(Jewish Telegraphic Agency)
–A return to the strict observance of the laws of the Torah must precede the rebuilding of Palestine, was the message of Rabbi Chaim Sonnenfeld, head of the ultra-Orthodox Jerusalem group and leader of Agudath Israel, on his 80th birthday.
Rabbi Sonnenfeld, who came to Palestine in 1872 and has since been living in the Old City near the Wailing Wall, spoke with religious fervor with a splendid Hebrew-Sephardic accent, when interviewed by the correspondent of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency on this occasion. He was the recipient of many congratulatory messages and personal calls by government dignitaries, and members of diplomatic corps.
“Like in the Biblical days of Ezra, all Israel should hold an assembly to solemnly proclaim its determination to observe the Torah, which is the only way to hasten the Redemption. Had this been done immediately after the British occupation of the land, our position in Palestine would now be much better. There would not be any desecration of the Sabbath here or violation of the dietary laws and other transgressions. Thousands more Jews would have come to Palestine. Orthodox Jewry is willing to join the extended Jewish Agency on the condition, however, that all work be carried out in accordance with the Torah,” the aged rabbi stated.
“The Zionists never sincerely sought the cooperation of Orthodox Jewry,” Rabbi Sonnenfeld charged. “Orthodox Jewry has never been consulted. For this there must be repentance. All Jewish work in Palestine is pointless without the Torah and without the Commandments,” he stated.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
