Religious Zionism: Support the Deal, Despite the Sacrifice
Leadership demands tremendous self-sacrifice. This is true in all aspects of our lives, and especially in the leadership of a nation.
The ceasefire/hostage deal is extremely dangerous. The terrorists being released in exchange for our hostages will literally endanger my life and threaten the safety of my family. The terrorist who murdered my neighbor, Ari Fuld, by stabbing him in the back as Ari was walking outside of a local supermarket, is being released. These are vicious murderers, and they’re not coming home to become peace activists.
And yet, the deal needs to go through.
So many members of my broader community in Israel, the Religious Zionist sector, are opposed to the deal. The politicians representing our community, who reflect the will and interests of the community writ large, have voted against the deal.
And yet, my message to the Religious Zionist community is that the deal needs to go through. Here’s why.
I’m a runner. I run two 10K’s every week. I’ve been running since I was 15, and I love it.
If I told my family – my wife and 6 kids – that we are going for a family run, no excuses, we wouldn’t get nearly as far as I would want. If we had to go for a run, I’d need to put my 5-year old on my shoulders, carry my 6-year old in my arms, push my 12-year old along, pull my wife’s hand throughout… It would be a very rough experience.
I could do it on my own. I’ve been running for decades. I’m fit and strong and ready for a 10K any day.
But my family isn’t. And, despite my personal fitness and training, I cannot drag the rest of them along with me. The run would end in failure, tears, and deep antipathy towards me.
I believe the Religious Zionist community in Israel is one of the strongest sectors of Israeli society. We are a community that is driven by deep faith in God and unwavering commitment to the nation. We volunteer for combat roles and officers courses in the IDF far above our percentage of the population. We are psychologically, emotionally, spiritually, and physically steeled to fight for the Jewish People.
As Religious Zionists, we have been training our whole lives to sacrifice for the State of Israel and fight our enemies until complete victory.
But the majority of the nation is fatigued from 15 months of war. They are not prepared to soldier on.
We are on an existential run, the war of our lives, with the entire family of the State of Israel, and the rest of our family members are not with us for the next push. We may be ready to continue on, but they are telling us that they can’t. We cannot drag them along if they are not able or willing to continue the fight.
The sacrifice we must make is of our future security in order to obtain immediate safety for the hostages in mortal danger today.
Yes, it is a horrifying future cost that we may need to pay. But that risk is the cost that we must pay to maintain the most important asset of the Nation of Israel: our unity.
That is the sacrifice of leadership that is incumbent upon us today. The Religious Zionist community cannot fight this war on its own. We must look around us to the rest of the nation and prioritize our unity over what may be our own best interests.
That is the type of leadership that our nation so desperately needs.