Category — Peace in the Middle east

Son: why is the sky blue?

Dad: How should I know?

Son: Why does the sun shine at night and the moon during the day?

Dad: I have no idea.

Son: What is the secret of creation?

Dad: Could you stop bugging me already?

Son: Dad, do you want me to continue asking questions?

Dad: Why, of course. How else will you gain knowledge?

***

Dear Rabbi,

I’m sure you heard about the terror attack that took away from us 3 of our brothers and sisters. Just a few months ago eight Yeshivah students were murdered in cold blood. And I ask: How is this possible?

And second of all: How is someone supposed to move on and concentrate on their own lives when they are too busy trying to figure out this answer?

Confused

Dear Confused,

The question of why things happen to good people is as old as pain itself, and although asked many a time, going way back when to Moses’ cry “why do you make bad to your nation?” to the modern “Why six million!”, it remains unanswered until this very day.
And that is the way it should be.

Think about it: Do I really want to know the answer to pain? Do I want to know the reason of the holocaust? And if I get the reason will I then be in peace with pain?

The answer is a resounding ‘No!’ We don’t want and we don’t need an answer to the question. What we need is an end to the questions.

You asked, ‘how is this possible?’, and I ask ‘Dear G-d: Why are there so many questions? Are six million questions not enough? Are 5768 years of sacrifice and pain not enough to take away the questions? Enough questions!

You ask ‘how’ to move on? And the answer is, not to search for answers, but by doing all we can to remove the question. We should not try to “justify” G-d, No! We don’t want explanations; we want an end to pain. We are not searching for answers; we are demanding an end to the questions!

*

P.S. This coming Sunday will be 14 years since Gimmel Tammuz 1994.14 years that the world has not heard the voice of the leader of this generation, the Lubavitcher Rebbe.

Dear G-d: 14 years of this painful question is more than enough. Please give us such an answer that will remove the question all together, with the revelation of the Rebbe who will lead us out of exile, to a time when we will know of questions no more.

May questions be wiped off the face of the earth speedily in our day

During the first days of creation, G-d turned to the angels and said: “I am now going to create a land called Israel. It will be a land of mountains full of snow, sparkling lakes, forests full of all kind of trees, high cliffs overlooking sandy beaches with an abundance of sea life.”

G-d continued, “I shall make the soil fertile so that the inhabitants will prosper. I shall call these inhabitants Israelis, and they shall be known to the most people on earth.”

“But L-rd,” asked the angels, “don’t You think You are being too generous to these Israelis?”

“Not really,” God replied, “wait and see the neighbors I am going to give them.”

***

Did you hear the news? The Israelis and Arabs are finally going to make peace! I know that you never dreamt it could happen, however the time has arrived! In just a few days in Annapolis, a quiet town in the state of Maryland, the unbelievable will occur, as the eternal rivals will shake hands and promise peace.

From then on, Jews and Moslems will live in harmony; Arab and Jew will fall on each other’s shoulders begging for forgiveness for all the pain brought on by the conflict.

This year on Hanukah, the Moslems will join us at our Menorah lightings, singing and dancing with us and handing out tea herbs. And during Ramadan, the Israelis will deliver food and drink for the break-fast.

The flags of both the Israeli and Palestinian states will wave in the wind together, and we shall never know bloodshed anymore.

Sounds surreal and impossible? Nah, you’re just acting naïve. Don’t you see the peace and harmony thanks to Camp David and Oslo? Are you blind to the safety that the Disengagement brought upon the land? We trusted the Arabs and we were right! They are such peace loving and warm people, so moderate and accepting, so open to western culture and values – and of course, they are sooooo democratic!

Did you ever meet a Palestinian? Did you see the love in his eyes, as he blessed you and wished all Jews well? Did you feel how he shared the anger at the terrorists who wish to destroy the world? If not you must be blind; why, even our president sees it!

So dear friend, please don’t believe those radical rightists who scream that you can’t make peace with murderers. Close your ears to the tears of the residents of the missile-pounded Sderot, as they tell you that since the Disengagement, life has become hell on earth. They are just extremists and unrealistic dreamers.

Trust Mr. Olmert and his buddy Abu-Mazen: they are honest men, and if they promise peace, they will bring it, along with a Nobel Peace prize. They will not let us down!

So get ready, the greatest miracle in history is on the threshold – it will be even greater than Hanukah!

Oy vey Z’mir!

A new Rabbi was elected for the grand synagogue in town. In his first lecture, the rabbi discussed the importance of keeping kosher. After descending from the podium, he was approached by the president of the synagogue who voiced his disapproval for talking about such a touchy subject.
So the next week, he spoke about Shabbat observance, and the president nearly blew up on him in rage: “How do you have the chutzpah to speak about Shabbat in this community where no one keeps Shabbat?!”
When, after speaking about tefilin the next week, the president warns him that he’ll be fired, the Rabbi turns to him in frustration and asks, “So what do you want me to speak about?”
The president responds, “Just speak about Judaism!”

***
When writing a thought about the torah portion and its message of love, you can’t go wrong. But sometimes we have to discuss the issues at hand in the Jewish world today, and look for the Torah view on pressing matters. That said; let’s look at the situation in Israel.
The present situation in Israel is scary, to say the least. War, missiles falling in playgrounds and homes, and our soldiers fighting hard in the unknown terrain of guerrillas and suicide bombers whose own lives mean nothing to them; who, in the name of religion, have terrorized millions of people for decades.
Has something gone wrong in our vision of eternal peace with our Arab cousins? Hadn’t we saved ourselves the scare of another confrontation with our lovely neighbours? Hey! About a year ago we evacuated eight thousand Jews from their homes in a one-sided attempt for peace! Since the sighing of the Oslo accords, we have given “back” to the Palestinians a large percentage of the so-called “occupied territories.” Where is their appreciation for our dire attempts at long-lasting peace and brotherhood?
Ah, I get it! The problem is that we still have some occupied territories in our hands! If we would give them all back, then would be able to live within our pre-1967 borders in peace and harmony with our beloved neighbours.

Well, let’s put things right down on the table: If our claim to the land of Israel is the U.N. resolution of 58 years ago that gave the unfortunate Jews who had just lost six million of their brothers (due to the lack of self-defence) the right for a country; and just by luck the country happens to be in the same area which, thousands of years ago, was ruled by the kings of Judea, and for all we care the state of the Jews could have been in Uganda (an early option for a Jewish state offered to the Zionists,) then we have no choice but to listen to the “Palestinian” cry for freedom and a “Palestinian” state, and, for us, the Oslo accords would be the most righteous thing the Jewish people have done since the time Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son Isaac to G-d!
However, if our claim to the land of Israel is that it’s our promised land, given by G-d 4,000 years ago to our forefather Abraham, then this “political view” (was does safety have to do with politics?) would change. We would keep every piece of land that was returned to us (not occupied!) and we wouldn’t even dream of talking about the exchange of this divine present for a lip-service to peace. For after all, who, but G-d, can grant us peace?
If we believe that the land is ours because G-d said so, then we will fight the terrorists until the end, not retreating before we are done (as we did in the Lebanon war in 1982), understanding that they are not “insurgents” or “militants” as implied by the media; they are simply blood thirsty anti-Semites who want us all thrown into the Mediterranean Sea, cruel terrorists who will use any means to take our whole land (pre 1948 borders…) for themselves.
Osama bin laden, Nasralla, Nobel Peace Prize Winner Yasser Arafat, Holocaust denier Abu-Mazen and their like are not freedom fighters for oppressed people; they are radical Islamists with a deep hatred for the free, civilized world. Through misinterpretation of the Koran, they have declared war on all those who oppose their radical ideology. (Or have we forgotten the dancing in the streets of Gaza on 9/11?) They are all terrorists. And with terrorists there is no chance of peace.
May G-d bless the people in the Land of Israel, our Holy Land, with true and eternal peace with the coming of Moshiach at this very moment. Until then, let us at least hold on to the land of G-d; it’s ours for guarding.

Adapted from the works of the Lubavitcher Rebbe