Attraction to the physical and machoistic characteristics basic to an army career becomes revealed in the Haredi world in many ways, including buds of paramilitary, if not truly militaristic culture.
Written By Prof. Gideon Aran
Gideon Aran
For instance, take the adulation of Haredim towards generals who are decorated war veterans, even if it be known that they eat non-kosher foods and violate the Sabbath. Haredim are also amazingly knowledgeable about the details of acts of heroism of underground fighters against the British and of Israel Defense Forces fighters.
They take pride in their familiarity with the minutest details of incidents which have been long forgotten, incidents which embody the qualities of level-headedness, initiative under pressure, risk-taking, self-sacrifice, physical strength, and so on.
Taken from “Body, Violence and Fundamentalism: The Case of Jewish Ultra-Orthodoxy” By Gideon Aran.