There is a video circulating in which one of the leaders of MO in the US called the Atzeres Tefillah ridiculous. He was visibly upset about the whole thing. He said that we need an army - otherwise they will kill us all. He said that no YU person would take part in such a rally.
The Ramban writes at the end of Parshas Bo that the purpose of creation is to acknowledge that Hashem is our Creator. Hundreds of thousands of Jews gathered peacefully [unlike many of the violent demonstrations about many things that take place all over the world - including some of the anti army demonstrations of a certain group here in EY] and acknowledged that Hashem is our Creator. I think that this is a reason to rejoice. That is not ridiculous. It wasn't a demonstration where people chanted empty slogans and the like. They davened to Hashem. It was קבלת עול מלכות שמים. That should be appreciated by anyone who cares deeply about Hashem and כבוד שמים.
I also think that his take [that they were saying that we don't need an army] was a complete misunderstanding of the point. Nobody is suggesting that we don't have an army. There are approximately 634,500 soldiers in Tzahal. That is a large number. It is enough that we are all still here [despite being surround by hundreds of millions who would gladly see us all dead רח"ל]. The Commander in Chief is none other that G-d Himself [which explains the miracle of our existence]. They have the most advanced missiles and a mind boggling intelligence system [putting aside that major-major faux pas of שמיני עצרת]. They have a budget in the billions of dollars. Nobody is saying that this should all be disbanded and we should ALL go to the Beis Medrash. They were just expressing that they don't want to be forced to enlist b/c the army is not a place for a Charedi boy [just like this Rav himself is against conscipting girls]. The army always has and always will go on with or without Yeshiva bochrim.
I think it was מוציא שם רע [they are not so stupid and naive] on an entire Tzibbur of many of the best Jews and best human beings on the planet so I felt it necessary to state the truth as I see it [with no disrespect intended toward the afore-alluded to Rav].
I will add that there are bigger aveiros than not serving in the army. Like not keeping Shabbos, kosher, Taharas Hamishpacha and the list goes on. I don't see people [frum people] nearly as upset about all the Chilonim who many times daily trample upon the Torah as they are about people who are merely following the Gedolei Yisroel since the birth of the State who instructed them to learn full time in Yeshiva.
