Well-said, Rafi

Rav Avigdor Miller on Moving To Eretz Yisroel or Chicago
Posted on December 5, 2017 by Toras Avigdor

Q:
What should be our attitude towards moving to Eretz Yisroel? Should we be preparing for making עליה to Israel?
A:
What should be our attitude towards preparing to move to Eretz Yisroel? Or to Israel? Well, there’s a big difference between those two.

We should prepare every day to go Eretz Yisroel. Every day you should be ready because when Moshiach comes you won’t have much time to prepare. You should know that the Chofetz Chaim was busy preparing. He wrote seforim on קדשים and the עבודת בית המקדש, the laws that will be in place when we rebuild the בית המקדש, so that we should know what to do when we get there. So this type of preparation surely should be made. You should be preparing all the time for that great day when Moshiach comes.

Now, if you’re thinking about preparing to go there soon yourself, without Moshiach, then it depends on your circumstances. If you’re going to go live in a very Orthodox neighborhood, which will be better than your present environment, then there’s no reason why you shouldn’t improve yourself. Why not? However if you’re just going there, to Eretz Yisrael, because it’s Israel, to settle anyplace, then it doesn’t pay. Because you can move to places in Israel that are just like Chicago, like the bad neighborhoods in Chicago. If you move to Tel-Aviv, to certain neighborhoods in Tel-Aviv, and many other places in the State of Israel, then it’s no different than moving to Chicago. So you have to know where you want to move. But if you have a good place to move to, where it will improve you, then why not? As long as you have parnasa, why not?

TAPE # 9

Clearly Rabbi Yosef has never set foot in a "secular" part of Israel. Which is handy, as there are very few such places.

Of course Nachum the blog commentor has a more autehntic Torah view than Rav Avigor Miller, z'l or Rav Yitzchak Yosef, shlita.

I guess that sums up the difference between our 2 chief Rabbis. Rav Yitzhak Yosef says that moving to a secular neighborhood (whatever that is) may ruin you. Rav David Lau grew up in Netanya and Tel Aviv and has lived for the past 20 years in Modi'in, where he raised his children.

Looks like one sees himself as the Chief Rabbi of the Haredi World, and the other sees himself as the Chief rabbi of Israel.

1. Yes, better to live in dangerous Tunisia than in safe Israel. (rhetorical)
2. Don't learn math or science. Then how can he be a dayan? In fact, he's the Chief Dayan. Remember the case of RCK, who didn't even know what a debit card card was, in relation to a Din Torah.
3. Rav David Lau (at least before he became Rav haRashi) did miluim, reportedly in army intelligence.
Oh, and he was Rav of Modiin, not exactly a very religious town.
3B. And Har Nof, where Rav Yosef lived (does he still live there?), was originally a mixed community when his father moved there.
Of course, his father grew up in Shmuel haNavi, but he won't publicly point that out. Even though everything by him is 'his father'.

I think the point may be that if these Tunisian families are traditional but not otherwise strong in their yiddishkite then if they find themselves in a secular town their level of frumkite will flounder also they may end up sending their kids to local chiloni schools. If the children end up irreligious was it then really a good thing moving to Israel?

This is probably based on the context of those he is speaking to, a predominantly sefardi community, where many of them slip terribly spiritually after aliya.

If AM YISROEL is an OHR LEGOLAH and mission is to bring Torah to communities, it would make sense to join cities, moshavim, kehillas that need strengthening in Torah observances. BH there are many of these types of groups bringing proper chinuch, Torah classes, and a SHabbos environment to predominately Secular cities.

Sounds like the kind of psak that lots of Rabbis in Europe gave to their congregations... nuff said.