Army Uniform as a Religious Commandment: The Zionist-Religious Public and the Army

Abstract

The Religious Zionist public has very strong visibility in the IDF today, but this was not always so. This article traces the process of change in Israeli society and especially in its national-religious sector that brought about the enhanced presence of this public in the IDF. The article shows that this was a process coming from below, whereby at each stage the changes were brought about by the younger generations, which in turn galvanized the political and religious establishment.

The paper also shows how this public navigated the tension between religious life and values on one hand and military life on the other. It shows the birth of unique institutions combining Jewish studies and military service such as the Hesder Yeshiva and the Mechinot – pre-army study programs. The birth of religious literature on army, ethics, and Jewish law is also described, as is that of a religious language for describing the army and war experience. The article shows that the government’s understanding of this ethos underlay its decision to use the army to expel the Gush Katif settlers from their homes, knowing that a confrontation the army would be incompatible with the national religious public’s values.