On Simchat Torah, we finished the yearly cycle of weekly Torah portion readings and we are happy to begin again from the beginning. We must always return to the beginning of our roots. We must be reminded again who we are and what we are doing here in Eretz Yisrael. And so we begin again with ‘Bereishit barah (In the beginning…).’
This coming week, Parshat Lech Lecha, we again meet our father Abraham who taught us the power of faith creating the energy of life, who showed us the way and inspired us with the responsibility of bringing a blessing to the world. All this dynamic movement stems from the words lech lecha – go forward – and creates the driving force pushing us forward and giving us the strength to overcome all obstacles along the way. This faith obligates us to be constantly aware of the divine blessing flowing within this process of lech lecha, going forward, as the Almighty promises Abraham: “I will make you into a great nation … and I will bless those who bless thee …” (Bereishit:12:2).
Ever since this G-dly command to Abraham, which paved the road toward Jewish destiny, the Jewish people have been on the go. This process of more than 3,000 years has taken us into slavery in Egypt, ultimate redemption, to the spiritual heights of hearing G-d’s words at Mt. Sinai, accepting His Torah and mitzvot which have implanted within us an eternal substance of life.
This eternal power of life has kept us going through many generations of trials and tribulations, both in our homeland and in exile. Ever since the destruction of the second Temple we have been dispersed among the nations of the world who were bent on annihilating the Jewish people. All the powers of evil and hatred could not suppress Jewish faith and determination to continue the long trek toward our divine destiny of complete Jewish life in our ancient homeland.
Our beliefs and prayers have finally been realized in our generation. The driving force of redemption has brought about the miraculous process of the ingathering of the exiles and re-establishment of Jewish independence in the Land of Israel.
As the closed gates of our holy land were opened again, multitudes of idealistic Jews restored new life to the desolate hills and plains of Israel. This pioneering spirit came to the peak of practical settlement activity, inspired by the divine words of our prophets being realized before our very eyes. This is the profound significance of the stirring movement of Jewish settlement in the hills and sands of Judea, Samaria, Gaza and the Golan.
Boundless energy, drawing from the depths of faith in divine redemption, has been invested in rebuilding our ancient towns and cities in this heartland of Eretz Yisrael. This has been accomplished in face of the most difficult pain and suffering wrought upon us by Arab terror, the goal of which has always been the destruction of the Jewish presence in Eretz Yisrael. The continuous flourishing of Jewish life in Jerusalem, Hebron, Beit El, Elon Moreh, Shilo, Eli and Gush Katif is the most glorious expression of eternal devotion to the words spoken by G-d to our father Abraham: “Go forward and I will make you into a great nation and you will be blessed.”
In our wildest dreams we never could have imagined that a Jewish Zionist government would even consider such a distorted and evil plan of uprooting Jews from their homes in Eretz Yisrael and bringing destruction upon so many synagogues, schools and other fruits of Jewish labor in the towns of Gush Katif and northern Samaria. The tragic absurdity of this wicked plan is that it will not bring us any closer to peace, but will stimulate the Arab terrorists to chase after the fleeing Jews who are yielding to terror. And it will serve as a legitimate precedent for further destruction and the uprooting of Jews from their homeland, as is desired by many world leaders. If such a diabolical plan would be suggested with regards to any Jewish community in the world, it would surely arouse an outcry of condemnation by the Jewish government of Israel.