Halachic dilemmas in the State of Israel

Speaking last week on the Beit Midrash Rechavia program which Hanassi hosts in conjunction with OU Israel, Rabbi Kenigsberg delivered the first of two lectures on the topic of "Halachic dilemmas in the State of Israel". This lecture pointed to the emergence of a range of questions about the application of halacha that arose from the creation of a modern Jewish state. Some of these questions had never been considered before; others had been furnished with answers -- but only within the context of Jews living within a non-Jewish society. A third source of questions arose from the need to apply halacha to hitherto unknown technologies. 

The range of issues is vast. Israel, being a state, is required to maintain law, order, security and safety within its jurisdiction. The existence of the concept of pikuach nefesh, for example, is well established: we can violate even the laws of Shabbat in order to save a life. But how far does this go, in terms of maintaining an army, a police force, medical services and other essential services across the board? And is there a notion of State pikuach nefesh? 

If these topics intrigue you, why not enjoy this lecture in full (54 minutes) on YouTube by clicking here.

Rabbi Kenigsberg will be giving his second lecture in the series on Wednesday 11 December in Beit Knesset Hanassi. Come and hear him live!