This year, our shofar to the diaspora must be one on which we can make a bracha
Rav Kook, the first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of pre-state Israel, gave a sicha (speech) on Rosh Hashanah 5694 (1933). Standing in the Hurva Synagogue in the Old City of Jerusalem, he introduced the three types of shofar that may be blown on Rosh Hashanah. The optimal shofar is the horn of a ram but, if it’s not available, any animal other than a cow may be used. If that’s not available, one may blow the horn of an animal which is not kosher (but without a bracha).
Just as there are three types of Shofarot that may be used on Rosh Hashanah, so too there are three kinds of “Shofarot of Redemption” that call the Jewish people back to the land of Israel, a reference to the line in our daily amidah, “sound the Great Shofar for our freedom, and raise the banner to bring our exiles together”.
The highest level, he explained, is the Shofar Gadol, the “Great Shofar.” This is a deeply spiritual call that awakens the Jewish people through holy ideals: faith in God, a vision of Jerusalem as both earthly and heavenly and an idea of Israel as a place with a mission beyond just ourselves.
The second level is the shofar of national aspiration. This is the call to return to our land in order to live freely as a people, to raise families in a Jewish society and to be part of something bigger than ourselves.
The third, and lowest, shofar is that of persecution. The “push, not pull” from a shofar of antisemitism and fear. Rav Kook wept as he described this shofar because redemption that comes only through suffering is like a shofar from an unclean animal: it may force action, but it cannot be blessed. It is far from the ideal. One needs little more than a basic knowledge of history to imagine the gravity of Rav Kook saying this in 1933.
Recently, and especially in the last two years, I’ve noticed a worrying trend. In an attempt to increase the numbers of people making aliyah (don’t get me wrong – a very worthy goal), too many voices in Israeli society – and disproportionately the religious zionist establishment that so proudly upholds Rav Kook as its defining thinker – have leaned harder and harder on that final shofar. As an oleh chadash, it’s a narrative I’ve heard everywhere from the plenaries of international NGOs to rabbis at pulpits to conversations over a Shabbat table.
The primary call coming from Israel to encourage Jews to make aliyah right now is not one of higher purpose or national belonging. It’s one that reminds people of and exaggerates antisemitism in the diaspora in order to convince people onto flights to Israel.
The problem is that this kind of messaging doesn’t actually serve the Jewish people or Israeli society well in the long run.
Olim who come because they’ve been scared into it will often find themselves unprepared for the reality here. The “push factor” of antisemitism might have convinced them onto the plane, but life in Israel isn’t exactly easy or free of fear, and those without the other two shofarot anchoring them are more likely to struggle.
The fear narrative also does real damage to diaspora communities. Catastrophising antisemitism and presenting diaspora life as eternally doomed weakens and insults communities that are, in truth, strong and committed. It has done serious damage to the relationship between Israel and the Diaspora, at a time when that bond is more important than ever.
Beyond all that, it’s simply a missed opportunity. We have the chance to inspire Jews to join us in Israel with a vision of Israel rooted in pride, responsibility and purpose. When Olim come to Israel in answer to the first two shofarot, they help build a society rooted in higher ideals and a strong sense of peoplehood. Why settle for less?
Just six years before the Holocaust, Rav Kook cried because he knew redemption forced through suffering could never be whole. On Rosh Hashanah this year, while things are certainly not easy for the Jewish people, we have the freedom and strength to call our people with vision instead of fear, something of which Rav Kook could only have dreamed.
In the coming year, the call for our fellow Jews to join us as a people in Eretz Yisrael must be proud and uplifting. It cannot rest on exaggerating antisemitism or belittling the communities of the diaspora. It must be the Shofar Gadol, one of higher responsibility and national belonging. It must be a call on which we can proudly make a bracha.
