It Is a Mitzvah To Live In Israel – (part 13b of 14)

11) When Israeli soldiers show their love for Israel when they crawl in the dirt of Israel?

Yes, they fulfill a pasuk in Tehilim and act like the greatest of sages גדולי החכמים .

Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Melachim, chapter 5, (10)

The greatest sages used to kiss the boundaries of Eretz Yisrael. They would also kiss its stones and roll around in its dust, as it says “For Your servants have desired her stones and favored her dust” (Tehilim 102:15)

12) Do any Chareidi Achronim paskin that it is a mitzvah to live Israel today?

Yes. The Chazon Ish and Rav Ovadia Yosef , to name a few.

Chazon Ish, Kovetz Iggrot, letter 175

…The situation in the Land is over exaggerated as is well known, and it is no worse than that of the Diaspora, G-d forbid. Besides which, the Rambam, the Ramban, and the other poskim have already decided that there is a mitzvah to dwell in Eretz Yisrael, It is also well known how much the Chafetz Chaim aspired to make Aliyah.

Masa Ovadyah, pages 320-321 (Rav Ovadia Yosef)

It is clear that the Rambam agrees, fundamentally with the Ramban regarding the mitzvah of settling the Land of Israel in our times…this halacha, which is based on the mitzvah of Yeshivat Eretz Yisrael…is a conclusive halacha for ALL generations, which clearly demonstrates that the mitzvah of Yeshivat Eretz Yisrael applies even nowadays…The Tur and the Shulchan Aruch, Yoreh Deah (267) codify this…the mitzvah of dwelling in the Land of Israel applies at all times and is not limited to the era when all of Israel lived in its Land.

13) Do we really know it is Hashem’s desire for all Jews to live in Eretz Yisrael?

Yes.

Responsum Regarding Yishuv Eretz Yisrael, Sinai volume 6, page 212 (Rav Perlman “the Gadol of Minsk)

…the Land is mentioned in practically every parsha and mitzvah in the Torah…Dwelling in Eretz Yisrael is equal to all the mitzvos…All of this demonstrates clearly that the good Lord wants us, His worthy nation, to choose and establish this holy and chosen Land as our dwelling place, and that He displeased when we leave it…know from His [G-d] general words that this is His desire and wish, it is incumbent upon us, like obedient children, to try our best to fulfill His desire and avoid , as much as possible, defying His will…

Indeed, this a mitzvah like all of the Torah’s mitzvos, since we know unequivocally that this is Hashem’s will…

14) Which mitzvah take priority: honoring one’s parents or Aliyah to Israel? What if a parent does not allow their child to move to Israel?

One must make Aliyah; since our parents also have an obligation to live in Israel and also keep the mitzvos.

Responsa Maharam Bar Baruch, volume 2, section 179 (Maharam of Rotenburg)

You asked whether a father may prevent his son from ascending to Eretz Yisrael. The answer is: We maintain that it is a mitzvah to ascend לעלות to Eretz Yisrael, and the Torah states, “I am Hashem” (VaYikra 19:3) from which Chazal derive that one should disobey a parent if he or she commands one to violate any mitzvah, for G-d’s honor comes first…

Responsa Mabit, volume 1, section 139

…honoring one’s parents is a great mitzvah…And he will not be punished for disobeying his parents’ command, for they too, can go up to Eretz Yisrael with him, at which time two mitzvos will be fulfilled…Yakov Avinu was punished because he was in Chutz LaAretz. After marrying a wife, he should have immediately come back to serve his father in Eretz Yisrael. Had he been in Eretz Yisrael and his father in Chutz LaAretz…he would not have been punished…we are not concerned with the mitzvah of honoring one’s parents…living in the Land is like a mitzvah whose reward is written explicitly, because of its special qualities and we do not force one to perform such mitzvos…he will certainly receive heavenly assistance, according to the verse “He who keeps a mitzvah will know no evil” (Koheles 8:5).

 15) What is the benefit of having a job in Israel?

By just having a job in Israel one is fulfilling the mitzvah of dwelling ישוב  of Israel. However, in Chutz LaAretz it is just a job – not mitzvah.

Chiddushei Chasam Sofer, Sukkah 36a

…the very act of tilling the ground fulfills the mitzvah of Yishuv Eretz Yisrael…This is when the Torah commands “You shall gather your grain” ואספת דגנך. In addition, “Boaz winnows barely tonight on the threshing floor” (Rus 3:2) because of the mitzvah. It is like saying, I will not don tefilin because I am studying Torah. So too, one must not say, I will not gather my grain because I am studying Torah. Furthermore, it is possible that other trades that benefit society are also included in the mitzvah…

 16) Should one buy land in Israel?

Yes, it’s a mitzvah.

Responsa Avnei Neizer, Yoreh Deah 454

…dwelling in Eretz Yisrael in our times is a mitzvah or hot, the Rishonim and Achronim have already discussed this at length and have concluded that it is a mitzvah…This law applies even today…

…it seems that ascending to Eretz Yisrael is like wearing a four cornered garment…And if one fails to wear such a garment, G-d will punish him at a time of anger. One could say the same regarding our issue, if one fails to make Aliyah…And even Jews who live in the Diaspora have a great mitzvah to buy land in Eretz Yisrael.

17) Is it still a mitzvah to live in Israel under a secular government?

Yes.

Responsa Tzitz Eliezer (Rav Waldenberg), volume 7 , section 48, chapter 12

The Renewal of the General Obligation to Ascend to and Settle the Land upon the establishment of the State

…according to halacha, that the obligation and mitzvah to ascend to Eretz Yisrael and dwell therein was not marred at all by the establishment of the State…On the contrary, this mitzvah has become even more esteemed, and every Jew living abroad has an additional more imperative obligation now to fulfill it…

…the Jewish congregation קהל found in the Land is the only congregation fitting to be called a קהל…a personal obligation incumbent upon every Jew wherever he may be, to rise up and ascend to Zion, and take hold of it…

…mitzvah to make aliyah has doubled since the establishment of the State of Israel…the oath concerning going up as wall no longer applies to mass aliyah, and its validity has expired…Thus,…the general obligation incumbent upon the entire House of Israel has been renewed, and every Jewish collective, found anywhere in the Diaspora should rise up in concentrated fashion and come and settle in our beloved Land…

…the establishment of the State of Israel brought about an increased obligation…to fulfill the mitzvah of aliyah and settlement…ensuring that the Holy Land not descend into the hands of the impure…

…the halachic exemptions mentioned by the poskim in relation to this mitzvah dissolved as well. Consequently, there is no obligation to even listen to a father, mother, or beis din who wants to prevent Aliyah…every Jew has a special obligation to “arm ourselves swiftly” (Bamidbar 32:17), to ascend speedily to the Land and come to Israel’s aid against its adversaries. This obligation stems from the obligation to fight a “holy war” מלחמת מצוה.

…there is no room whatsoever to refuse to make aliyah to the Land because the leadership of the state is mainly in the hands of nonreligious Jews…the greater the aliyah is or Torah observant Jews, the greater the influence faithful Judaism will have on the State’s institutions…

 18) Why, in the Torah, is there a punishment of Tzora’as on a Jews house? IF it is a punishment, why were valuables found in the walls of the destroyed house?

In Parshas Mezorah (VaYikra 14:34), we learn that if a Jew speaks Lashon Hara slander, a stain of Tzora’as appears on the wall of the house. The only solution is to destroy the house. Oddly enough, Jews were rewarded by finding treasures in the walls of some houses in Israel. This unique affliction only occurs in the Land of Israel. This demonstrates that a Jew living in the Land if Israel has his traits and qualities improved. Even when being punished in the Land of Israel it is only for our good לטוב.