What About the Benefits from the State of Israel?
There’s no question that the modern State of Israel offers practical benefits to its citizens — including the Charedi community. From universal healthcare to heavily subsidized education, public transportation, safety infrastructure, and even stipends for certain kollelim and large families, the state extends services that, on paper, seem generous and even supportive.
Some might ask: If Charedim receive so much from the government, why is there so much opposition to it? Shouldn’t they be grateful?
Let’s explore this question in depth, not with defensiveness, but with clarity and honesty.
Yes — The State Gives Benefits
Let’s acknowledge reality:
- Healthcare in Israel is nearly free and accessible to all. A yungerman in Bnei Brak can take his child to a world-class hospital for almost no cost.
- Tuition in Charedi schools — while not free — is far lower than in the United States. There is some degree of state funding, especially for recognized institutions.
- Municipal services, garbage collection, utilities, and even partial kollelim stipends come through taxes and budget allocations.
- Social security payments for children and low-income families help many large families in the Charedi world put bread on the table.
These are undeniable realities.
But — These Benefits Are Often a Tool of Control
From the Charedi perspective, many of these benefits come with conditions, pressures, and sometimes threats. They are not freely given as a recognition of Jewish unity — they are often wielded as leverage to change our way of life.
Let’s look at a few specific case studies over the past 50 years:
Case Study 1: Yeshiva Funding in Exchange for Army Enlistment
In numerous administrations — most recently in 2023 and again in 2024 — proposed laws demanded that yeshiva budgets be cut unless Charedim enlisted in the IDF. The message was clear: “We will support your Torah — if you give us your children.”
In response, Rav Chaim Kanievsky zt”l declared:
“A single pasuk of Torah protects more than a hundred soldiers. To exchange Torah for the army is not a trade — it’s a betrayal.”¹
Case Study 2: The Budget Blackmail of 2013
During the Bennett-Lapid government of 2013–2015, the state completely removed child allowances for large families — targeting Charedim disproportionately.
Charedi kollelim were cut, yeshivos were denied basic funding, and Charedi students were excluded from tuition subsidies unless they agreed to enlist or join secular programs.
Gedolei Yisrael across the spectrum spoke out. Protest gatherings were held, including mass tefillah events with tens of thousands.
Though he was niftar years earlier, Rav Shimshon Dovid Pincus zt”l had already warned in general terms:
“They will give you food — only if you eat it from their table. But we have a Table of the King.”²
His words were often quoted during the crisis, as they perfectly captured the Charedi response: we will not trade Torah for comfort.
Case Study 3: Selective Law Enforcement
During COVID lockdowns, secular protests were allowed with tens of thousands, while small minyanim in Charedi cities were broken up by police.
Selective enforcement of building codes, school regulations, and military deferral requirements often targets Charedi neighborhoods, while ignoring violations in secular or Arab sectors.
As Rav Pinchas Scheinberg zt”l once said:
“When a society singles out Torah Jews for punishment, it is not upholding law — it is rebelling against the Lawgiver.”³
So Why Don’t Charedim Capitulate?
Many wonder — wouldn’t it be easier to just “play along”? Accept the terms, enlist a few boys, integrate a bit more?
But Torah isn’t negotiable. The entire foundation of Charedi life is that Torah is not just a value — it is the value.
As the Steipler Gaon zt”l wrote:
“Even if the whole world says it is logical to compromise, the Torah does not change. We don’t survive by logic — we survive by loyalty.”⁴
Charedim do not reject help. But they reject control. They reject any attempt to use benefits as strings to pull Jews away from the Mesorah.
As Rav Chaim Kanievsky zt”l often said in private:
“We don’t take money. We accept Hashem’s kindness — even when He sends it through strange messengers.”⁵
Conclusion: Grateful — But Not Dependent
Charedim are not ungrateful. We recognize the kindnesses Hashem sends — even through flawed institutions. We pay taxes. We serve society in countless ways — as teachers, volunteers, emergency responders, and moral leaders.
But we do not sell our soul for support.
Torah is not up for negotiation.
Footnotes:
- Rav Chaim Kanievsky zt”l, cited by Rav Yitzchok Zilberstein shlit”a in “Aleinu L’Shabeiach,” Devarim vol. 2
- Rav Shimshon Dovid Pincus zt”l, Nefesh Shimshon: Emunah, based on recorded drashos from the 1990s
- Rav Pinchas Scheinberg zt”l, public address, cited in Toras Chessed, 1997 edition, p. 212
- Steipler Gaon, Karyana D’Iggarta, vol. 1, letter 53
- Testimony of Rav Eliyahu Mann, personal assistant to Rav Chaim Kanievsky zt”l, 2022