This has been a horrible week for the Jewish people. Those who seek our destruction have struck again. They attack the innocent and the vulnerable. Who is more innocent than a three month old in a stroller, a teenager on his way home to spend the Sabbath with his family, or a young Ecuadorian convert? Who is more vulnerable than men engaged in prayer? The Rabbis who died last week knew their murderer. They greeted him everyday. He watched their movements. He and his cohort knew when to hack them to death. How brave! How bold! The blood spattered prayer books and tefillin on a severed arm remind us that the depraved have no conscience. The perpetrators were little more than the human faces of unadulterated evil.
Our leaders know this, but they released statements that were almost beyond comprehension. They “condemned” the attack using conjunctions. “This is a terrible tragedy, but…” “It is a senseless attack, however…” They wasted no time imploring Israel to “show restraint.” They showed no outrage at the slaughter of American citizens. Instead, they focused on “moral equivalency.” There is none. In their attempt to become the next Neville Chamberlain, they sent a clear and deafening message. The terrorists didn’t kill Americans. They killed Jews. Our leaders have succumbed to the notion that Jewish blood is cheap. It is not. As the Jew goes, so goes the world. Things are going to get much worse for all of us before they get better. It was fortunate for the world that a Churchill followed a Chamberlain. He knew evil could not be appeased. It must be eradicated. We have no Churchill because we have no absolutes. Moral equivalency implies a justification of evil. Our leaders lack ethics and morals. We will suffer.
The media screwed up big time this week. CNN’s initial report was, “mosque attacked.” That was followed by, “two Palestinians dead in terror attack.” These headlines were not the result of a “mistake” or even shoddy journalism. They were a result of a biased culture within the media. They no longer keep us informed. They have an agenda. One of my friends sent me a picture showing the attack on the south tower of the World Trade Center on 9.11. The revised caption from CNN read, “8 Arabs die in tragic plane crash.”
The media also reported that the Rabbi’s were “ultra-orthodox.” The reporters have no idea what the “ultra-orthodox” are, but they are quick to apply a label. There is a reason for this. It is a tactic to divide the Jewish people. If we believe that it is just the “orthodox” that are the targets, then the rest of the Jewish nation can rest easy. They are not after us. Anyone who can read the Hamas charter, listen to the leaders of ISIS and their brothers in Iran and elsewhere knows that is a crock. There are still many people in our community who have numbers on their arm. They will testify that evil does not discriminate. There is no difference between Chassidic Chava and secular Anne. Those who hate us hate all of us. Abraham Lincoln said, “A house divided against its self cannot stand.” The House of Jacob needs to be united.
After the attacks, the same people who danced on 9/11, danced again. They offered sweets and congratulations. The Jordanian parliament held a moment of silence for the terrorists. Evil rejoiced. It always does.
Our sages tell us that there are thirty-six righteous people in whose merit the world continues to exist. They are supposed to be anonymous, but I think some of them were revealed to us last week. After they buried their husbands and fathers, they asked us to participate in the Sabbath and its rituals. They asked us to be good and do mitzvot. They asked us to be kind to our fellow human being. They looked in the face of baseless hatred and answered with abundant love. They asked us to love G-d, love our neighbour and love ourselves. A grateful nation remembered the heroic sacrifice of Zidan Saif. May his memory be a blessing to his family and to us. The next day, the same synagogue that witnessed death observed an eight-day-old boy take his place among the Jewish people.
At this time I realize I cannot walk in their shadow. I am still a work in progress. I am very blessed to be a part of the Jewish people.
Have a peaceful week,
Emuna
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