Letter to the Editor: On Zionism and the Mizrachi

God bless. Lida, 17th of Tammuz 5664

To the distinguished editor, the great and wise rabbi, may his name be praised and glorified, etc., our teacher R. David Katzburg, publisher of the journal Tel-Talpiot [Fortressed Mountain]—a greeting and a blessing!

From the correspondence it is my honor to send to you—you will learn about Mizrachi’s nature and good, and on what foundations it is based. They will prove to you that the Mizrachi camp consists wholly of God-fearing Jews, steadfast to God, and true to His commandments. The Mizrachi Zionist movement is founded in absolute purity with no impure or defective fragment, God forbid. The Mizrachi Zionist movement is entirely consecrated to God (Jeremiah 2:3), to His inheritance, His Land, and His sanctities! And now that the Mizrachi is established, no person can, any longer, have a pretext to remain distant from Zionism, let alone to oppose it. Every Jewish person, if only he set his sights on truth and on the good of his Torah, his people, and his land, must hurry to join the ranks of the Zionist Mizrachi movement, this lofty movement that has the potential, with God’s help, to improve both the condition and the spirit of the people. Anyone who has healthy eyes and views through lucid lenses can clearly see how much Zionism has strengthened religious and national awareness among the youth, how much it has done in terms of national unity and popular organization, and how successful its actions have also been regarding the achievement of a material improvement in the condition of our people and the settlement project in the Holy Land! Only someone who is looking for pretexts can deny the truth of all these matters, which are increasingly being confirmed in everyday life in thousands of facts and deeds. And indeed, many have recognized this, and since the foundation of Mizrachi, tens of thousands of the faithful and hundreds of distinguished rabbis have been swept under the banner of Mizrachi. What man, if he only has a Jewish heart beating inside him and the blood of Israel flowing in his arteries, can stand against this lofty and mighty movement?!

I hope that you, too, will arise to the sound of the Lord’s voice calling loudly from Zion and our holy city Jerusalem, will awake to be among the sons and builders, and will take part in the sacred work for the people and its Torah, the Land and its settlement. You can bring great benefit to our cause, if you only begin this good move and start working for it. I do hope that your will not ignore the distress of your people and will not evade this sacred task, and that you will indeed lend your hand to the holy flag engraved in letters of fire with the sacred slogan: “For our God, our people, and our Land!” We are ready—lovingly and willingly—to welcome you as you join with us in working for the national cause. May the Lord who chooses Zion [see Psalm 132:13] inspire and strengthen you to empower and expand your work in the Jewish public domain, and bestow upon you blessing and glory among our people from now and forever. Awaiting your honorable reply, I wish you the blessing of Zion and Jerusalem.

With honor and respect,
Yitsḥak Ya‘akov Reines, av bet din [head of the rabbinic court] of this holy congregation.