Orthodox Jewish dilemma over Israeli produce

As pictures of Gaza in darkness circulated the world's media a few weeks ago, the start of Israel's blockade of the strip caused a far lesser-known crisis in kitchens across the Jewish state.

In an arrangement that seems to turn the Middle East tensions on their head, Orthodox Jews are orchestrating their own boycott of Israeli goods. What is more, they are clamouring to get their hands on produce from Gaza and other Palestinian areas.

The boycott is not motivated by politics, but by a biblical injunction. “In the seventh year the land is to have a Sabbath of rest, a Sabbatical to the Lord,” it is stated in Leviticus. According to rabbis' calculations, this Jewish year, which began in September, is the seventh.

This means that no new crops can be planted, so vegetables cannot be grown. Minimal maintenance can take place only on fruit trees, defined as those that bear produce year on year.

So as Gaza looks to Israel for its fuel, Orthodox householders look to Gaza for their vegetables. Agricultural produce from here - and other areas that are outside the Land of Israel as defined by the Talmud - is perfectly permissible.

This dependency has worked relatively well in the past. Before this Sabbatical began in September, there were even rumours of covert negotiations between rabbis and Hamas-supporting farmers. In fact hardly a single cucumber is getting through from Gaza; and with relations with other Palestinian areas at a low, vegetables are at a premium.

Produce is being flown in from as far afield as China and America. A trip to the greengrocer's is costing the Orthodox Israeli double what it did this time last year.

In Britain, where the extent of agricultural trade with Israel is usually limited to receiving her exports, trade has been turned on its head. As soon as species arrive, they leave for Israel.

The Israeli produce in British shops presents Orthodox Jewish shoppers with a dilemma. And Israel's strongest advocates, who respond to the campaign to shun Israeli goods by buying extra in a bid to offset trade lost by the boycotters - what do they do when they see Galilean sweetcorn and Jerusalem basil? Do they buy, thus acting on their solidarity to Israel or do they follow their religion and thus unwittingly join Israel's detractors?

In fact, the decision is far more complex than this. While much of Israeli Orthodoxy strictly enforces the ruling and shuns local produce, some rabbis claim that it is permissible, even desirable, to buy the vegetables that are supposedly prohibited. These contradictory schools of thought are locked in a 119-year-old dispute on whichthe Orthodox British shopper must make a judgment in the vegetable aisle.

It started in the late 1880s. For centuries, this Sabbatical had been little more than an academic subject, as few Jews lived in the Holy Land. But as Zionists arrived and struggled to establish agriculture, they complained that surrendering a seventh of their produce would make their task near impossible. One leading rabbi, Elchanan Spector, said that farming could continue if the land was sold to a non-Jew and then bought back when the Sabbatical was over.

Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, first Chief Rabbi of pre-state Israel, and many other influential religious authorities, approved, and under his successors this has become standard practice. But many equally influential rabbis lambasted the practice, regarding it as an unconvincing get-out.

The Israelis demanding foreign produce follow this school of thought, while other Orthodox people - sometimes even in the same family - claim the land sale is binding and eat domestically grown produce.

Tzohar, an alliance of religious Zionist rabbis, is promoting this practice. Its chairman, Rabbi Rafael Feuerstein, says: “This solves a conflict of values, both of which have status in Jewish law. First is the need to keep farming going, and self-sufficiency in production is a matter of national welfare given Israel's uncertain security situation. Second is the Sabbatical regulation.

“Even without the Sabbatical restriction, many people are leaving farming in Israel as it is difficult to make a decent salary. Trusting this land sale and buying Israeli vegetables - in Israel and abroad - is important if Israeli farming is to survive; it is key to the survival of the State.”

Leading the antis is an émigré from London, Rabbi Yoel Moore, an activist in the pressure group called the Institute for Agricultural Research According to Torah. He says: “This leniency was permitted because of special circumstances that no longer apply. The agricultural community was just starting out and people were in danger of losing their livelihoods. Now, doing without agriculture for one year in seven would hardy harm the economy. The reasons for allowing the leniency no longer apply, so it should no longer be used.”

The British Jewish mainstream has rejected the land sale custom. The London Beth Din, the ecclesiastical court of the Chief Rabbi, has issued statements advising people “to avoid using products that are grown in Israel”. Other Orthodox synagogue organisations concur.

But the reality, as in most matters of religious observance, is that people are largely acting on their own judgment. While careful not to undermine the leadership by stating so publicly, many religious figures privately voice disquiet: “I would probably disagree with the authorities on this, but I would not give guidance to my congregation accordingly as rabbinic authority rests with them,” comments one leading religious-Zionist rabbi.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article3417981.ece