The David Cardozo Academy: Revitalizing Judaism

Yom HaAtzma’ut: The Blessing and the Danger – Lest We forget

There is no logic to the State of Israel and it is no foundation for commonplace,
Nor is it habit, or routine.
Israel is a marvel,
It is neither for visits,
Nor a place to dwell,
But a home where one stands in awe.

Israel is a challenge
Demanding spiritual renewal;
Israel is a protest
To teach us that the extraordinary cannot be forgotten.

The creation of the State of Israel is akin to the Splitting of the Red Sea,
Israelis still walk the dry passages in the middle of the sea;
Only as Jews — and not merely “Israelis” — will they reach dry land.
The walk to Sinai, to freedom, is only possible when accompanied by the music of Jewish commitment and the glory of the divine commandments.

Israel is an open miracle,
The heart does not grasp what the eyes perceive;
Israel cannot be comprehended,
A surprise, a mystery we cannot fathom.

Yet, fear set in,
The hand of Providence was too much — we called it normal.
While spellbound, we termed it ordinary,
Convincing ourselves we are but a nation among nations.
The more we do this, the more we are defeated by our own arguments,
And we lost.

The prophet called out to us:
“What is in your mind, shall never happen.
As for what you say: ‘We will be like the nations, like the families of the lands… as I live, the word of the Lord will reign over you’ (Yechezkel, 20:33).”

We are living in sacred times,
Biblical events have revisited us — but we declared them profane.

The State of Israel is a prelude,
We hope in our hearts for new miracles,
But our deeds and our quarrels defy the possibilities;
We sense the glory of the moment,
Yet we deny the consequences.

We are witnesses of the resurrection,
But we only see the monotony.

“‘You are my witnesses,
says the Lord’
(Yeshayahu 43:12).”
“If you are My witnesses, I am your God; and if you are not My witnesses,
I am not your God
(Midrash to Tehilim, 123:1).”

Israel is the fatherland of the Jew
And the Torah is His portable homeland.
Lo, the one who makes a separation!
Lest we forget.

Chag Sameach.

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