BO 5784

What’s Next for Israel?

 My colleague, Rabbi Mitchell Wohlberg, attempts to answer the question that’s now on everyone’s mind today. We see it in The New York Times when it asks in an opinion piece: “What is the Path to Peace in Gaza?” Town Hall Magazine similarly asks: “Where Does Israel Go From Here?” Everyone’s asking this question. That New York Times opinion piece asked 10 experts to give their opinions. This is what some of them had to say:

         Former Israel Prime Minister Ehud Olmert proposed a NATO force to keep the peace in Gaza. Like Europe will ever send forces to the Middle East. It’s never going to happen.

         Jerome Seagull proposed to rapidly establish a state in Gaza for a 3-year trial. A 3-year trial? Left alone, the next day they will attack Israel. He’s got to be kidding!

         May Pundak and Dalia Echeinlein proposed a Jewish/Palestinian Confederation. After October 7^th, that’ll never happen.

         Listen to this one: Diane Budo proposed the establishment of a Palestinian port and airport. Oh right … so Palestinians will no longer have to make rockets. They’ll be able to import them in the air or on boats.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken laid out in Davos this week the perennially failing solution to Middle East problems—create a larger Palestinian state that will include Gaza. Bibi Netanyahu responded that there’s no chance of that, saying, “In all the territory we evacuate, we get terror.”

Dr. Michael Milstein, in an article on Ynet (1/18/24) gives an in-depth analysis of how Israeli sympathy for the “poor Gazans” has taken an irreversible 180-degree turn. While before October 7^th, there were many Israelis who believed that the majority of Palestinians in Gaza are different from Hamas. But recent Palestinian surveys found that 75% of the Palestinians—our so-called peace partners—supported the October 7^th massacre, and 70% support continued armed struggle against Israel. In fact, the Palestinian Authority is now financially compensating Oct. 7^th terrorists for a massacre well done. The PA pays Palestinians who kill Israelis. It pays a one-time lump sum plus a monthly stipend for life to the families of any “martyr” killed in a confrontation with Israel. And Blinken wants the PA to be Israel’s peace partner?

So, what’s the right answer? When is this going to end and what comes next? Rabbi Wohlberg gives the same answer that Moses gave to Pharoah with the 9^th of the 10 plagues—the plague of Darkness. Darkness had covered Egypt, and the Egyptians couldn’t see, couldn’t move, couldn’t cook, couldn’t get about. Pharaoh summoned Moses and said: “I give up. You can leave. You can take your people with you. You can take your young and old. You can take anyone and everyone. Go worship your Gd. Do whatever you need to do. Only leave the cattle behind.” (Ex. 10:24-26)

Sounds like a pretty good deal—especially after 210 years of slavery. So the Jews leave without their flocks. At least they’ll no longer be slaves. Besides, won’t Gd take care of them? They left Egypt without water and Gd provided. Why not leave without their flocks? Why not take the deal? Listen to how Moses responds to Pharoah: “Forget about it! All of our livestock will go with us. Not a single hoof will remain behind because … lo neyda mah naavod et Hashem …  we do not know with what we’ll need to worship Gd until we arrive there.” The commentaries elaborate: “We do not know how many cattle we’re going to need for sacrifices, or what kind of animals we’re going to need.” oses was the wisest of men, and yet he says: lo neyda (we don’t know) … we don’t know what we’re going to need … we just don’t know. Can you imagine Donald Trump or President Joe Biden ever saying: “We don’t know about something?” And yet, Moses doesn’t hesitate to say: “I don’t know; we’ll find out what we’re supposed to worship Gd with, when we get there.” I think that’s a “Wow”! Can you imagine? Moses—the greatest prophet ever—doesn’t know. And if Moses didn’t know what lies ahead, neither do we, and neither do all of the experts out there.

Some time ago, I saved a quote from Leslie Gelb, who was then president of the Council of Foreign Relations. He’s generally acknowledged to be one of America’s most respected experts on International Affairs. He was assistant Secretary of State, received the Pentagon’s highest award and the Distinguished Service award. So, what he says means something. He said: I’m not supposed to tell you this. I’m violating the code. I’m giving away the deepest darkest secret of foreign policy. But even though we experts sound like we know everything, we know very little, especially about the intentions of bad guys and the consequences of war. But since the media keeps treating us like sages and keeps ignoring our horrendous mistakes, we carry on with our game and do a lot of damage.

Can you imagine? One of the leading foreign policy experts, was telling us that he, and all the other experts, really know very little. Again and again, they’ve been mistaken in their analysis. There’s no way anyone could be sure what Israel or Iran and anyone else’s intentions really are.

He’s right, you know. Who knows what the future will bring? Who would have imagined after the destruction of the Holy Temples—with the entire sacrificial order of worship destroyed—we would develop Rabbinic Judaism that we still practice 2,000 years later. Who would have imagined after the Spanish Inquisition and the expulsion from Spain and Portugal that it would lead to Jews moving to Israel and establishing the City of Safed and the Kabbala—Jewish mysticism—that we study to this day? Who would have imagined in the 1600s with all the massacres in the Ukraine, that it would give rise to Chassidut? And who would have imagined after the Holocaust we would have established a Jewish state—the modern State of Israel? Who would have imagined? Lo neyda—we just don’t know.

And Israelis today don’t know either. As President Isaac Herzog—a left-wing former Labor Party leader—said: “If you ask an average Israeli now, nobody in his right mind is willing now to think about what will be the solution of the peace agreements.”

My friends, we live in a strange new world—a world that’s so different from any that came before. Therefore, we have to accept that—like Moses and the ancient Israelites in Egypt— lo neyda, we don’t know what we will need to do to serve Gd. But serve we must because, as the history of our people shows: Am Yisrael Chai—the people of Israel will live on forever and ever! That we know. Amen!