Why don't Charedim accept and celebrate the great miracle of Medinat Yisrael?? A Jewish government in Israel after 2,000 years and for the Charedim it is at best religiously meaningless, and at worst a tragedy! How can we swallow that??
Rav Soloveitchik z"l said about his uncle Rav Velvel [the Brisker Rov] that the reason he was opposed to the Medina was because he was a man of halacha and since there is no halachic category in which Medinat Yisrael can be placed, automatically [ממילא] it lacks significance.
Let us see what I think he meant. Says the Rambam [Melachim 1-7]:
כשמעמידין המלך מושחין אותו בשמן המשחה שנאמר ויקח שמואל את פך השמן ויצק על ראשו וישקהו ומאחר שמושחין המלך הרי זה זוכה לו ולבניו עד עולם שהמלכות ירושה שנאמר למען יאריך ימים על ממלכתו הוא ובניו בקרב ישראל הניח בן קטן משמרין לו המלוכה עד שיגדיל כמו שעשה יהוידע ליואש וכל הקודם בנחלה קודם לירושת המלוכה והבן הגדול קודם לקטן ממנו ולא המלכות בלבד אלא כל השררות וכל המינויין שבישראל ירושה לבנו ולבן בנו עד עולם והוא שיהיה הבן ממלא מקום אבותיו בחכמה וביראה היה ממלא ביראה אף על פי שאינו ממלא בחכמה מעמידין אותו במקום אביו ומלמדין אותו וכל מי שאין בו יראת שמים אע"פ שחכמתו מרובה אין ממנין אותו למינוי מן המינויין שבישראל כיון שנמשח דוד זכה בכתר מלכות והרי המלכות לו ולבניו הזכרים עד עולם שנאמר כסאך יהיה נכון עד עולם ולא זכה אלא לכשרים שנאמר אם ישמרו בניך בריתי אף על פי שלא זכה אלא לכשרים לא תכרת המלוכה מזרע דוד לעולם הקדוש ברוך הוא הבטיחו בכך שנאמר אם יעזבו בניו תורתי ובמשפטי לא ילכון ופקדתי בשבט פשעם ובנגעים עונם וחסדי לא אפיר מעמו:
When a king is appointed, he is anointed with oil reserved for this purpose, as I Samuel 10:1 states: 'And Samuel took the cruse of oil and poured it over his head. Then, he kissed him.'
Once a king is anointed, he and his descendents are granted the monarchy until eternity, for the monarchy is passed down by inheritance, as Deuteronomy 17:20 states 'Thus, he the king and his descendents will prolong their reign in the midst of Israel.'
If the king leaves only a young son, the monarchy should be held for him until he matures, as Yehoyada did for Yoash. The order of inheritance of the monarchy is the same as that governing the inheritance of property. An older son is given precedence over a younger one.
Not only the monarchy, but all other positions of authority and appointments in Israel, are transferred to one's children and grandchildren as inheritances forever.
The above applies if the knowledge and the fear of God of the son is equivalent to that of his ancestors. If his fear of God is equivalent to theirs but not his knowledge, he should be granted his father's position and given instruction. However, under no circumstance should a person who lacks the fear of God be appointed to any position in Israel, even though he possesses much knowledge.
Once David was anointed king, he acquired the crown of kingship. Afterwards, the kingship belonged to him and to his male descendents forever, as II Samuel 7: 16 states: 'Your throne shall be established forever.' Nevertheless, his acquisition of the monarchy was conditional, applying only to the righteous among his descendents, as Psalms 132:12 states: 'If your children will keep My covenant... their children shall also sit on your throne forever.'
Despite this condition, God assured David that the monarchy would never be taken from his descendents forever, as Psalms 89:31-38 states: "lf his children will forsake My Torah and cease walking in My statutes ... I will punish their transgressions with the rod and their sins with plagues. Nevertheless, I will not utterly remove My grace from him.... His throne shall be ... established forever.'
Again: "However, under no circumstance should a person who lacks the fear of God be appointed to any position in Israel, even though he possesses much knowledge."
From the Rambam it clearly emerges that it is against halacha to appoint leaders who are not observant Jews. The Brisker Rov apparently felt that their appointment lacks any halachic significance. From Ben Gurion until Netanyahu and everybody in between - not one has been an observant Jew. Mechalelei Shabbos all.
However, in my humble opinion, the opposition of the Brisker Rov [and the Charedi world at large in different dosages] was much more fundamental than this halacha in the Rambam [see the four volumes "Harav Mi-Brisk" by Rav Shimon Meller for details]. The founders of the State and until our days had a vision which they tried hard to implement of a secular State. This is מרידה במלכות שמים - a rebellion against Hashem and his Kingship. The religious Zionist world wants Charedim to celebrate on the fifth of Iyar an entity that overtly and openly rebels against Hashem and His Torah?! One way the Zionist leaders attempted to actualize their vision was by taking Yemenite children away from their parents, cutting off their peyos, thoroughly secularizing them and telling their parents that their children are dead.
The Chazon Ish, Brisker Rov, Chebiner Rov and the countless Gedolei Torah, Roshei Yeshiva and Rabbonim could not assign positive religious value to a project that rejects our 5,000 year tradition and only uses it to justify our rights to the Land but discards the rest.
