The numbers may be small, but we see a growing trend of Charedi(ultra-orthodox)boys enlisting in the IDF. This year, the Magen Shaul-Nokdim Pre-Military Academy is embracing this change by welcoming a group who come from a Charedi background, among its 110 recruits. These young men will be supported as they navigate and integrate into the diverse and complex social fabric of our Pre-Military Academy (Mechina), before they join the IDF.
It’s a significant step towards building unity and understanding within Israeli society.
Now More than Ever
As the Iron Swords War continues into a second year, we are all bracing ourselves for a longer conflict which will require additional soldiers. It is more important than ever to recruit every young man who is prepared to serve, and help him to become an effective soldier. I do not believe that we should force those who are unwilling to enlist. It would weaken our forces if army units included individuals with negative attitudes towards the importance of serving. The country needs to work harder to find those who are willing to join the IDF and the ramifications of working under military authority. I’ve met many young men (and women) who recognize that this is our sacred duty, and their commitment inspires hope and strength in all of us. Together, we can build a formidable force, united by a shared sense of purpose and dedication.
However, let us not underestimate the challenge involved in leaving a non-Zionist Charedi Yeshiva to become an IDF soldier. This is a huge step for a young man to take, which may involve disobeying his Rabbis and perhaps alienating him from his family and most of his friends. It involves much more than exchanging his black and white uniform for green fatigues. He must change his mindset, and prepare to live with people whose values and behaviors may seem foreign to him.
Helping Charedim to Enlist
At the Magen Shaul-Nokdim Pre-Military Academy, we recognize the importance of supporting Charedi boys while they prepare for meaningful army service. Our program is designed for boys who are motivated to develop themselves and become religious soldiers who know what they are fighting for. It brings together Israeli high school graduates from different backgrounds. During their year with us, they develop a broad understanding of the strength and diversity of the Jewish nation, and develop unbreakable bonds of friendship and trust that will shape their future interactions.
There are several new Charedi army preparation programs that are designed just for Charedi boys, and that funnel them toward army units, where they learn and serve exclusively with others like them. However, I do not believe this solution goes far enough. We need to encourage them to integrate more authentically into Israeli society, holding onto their religious identity but becoming more involved in building our nation, during their national service and afterward. Without meeting other Israelis – National Religious, traditional, non-religious and non-Jewish Israelis – who serve together in the IDF, they will not really understand the country that they will swear to protect. Unless they meet Sephardic and Ashkenazi, Russian and Ethiopian, immigrant and native-born Israelis of their own age, it will be more challenging and difficult to become full partners in our rich and diverse society.
Magen Shaul-Nokdim is one of the largest religious pre-military academies in Israel and one of an increasing number of pre-military academies that do amazing work to prepare Israel’s youth for Army service. The leadership of the IDF recognizes the benefit of pre-military academies; they are happy to defer enlistment for any young people who sign up to spend a year in a pre-military program. They have seen that our graduates are more mature and ready to get on with the job at hand, while they integrate more readily with other recruits from different backgrounds.
One parent from Raanana recently told me that he has seen his son benefit tremendously from sharing a room with boys from different backgrounds and traditions, because it encouraged him to consider his own Jewish identity and the things he had always taken for granted.
Developing the Motivation to Serve
For the past 29 years, our Mechina has been led by Rabbi Itamar Cohen, a renowned educator and author of more than a dozen books on emunah (faith). Each of our students spends their important “gap year” after high school learning about themselves and investigating their Jewish heritage in the Beit Midrash. They learn to wake themselves up in the morning for Shacharit. We do not drag them out of bed, and we do not test them on their learning. We encourage them to become self-motivated adults who want to daven and learn Torah. We teach them about Zionist values, and we show them what they are fighting to protect.
Our location on the edge of the Judean Desert allows them to contemplate their identity and decide what they want to achieve in their lives. Living in a frontier town, they can see for themselves that Israel is a beautiful country that needs constant protection from its enemies. We train our students physically and emotionally, giving them navigation skills and resilience, and we urge them to think beyond the borders of their own communities. We encourage friendly debate with people whose views are different from their own, so that they can learn to listen with an open mind, while holding onto their own Jewish values.
Let us not forget that Israel was on the brink of civil war before Hamas attacked us on October 7, 2023. The angry protests that we are seeing once again on our streets, and the increasing hostility between the Charedi community and the rest of Israel, threaten once again to break our society apart. Building Jewish unity is a crucial goal of our Mechina, as we encourage our students to embrace peers who hold different opinions. If only we could apply the same techniques to the rest of Israeli society!
Ours is a tried and tested formula for developing religiously-motivated warriors, as a unique “melting-pot” that unites boys from different backgrounds to defend the Jewish State. During this past year, we had over 2,000 graduates protecting Israel in the IDF Reserves. We are proud of every one of them. We will continue to train hundreds of future warriors who are committed to securing Israel’s tomorrow together.
