Last November I sat gazing out the window of our bus at the magnificent forests of the Carmel in northern Israel. I was traveling with a hundred pro-Israel AIPAC activists from Jerusalem to the Israeli naval base in Haifa. In Jerusalem we had met with senior government officials, policymakers and business leaders and even with the prime minister of the Palestinian Authority.
Most of us had worked with AIPAC for years to strengthen the political and strategic ties between Israel and America, and we thought we had heard it all. We thought we were tough realists. But on this trip, we were all shaken by what we learned of the threats to Israel’s survival — from remorseless Iranian progress toward nuclear weapons to the massive rearmament of Hezbollah in Lebanon; from the terrorist group Hamas’ control of Gaza to the new hostility of Turkey toward Israel; from the intransigence of a Palestinian Authority which refuses to directly negotiate for peace to the rabid worldwide delegitimization of Israel.
So the bus was quiet and our mood was grim. We climbed higher into the mountains and finally came to the youth village of Yemin Orde, where abandoned and troubled kids from Ethiopia and Russia and the streets of Tel Aviv are given a chance at a life worth living as proud Israelis. The kids were beautiful and their spirit was strong and they gave us hope again for the future.
But just two weeks later the road we had driven on was scalded asphalt, the forests were ash and Yemin Orde was a smoldering ruin. A massive fire had taken the lives of 44 Israelis and destroyed hundreds of homes and a million trees. Nevertheless, in defiance of this catastrophe, the response of Jews worldwide to help Israel plant and build again was immediate and massive and reaffirmed the Talmudic injunction that all Israel is responsible for one another. Though it will take time, the forests of the Carmel will bloom again, and the kids of Yemin Orde will have a school and a home and a future.
The burning of the north of Israel, which we have just witnessed, and the raising of new forests to replace those destroyed, recapitulates the history of Am Yisrael. Time and again the Jewish people has moved from annihilation to rebirth, from despair to hope, from darkness to light. In the span of just one lifetime, we have witnessed both the most murderous Holocaust in all human experience and the greatest miracle of modern times: the rebirth of the state of Israel. I believe it is the unique historical charge of our generation of American Jews to guard and protect this miracle for our children and for theirs. And that is why I was in Israel with AIPAC this November.
AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, is dedicated to strengthening the relationship between Israel and its most important ally, the United States of America. AIPAC works with Congress to strengthen America’s relationship with Israel to the benefit of both nations. Thanks to Congress’ support and AIPAC’s work, Israel has received billions of dollars in critical security assistance. AIPAC also ensures that America’s current and future leaders understand Israel’s security needs and its value to the United States. The work that AIPAC does is crucial to Israel’s security.
On Sunday, March 6, we can all help change the future for Israel by participating in the 3rd Annual AIPAC Israel Action Forum. The keynote speaker will be Rabbi Danny Gordis, internationally acclaimed author and vice president of the Shalem Center in Jerusalem. Breakout sessions will be led by world class policy experts who will address the complex issues of the Middle East which impact Israel’s survival, including the new unrest in Egypt. In a show of solidarity with Israel, almost all of the Kansas Congressional delegation will be in attendance.
This week on the internet I saw a picture of bright yellow daffodils courageously pushing through the ash in the Carmel, a stubborn promise of life amid the devastation. It reminded me of the prayer we recite every Shabbat, in which we rejoice in the state of Israel as the first flower of our redemption. Our job is to tend it well.
Please join us at the Israel Action Forum at Kehilath Israel Synagogue.
The Kansas City Israel Action Forum, sponsored by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), will take place from 1:30 to 5 p.m. Sunday, March 6, at Kehilath Israel Synagogue. To register, visit www.aipac.org/kcforum2011 or contact Tali Jubelirer at (312) 253-8984.
