[Avodah] border issues.....pikauch nefesh??

[Hankman]

R'nLL wrote:

Defending borders is
halakhically an issue of self-defense. Expanding borders is kibush
ha-aretz, but I don't know of any source that says defending border
towns is anything but an unqualified obligation.

>IOW the above all paskened like the Rambam, that mitzvas kibbush
>ha'aretz does not apply bizman hazeh.

But the subject here is border issues. I don't see how that relates to
kibush ha-aretz in any way.

CM comments:

I think we might be glossing over a central matter as a practical issue in our day. What exactly is the definition of the "border" in today's geography and demography. Is it the kedusha rishona or the k. shenia of the olei Bavel, or that of the kivush of the Chashmonaim and if so, how well (or poorly) defined are either of these borders in our time? Or is it some current line we might care to define by modern realities of war (1948, 1967, 1973 etc), demography (of which period?) or National and/or International law (Turk Emp., Balfour, Mandate, Israeli Law, UN resolutions or current IL?). If it is the mere presence of Jews in some particular area then you conflate the border issue to the self defense issue, and also then further entangle the issue of self defense in Chutz La'Aretz becoming a milchemes mitzva if for example the Jews of say BoroPark were under siege as opposed to the Jews of a kibbutz near Gaza. I suspect that  many will want to scoff at the idea that recent influences have a bearing on the issue of halachic borders that we do or do not have to defend, I am not sure that is the case.

Kol tuv

Chaim Manaster
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.aishdas.org/pipermail/avodah-aishdas.org/attachments/20110531/041c1576/attachment-0002.htm>