Was Ezra a High Priest?

This article discusses various Rabbinic positions regarding whether Ezra the Scribe—who was a Kohen—served as the High Priest in the Holy Temple after returning to Jerusalem from the Babylonian Exile. In doing so, the article explains the relationship between Ezra and Joshua ben Jehozedek and traces the history of the returnees from Babylonian Exile. Several proofs from Mishnaic and Midrashic sources are considered and some are rejected. Special attention is given to the stance of Maimonides on this issue. In attempting to reconcile these sources, the article proposes a difference between the terms “High Priest” and “Chief Priest”. 

Reuven Chaim (Rudolph) Klein, "Was Ezra a High Priest", Jewish Bible Quarterly Vol. 41:3 (Jerusalem: Jewish Bible Association, 2013)

Was Ezra a High Priest?

Keywords: Ezra, Kohen Gadol, Kohen Rosh, Joshua ben Jehozedek, Maimonides, Second Holy Temple, Seraiah, Red Heifer, Babylonian Exile

This paper is available at several other locations:
Jewish Bible Quarterly Online Archive
Academia.edu
The Free Library
Questia

Irena Sendler of the Chasidei Umos HaOlam

Irena Sendler of the Chasidei Umos HaOlam

by guest blogger

Yad Vashem was established in 1953 by Israel's Remembrance Authority with the stated mission of honoring the Chasidei Umos HaOlam. As part of their answer to the  dilemma of how to memorize the victims Yad Vashem established a program which honors the Righteous Among the Nations -- gentiles who put their lives at risk to rescue Jews.

Over the years Yad VaShem has honored tens of thousands of people including, in 1965, a Polish woman by the name of Irena Sendler. Sendler is credited with having saved over 3000 Jewish lives, almost two thirds more than the more well-known Oskar Schindler of "Schindler's List" renown.  

In 1999 a group of students from Kansas City  researched the events surrounding Sendler's activities, documented their findings and actually met with the then-98-year-old Sendler before creating a project "Life in a Jar" which relates the Irena Sendler story.

Irena Sendler was a young social worker in Poland when the Germans invaded in 1939. She joined the Zagota -- a Polish underground group that specialized in assisting Jews. Over the course of the first two years of the war Sendler helped forge documents and locate hiding places for Jews who were fleeing the Nazis -- accounts estimate that she helped over 500 Jews escape from the Nazis.  

In 1941 Sendler obtained false documents which identified her as a nurse. She was able to enter the Warsaw Ghetto with food and medicines but once she saw the situation in the ghetto Sendler's mission turned into what she could bring out of the ghetto rather than what she could bring in. She realized that the Nazis intended to murder the Jews and she felt that the best chance for saving lives lay in removing as many children from the ghetto as possible. Sendler began to smuggle children out of the ghetto, picking up orphans from the street and bringing them out by sedating them and ferrying them in luggage, bags, toolboxes, and even under carts filled with garbage.

Sendler then began to go door to door in the ghetto. She begged parents to allow her to take their children. This was traumatic for the parents, who had to decide where their children's best chance of survival lay, and also for Sendler herself who later told historians "I talked the mothers out of their children" Sendler described the heartwrenching scenes that she experienced, day after day, as she took children from their families. "Those scenes over whether to give a child away were heart-rending. Sometimes, they wouldn't give me the child. Their first question was, 'What guarantee is there that the child will live?' I said, 'None. I don't even know if I will get out of the ghetto alive today."

As perilous as smuggling the children out of the ghetto was -- via a secret passage through the Old Courthouse that stood on the edge of the ghetto, under tram seats and even through the sewer pipes that ran under the city -- the next part of the rescue operation was just as difficult. Sendler and her Zagota comrades had to forge documents for the children and find suitable hiding places for them. Many children were placed in convents or orphanages while others were hidden with sympathetic Polish families.

Yad Vashem Museum

Sendler carefully recorded the names of the children on tissue paper which she then closed in glass jars and buried in her neighbor's garden. She wanted to ensure that, after the war, the children could be reunited with their families if possible or, if not, at least with their Jewish community.

In October 1943 Sendler was arrested by the Germans who interned her in the infamous Pawiak prison. Throughout the torture which included breaking  both of her legs Sendler never divulged any information about "her" children.  Zagota members obtained her release by bribing a guard just as Sendler was being led to her execution. She  lived out the rest of the war in hiding.

In addition to the 1965 Yad Vashem commemoration Sendler was honored by the Life in a Jar project run by the LMC. Life in a Jar includes a book, a website and a performance which has been viewed by audiences throughout the world.  

Why Chareidim are So Freaked Out About the Army

The following is a guest post written by the lovely Rebbetzin HaQoton. I feel that for many it is worthwhile to read:

Why Chareidim are So Freaked Out About the Army

Disclaimer:  The following is nothing more than my own personal views.  I speak only for myself.  My intention is not to try to change anybody’s opinion on the matter; merely to explain what our own internal logic is. 

Chareidi Ideology 101

Explaining why Chareidim react so strongly to serving in the army necessitates a background explanation of Chareidi ideology.

I view the State of Israel as a secular entity that’s separate from the religious entity of Eretz Yisrael.  I believe that Eretz Yisrael is holy, a special place, designated for Jews, our homeland, and that there’s a religious preference to live there.  However, I don’t see Eretz Yisrael as being interchangeable with the political/legal entity called the State of Israel/Medinat Yisrael. To me, the State sits on top of the physical land of Eretz Yisrael like a hat sits on a head.  Therefore, I don’t view the State (and by extension, the army) as having religious significance.  I view the State of Israel like I view the USA: it’s a country, I’m its citizen, I live there, it provides me with services, and in general I follow its laws. 

While I don’t feel that the legal entity of the State of Israel is holy or religiously significant, I certainly believe that the Jews who live in it are!  I make a distinction between the country and its inhabitants.  Jews of every stripe and color are special, regardless of whether they are secular or religious. All Jews possess special souls, the attributes of mercy and kindness, an innate connection to G-d, and a desire to do what’s right.  It’s undeniable that living in a place where much of the population is Jewish is an entirely different experience than living in a place populated mostly by non-Jews.

My first allegiance is to G-d and His rules as I perceive them.  One of G-d’s rules is “dina dimalchusa dina” – that one is obligated to follow the secular law of the land.  Therefore, I follow secular laws meticulously. However, I view G-d as the general, and the secular government as a lower ranking officer.  If a lower ranking officer orders me to disobey the general, I will follow the general’s orders over those of the lower ranking officer.

Yes, there are scandals when Chareidim break secular laws.  I view these crimes as an embarrassment, a disgrace, and a moral wrong, because one must follow secular rules unless there’s a religious conflict.  Just because someone looks like a Chareidi, that doesn’t mean that they act as a Chareidi should.  Chareidim are people, and like all people, some of us are nice, and some of us are jerks.  Some do what they should, and some don’t.  Nobody is perfect, Chareidim included.  We are a group of individuals, not a nameless faceless uniform bloc. I am confident that most Chareidim are good and nice people, and that the occasional much publicized jerk or charlatan is the exception rather than the rule.

I view the lifestyle of men learning Torah as much as practical to be a moral imperative.  One who studies math gains mathematical knowledge, and one who learns science gains scientific knowledge.  But learning Torah results in much more than the mere acquisition of knowledge.  I believe that Torah as a collective whole is a spiritual force; and that when one learns Torah he connects to this force.  The entire universe, in all of its incredible complexity, is a reflection of the Torah.  Torah is intertwined with the fabric of the universe, and with G-d Himself.  Learning Torah affects the physical and the spiritual realms.  By learning Torah one generates the spiritual force that keeps the universe in existence; and brings blessing and protection to oneself, one’s family, one’s city, and the Jewish people.  Learning Torah is G-d’s will, and by doing His will, He, who controls everything will shower us with everything good. 

Yes, this raises the age old question of why bad things happen to good people.  It’s a very good question.  Moshe himself asked it.  One answer, in a nutshell, is that we don’t have the broad understanding of the past, present, future, physical world, and spiritual realms that G-d does.  Just because something looks bad to us, that doesn’t mean that it actually is bad.

What About the Army?

First, let me state that I have a lot of gratitude to the State of Israel, the Israeli Army, and the chayalim for all that they do for me.  They provide me with many services that enable me to live here, something which I view as very significant.  For example, I am very glad to have subsidized health care, and I make good use of it.  As for the chayalim, they serve with self-sacrifice.  At best they sacrifice years of their life for the common good.  Unfortunately, sometimes they also sacrifice life and limb.  I am well aware that chayalim have families who worry about them, and live without their fathers/sons/husbands/brothers when they serve, both in regular army service and in milu'im.

However, just because an army is needed, it doesn’t follow that everyone needs to be in the army.  It seems clear to me that army serves a twofold purpose:  Firstly, it provides defense services.  Secondly, it is culturally unifying.  Army service is a rite of passage which bonds people together, makes them identify as Israeli, and gives them a propensity to refer to others as “Achi.”  I believe that the army doesn’t actually need more manpower; and that therefore Chareidim are being drafted due to popular sentiment that we “share the burden,” and in order to integrate us into mainstream Israeli society. 

However, we do not want to be integrated. We deliberately choose a life centered around the study of Torah and incorporation of every facet of our existence into our service of G-d.  At least, that’s the goal.  One of the main struggles in life is retaining sight of that goal.  We view much of secular society as detrimental to our endeavor to live a life of holiness and divine service.  Consequently, we voluntarily distance ourselves from secular culture and generally prefer to live, learn, and work amongst ourselves.

Therefore, the attempt to draft Chareidim en masse is seen as an attempt to forcibly change our entire culture and lifestyle, and integrate us into a society that we have ideological opposition to being a part of.  It is viewed as an attempt to wrench thousands of men out of yeshiva, an act which is devastating to the spiritual wellbeing of both the individuals and the yeshiva network as a whole, which we view as our lifeblood.  Not only do we place primary importance on men learning in yeshiva, but we view the army as an environment fraught with spiritual dangers. We are fighting for everything that we hold sacred and dear.

Why Chareidim are not Parasitic Leaches

The widespread Chareidi aversion to army service, coupled with our preference to learn rather than work, raises the obvious question of how Chareidim contribute to Israeli society.  It certainly seems like we are parasitic: supported by taxes of hardworking Israelis and sacrifices of soldiers without giving anything in return.

However, I believe that Chareidim contribute a lot to Israeli society.  The following are a few examples:  First and foremost, the country and people of Israel need all of the help that they can get.  I believe that G-d controls everything.  Therefore, if we want things to be good, we should stay on His good side.  What G-d wants is Torah learning, prayer, and adherence to His laws. We Chareidim are busy working on that. 

Secondly, it is a fallacy that Chareidim don’t pay taxes. Israel has a 17% sales tax.  We pay that tax on every item that we buy to feed and care for our (typically) large families.  Other taxes, such as a tax on gas, get passed on to us, the consumers, in the form of higher prices on things such as bus fare. Furthermore, many Chareidim do work and pay taxes.  Especially if the husband is learning, the wife is often working.  Taxes are automatically deducted from paychecks.

Thirdly, Israel is a socialist county.  As such, the government provides funding to myriad causes, and subsidizes many different services and amenities.  I believe that the Chareidi sector is not receiving more money than any other sector, and is likely allocated less. I assure you that we are not living the good life on government money.  Even with aliya benefits, the sum total of all the money that we personally receive from the government doesn’t even come near covering the cost of our groceries, not to mention rent and other expenses.

                Fourthly, Chareidim play a large role in the war of demographics: I believe that we are the only group keeping up with the Arab birthrate. By extension, our need for housing creates “facts on the ground.” For example, I live in Beitar Illit, an exclusively Chareidi city in the West Bank (near the Gush) with a rapidly growing population currently numbering roughly 50,000 people.  People from nearby settlements come to Beitar for things such as grocery shopping and medical care.  Kiryat Sefer, also known as Modi'in Illit, is another exclusively Chareidi city in the West Bank whose population is similar to Beitar’s in size and growth.