By Rabbi Lee Diamond
Israel Celebration Tours
Why didn’t this happen 5 years ago when Gilad Shalit was first captured?
Why didn’t we release these Palestinian prisoners sooner in order to bring Gilad home sooner?”
Why pay the price of 1,000 murderers for one innocent prisoner of war?
What will happen once these released murderers and foresworn terrorists return to their murderous ways?
Isn’t Israel setting itself up for more damage to the entire population in order to save one individual?
Clearly Netanyahu did this for his own publicity! Look at the pictures of him standing with Gilad.
The Shulchan Aruch states:
“Every moment that one delays in freeing captives, in cases where it is possible to expedite their freedom, is considered to be tantamount to murder.”
Maybe I can understand a harsh world view that does not understand the Jewish ethos of the importance of one son when asking the above questions!
Maybe I can understand Palestinian sympathizers who are overjoyed by Israel’s apparent weaknesses when they ask the above questions!
Maybe I can understand Anti Semites world over who take joy in criticizing Israel’s faults and glory in its so called weaknesses when they pronounce the above statements with pride!
However when these questions come from within; when they come from the Israeli political left and right; when they come from Jewish and non Jewish Israelis; when they come from fathers and mothers who have had and do have and/or will have children in the Israel Defense Force—I am bewildered and fear that we have lost our Jewish soul.
“He who saves one life in Israel saves an entire world” (Talmud: Sanhedrin 37a)
This statement reflects the Jewish soul. This statement is not qualified! This statement declares to all, that there is no mitzvah as important that saving one soul
I have even heard Jews criticize the above statement as it refers only to Israel and not to all humanity. Do we not have the right to focus on our values? Have we totally lost our sense of self?
Why can we not focus on the good? Why can we not see the miraculous in our midst? Why can we not appreciate the wonders of life? Why can’t we see beauty and joy without subjecting them to a critical eye or fear of the results? Why can’t we live in a glorious moment and understand that “one moment of joy is worth a thousand moments of pain?”
The return of one of our sons from captivity is such a moment; such a miracle; such a joy; such a wonder; such beauty and as such is a gift of God. Yes I do mean a gift of God.
The only Jewish response to such a moment is to declare a bracha – a ברכה which is the Jewish way of expressing appreciation.
I know of no ברכה which is conditional
I know of no bracha which begins or ends with a prefix or suffix
There are no “ifs or howevers or buts” that accompany a bracha!
A ברכה is peculiar technology developed by our tradition to appreciate the moment; to step out of passing time and to observe what is happening at a moment and to allow us to be aware and inspired by wonder.
A ברכה allows us be in awe and splendor before the One, the Cause, the Redeemer of all and the Redeemer of captives...
ברוך אתה ה' גאל ישראל.
Blessed are You Adonai the Redeemer of Israel
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