29 August 2025
Rabbi Weissman: Rav Wasserman on MAGA Jews and the Role of Rabbis
Rav Wasserman on MAGA Jews and the Role of Rabbis
Plus a special program tomorrow night on the measles situation
In part 7 of Prophetic Teachings of Rav Elchonon Wasserman we learned essential advice for how to navigate the galus, the period of time before Moshaich comes, and all of life’s challenges.
In a nutshell, the answers to any and all of our questions, both individually and nationally, can be found in the Torah. Of course, we need to know where to look and how to look, but this is the only way to receive the best, objectively true guidance. Rav Wasserman bemoans the fact that in recent times (1939) people began turning to rabbis only for questions about reciting Kaddish, but turned to “experts” for guidance on matters of politics and national importance.
This is so true today. How many of our “religious” pundits are really coming from a Torah perspective — and by that I mean a real Torah perspective, not merely cherry-picking some superficial source to kosher up their opinions after they already made up their minds?
Are any of them coming from a real Torah perspective? Do any of them speak with real depth and profundity, or are they just making it up as they go along, with secular-oriented minds, and molding the Torah to suit themselves?
Today we often hear that rabbis shouldn’t talk politics, and pretty much shouldn’t talk about anything outside of ritualistic minutiae and esoteric Talmudic matters. Of course, if a rabbi doesn’t know what he’s talking about, he is advised not to speak from a position of authority — but the same is true of everyone. Where are all the “experts” getting their wisdom from? What about all the social media influencers? If they are thinking like goyim, their wisdom will not save us; just the opposite.
We discussed this at length in the class, as well as the following questions:
How much should Jews in galus be involved in politics altogether? Should they be writing op-eds in the secular media about these matters? Should they be involved in political activism, political protests, MAGA events, and even revolutionary movements in their host countries? Is it a kiddush Hashem for Jews to be involved in these activities, or extremely dangerous?
You can probably guess Rav Wasserman’s answer, but watch the embedded class to learn his prophetic teachings as he wrote them.
This Motzei Shabbos (Saturday night) at 9:30 PM Israel time will be a special Amalek and Erev Rav program with guest Yael Tusk. We will be talking about the measles, the measles vaccine, and related matters. There will be a question and answer session after the interview.
The link to join the live program is https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83117434624?pwd=A65vi6r4br36LTNGkspskTlqRGx5BT.1. The recording will be available on Rumble and Substack next week.
Dr. Yael Tusk has been treating patients with Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for over 15 years. She treats patients at her office in Jerusalem, and also offers phone consultations to people from abroad. She is also the author of Health: A Natural Approach, and several other books.
www.yaeltusk.com
Also see Dr. Tusk's previous appearances in episode 25 and 59, here and here.
Visit chananyaweissman.com for the mother lode of articles and books.
Visit rumble.com/c/c-782463 for my Torah classes, Amalek and Erev Rav programs, and much more.
Buy my books on Amazon here or contact me directly to purchase in Israel.
Download Sefer Kibbutz Galuyos pdf here or ePUB here, or buy on Amazon here.
Download Tovim Ha-Shenayim as a PDF for free!
weissmans@protonmail.com
The Satmar Method!
As Draft Deferment System Collapses, Charedim Consider Adopting Satmar Method
JERUSALEM (VINnews) — A fascinating clip which appeared on I24 news cast a spotlight on the dilemma now faced by charedim: Should they cut off ties entirely with the state of Israel in order to continue to maintain their lifestyle? Should they adopt the Satmar method and divest themselves from all state support?
Reporter Ari Kalman described both methods in his report: The approach of the Chazon Ish and other great rabbis who promoted cooperation with the new state of Israel in order to reach a modus vivendi allowing for charedim and for the yeshivos to flourish. This method enabled the yeshivos to receive state support for the last 75 years while continuing to maintain their independence and unique lifestyle.
With the current impasse regarding a draft law and the tens of thousands of draft notices issued even to those studying full time, it is becoming increasingly difficult for the heads of the charedi community to pursue cooperation with the state, which has stressed that it demands reciprocity for funding the yeshivos and is bent on sharply increasing charedi enlistment goals as part of the proposed law.
The untenable situation, where yeshiva students and other charedi youth fear arrest by military police, has led many to consider adopting the Satmar method of Rabbi Yoel Teitelbaum zts’l, which eschews all form of cooperation with the state and fiercely maintains the independence of its institutions by not accepting any form of state funding. This has enabled its yeshivos to flourish and to grow, and in recent years they have been joined by the Lithuanian Jerusalem Faction, which has adopted the ideology of militant opposition to state attempts to influence charedi society.
Recently, Satmar mega donor Yoeli Landau visited Israel, officially for the yahrzeit of the rebbe but also to attempt to encourage more factions in the charedi world to adopt the Satmar method and relinquish all of their state funding. Landau promised that Satmar’s philanthropists will be able to provide alternative funding to keep the Torah institutions running.
Despite this, charedi MKs stress that the time has not yet come to divest from the state support of Torah, although they admit that if tactically this will enable more Torah study, the Lithuanian gedolim will also support such a change.
https://vinnews.com/2025/08/28/as-draft-deferment-system-collapses-charedim-consider-adopting-satmar-method/
What Tel Aviv Did While You Were Not Paying Attention
Hypocritical, double standards with regard to Jews vs. Muslim public prayer events.
YNET: Equal access requirements spark legal drama in Tel Aviv’s battle over synagogue control
Tel Aviv is pressing synagogues to sign new contracts requiring equal access 'without distinctions of gender or faith' or face eviction; Dozens of congregations fear the move erodes Orthodox practice, triggering court battles that pit the city’s secular ethos against its religious heritage
Netael Bandel | 08.24.25
Esser Agaroth(2¢):
Has the Tel-Aviv city council been confronted with its hypocritical, double standards with regard to Jews vs. Muslim public prayer events?
This particular report does not answer this question.
GET THE ANSWERS AND MUCH MORE AT
Bitachon 223 - The King is in the Field
NOW IS THE TIME TO BEG HASHEM HKB”H HaMELECH
We continue our study in Tehillim chapter 130, passuk 7, which speaks of the direction of Dovid Hamelech to trust in Hashem, for Hashem has all the kindness of redeems the people of Israel from our sins. We explore this in the context of Elul, which has just begun, as we count down to the High Holidays and enter into a relationship with our Father, our King, who makes Himself available to us now.
Israel’s Supreme Court Rejects Petition To Cancel Draft Orders For 5,500 Yeshiva Bochurim
Keep digging that hole to slide into when your time is up!
THERE IS NO FEAR, ONLY THAT OF HKB”H
The Israeli Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed a petition that sought to cancel enlistment orders sent to approximately 5,500 yeshiva bochurim.
The petition had been filed by the organization Emes LeYaakov, which argued that the draft notices were issued through an improper process, relying on information allegedly obtained unlawfully from the National Insurance Institute. The group maintained that the procedure was both illegal and discriminatory, and it requested that the original enlistment orders be annulled and reissued through proper channels.
The justices rejected the claims, noting that the IDF has since altered its policy and no longer uses data from the National Insurance Institute when issuing draft notices. Instead, the army is now sending enlistment orders to approximately 54,000 candidates for military service without relying on outside data.
Because of this change in procedure, the Court ruled that the petition was no longer relevant and ordered it dismissed. A hearing that had been scheduled for September 11 was canceled. Each side was ordered to bear its own legal expenses.
Despite the ruling, Emes LeYaakov voiced concern over the fate of the thousands of yeshiva bochurim who already received enlistment orders under the earlier system. According to the organization, many of those bochurim are now classified as “draft evaders,” exposing them to potential arrest or penalties from military police.
The petitioners emphasized that if the court had canceled the original orders, those affected would have received a temporary reprieve—shielding them from being labeled as evaders for several months, even if new orders were issued right away.
Emes LeYaakov said they will continue pursuing the matter through additional petitions in the near future, seeking to protect the rights of bnei yeshiva facing the draft issue.
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
28 August 2025
Reb Neuberger: A Statesman of Torah
A STATESMAN OF TORAH
At a time when de-funding the police is a big issue, it is amazing to read the first words of this parsha, which tells us the importance of shoftim and shotrim.
“Rabbi Chanina, s’gan Kohain Gadol, says: Pray for the welfare of the government, because, if people did not fear it, people would swallow each other alive.” (Avos 3:2)
A friend from Portland, Oregon told us about a case in which a robber was breaking into a house in the middle of the night. The panicked homeowner dialed 911 and was told, “Sorry, no officer is available” and the call was terminated.
My friends, to put it simply, we are seeing the disintegration of Western society, in which supposedly intelligent and sophisticated people are creating havoc. As Rebbetzin Jungreis used to say, “Some people are so open-minded that their brains fall out!”
Ever since our first parents rebelled against Hashem in Gan Eden, the Evil Inclination has caused unfathomable suffering. There is only one bulwark against chaos, and that is the Torah which Hashem has given to Am Yisroel.
I am reminded of the words of U. S. President Harry S. Truman, who told Rabbi Shlomo Lorincz in the early 1950s (when he explained the reasons he recognized the fledgling State of Israel): “If I still have the will to continue to live, it is only because I believe that, just like in the past, three thousand years ago, you Jews saved humanity -- wild mankind! -- via your Torah, so too I believe and hope that, even nowadays, you, the Jewish Nation, will be successful again, to enlighten and to heal the beasts of cruelty in our midst and save the world from total destruction.”
The Torah is a Tree of Life for us and the entire world!
A great man left this world on Shabbos Parshas Eikev. His name was Rabbi Berel Wein. I do believe that he was one of the “shoftim,” perhaps also one of the “shotrim,” who guarded our generation. He was a voice of sanity, humanity, sobriety, wisdom, perhaps most of all a voice of perspective. In his quiet, brilliant way, he sewed the threads of history into an orderly tapestry, making sense out of a world which seems to be spinning out of control. He was more than a rav, more than a rabbi, more than a rosh yeshiva; he was a Statesman of Torah, a person of nobility.
And he was funny! I remember hearing him describe his landing at an Italian airport when he was a kashrus administrator for the OU. In the maze of humanity, there was no one to meet him and his Italian language skills were missing in action. To paraphrase his description, “I surveyed this vast multitude of people and then I saw, way off in a far corner, a man holding a sign that read ‘Rabbit!’” In his brilliant, but softspoken wit, he added, “He was just a hare off!”
He spoke about his early days as a lawyer in Chicago, and how he found out that the legal profession brings out the worst in people (who want to litigate each other to death). And so he became a rabbi and changed the world.
For many years I was the administrator in the Jungreis Family’s Cheder in Canarsie, Brooklyn. In my daily forty-minute commute I had a constant companion, Rabbi Wein’s 120-tape (oh yes, those were the days of cassette tapes) history of the world, from Beraishis all the way to the Third Reich. He knew it all. It was all in his head and he told it over as if he were there and you were there, with spice and humor and brilliant Torah perspective.
In recent years, he became blind, but his weekly parsha lectures continued at his shul, Bet Knesses Hanasi in Rehavia, Yerushalayim. He could not see the books, the words, the notes, but he didn’t need them. It was all in his head, every name, every date, every gadol, every sefer, every Gemara, every possuk, every conversation among sages and statesmen. Through his nineties, he forged ahead, quietly giving over his unique perspective on Torah and history.
With all his self-deprecation, his words were like the footsteps of destiny walking through the annals of history. It all hung together like a beautiful tapestry. I will never forget how he recounted the words of his own cheder rebbe in Chicago, who would start each day with the words, “Ashreinu … We are fortunate! How good is our portion, how pleasant our lot and how beautiful our heritage!”
Reb Wein loved Torah. He spoke about the Life of Torah with love and awe. He inspired countless thousands of Yidden to elevate their lives and see the past, present and future with perspective. He was indeed a “shofet” and a “shoter,” a judge and watchman over this world. When he spoke, somehow you felt “hakol beseder … all is well” and will be well, despite the monumental traumas in our long history. He will be sorely missed as we sail forward into a world which desperately needs order and restraint. He held the spiritual hand of Jews all over the world. Certainly, his welcome in Olam ha Emes has been tumultuous, as the gadolim from the millennia crowd around him to say “Yashar koach!”
Farewell, Rabbi Wein! We will miss your voice of calm and wisdom!
As for us, we await the Day when the Great Judge will bring justice to this world. As we say every Tuesday, “Arise Hashem, judge the earth, for You allot the heritage among all the nations.” (Tehillim 82)
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| President Harry S. Truman |
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| Rabbi Berel Wein |
Rabbi Berel Wein
GLOSSARY
Beraishis: Genesis, the creation of the world
Cheder: Jewish elementary school
Gadolim: Great rabbis
Gan Eden: The Garden of Eden
Kashrus: adherence to kosher laws
Kashrus administrator: someone who certifies the kashrus of foods and factories
Olam ha Emes: The World of Truth, the World to Come
Possuk: sentence in the Torah
Shoftim: Judges
Shotrim: Officers of the law
Yashar koach: An expression meaning, “Well done!” (lit. “May your strength increase”)
Rabbi Wein zt'l – Parshas Shoftim
Shoftim
We are all in favor of equality and justice. The goal of all democratic societies is to have, as far as humanly possible, an incorruptible and fair judicial system. Since, however, judges are only human – no matter how knowledgeable and altruistic they may be, the perfect judicial system has never yet been achieved.
Nevertheless, in order to make society livable, we are bidden to obey the decisions of the court. As the Talmud itself points out, "even if they proclaim to you that left is right and right is left, you want to listen to them." The Talmud acknowledges that judicial error is a facet of life….for after all, left is never right and right is never left. So, how are judicial errors ever to be corrected?
The answer to that question usually comes with the passage of time and with the application of common sense to the realities of life. The famous dictum in Jewish life has always been “what wisdom cannot accomplish, time will." Heaven, so to speak, also takes a hand over time in adjusting erroneous judicial decisions and somehow making things come out right in the end.
Yet, the Torah emphasizes to us that even though judicial error is possible if not even probable, we are to follow the decisions of our judges for otherwise anarchy will reign and society will dissolve. The decisions of judges may be analyzed and even disagreed with, but judges are to be respected and their judgments eventually are to be fulfilled. Ultimate justice is relegated to the provinces of Heavenly guidance.
Jewish tradition ascribes judicial decisions not merely to book knowledge and even to precedent, but also to common sense and an intuition of fairness and equity. The great Rabbi Israel Lipkin of Salant often pointed out that Heaven alone can take into account all of the facets, consequences and results of judgment, reward and punishment. The human judge is limited in perspective and foresight.
We are all aware of the law of unintended consequences, which dog all legislation and judicial decision. It is because of this that the Talmud ruefully has God, so to speak, busy undoing many of the decisions and actions of leaders and ordinary people in order to achieve the Divine will and purpose in the actions and decisions of humans.
All judicial systems contain a process of review and appeal from decisions made by lower courts. This is an inherent realization the judicial error is present and likely in all human affairs. It is of little wonder then that the phrase “trial and error” is so well known in the English language.
The judicial system always attempts to correct and analyze itself. However, even in so doing, it is always subject to bias, preconceived notions and erroneous logic and decisions. Nevertheless the Torah emphasizes that judicial systems are mandatory for society to function. It is one of the basic seven laws of Noachide tradition. So, as in every other facet of life, the Torah bids us to do the best that we can but to be aware of our human limitations.
Shabbat shalom
Rabbi Winston: Shoftim and ELUL
ELUL. Once upon a time, it was a word that inspired people, made people “shake in their boots.” It meant judgment day was coming, and that got a lot of Jews nervous. I too shake in my boots when I hear “Elul,” but mostly because I anticipate spending many tiring hours in shul and eating too much food. I must have lost something in the translation.
The ironic thing is, those earlier generations probably had less to worry about than we do. Their level of commitment to Torah and mitzvos was probably far less casual than ours is today, and they probably had fewer vices. Clearly their yiras Shamayim, fear of G–D, was greater, which meant G–D was more real to them than He is to us.
What does that even mean? How can G–D be more real or less real to someone? You either believe He exists and that He is real to you, or you don’t, and He is not. How can there be levels of being real?
The answer has to do with how emotions can be out of synch with intellect. There are many things we “know” to be true, and yet we still treat them as if they’re not. Health is a good example of that, because despite the fact that we have been told, and believe, that certain eating habits are bad for health, we do them anyhow. Even though we know that certain foods, especially in large quantities, are dangerous for our health, we consume them anyhow.
I once had an hour-long talk with someone who did not believe in G–D. After I made the case for G–D’s existence and the hour was over, the person got up and said to me, “Everything you said made sense, but I’m leaving anyhow.” And so he did, and after he left I wasn’t sure if he was just being polite, because I could not understand how he could believe that and then ignore it.
The truth is, we all do the same thing on some level and some of the time. The Torah opens up with the need to appoint judges and police people to keep the peace because there were going to be people who were going to disrupt it…people who knew G–D is real, Torah is obligatory, and punishment follows for disobedience. That’s the problem with not syncing your emotions with your intellect.
This is why the Mussar Movement sprang up in the 1800s. It was an attempt to help synch the hearts and minds of those willing to embrace it, so that G–D would be more real to them. It focused on ideas and rules in such a way as to drive them home, to have the mind share these ideas and rules with the heart. Where the heart goes, the person goes, making it the battleground of life.
Incidentally, they once asked the Brisker Rav if he learned mussar. He said yes, every time he learned Gemora. In other words, he didn’t necessarily learn sifrei Mussar like others in the movement because he didn’t have to. Whatever mussar he needed to learn, he was able to extract from his learning, no matter how technical it was. That was how the Brisker Rav learned.
Anyone familiar with the learning approach of Brisk knows that it is extremely sensitive to details and nuances. Sometimes, to an outsider, it can seem like too much, and some of their conclusions can seem like over the top. For example, to avoid any doubts requiring the baking of matzah, they burn it. This way, there is no possibility of any chametz remaining after the baking process.
Though not everyone relates to the Brisker approach or their way of thinking, it doesn’t prevent them from seeing and appreciating their genius. They command a lot of respect in the Torah world, and have provided incredible Torah insights over the generations.
It is said that “G–D is in the details.” What people tend to mean is that attention to detail is crucial for achieving G–D-like success or perfection. It emphasizes that any action or plan should be executed carefully, as small details can significantly impact the overall outcome.
But the statement is true literally. One of the most efficient ways to connect up heart and mind when it comes to Torah ideas is to stop looking at them superficially. Ideas can be incredibly deceiving, and words can be very distracting. More importantly, the brain can think it’s seen all it needs to see to make an accurate assumption about life or a situation when, in fact, it hasn’t. So many mistakes, including many of the more tragic ones, are because people didn’t think about something long enough.
The Sforno says this is the reason why we made b’tzelem Elokim, in the “image” of Elokim. Elokim is the Name of G–D that denotes discernment, which means that we have been endowed with this ability as well. All that goes wrong in history, and is going wrong now, is that people don’t use this ability enough, and have such faulty approaches to life.
So, in a sense, this is what we’re being judged for, how well we used our brains the previous year. And we take the time to do that now, especially as we continue into Elul Zman, then maybe we’ll be able to shake in our boots for the right reason, and soften our judgment on Rosh Hashanah, may it come upon us for good.
Have a great Shabbos,
Pinchas Winston
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