925 —זהירות מבחירות בלי אחדות

B"H, 20 Adar II, 5711.

Brooklyn.

Haraha"g vavac"h iy"a chov sovo"h Sidran v'Pilpelan, ba'al middot terumiyot, doresh tov le'amo etc. etc. Morenu HaRav Yitzchak Aizik HaLevi Herzog

Shalom u'Vrachah!

I have received reports from various sources about the possibility of elections in Eretz Yisrael, may it be rebuilt and established. Considering the general situation in Eretz Yisrael and especially the results of the recent municipal elections, and based on information I have received since then about what is happening there—which seems to be accurate—it appears that the religious parties and the charedi Jewish community as a whole are still not organized enough so that if new elections were held in the near future, their situation in the Knesset would improve. On the contrary—G‑d forbid.

Certainly, since they are on site, they know all this even more clearly and will also come to a decision that for the benefit and perspective of overall charedi Jewry (without regard to any particular party that might possibly benefit from it), now is not at all an appropriate time for general elections.

I am confident that these rumors are merely a tactic and a matter of intimidation in order to achieve a desired solution regarding questions of kosher education, but there is no real intention for actual elections. And certainly this will be without compromising on matters relating to religion. According to my information—though it is not yet fully verified—this is also the position of Mapai (the Workers’ Party of Agudat Yisrael), so we can expect that elections will not take place.

It is surely unnecessary to emphasize that if it becomes impossible to prevent elections, then it is absolutely essential that there be a united religious front.

In accordance with the above I have sent you a telegram, and I thank you in advance if you will inform me of your view and actions on this matter.

With blessing.

On a lighter note I said: whether a united front is necessary or harmful is similar to the question of quantity versus quality. This can be learned from matters of punishment. As our master the Alter Rebbe writes in Igeret HaTeshuvah chapter 7 (97b): "For with greater quantity... darkness increases like... and more." The words of the Ran at the end of tractate Yoma are known, as well as our master's ruling in his pure Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim section 328:17. Several examples are brought in Lekach Tov by Rabbi Yosef Engel section 15. Of course there are several distinctions in this matter; this is not the place to elaborate.

Summary

The Rebbe teaches that unity among religious groups is vital when facing communal challenges such as elections; without proper organization and unity, efforts may backfire rather than help.