S"D
Israeli Army: Stop Persecuting Olga Shamilov
19 Adar, 5781 Parshas Kee-Sissah / Porah ** March 3, '21
By Binyomin Feinberg
Olga
Shamilov is an Israeli "Ba'alas Teshuva," a young woman who has
rediscovered her Jewish roots. As fully dedicated to observance of
Torah Law, she has been resolutely fulfilling the obligations to resist
enlistment in the Israeli Army. According to all leading Torah
authorities, from across the spectrum, girls are prohibited from
enlistment in the Israeli military. For over 16 months, since her
draft date on Oct. 27, 2019, she's been braving the threat of arrest
and military incarceration.
More
recently, during Chanukah, on Teves 2, Dec. 17, 2020, the Army sent her a
letter (attached) threating her with arrest, and "inviting" her to give
herself in - bringing two weeks of provisions (presumably for a stint
in military prison). Thus, in a state that markets itself as the
Jewish State, this religious refusenik is being persecuted for her
fidelity to her Torah heritage.
What's important to add here is that the Israeli Army is doing all of this without a semblance of any legal pretext. It's clear from court documentation that
she's indisputably religious, a fact which even the Army didn't have
any basis to even question. Furthermore, she followed procedures in
filing for her religious exemption. She was nevertheless denied her
religious exemption, without a rudimentary veneer of justification.
The
IDF denial of her legal entitlement to a religious military service
exemption is not only blatantly illegal, it's also discriminatory abuse
against her as a religious girl. There is term commonly employed to
refer to that type of discriminatory misconduct: "antisemitism." A more
accurate term is "Jew Hatred" ("Sin'as Yisroel"). This form thereof,
however, is Sin'as Yisroel of the worst type. This is spiritual
Jew-hatred - discriminatory persecution of a girl for her faithfulness
to Torah. Worse, this is "spiritual antisemitism" employed in a manner
threatening to terrorize hundreds of other religious girls into forgoing
the battle over their religious exemptions, and enlisting into the
Israeli Army, in indisputable violation of Torah Law. It should also be
noted that this is the very military where, according to Israeli
government statistics, girls are far more likely to lose their Judaism
than maintain it, as recently reported in several pro-Israel venues [see
Matzav HaRuach, Feb.4], including the newsletter of the religious
zionist organization "Chotam."
Her story first broke in The Jewish Press Nov.15, '19, p.17:
"...
In related news, Olga Samilov, an 18-year-old baalas teshuva, reports
that she was denied her religious exemption despite properly following
procedures, at an August 14 (2019) hearing at the Tel HaShomer Draft
Office. The officer reportedly told her that the army decided not to
provide her an exemption, without providing any legal rationale or
pretext. Consequently, she was given a draft-date of October 27
(2019). She refused to enlist, and thus lives daily under the threat of
imminent arrest. Is she being discriminated against because she's a
baalas teshuvah without a support system?"*
{*
In a weekly email of the Coalition for Jewish Values, the "Rabbi's
Roundup" (Week of Parshas Tazria-Metzora, 5780), a link to a post about
her case appeared in the Israel section: https://
For those wishing to daven for her, her Hebrew name is Olga bas Soroh Shirah.
=======
One
of the many lessons that the ongoing Coronavirus plague accentuates is
the power of one individual to change the world. We see how even a
single infected person can spread a highly contagious disease -
globally.
The last Mishna in Makkos instructs us that "Midah Tovah Merubah," Divine Beneficence by far surpasses Divine Retribution, by a scale of one to 500. If one person can potentially do so much harm, imagine how much GOOD could he or she could do.
The last Mishna in Makkos instructs us that "Midah Tovah Merubah," Divine Beneficence by far surpasses Divine Retribution, by a scale of one to 500. If one person can potentially do so much harm, imagine how much GOOD could he or she could do.
In
physical matters we see this phenomenon clearly, and specifically in
regard to Corona. Of course this plague was declared in Heaven. However,
from an earthly perspective, al-pi teva, imagine how differently things
could have been if the individual Chinese doctor who posted an early
warning about the Coronavirus outbreak would have been properly heeded,
rather than hounded by the Chinese Communists? One fearless sentinel, if
heeded, could have saved the entire world from this plague.
In spiritual matters, the potential of an upright individual is arguably far greater. Just consider the Avos. Avrohom Avinu spearheaded a global theological revolution, turning over the world, away from pagan endarkenment, towards authentic Monotheism.
Of the many positive lessons we can learn from this devastating plague, this is one. This is not to assert that this is necessarily one of the reasons for which we are being punished. However, it's clearly one crucial moral lesson we can derive.
Let us return to our topic - the blatant injustice being perpetrated against Olga Shamilov* - and individuals like her - including other long-time female refuseniks, e.g.: Ziva bas Mazal, Shuly bas R., Hodoyah bas Leemor, and N.D. - the volunteer from France reportedly lied to by IDF headhunters.
In spiritual matters, the potential of an upright individual is arguably far greater. Just consider the Avos. Avrohom Avinu spearheaded a global theological revolution, turning over the world, away from pagan endarkenment, towards authentic Monotheism.
Of the many positive lessons we can learn from this devastating plague, this is one. This is not to assert that this is necessarily one of the reasons for which we are being punished. However, it's clearly one crucial moral lesson we can derive.
Let us return to our topic - the blatant injustice being perpetrated against Olga Shamilov* - and individuals like her - including other long-time female refuseniks, e.g.: Ziva bas Mazal, Shuly bas R., Hodoyah bas Leemor, and N.D. - the volunteer from France reportedly lied to by IDF headhunters.
(* cf. "Ongoing IDF Anti-religious Hate Under Corona" (https://daattorah.blogspot.
These
are real-life examples of the aforementioned righteous individuals.
These are individuals confronting formidable, often seemingly
insurmountable odds, and ultimately prevailing. We need them -- far
more than they need us. They serve as our shlichim ("agents"). By
standing in their defense, we can hope to share, in some measure, in
their unimaginable merit, in both this world and the next. And we need
their merits now, perhaps more than ever before.
The
following insights of HaRav Shamshon Refoel Hirsch OB"M, the
world-renowned leader of German Jewry over a century ago, regarding
Pinchos, are ever relevant to us, especially now:
"... And if someone, like Phinehas, is one among a multitude and every man is against him when he dares to speak out for truth and to fight for the Law - the more lonely his stand, the greater the number of his adversaries, the more powerful is his word, the mightier his deed. He is the savior of those against whom he struggles, a priest of atonement for those who stand by in silence, for he accomplishes what they should all have accomplished. Though every man be against him and he stand alone, yet G-d's covenant is with him and allows not his word to be lost or his deeds to vanish without trace."
A page earlier, Rav Hirsch explains:
"As long as even one man has the courage to take up the struggle openly for G-d's cause - which is no less than the cause of man's future - it is not lost on earth and the intervention of DIVINE JUDGEMENT* is not required. He (Pinchos -Ed.) had demonstrated for all time that whenever the sanctity of G-d and His Law is being mocked and trampled on (Chillul HaShem), EVERY* other consideration must give way."
{* emphasis absent in original}
(printed
in "Judaism Eternal," translation by Dayan Dr. I Grunfeld, vol.2, p.
293 (Soncino Publ., London, 1956)), in an essay at.the end of the volume
entitled "Pinchus ("Phinehas") - Eliyahu")
....
In
the wake of the Corona magaifah (plague), most of us have experiencing
"Bidud," solitary confinement, to one degree or another. But, as readers
of these posts and columns know, we're not the first ones to experience
such isolation. For many months, we've been reporting on numerous
Israeli military draft Refuseniks, in incarceration, and sometimes
punished with solitary confinement. But how many of us really paid
enough serious attention to their plight, serious enough to do something
meaningful? Does it not behoove us to take their plight to heart,
which we clearly should have been doing long before the term COVID was
coined? If this doesn't fit the Middah Keneged Middah profile delineated
by Rashi on Brochos 5a ("Pishpaish") and Ru'ach Chaim on Avos (4:14),
it's not quite clear what would. But even if it doesn't, fulfilling our
individual and communal obligations to these self sacrificing
individuals is something undeniably incumbent on us, regardless.
Unfortunately,
instead of focusing on standing by those standing between Jewish girls
and massive immoral and antireligious persecution by the Israeli Army,
some of us are allowing ourselves to be largely distracted with Corona
related issues, as important as some of them are. This must change. We
cannot continue to abandon those standing strong against the ever
escalating drafting of girls, and increasingly religious girls. We can
expect one result from such ongoing obliviousness to their plights: an
intensification of our own R"L.
And we can
surely perform far better than we are, far, far better. Moreover, in
recent months, Israeli media [e.g. Ynet] has been covering multiple
stories on the ongoing Army crusade against religious girls in
particular. Chotam, an Israeli, rightwing Mizrachi-type organization,
has been active in publicizing these reports. Where are we, when we have
unprecedented opportunities to expose the sheer evil of the Israeli
Army crusade against the next generation of Jewish mothers? "Middah
Tovah Merubah!"
###
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