The term Haredim comes from Isaiah 66:2, where it translates to “those who tremble before God.” They literally do. They are Ultra-Orthodox, the most religiously devout denomination of Judaism. They strive to maintain Eastern European traditions which stretch back hundreds of centuries. Their population in Israel is approximately half a million, 12% of the overall population. Although a small group, the Haredim are very controversial as well, and they stir up a lot of disagreement around many different issues. They do not recognize any other denomination of Judaism as legitimate, and they want Israel to be primarily a religious country, meaning that the entire country should have to abide by the same strict laws the Ultra-Orthodox do, without exception. They also have a lot of influence politically as well, as “their political power could make or break government coalitions (Rosenthal: 176).” Exemptions like being able to evade the military draft in order to study in a Yeshiva, and government subsidies that support the Haredim and their large families, are reasons the Haredim are separate the rest of Israeli society , and explains the great divide between them.
The chapter on Haredim in the book showed the way Haredim families and communities function. They keep themselves separate in many ways, and really live a strict, law abiding and predictable life. 70% of Israeli Haredim men do not work. Instead they study the five books of Moses, and their commentaries in Institutions dedicated to teaching the scriptures of Judaism. Benjamin, a Haredi Israeli living near Mea Shearim, states, “study is my livelihood and Talmud my profession. The spiritual wealth of learning the Talmud is worth more than any paycheck (Rosenthal: 177).” Out of 500,000 Haredim in Israel, 70% of the men do not have a job. If you estimate that half the Haredi population is male, that means approximately 175,000 Haredim are not working. Where, might you ask, do they get the money to support themselves and their ample children?
The women. The women are the primary breadwinners in a Haredi household, and combined with government stipends, it is their paycheck that supports the families. Sarah, a Haredi women has found herself successful in a business venture, making and supplying fashionable wigs to Haredi women. She sees working as her duty, and is very proud to support her husband’s studies. “Back when Jews lived in shetls and ghettoes, people were so poor they were busy just trying to find enough to eat. So how many men could afford a life of spiritual study? Very few, I tell you. To study Torah and Talmud is the ultimate mitzvah: everything is there. Everything. Laws, ethics, and history. And even psychology. Its like the ocean, so vast, so deep (Rosenthal: 177).” It is kind of Ironic, they way Sarah talks about the scriptures when women aren’t allowed to deeply study the texts and commentaries of the Torah. Sarah, as well as most of the Haredi community lives a very frugal life, and do not have extra money or disposable income; not like they care either. Sarah believes, “What we don’t have in money, we have in spirituality.”
In an article by Jonathan Rosenblum entitled “The Feminie Mystique,” Rosenblum critiques an article written by Haaretz reporter Orit Shohat, about Haredi women and their inability to choose. Rosenblum’s article mainly focuses on this inflammatory passage.
The claim that Haredi Jewish women freely choose to bring 12 children into the world is about as solid as the claim that there are women who freely choose to become prostitutes or paid surrogate mothers. If it were not for their emotional misery and if it were not for the social pressure they are under and the state of abject poverty in which they live, haredi women would not opt for a life of slavery. It is doubtful whether most ever had the opportunity to make any personal choices whatsoever in their lives.
Rosenblum rebuts her argument by seeking out Haredi women, and proving that Shohat’s criticisms of Haredi women are unfounded and untrue. There are voices of women in the article who have also chosen to become ultra-Orthodox, even though they were not raised observant. The opinions of these women were consistent, and their type of lifestyle, faultless. They love what they do and cannot imagine a different kind of life. They find a lot of meaning in what they do, and they both choose to live it and choose to believe it.
