My Israel- a D'var for this Week

During the past two weeks we have observed/celebrated three important days in our modern Jewish calendar. Yom HaShoah v’Ha’G’vurah is on the 27^th of Nisan, Yom HaZikaron on the 4^th of Iyar, and Yom Ha’Atzmaut on the 5^th of Iyar. 

Yom HaShoah v’Ha’G’vurah, the full name of what we call Yom HaShoah, is the Day of the Holocaust and the Heroism. The world recognizes International Holocaust Remembrance Day on January 27, the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau by Soviet troops. It is a day chosen by the United Nations recognizing our degradation and the horror done to our people. In contrast, 27 Nisan is a day meant to go beyond the terror. The date originally chosen was the 14^th of Nisan, the start of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising and the eve of Pesach. Out of necessity, the date was moved to the 27^th of Nisan, post-Pesach but within the time of the uprising. It was an interesting choice. Other dates were debated. Other historical connections noted. The month of Nisan is a time when public mourning is prohibited. How could we mark such a day in Nisan? The full name gives us the answer. Yom HaShoah v’Ha’G’vurah recognizes the awfulness of the event, one unsurpassed in history. However, it also sees beyond the event. The proximity to Pesach cannot be overlooked. In every generation someone has risen to destroy us, but we have, and we will continue to overcome these tyrants, bigots, and destroyers. We shall overcome. Yom HaShoah v’Ha’G’vurah recognizes not only the large acts of heroism, but also every act of defiance. It recognizes that to survive in such a world is heroic in itself. Furthermore, it recognizes the strength of those who went on to rebuild our Jewish world, going forth from horror to marry, raise children, and defy those who would have seen us annihilated in the world.

Just a week later, we observe/celebrate Yom HaZikaron and Yom Ha’Atzmaut. These days are connected not to the Shoah, but are significant in that the strength and determinism that led our people to survive is the same strength we call upon as a people to build our modern State. To be in Israel for these days is surreal. It is a day of national mourning, for not a family in Israel is untouched. In Israel’s 65 years, over 23,000 soldiers have died in the line of duty. To move from this day to the elation of Yom Ha’Atzmaut can give one whiplash. We are a people with a long memory. We care for others, and hold ourselves to a higher standard because we were slaves in Egypt. We seek to build a better world. But also for this reason we know there is a positive future on the horizon. We are always looking for the rainbow, for the opportunity to say a bracha, to celebrate the future.

This year the Israeli consulate held a video contest asking individuals to create an original 65-second video on the theme of “What Does Your Israel Look Like?” Here is what my Israel looks like. My Israel is warm, not in temperature, but in the feeling it creates in my heart. It is a place of opposites, from the stark, empty beauty of the desert, to the lushness of the Hula Valley to the bustle of the cities. It is ancient and modern, with the road on which Joseph once walked evolving into a super-highway. My Israel is a place where I am with family, some I have known for years, and others I have yet to meet. My Israel is a place where I am comfortable. It is a place no longer divided into ultra-Orthodox or secular chilonim, but where Jews can worship and practice as they see fit. It is my favourite felafel and shwarma stand. It is chocolate and almond bread. It is Kinley orange soda (which I both love and hate). It is our favourite pickle place. It is fresh baked pitot eaten on the bus home. My Israel is ever changing and always constant. It is the place in which I celebrated my becoming bat mitzvah, and where we will celebrate Gavi’s and Keren’s coming of age next summer. You’re all invited. We hope you will come.