Israel Needs More Settlers Not Less !
We hear the word settlers being used to denigrate thousands of Jews, young and old, who choose to settle in the most remote and dangerous parts of Israel, determined to fulfil the mitzvah of settling the Land. While we want all Jews to make aliya, it’s those who come to settle the land in obedience to the Halachic commandment that is sorely needed today. These patriots come to give to the country, not taking for their ends. They see the ‘messianic era’ in a very realistic and actual sense. They embrace the land of their forefathers with the same trust and faith that Avraham Avinu, Yitzak Avinu, and Yaakov Avinu employed all those thousands of years ago. It is incumbent on all of us to encourage, not discourage, this rich source of Jewish pride. Israel needs more settlers, not less.
As the Diaspora becomes more unfriendly towards its Jews, opportunities to promote aliya have never been greater—the re-emerging anti-Semitism around the world and, in particular, in the West will shortly present abundant opportunities to convert the prevalent ‘Ghetto mentality’ that permeates the vast majority of Diaspora Jews and uncovers the tens and hundreds of thousands of potential settlers in the years to come. After October 7, the Diaspora was put on life support, falling into an abyss where only a few will survive. The worse the plight of Jews around the world becomes, the greater the chance for concerted immigration to the Jewish State.
Realistically, we acknowledge that most Jews of the Diaspora are not Zionists and don’t want to live in the Jewish State regardless of what they and much of their Jewish leadership profess to the contrary. We sadly admit we are a long way from getting Jews to come ‘Home’. However, if we can tap into the spirit of the Jewish settler laying dormant in the hearts of our young, disillusioned boys and girls, in that case, a spiritual and political revolution of religious Zionism will ignite a new Aliya and rebirth of Jewish pride within Israel itself.
