The Etrog and the Federation

In the winter of 1905, after the Zionist Congress decided to set up federations within the movement, Rav Yitzchok Yaakov proposed turning the Mizrachi from a mere faction into a federation of its own. One rabbi objected that this would turn the Mizrachi into a completely separate body. He pointed to the Midrash about the four minim (species) of the lulav. The etrog has both taste and fragrance, the lulav has taste but no fragrance, the hadas has fragrance but no taste, and the aravah has neither, yet Hashem commanded that all four be bound together. So, he said, no separate federation should be formed.

The Rav answered with one observation that changed the picture. The etrog, which stands for those with Torah and good deeds, such as the Mizrachi, is the one species that is not actually tied together with the others. It is brought close to them, but it remains distinct, a unit in itself. Rav Yehuda Leib Maimon, who told the story, saw it as a fine example of how the Rav joined political skill to religious principle.