Praying for Israel in LA

In September 1970, a bloody conflict took place between the country of Jordan and the PLO terrorist group, which had become a threat to Jordan’s monarchy. The PLO had used Jordan as a base from where they could attack Israel in Yehuda V’Shomron (the “West Bank”). The result was that Yasser Arafat and his terrorist organization were sent packing through Syria to Lebanon. It was there several years later that they would participate in Lebanon’s civil war.

Now in Lebanon, the PLO could continue to threaten Israel, but by attacking the Northern Israel Galilee communities. On June 3, 1982 Palestinian affiliated terrorists in London shot Israel’s ambassador to the United Kingdom, Shlomo Argov, in an attempted assassination. Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin had seen enough and three days later Israel’s military entered Lebanon in an operation called Mivtza Shalom HaGalil (Operation Peace for the Galilee).

I was born in 1961, in the 13th, or Bar Mitzva year, of the State of Israel. It has been my dream for some time now that I visit Israel when I am 86 for Israel’s 100th Yom Ha’atzmaut, now 25 years away. As a youth, I attended Bnei Akiva Snif Saad, a Shabbat youth group, part of the largest Zionist Orthodox youth movement in the world, at Shaarei Tefila Congregation on Beverly and Poinsettia in Los Angeles. Growing up going to Bnei Akiva and attending their Camp Moshava in the winters and summers, I ended up on a Bnei Akiva program for my gap year in Israel, ironically on Kibbutz Saad, in the Negev. Upon my return in 1980, I began various volunteer positions with Bnei Akiva, and in 1981 became the Mazkir Galil (Head of Organization) of Bnei Akiva of Los Angeles.

In order to share our weekly commentaries on the Torah portion from a Religious Zionist perspective, and as I was very proud of the accomplishments of our movement and wanted to publicize past successes and future activities, I published a weekly handout for our partner synagogues. The Daf LeParshat HaShavuah had divrei Torah written by Dr. Jerry Lax, Rabbi Danny Korobkin, and David Kaplansky. The handout also had a section called Bnei Akiva News to list community events, and advertising with ads from sponsors when we could get them.  Ultimately United Mizrachi Bank would become our regular sponsor and partner, along with many sponsorships by Baichman and Daughters Insurance Agency. The three Bnei Akiva Snifim at the time (and still today), were named after Religious Kibbutzim in Israel. They were Snif Saad at Shaarei Tefila, Snif Shluchot at Beth Jacob in Beverly Hills, and Snif Tirat Tzvi at Shaarei Zedek in the Valley.

We also distributed handouts to Beth Jacob, and when we could get them done in time before Shabbat and find someone heading to the valley, we would send a stack to Shaarei Zedek. But for Shaarei Tefila, because they did not have the infrastructure, I had to walk the shul before Shabbat to place the handouts in each of the seats. I was also running a Bnei Akiva Minyan every Shabbat in the Shaarei Tefilla Beis Medrash. At that time, we would weekly recite on Shabbat the Mi Sheberach L’Chayalei Tzahal (Blessing for the Israeli Soldiers) and Tefilla Lishlom HaMedina (Prayer for the Welfare of the State of Israel) at Bnei Akiva minyans around the world. While the mainstream synagogues would recite a Prayer for the Welfare of the United States of America, they did not recite the prayers for Israel.  A rare handful might recite the Prayer for the State, but virtually none the Blessing for the Soldiers.

While the mainstream synagogues would recite a Prayer for the Welfare of the United States of America, they did not recite the prayers for Israel.

On November 20, 1982, Shabbat Parshat Toldot, a week had just past since we were horrified that a single blast in Lebanon had cost the lives of 75 Israeli soldiers. In the past we were accustomed to wars that took between six days and a month. Five and a half months had passed since the start of the operation in Lebanon and it was clear that this operation was now a full scale war that was not ending any time soon. Even then we would not have imagined that it would actually take 18 years to complete. In any event, in that week’s handout, we noted the severity of the situation and added that we would now be including the Mi Sheberach L’Chayalei Tzahal in each publication for congregations to add to their seder tefilla, or at the very least, for congregants to say individually, along with the Tefilla LiShlom HaMedina.

A week went by, and another. The following week, Yisrael “Shedale” Sarid couldn’t wait to share some great news with me. Something beautiful had happened on Shabbat at Beth Jacob.  He said Rabbi (Maurice) Lamb discussed the seriousness of the situation is Israel and implored us to show solidarity with the people of Israel and the soldiers, and asked that everyone pick up the Bnei Akiva Daf L’Parshat HaShavua from the slots in front of their seats so they could together read from it the Tefilla LiShlom HaMedina and the Mi Shberach L’Chayalei Tzahal.  How proud we were that Hashem allowed us to play a role in enabling a stronger connection between our Jewish community here and our Jewish brothers and sisters on the front lines in Israel. Within a few weeks, Shaarei Tefila and Shaarei Zedek caught on and as these were the bulk of the Los Angeles Modern Orthodox congregations at that time, by definition, our entire community was now reciting these blessings. Our sponsor United Mizrachi Bank would soon print out stickers with the tefillot to inset into the back cover of the community siddurim to make these tefillot even more accessible. As a community, we have now been saying these weekly for nearly 41 years.

I know that eventually our community would have started saying these, with or without Bnei Akiva, but I look back with pride that we were there to jump start this. I only now realize the enormity of the moment. I don’t believe we would have the mammoth community with yeshivot, synagogues and kosher restaurants that we have today if there was not a State of Israel giving us pride and legitimacy. With that, I ask our youth to do all that you can in appreciation of the State of Israel. You never know when a little gesture can turn into a game changing event. To this day, when I hear these tefillot being recited in my shul, Young Israel of Century City, I take them very seriously, and urge others to as well. Let’s face it, here in America, we do way too little for Israel. This is the least we can do. Am Yisrael Chai and Yom HaAtzmaout Sa’me’ach!

Jamie Frankel was born and lives in Los Angeles. He is a businessman, a proud active member of Bnei Akiva of Los Angeles and Camp Moshava for over 50 years, and has volunteered at YULA High School for the last 17 years teaching a course called “Introduction to Zionism.”