Half a Yeshiva Student plus Half a Soldier equals Zero Achdus

Why those cute kids in costume are problematic

The video clip of the adorable charedi kids dressed as half yeshiva student, half soldier has gone viral. This morning, as I was walking down the street, a woman pulled over to tell me that she had found it very upsetting, and she was very appreciative of my post yesterday which described the costumes as problematic. But subsequently I realized that clearly I hadn’t explained it well enough, since many people disagreed very strongly with what I wrote. So let me try again.

If you believe (as some do) that these children come from a home in which everyone both learns Torah and serves in the IDF, and that their costumes are designed to reflect that, and that it’s sending a message that being chareidi and being a soldier is compatible, then I can certainly understand why you don’t see it as offensive in any way. Indeed, if that was the clear message, I too would be very supportive of it!

However, that is not how most people are interpreting it, and with good reason. Yes, there are some charedim who serve in the IDF, but it’s an insignificantly small number. There are no significant charedi yeshiva IDF frameworks, and it’s not as though these kids are wearing patches saying “Yeshivat HaHesder HaCharedi.”

In the overwhelming majority of cases, families in which everyone both learns Torah in yeshiva and serves in the IDF are dati-leumi families. In those cases, the Torah study and the army service are integrated as part of the same identity. A kid would not dress up as half one and half the other; he’d dress as a religious soldier holding a sefer. And if he were to dress as half his yeshiva role and half his soldier role, his yeshiva side would not be wearing a black velvet kippa and a white shirt and dark pants, because that’s not how people in those circles dress.

Rather, these costumes are presenting a message that our nation is comprised both of a Zionist community that serves in the army and a Charedi community that does not serve in the army and instead learns in yeshivah, and both are valuable parts. Even if you think this is the wrong interpretation, that’s certainly how many people are taking it. As the chareidi person who sent out the video that I saw wrote, B’yachad nenatzeach! This is a message that some have been continually promoting since October 7th, specifically with regard to charedi yeshiva students and non-charedi soldiers both playing a crucial role in the war.

Now, some people - generally those in communities that do not send their children to the army - see that as a correct and valuable message. But others - especially those in communities that do send their children to the army - see it as wrong, dangerous, and offensive.

It is wrong for an entire sector to exempt itself from a very difficult responsibility that is placed on the nation as a whole. It is dangerous, when we have become aware of how big an army we need, to have a growing sector refuse to serve. It is offensive, because we do not appreciate that our young men have to leave yeshivah and family and jobs for an increasing number of years while the charedi community does not share this burden. We do not appreciate that the charedi community disregards and disrespects the Torah studied by our yeshivah students (sometimes under very difficult conditions). We do not believe that protective spiritual merit for the nation is accrued by a community that selfishly shirks responsibility and unfairly burdens others. And there is certainly no achdus in such a thing!

Yes, these costumes are still a lot better than Satmar kids marching with portable gallows and slogans declaring that they would rather be hung than serve. And these costumes are a good thing in comparison to the pashkevil in Bnei Brak signed by dozens of rabbis, prohibiting children from dressing up as soldiers lest such costumes exert an “ugly influence” on them that such a path is acceptable. (And as one signatory writes, it detracts from teaching them that learning Torah in yeshiva is the only thing that defends the Jewish People - soldiers apparently have no value at all.)

But that’s setting a low bar for comparison. And while it may mean that such costumes are sending a good message vis-a-vis the most hostile elements of the charedi world, they are certainly not sending a good message in absolute terms. We need as many Torah students and IDF soldiers as we can get - and we need them to be the same people doing both.