In this generation of fleeting allegiance and loyalty, particularly in the realm of Jewish leadership,there is a seemingly inexplicable phenomenon in the incontrovertible fact that today, years after the brutal murder of Rabbi Meir Kahane, more than ever, he is mourned by Jews throughout the world; by people who increasingly intone the oft-quoted phrase, ?Kahane tzadak.? (?Kahane was right?)



As one who had the great merit to work closely for more than two decades with this great, self-sacrificing Jewish leader, both in the United States and in Israel, I feel impelled, at this time of his l3th yahrzeit, to relate a few little known insights about the ?man behind the headlines?.



Although demonized, beaten and imprisoned by both left- and right-wing Israeli governments for his prophetic warnings concerning the rise of Arab nationalism and the dire consequences of making concessions to these implaccable enemies, Rabbi Kahane remained undaunted and committed to the Torah?s teachings as the only timely and relevant 'road map' for the Jewish people.



The refusal of Israel's 'democratic' television and print media to cover Kahane?s Knesset election campaign, as they covered all other candidates, compelled him to travel to speak each day in communities throughout Eretz Yisrael, often returning late at night in a state of complete exhaustion. But he was elected to the Knesset nonetheless. Following his unexpected success, Rabbi Kahane immediately began to utilize his Knesset podium to sponsor the exact legislation upon which he based his pre-election platform.



First and foremost was his call for separation of Arabs and Jews as the only solution he believed would prevent another 'final solution', G-d forbid, in the Jewish State.



To underscore his commitment to this legislation, he announced he would personally go to Um El-Fahm, a hotbed of Arab terrorists and their supporters, to tell them to leave the Jewish State, offering them compensation for their property (Note: That is more than any Jew ever received when they were 'transferred' out of their homes in Arab lands, where they had lived for generations).



Horror of horrors!



Such was the reaction to the Kach leader's first Knesset speech by many 'closet Kahanes' (as he used to refer to those Jews that secretly held his views, but feared to openly express them). My telephone began to ring off the hook, urging me to implore the new MK Rabbi to "tone down his rhetoric and change his image", now that he is officially a part of the government of Israel. Knowing what his answer would be, I nevertheless dutifully related their requests.



"Change my image," he replied as an amused smile crossed his face. "I worked too long and too hard to present this image. I want the citizens of Israel to know I am the same Meir Kahane they voted for."



He then travelled to Um El-Fahm to deliver his message.



The Kahane Legacy today lives on through courageous Jews, who, despite being vilified and often beaten and arrested, continue to espouse the truth concerning the dangerous 'peace process', which is leading to the establishment of an enemy 'palestinian state' on Israel's border.



A lesser known facet of the Rabbi's boundless ahavat yisrael, the overriding love and compassion he felt for the Jewish people, was a special chesed fund, from which he distributed thousands of shekels to hundreds of poor and often hungry Jews who came to his door each week. Those Jews shed bitter tears at his funeral, lamenting, "Who will help us now that Rabbi Kahane is gone?"



The Kahane Legacy lives on today in the Chassdei Meir Fund that was established in his memory, through which, each week, young volunteers continue to provide and deliver large cases of donated food to countless suffering Jewish families and individuals.



There are countless tales that deserve to be related about the life of this most noble Jew, who was the personification of the Jewish scholar warrior in the tradition of the Biblical King David.



Yet, the everlasting legacy of greatness which Rabbi Meir Kahane left the Jewish people and, indeed, the world, are his penetrating, insightful thoughts, expressed in the many popular books he authored. Among them are Never Again, Why Be Jewish?, Uncomfortable Questions for Comfortable Jews, Our Challenge, The Story of the Jewish Defense League, Forty Years, and his magnum opus, The Jewish Idea, written shortly before his murder by an Arab terrorist (may his name be erased forever).



In one of the volumes he signed for me is an inscription I treasure: "In every generation, there are always a few who understand; Always understand... even if you remain among the few."



[Information on Jerusalem memorial events for Rabbi Kahane can be found here: http://www.israelnn.com/news.php3?id=52604. ]