Israel’s Best Next Leader

It is a time of crisis for Israel and the Jewish people. Make no mistake, this is a spiritual crisis within the soul of the Jewish people as much as it is an existential conflict with external forces.

The key quality for the next leader of Israel must be the capacity to bridge difference, to unify, and to do so authentically – to preach and practice unity as a matter of principle and instinct, not as a tactic or a manouevre.

There are some politicians in Israel, some party leaders, who may be empathetic mobilisers, effective communicators and deep thinkers, but that is no longer enough.

In my blogposts, I have been emphasising there is precisely and only one leader in Israel today who has the potential to transcend both the petty partisanship and the substantive divisions that are the greatest existential danger to Israel and the Jewish people right now, far more so than Hamas, Hezbollah and the rest of them.

This stems from a combination of experience and attitude.

1. Experience that bridges Israel’s divides:

• A charedi that serves in the IDF
• A rabbi and a lawyer
• A yeshiva student and a business administrator
• A mizrachi who studied in the West

2. Attitudes that speak to a better more unified Israel, and a better more civil politics:

“It is a halachic imperative and a life mission, if there’s any reason to enter public service, it’s to help people and sanctify Hashem’s name. After all, public service in modern Israel is neither rewarding nor enjoyable. Anyone who’s just in it for himself would do much better in the private sector. Our mission is to be mekadeish Sheim Shamayim and endear the Torah to the people. This is a sublime mission, and it’s doable, as well.”

“The State of Israel needs people who enter public roles with modesty and with the understanding that they have not conquered territory but are there to serve the public”

“Public service should be like the reserves [milu’im] – I did not sign up permanently, and I am not motivated by the need to survive.”

“On the day I entered office I said that we must understand that we are public servants of all of the citizens of Israel – those who voted for us and those who didn’t, even those who are acting against us,”

“In my view, it’s a kiddush Hashem that we, the chareidi community, as a minority, come from the perspective that seeks the good of everyone through cooperation.”

“Fundamentally, the role of the leader of a congregation, a rabbi, and a member of Knesset is to allow people to tell their stories and drive them to action. These are important tasks of any leader, and the ability to touch people’s hearts is crucial to these tasks.”

“It was important to me [as an Israeli leader] to directly experience the lives of Jewish students on Campus, and like any good Jew, I experienced this through the food. So, I went to the kosher dining hall, paid the entrance fee, and sat with the students.”

“Our primary mission is to provide a mouthpiece to the underrepresented people who have historically been silenced.”

“My vision is one wherein all minorities feel that they are represented, as a democratic state, whether the Haredi minority, the religious minority, or the Arab minority.”

“When in the US I went to an NBA Game. Even in such a place, there were kosher hot dogs, and we could do Netilat Yadayim, demonstrating it is possible to merge religious and secular lives in a special, beautiful manner.”

“The day where we enter the debate with the deep understanding that there is a national, ethical duty to maintain these Torah students, along with the duty to maintain an economic, military, and socially prosperous state, we can create an ecosystem of understanding that does not wish to erase the identity of the other side”.

“Israel needs legal reform in order to shore up public trust in our institutions, and for that, there needs to be change. Now I agree that this needs to be done with broad consensus… And I tell my colleagues: We won’t be in power forever… we have to advance them with as much agreement as possible.”

“In a democracy, disagreements are a good thing, but in a period of polarization, it’s important to focus on areas of consensus.”