Living in the Land of Israel part 2

Despite the huge praise of living in the Land of Israel in Talmud, like "one who lives in the Land of Israel is as one who has a G-d, one who lives outside the Land of Israel is as one who has no G-d" and "Jews who observe the Torah outside the land are like those who worship idols in ritual purity", we find precious little about moving there. In fact, there is a view in the Talmud that it is FORBIDDEN to move there. The proof text is from Jeremiah "They shall be brought to Babylon, and remain there..." Our exile is a Divine Decree. Attempting to undo it is rebellion against G-d! (I have written elsewhere that although the Jerusalem Talmud believes in a natural redemption, the Babylonian speaks of a supernatural one.) However, the verse in Jeremiah is not speaking of the Jews, but of the Temple vessels captured by Nebuchadnezzar, and the above "interpretation" must be seen as aggadah.. The concept of Aliyah is perhaps the one with the widest gap between drash (homiletics) and pshat (literal meaning). Already the Tosafists (12th to 14th centuries) write that this mitzvah is no longer applicable, due to the hardships involved in the journey, as well as those involved in living in a primitive backwater. Besides, the special mitzvot that apply only in the Land are many and complex, which most will be unable to properly observe. (Tosafot, Ketubot 110b). This is also quoted in MORDECAI. This was little discussed in later centuries. One may argue that today there is no great hardship in the journey, and Israel is a modern country. But anyone who has been reading my posts knows that there are other kinds of hardships in Modern Israel, especially for American immigrants. Moshe Feinstein, writing in 1952, states that although one fulfills a mitzvah by living in the land of Israel, there is no obligation either Rabbinic or Biblical. He writes that since there is no actual obligation to live there, one should heed the warnings of Tosafot. This view caused considerable consternation in religious Zionist circles. When he died in 1985, and was buried in Jerusalem (I was at his funeral), one religious Zionist publication put on its cover "Rav Moshe makes aliyah!", superimposed on a picture of Jerusalem's Har Hamenuchot cemetery. People were arguing about that headline for many months.  Most non-Zionist, and anti-Zionist rabbis endorsed the view of  Moshe Feinstein. Rav Moshe Shternbuch, a Hareidi Israeli rabbi, added to it that the pressures against religion in Israel are very great, and one must think carefully about the effects of these pressures on one's self and one's family. On the other hand, Rav Eliezer Waldenberg, a major figure in religious Zionist circles, wrote emotionally about the "obligation" of aliyah after the founding of the State. According to him, a  twofold obligation of aliyah has been created. First, the barriers mentioned in Tosafot no longer exist (I would disagree strongly), and since Israel is the "beginning of the Redemption", but is still in its swaddling clothes, every Jew has an obligation to go there. He writes that this is a “central and fundamental Mitzvah”. It must be noted that these words are emotional, rather than source-based, and based primarily on the ideas of Rav Kook. Other rabbis in the religious Zionist camp write in a similar vein, quoting aggadic sources, and basing themselves primarily on political ideology rather than Torah. Some say that every case must be judged on its merits, as to the appropriateness of this move. One who goes on aliyah leaves friends and family behind, often breaking many hearts. One cannot ignore that the vast majority of Western immigrants, return to their native countries within five years. The statistics used to be 70% but were solved by the Israeli government by stopping to keep this statistic. I personally feel that my "aliyah" in 1984 hastened the deaths of my parents. This is a very heavy burden on me. I know countless others with the same thoughts. My take away from all of this is that all things being equal, it is a wonderful thing to live in the Land of Israel. But rarely are all things "equal". In my next post, I will deal with those who argue against living there in current circumstances.