 500 non-Hareidi inmates.

Sexual Offences.
There are Hareidi sexual offenders. These receive much publicity in the Media. This presents a distorted picture.
This  may be a problem. It could be that Hareidim do not sufficiently discipline offences and lack alacrity in reporting them to the authorities.
Nevertheless, Hareidi  offenders in the long run are reported and preventive action is usually taken.
Amongst the secular what should be tantamount to sexual criminality is often taken as accepted behavior. They are in effect much worse but no-body emphasizes it or even notices.
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10. Children

Hareidim have large families. This helps Jewish demographic survival.
The children of Hareidim sometimes become non-religious. They replenish the Secular ranks. Their Hareidi parents subsidized their upbringing.
The Governments spends about 5 times more per head on secular children than it does on Hareidi ones.
Who is Living at the expense of who??
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11. Army Service

Hareidim in general do not serve in the army or they defer their service.
This is a separate issue.
We will deal with it elsewhere.
Nevertheless suffice to say that the need for serving in the Army, at the present time, also involves ideological issues.
Girls being forced to serve is superfluous and harmful, the army has too much manpower, we need less volunteers and more professionals, etc.

See:
Brit-Am Now no. 2235. Ten Tribes Studies.
http://hebrewnations.com/features/6/2235.html
#3. David Jackson: Learning Torah or Going to the Army?
Extract:

I personally (If I was a Yeshiva student) and you were an Israeli who made a remark like you did  would reply:

I am prepared to go and fight besides you or even (as may happen) in front of you while you do something else in the back.
Only look me in the eye and say that this is what the country needs and that you do not have other motives.
If I take your place at the front (or at the back as the case may be) will you learn Torah instead of me?

In the army one finds front line troops backed up by a bevy of supporting services. Most seldom take any risks whatsoever.
Who is to say that Army Service is more important than Torah?
We need them both.

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12. Comparisons with the National Religious

The National Religious learn less but often they do learn. They serve in the army usually in front-line units.
They are involved in general society and are to to be found at all levels in the work force, etc.
Through their settlements in Judah and Samaria they help ensure the continued Israeli possession of that part of the Promised Land.

Why Cannot the Hareidim be Like Them?

For Hareidim learning is the aim of life. They do not say that everybody should be like them BUT that they should be like themselves.
Involvement with society etc comes at the cost of compromise in observance.
The National Religious have received material benefits and governmental support for being as they are. To an outsider, they have also paid  a  price.
This was perhaps unnecessary.
Hareidim do not consider that the National Religious better than them, nor do they want to be like them.
The Hareidi are also  involved with settlement in Judah and Samaria.
The cities of Modein, Beitar Ilit, Emanuel, along with smaller settlements are all Hareidi.
They are the largest cities on the West bank.
The numerical majority of settlers in the West Bank are Hareidim.
They receive much less governmental assistance than the National Religious. Discrimination against Hareidim at every level seems to be taken for granted.
From  a strategic point of view the Hareidi large blocks of population with all their infrastructures may be worth just as much, if not more, than the other forms (e.g. National Religious type) of settlement.
Ultimately whether the Jews in Israel survives or not depends on belief and observance of the Torah.
THIS SHOULD BE THE MAIN POINT.

The impression is that National Religious do not learn enough even when they can do so.
In the streets of Israeli cities one may see women immodestly dressed, homosexuals openly fondling each other, children being exploited, acts of violence, theft and oppression. [The same as in all Western Nations today.]  These are the streets that the National Religious dwell in more than the Hareidim who usually have their own neighborhoods.
Despite this amongst the National Religious one will find enthusiasts who seem to have an inordinate interest in criticising the Hareidim while disregarding everything else!
The two groups should realize that both are on the same side and that both are needed.
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13. Comparisons with the Secular

Amongst the Secular one finds those who are unemployed and under employed. There are also numerous criminals and others (policemen, etc) who fight the crime of those criminals, etc.
There are also those involved with lending money and providing questionable services, and  entertainers, and merchants of surfeit goods that Hareidi Society does without.

Even if a Hareidi wishes to work he will often find the system working against him.
Governmental Service is the largest employer of manpower in the State of Israel. To be accepted to GS one needs a high-school diploma and university degree. Yeshiva Study is often more intensive and thought provoking than most university sources BUT it is not recognized, though it could be. Independent GS acceptance examinations concerning language skills, power of thought, general knowledge, etc, are not available though they are in other countries. Even when the Hareidi has a university degree, studies show that the GS will endeavor not to accept him.
And what does the GS do?
It creates bureaucracy.
If you want to build a house in Israel it will take an average of eleven years. Ten of those years is due to the bureaucracy.

In other words while amongst the Hareidi we have those who are not employed, with the seculars it is a case of their REGRETFULLY working!
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14. Conversions

Hareidim are blamed for the Problem of conversions to Judaism in Israel.
It is assumed that it should be easier for non-Jews to become Jewish and that more conversions should be effected.
Hareidim are blamed for not facilitating conversions under the existing system. They are also accused of impeding legislation and other measures intended to make Conversion more attractive and easier.
Under the old system of about 20 years ago under the Governmental Rabbinate about 15% of the converts became observant of Torah Laws whereas most of the remainer did not.
Today  the percentage is about 2% to 5%.

The problem with conversions is that not enough of those converting keep the Laws. According to the Torah a convert should intend to keep the Torah. The fact that most converts do not do so may be a reflection of society.
 It may be that from a sociological point of view converts will always, on the average, be somewhat less enthusiastic about observance than the general population.
The converts are pulled after general practice and what seems socially acceptable..
Increase the degree of observance in general society and more converts will do likewise.
The more sincere converts show themselves to be the less hesitation about facilitating the conversion process will be needed.
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15. Conclusion. Avoid Contention

The above notes are just a tip of what exists.
They were written in response to propaganda put out by bad people backed by the left-wing libertarian media who have their own anti-Torah agenda.
The argument could go on forever.
At the least we see from the above that there are two sides to the question.

Proverbs 9:6-9

[Proverbs 9:6] Forsake foolishness and live,
And go in the way of understanding.

[Proverbs 9:7] He who corrects a scoffer gets shame for himself,
And he who rebukes a wicked man only harms himself.

[Proverbs 9:8] Do not correct a scoffer, lest he hate you;
Rebuke a wise man, and he will love you.

[Proverbs 9:9] Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser;
Teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.

Not everybody is prepared to listen to what we say.
We may say things that are self-obvious, superfluous, or  not pertinent to those we are speaking to.
Or our words may cause resentment and be considered too personal or ideologically unacceptable. This may at times also arouse hostility.
Media people in Israel who incite against the Hareidim are not interested in the truth.
They are against Hareidim  because Hareidim uphold the Torah.
Nevertheless they cloak their hatred in  rational arguments that are liable to mislead others.
Even we ourselves may tend subconsciously to be led astray by them.
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Additional Notes:

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Community Affiliation of Hareidim

Hareidim according to Place of Origin.  About 40% of Hareidim are Hasidic; another 40% are Mainstream also known as Litayim (Lithuanian) or Misnagdim. 15% are Sephardim. 5% are National Religious who are also Hareidim. 

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The Buses.
Hareidim uses public transport more than the national average.
They prefer their own lines with segregated buses, men at one end but women at the other.
This has caused much publicized minor incidents with the intendion to place the Hareidim in a bad light.
See:
#3. Brit-Am On the Ground Jerusalem Report.
The Buses. Part One.
http://www.britam.org/JN3/JN978.html
#3. Foreign Interference in Israeli Affairs.
Part Two of The Buses: The Anti-Jewish Aspect.
http://www.britam.org/JN3/JN980.html
#3. Bare-Breasts in the Bus.
The Buses part 3.
http://www.britam.org/JN3/JN987.html#3

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Second Tithes and a Torah Scholar in Every family

 The city of Jerusalem was the place where all the Second Tithe (Numbers 18:21) had to be devoured. This (as the Sages pointed out) would have led every family to have an incentive to permanently station one of their member in Jerusalem to benefit from Second Tithe produce. There thus developed the custom amongst many families that at least one of their members permanently study the Torah in Jerusalem being supported from the Second Tithe of all the other family members.  That  would appear to have been one of the aims of the Second Tithe Law in the Torah.

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CONTINUED AT:    Haried Who? Torah Ideology in Practice