The Review of Rabbinic Judaism 20 (2017) 251–271 brill.com/rrj © koninklijke brill nv, leiden, 2�17 | doi 10.1163/15700704-12341329 The Individual vs. Society in Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach’s Halakhic Rulings Amir Mashiach Ariel University of Samaria and Orot Israel College, 19 Weizmann Street, Petach Tikva, Israel, 4955619 a.mashiach@gmail.com Abstract Rosh Yeshivat Kol Torah in Jerusalem for more than forty years, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach was one of the most influential Halakhic decisors of the twentieth century. Rabbi Auerbach was a major figure in Haredi society which makes his Halakhic involve- ment in military issues more interesting. An examination of his Halakhic rulings in this matter shows that Rabbi Auerbach comprehended not only the complexity of being a religious soldier in the Army but also the complexity of the operational needs of the Army. Here I identify and analyze Rabbi Auerbach’s Halakhic rulings on military issues in two aspects: a) regular military issues; b) different Halakhic issues on which Rabbi Auerbach imported military discussions and terminology into the halakhic discourse. Moreover, I show that Rabbi Auerbach worked in the light of the principle, “The Nullification of the Individual” (my terminology). Finally, I compare Rabbi Auerbach’s attitude towards Citizen-State issues to that of the German philosopher G.W.F. Hegel. Keywords Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach – Halakhah – individual – society – army Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach (RA, 1910–1995), one of the most influen- tial Halakhic authorities of the twentieth century, for more than forty years headed the Kol Torah yeshiva in Jerusalem.1 This article examines his Halakhic 1  On RA and his philosophy of Halakhah, see Amir Mashiach, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Auerbach’s Halakhic Philosophy in a Dynamic Era of Socio-Technological Transformation (Ramat Gan: Bar-Ilan University Press, 2013).