Firstly let me make it clear that nothing can be compared to the Holocaust.
Both of my parents are Holocaust orphans, and I was born right after the war. Even in the immediate aftermath of the greatest crime committed by mankind, I did not hear my parents express hatred towards the nations of the world. I was brought up with a love of Torah, Am Yisroel, and Eretz Yisroel. I was taught that every Jew that had a Torah upbringing had a responsibility to share it with the rest of the Jewish People, and that it was our role to be ?a light to the nations?.
At times I heard people say, ?Now that we have our own state, a Holocaust cannot happen.? ?Never again!? I heard people claim that the 6,000,000 kedoshim (martyrs) were a disgrace to the Jewish People, for they went like ?sheep to the slaughter?. I heard claims that the State of Israel was peopled by the ?New Jew?, one who would hold his head high, and could never be pushed around by evil people.
I shuddered to hear such outbursts. I wondered if these people really meant what they said. I questioned why they were so confident.
Of course we hope that HaShem will be by our side, and that we will not know any more tragedies. Certainly we must maintain our optimism. Definitely, Israel must maintain the best defensive forces possible. And we are proud of our soldiers, may HaShem protect them. But how can we claim that we know the secret of how to prevent tragedy!?
I believe that the tragic expulsion plan makes it clear that we are one people surrounded by numerous enemies, as well as many indifferent nations. We see that many of the evil ideas which caused the Holocaust have not been eradicated. Just observe the United Nations! Why is it so focused on tiny Israel? Just read the media! How is it that even the Israeli media are slanted against Israel? Why are the religious sectors, who are the representatives of Judaism, so maligned and abused!?
I do not claim to understand the government?s thinking. But I believe that the Israeli government is not able to withstand the crushing world pressure. Even nations whom we consider friends seem willing to put our existence in peril when faced with rising oil prices. We feel so alone! We are so alone!
To whom can we turn? There is no one to whom we can cry out. We have only our Father in Heaven. We must turn to Him, and beg Him to save us from the tragic expulsion, which is tormenting so many Jews, and tearing our people asunder.
Our rabbis compare the Jewish People to sheep, not as an insult, but as praise. When sheep are in danger they pull together as one group. Let us start with the religious groups and make every effort to look for what unites us. Let us realize that we will bring honor to HaShem if we keep our disagreements 100% for the sake of Heaven, and never allow them to descend to the level of hatred. Let us resolve right now not to speak disrespectfully about one another.
We must remember that the Nazis did not care if a Jew was a chasid or a misnagid; it made little difference to them if a Jew was religious or secular. They knew that we were one people, and wished to eradicate each and every one of us. Let us take that lesson from the Holocaust. We are one People. And each one of us must do his part, however small, to mend the shattered tribes of Israel.
In the last prayer of Yom Kippur, N?ila, we pray for HaShem to bring the estranged Jews back to Him. Let us pray that those Jews who are not yet observant, and even those of our brothers who cause us grief, will join our ranks, and that we will all merit, together, to greet Mashiach speedily in our days.
Rabbi Naftoli Melamed
Both of my parents are Holocaust orphans, and I was born right after the war. Even in the immediate aftermath of the greatest crime committed by mankind, I did not hear my parents express hatred towards the nations of the world. I was brought up with a love of Torah, Am Yisroel, and Eretz Yisroel. I was taught that every Jew that had a Torah upbringing had a responsibility to share it with the rest of the Jewish People, and that it was our role to be ?a light to the nations?.
At times I heard people say, ?Now that we have our own state, a Holocaust cannot happen.? ?Never again!? I heard people claim that the 6,000,000 kedoshim (martyrs) were a disgrace to the Jewish People, for they went like ?sheep to the slaughter?. I heard claims that the State of Israel was peopled by the ?New Jew?, one who would hold his head high, and could never be pushed around by evil people.
I shuddered to hear such outbursts. I wondered if these people really meant what they said. I questioned why they were so confident.
Of course we hope that HaShem will be by our side, and that we will not know any more tragedies. Certainly we must maintain our optimism. Definitely, Israel must maintain the best defensive forces possible. And we are proud of our soldiers, may HaShem protect them. But how can we claim that we know the secret of how to prevent tragedy!?
I believe that the tragic expulsion plan makes it clear that we are one people surrounded by numerous enemies, as well as many indifferent nations. We see that many of the evil ideas which caused the Holocaust have not been eradicated. Just observe the United Nations! Why is it so focused on tiny Israel? Just read the media! How is it that even the Israeli media are slanted against Israel? Why are the religious sectors, who are the representatives of Judaism, so maligned and abused!?
I do not claim to understand the government?s thinking. But I believe that the Israeli government is not able to withstand the crushing world pressure. Even nations whom we consider friends seem willing to put our existence in peril when faced with rising oil prices. We feel so alone! We are so alone!
To whom can we turn? There is no one to whom we can cry out. We have only our Father in Heaven. We must turn to Him, and beg Him to save us from the tragic expulsion, which is tormenting so many Jews, and tearing our people asunder.
Our rabbis compare the Jewish People to sheep, not as an insult, but as praise. When sheep are in danger they pull together as one group. Let us start with the religious groups and make every effort to look for what unites us. Let us realize that we will bring honor to HaShem if we keep our disagreements 100% for the sake of Heaven, and never allow them to descend to the level of hatred. Let us resolve right now not to speak disrespectfully about one another.
We must remember that the Nazis did not care if a Jew was a chasid or a misnagid; it made little difference to them if a Jew was religious or secular. They knew that we were one people, and wished to eradicate each and every one of us. Let us take that lesson from the Holocaust. We are one People. And each one of us must do his part, however small, to mend the shattered tribes of Israel.
In the last prayer of Yom Kippur, N?ila, we pray for HaShem to bring the estranged Jews back to Him. Let us pray that those Jews who are not yet observant, and even those of our brothers who cause us grief, will join our ranks, and that we will all merit, together, to greet Mashiach speedily in our days.
Rabbi Naftoli Melamed