When one is found in the depths of a valley, it is impossible to see into the distance. It is even harder to hear the rallying calls coming from those standing on high, when one is beset by the thorns and jagged stones of the lowlands.
It is very difficult to muster up courage and vision in the hearts of people who only see obstacles; to make people believe in their destiny when they do not believe in themselves.
In Sefer BaMidbar (Numbers) we learn of the great failure of the children of Israel on the eve of their entry into the land of promise. The people, "lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night" (14:1), when they heard the report of the spies: "We are not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we." (13:31)
Calev tries to encourage them with the declaration, "We should go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it." (13:30) And then, together with Yehoshua, he declares the "land, which we passed through to spy it out is an exceeding good land." (14:7)
Their words were not heard and the hearts of the people remained unmoved. At their core, the children of Israel did not believe themselves worthy of G-d's intervention. They cried out in deep pain, "We were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight." (13:33)
Recently, I joined hundreds of activists of the Cities of Israel (Matot Arim) movement as we went to the homes of members of the Likud Central Committee to attempt to convince them to demand a national referendum on the Disengagement Plan. As we went from house to house, from door to door, we were impressed by the mirroring of the experiences we have had in general with members of the Israeli population on the central issue of disengagement and retreat from Gush Katif.
We met good, caring people. We met people who love this Land ,who were not swayed by the media's almost deliberate program of delegitimizing those who remain faithful to the Land of Israel. We met people who, in their own way, were struggling to continue to maintain their faith and hope.
Inevitably, these discussions with the citizen on the street and Likud members always seem to end with mutually accepted understanding. They all seemed to understand that Ariel Sharon's Disengagement Plan is tantamount to capitulation to terror. They all intuitively understood that all these discussions of hudnas and agreements with the Palestinians are only temporary, and that the coming explosion with the terrorist reality was just beyond the horizon.
They even sensed that there was something deeply wrong and undemocratic with the way this government has been ramming through decisions that run completely counter to the desires of the people, as expressed in the last elections.
Yet, all these points of consensus fall prey to the fear and insecurity that seems to prey on the average Israeli. This sense was best described in the words of one Likud Central Committee member who said, "You're right, but the only thing left holy to me today is life."
They can't believe in much more since they do not believe themselves worthy of much more. As they continue to declare "we were in our own sight as grasshoppers", they seem to aspire to less rather than more. Life and the sanctity of life is paramount in our faith. Yet, filling that life with meaning, purpose and vision is critical for the continuity of a people.
Most of the Israelis we spoke with had an affinity and warmth towards the concepts of the people of Israel, the land of Israel and the G-d of Israel. Yet, most felt uncomfortable even speaking with such lofty terminology .They expressed how those concepts all seemed true, but seemed "beyond" them.
If we truly want to speak panim el panim, face to face, with our brothers and sisters, then we must learn to use the language they do not feel is "beyond them".
Talking to them about the love for this land may move their hearts, but does not stir within them the courage to act according to the heart.
Talking to them about the courage and sacrifice of our brothers and sisters in Judea, Samaria and Gaza may touch them, but in the end, leaves them feeling even more inadequate.
Talking to them about G-d and His promises can tend to frustrate them even more, since deep down, they feel themselves unworthy of those promises.
We need to focus on the sanctity of life. We need to concentrate on the very grave threat to the security of our lives caused by opening the Gaza coast and the border with Egypt to unhindered infiltration of weapons of destruction.
We need to remind them that disengagement is simply expulsion, which is essentially capitulation to terror.
That must be the approach in talking with our fellow Israelis who have momentarily lost hope and strength.
That is how we must talk, yet not the way we must act.
Those fellow Jews who hear G-d's message as a slight breeze in their consciousness can only hear so much. Yet, those who hear G-d's call like a mighty shofar must stand up and act.
Ariel Zilber, an Israeli rock musician, heard the call and left his house in Tel Aviv to live in Gush Katif. The Jews in Gush Katif also listened to the call and are completing the building of their majestic new synagogue within the settlement of Kfar Darom. Tens of young people have already spent nights in the prisons because they committed the terrible crime of crying against the expulsion of Jews in demonstrations in the streets of the city. All these people are not superhuman heroes. They cry at night and look around them for support in the days. They are regular people with regular insecurities and concerns. Yet, like Calev, the spiritual father of the tribe of Yehuda, they have been filled with a ruach acheret - a different spirit.
It is that different spirit that will rekindle the faith of our brothers and sisters in themselves, and in their hope and future. Jews of faith must continue to speak to others in a language that seems more connected to the natural world, but they must act in ways connected to the world above the natural.
It is very difficult to muster up courage and vision in the hearts of people who only see obstacles; to make people believe in their destiny when they do not believe in themselves.
In Sefer BaMidbar (Numbers) we learn of the great failure of the children of Israel on the eve of their entry into the land of promise. The people, "lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night" (14:1), when they heard the report of the spies: "We are not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we." (13:31)
Calev tries to encourage them with the declaration, "We should go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it." (13:30) And then, together with Yehoshua, he declares the "land, which we passed through to spy it out is an exceeding good land." (14:7)
Their words were not heard and the hearts of the people remained unmoved. At their core, the children of Israel did not believe themselves worthy of G-d's intervention. They cried out in deep pain, "We were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight." (13:33)
Recently, I joined hundreds of activists of the Cities of Israel (Matot Arim) movement as we went to the homes of members of the Likud Central Committee to attempt to convince them to demand a national referendum on the Disengagement Plan. As we went from house to house, from door to door, we were impressed by the mirroring of the experiences we have had in general with members of the Israeli population on the central issue of disengagement and retreat from Gush Katif.
We met good, caring people. We met people who love this Land ,who were not swayed by the media's almost deliberate program of delegitimizing those who remain faithful to the Land of Israel. We met people who, in their own way, were struggling to continue to maintain their faith and hope.
Inevitably, these discussions with the citizen on the street and Likud members always seem to end with mutually accepted understanding. They all seemed to understand that Ariel Sharon's Disengagement Plan is tantamount to capitulation to terror. They all intuitively understood that all these discussions of hudnas and agreements with the Palestinians are only temporary, and that the coming explosion with the terrorist reality was just beyond the horizon.
They even sensed that there was something deeply wrong and undemocratic with the way this government has been ramming through decisions that run completely counter to the desires of the people, as expressed in the last elections.
Yet, all these points of consensus fall prey to the fear and insecurity that seems to prey on the average Israeli. This sense was best described in the words of one Likud Central Committee member who said, "You're right, but the only thing left holy to me today is life."
They can't believe in much more since they do not believe themselves worthy of much more. As they continue to declare "we were in our own sight as grasshoppers", they seem to aspire to less rather than more. Life and the sanctity of life is paramount in our faith. Yet, filling that life with meaning, purpose and vision is critical for the continuity of a people.
Most of the Israelis we spoke with had an affinity and warmth towards the concepts of the people of Israel, the land of Israel and the G-d of Israel. Yet, most felt uncomfortable even speaking with such lofty terminology .They expressed how those concepts all seemed true, but seemed "beyond" them.
If we truly want to speak panim el panim, face to face, with our brothers and sisters, then we must learn to use the language they do not feel is "beyond them".
Talking to them about the love for this land may move their hearts, but does not stir within them the courage to act according to the heart.
Talking to them about the courage and sacrifice of our brothers and sisters in Judea, Samaria and Gaza may touch them, but in the end, leaves them feeling even more inadequate.
Talking to them about G-d and His promises can tend to frustrate them even more, since deep down, they feel themselves unworthy of those promises.
We need to focus on the sanctity of life. We need to concentrate on the very grave threat to the security of our lives caused by opening the Gaza coast and the border with Egypt to unhindered infiltration of weapons of destruction.
We need to remind them that disengagement is simply expulsion, which is essentially capitulation to terror.
That must be the approach in talking with our fellow Israelis who have momentarily lost hope and strength.
That is how we must talk, yet not the way we must act.
Those fellow Jews who hear G-d's message as a slight breeze in their consciousness can only hear so much. Yet, those who hear G-d's call like a mighty shofar must stand up and act.
Ariel Zilber, an Israeli rock musician, heard the call and left his house in Tel Aviv to live in Gush Katif. The Jews in Gush Katif also listened to the call and are completing the building of their majestic new synagogue within the settlement of Kfar Darom. Tens of young people have already spent nights in the prisons because they committed the terrible crime of crying against the expulsion of Jews in demonstrations in the streets of the city. All these people are not superhuman heroes. They cry at night and look around them for support in the days. They are regular people with regular insecurities and concerns. Yet, like Calev, the spiritual father of the tribe of Yehuda, they have been filled with a ruach acheret - a different spirit.
It is that different spirit that will rekindle the faith of our brothers and sisters in themselves, and in their hope and future. Jews of faith must continue to speak to others in a language that seems more connected to the natural world, but they must act in ways connected to the world above the natural.