It is a well-known and unfortunate fact that the ultra-Orthodox do not actually serve in the IDF, and are even opposed in principle to service. Within the range of political options, a conscription law for the ultra-Orthodox is enacted from time to time, the purpose of which is to maintain the illusion of military service and to maintain an exemption from service on the grounds of "his teachings and his art"; an exemption that links Torah study and exemption Both from the army, and from significant work.
This arrangement offends the natural sense of justice of those who send their children to the military due to conscription, and find it difficult to accept the fact that a large public seems to be evading the burden of being a citizen, but nevertheless asks for money to finance their lifestyle, while they usually also refuse to learn professions that are needed in the modern world.
And that's without even talking about the famous fear of what is known as "religion" - part of it is fear of religious coercion, and part of it is fear that the fearer will become more religious of his own free will.
The secular public finds it difficult to accept the ultra-Orthodox claim that Torah studies in themselves constitute a significant contribution to civil and spiritual life in the State of Israel, certainly not one that would justify avoiding other considered contributions, primarily military service.
The Israeli public understands why Arabs do not serve in the IDF. It also manages to suppress the fact that even among the secular public around 20 percent of men do not serve in the IDF.
But the principled refusal of the ultra-orthodox is difficult for him, and even more difficult are the political maneuvers that succeeded in quieting coalitions, but did not solve the problem itself.
Two heroic and creative attempts to increase the number of ultra-Orthodox in the IDF are particularly memorable: one, in the years 2013-2018, the ACA revised the definition of "Orthodox": again in the question, new immigrants, girls, and also 400 recruits who had nothing to do with the ultra-Orthodox world - All in order to meet the recruitment goals set out of a sense of justice, dreams in spades and a belief that just setting a goal is in itself 90 percent success.
This exercise did not end with the mass attendance of Ponivage students in pilot training, but with an inspection committee.
The High Court invalidated the Equality Law and shook the political system, but on the other hand did not admit any Haredi to Golani
The second attempt to weave reality out of beautiful ideas was made by the High Court of Justice, which invalidated the conscription law in 2017 on the grounds that it was unconstitutional and violated the principle of equality - even though the law was called the "Burden Equality Law". The High Court did not let the explosive name mislead it and did not discriminate between governments: Even when Benny Gantz, the Minister of Defense in the Bennett government, asked the High Court to extend the validity of the law - he was met with a refusal that was all right. Haredi to Golani.
The pursuit of justice regarding the recruitment of the ultra-Orthodox did not bring the desired result.
The injustice is so glaring that it hides the ground on which it grew: despite the fact that enlisting in the IDF is a legal obligation, it is based on a desire to serve, a sense of shared destiny and a desire to protect the homeland. If not for all of these, there would be The general recruitment scrapes the floor. The recruits bring the desire to serve from home, and without it the coercion would not work either. The secular, religious-nationalist recruits and the ultra-Orthodox are growing in a society where service in the IDF is highly valued, and is part of the familiar routine of life: school, army , studies, work. They voluntarily enlist and volunteer for combat service, and it would be a mistake to attribute the service solely to the law.
The ultra-Orthodox grew up in a different society, they lack the routine of life that includes the values of service in the IDF. In their absence, they are left with only coercion, and it is no wonder that they do not flock to the recruiting offices. And as long as coercion, justice and legal manipulations are the only tools the state will use against the ultra-Orthodox - they They won't enlist. How do I know? Because that's what has happened until now, over and over again, failure after failure after failure.
Maybe it's worth letting go of the burning demand for justice, and also of coercion.
Cultural change cannot grow from them.
Sometimes it pops up from completely different places: this week the National Economic Council in the Prime Minister's Office published an interesting study: after the government lowered the age of exemption from military service from 26 to 24, the employment rate of ultra-Orthodox men rose from 27 to 54 percent.
It's a shame that the state didn't ask for this study two years ago: the age of exemption rose again to 26, because there must be justice, and the next generation of ultra-Orthodox people might once again be entrenched in yeshiva.
The secular and religious public is used to a life cycle in which the military comes first to work.
But for the ultra-Orthodox, integration into the army is the most traumatic, both because of the coercion and because of the IDF's insistence on acting not only according to military interest, but also according to values such as the integration of women in all units and the preference for promoting progressive civilian agendas of equality over operational ones. The labor market, which is not centralized and where it is difficult for the generals to issue orders, is a more convenient corridor for ultra-Orthodox integration into general society. However, the thick ties between military service, studies in yeshiva, and work, when one hinders the other, close this corridor and clog up Israeli society. They do not allow building Slow and frustrating, but necessary, of integrating ultra-Orthodox into society - of their own accord, as in secular and religious society.
When Alexander the Great began his campaign of conquest in the Asian continent, he also passed through Phrygia, an ancient country that is now in Turkey, and there he encountered one of the symbols of the kingdom: a cart tied with a tangled and inextricable knot attributed to King Gordios.
According to Phrygian tradition, whoever leaves the knot will be the king of Phrygia.
Alexander looked at the knot, thought a little, then drew his sword and stitched the ropes.
Then he left for his conquests and reached as far as India.
Since then, the Gordian knot and the way Alexander handled it have become an example and an example of a simple solution to complicated problems.
But Israel, which has created its own Gordian connection when it comes to the ultra-Orthodox, has already tried the central solution, and failed.
Maybe it's time to come to terms with the fact that what needs to be done is to loosen the tight rope and untie the knot bit by bit and little by little.
Less sword, more sense.
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