9th May 2025
Shabbat Shalom dear friends.
Yesterday was a very important day, a new Pope was elected after
just 2 days of conclave. A new Pope, an American who grew up in Chicago and spent
much of his adult life in Peru, Pope Leo XIV, has the ability and opportunity
to influence the world to take a better path.
On May the 13th 1939 a ship set sail from Hamburg for
Cuba. This was no cruise however, the ship, the St Louis, sister ship to the
Milwaukee, carried 937 Jewish passengers escaping the impending horror of Nazi
Germany. The refugees first tried to disembark in Cuba but were denied permission to
land. After Cuba, the captain, Gustav Schröder, went to the United States and Canada,
trying to find a nation to take the Jews in, but both nations refused. He
finally returned the ship to Europe,
where various countries, including the United
Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands and France,
accepted some refugees. British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain agreed to take 288 but
those who went to countries later overtaken by the Reich were killed.
Victory in Europe Day, VE Day is a major event in the United
Kingdom. May the 8th 1945 represents the end of World War 2 in
Europe, after 6 long years of fighting, of many major cities being reduced to
rubble by the German War Machine. Food rationing from 1939 yet the morale of
Brits went far beyond the British stoicism, the natural sang froid, Britain had
a great leader in Winston Churchill, who not only fought the Germans but led
the people sustaining their morale. Even the wartime songs that people sang
while in the London Underground which served as bomb shelters ranged from Vera
Lynn to very rude, humorous lampoons.
Today, as we face a world that has no clear direction, that has lost its
moral compass, the dignity with which this day is honoured brings back a time
long gone, a time when victory in Europe meant just that, the victory over a
cruel, racist, killing machine. A midday Big Ben tolled and a 2 minute silence
was held before a service at Westminster Abbey. Traditions and gratitude we
must never lose.
Five days ago a Houthi missile hit the slip road of Ben Gurion
Airport. Now please remember that the Houthis are guilty of murder and piracy
on the high seas and are no friend to the West, but I was fascinated to see how
the even was reported in the West. Reuters – Missile fired by Yemen’s
non-aligned Houthis lands near Tel Aviv’s airport. CNN – Israel fails to
intercept a Houthi missile.. BBC - Netanyahu vows response……. All reporting the
same event but the bias is clear. It was very disturbing but the purpose is
barely reported. The purpose is to destroy Israel’s economy. One of our major
sources of income is tourism and the natural response to a hypersonic missile
(that’s why we didn’t stop it) hitting close to the airport is for all the
foreign airlines to cease flying to Israel!
In fact one of my lovely readers from Melbourne, the delightful
Helen (Helsie) Brustman worried about the PR concerning our government when I
may criticise our leaders. However I feel that if I didn’t tell you the whole
truth then I would be letting you down. This is an incredible country with
fabulous people of all faiths; a country where 300% of those asked to defend us
(miluimniks) came forward to fight after the 7th of October; this is a country
of volunteers, all in all a deeply caring society for all our noise. But the
sad fact is that we are also a rudderless society at the moment. Our hearts
ache for the hostages that remain in diabolical conditions; our hearts ache for
the families of those hostages and for those who came home after hundreds of
days; for the families of soldiers who volunteer to go back time and again when
we are uncertain as to the value of risking even more young lives, and so the
list goes on. What is incredible is that Israeli determination that life must
go on. Restaurants, cinemas, theatres, beaches, hotels are all full of
Israelis!!! We understand that we must express ourselves by demonstrating, be
it in Hostage Square to show our loyalty to the families or by acting as if all
is normal even when we know it isn’t.
Perhaps the most divisive aspect of this government is that they
are not forcing all members of Israeli society to defend Israel leaving the
burden of fighting force weighing heavily on men and women who leave their
families, businesses and studies for months on end. The honour of living in a
democracy, a true democracy means that rights demand responsibility, taking
responsibility for everyone not just ones own particular sector; all sectors,
not just Haredi, not just Moslem, all sectors. One member of the Likud party
that has stood firm on this is Yuli Edelstein, chair of the Knesset foreign
affairs and defence committee, who insists that a real conscription law is one
that applies to every community. When rockets fall they don't distinguish
between Christian, Jew, Druze, Arab. It's irrelevant what your head covering,
hijab, or shtreimel, or what colour your kippa, and our defence must apply the
same.
The first and foremost Jewish law is Pikuach nefesh, the Jewish law
that says that to save one soul is to save a world.
I am not going to comment just to state a fact. President Biden demanded
recognition of Israel as a condition of agreeing to nuclear Saudi Arabia.
President Trump just agreed to a nuclear Saudi Arabia without rationalization of
relations with Israel.
Abdul Rauf Azhar, the Pakistani Al Qaeda-affiliated terrorist who
beheaded American Jewish journalist Daniel Pearl on camera in 2002, has been
killed by Indian forces. 23 years after his killing, Daniel Pearl has finally
been avenged! ”My name is Daniel Pearl. I'm a Jewish-American from Encino,
California, USA/ My father's Jewish, my mother's Jewish, I'm Jewish. My family
follows Judaism.”
This is Israel and there is always good news. After winning many medals in the
European acrobatic gymnastics we proved that our brains are just as agile. Six
Israeli high school students represented Israel at the Baltic Olympiad in
Informatics in Poland, a computer science competition for high school students.
Every single member of the Israeli team won a medal: 4 gold medal winners -
including Daniel Zwebner who won the overall gold for the entire competition.
I am often asked why I came to live in Israel. For me it is a
given, but for some others, including some Israelis, it is a logical question.
Actually I am asked that particular question less and less as our world become
more and more hostile, but I digress. Why did I choose to live here? Well, it
all started on a Jewish Agency trip in July-August 1963. We toured, learned,
worked on Kibbutz, saw Israel for the first time. I had heard all about Israel
from my parents and watched my Father’s 16mm film of their trip in 1953; I had
listened avidly to my Habonim leaders (madrichim) both Norman Berg z”l and
Andrew Stone (aka Lord Stone of Blackheath) in my home city of Cardiff in South
Wales and then when my parents decided to send me on my first “tour” I grabbed
at the chance. Somehow, I fell in love with a very different Israel, a much
simpler Israel, an unsophisticated Israel, but full of warm, welcoming people.
For many years my love affair with this gorgeous country was limited to twice
yearly visits with three children, time spent almost exclusively with my then
husband’s family, but that special place in my heart never left me.
Life was good in the UK, both volunteering and then working with
organisations that related to Israel, but that special yearning, that sense of
coming home never left me. So I did it! I came home and that is the answer to
all of the questions. I came home. This is a complex society, a warm, welcoming
society, a noisy and argumentative society, a deeply curious society that is
brilliant at solving practical situations, opinionated to a fault like one big
very annoying family. We do not have a simple life, our neighbouring countries
have only one aim, to throw us off our ancient land; to deny the bible or biblical
rights. I seriously wouldn’t want to live anywhere else. Obviously there are
many more personal reasons that I do not need to talk about but here I am!
Zvi is sitting in the Botanical Gardens with his parliament, his
group of friends who discuss and try to solve the problems of our world, which
is a bit easier than the problems in Israel! When he gets home I’ll take him
out onto the veranda, I love to inspect every plant daily and I need to show
him the apples on the ridiculously small apple tree. There must be 20! They are
Anna, my favourite variety since I can’t get Cox’s Orange Pippins they became a
close second best. We will bring in Shabbat and Zvi will recite the blessing
over the wine in his beautiful bass baritone and we will relax, it’s Shabbat.
Tomorrow we will celebrate Yonatan’s 11th birthday and
then, when dusk falls we will start another week. Everyone we meet with say
Shevua Tov, have a good week, hopefully an uneventful week
And so to music.
Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach was famous for his gentle religious songs
but even more for the niggun (song without words. Here he combines the two.
Shabbat Shalom and blessed. https://youtu.be/9QIOy6UQAuk?si=Ci4Q0aVVSwZPGC3T
Yaacov Shwekey and IDF soldier Shlomo Lipman
If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its
skill!
Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth, if I do not remember you,
if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy!
https://youtu.be/fAFWMQnrU9E?si=T0JQEcW8fX1CuVff
Biblical quotes are so often proven true for today. Turn Turn Turn,
https://youtu.be/eiprqeaydik?si=l25ZYOYu8eCuMwKH
And so to Shabbat. Almost here. We will look over to the view of
Jerusalem in the distance, slowly turning pink, orange and red as the setting
sun changes the glistening white buildings to Jerusalem of Gold. Wherever you
are, whatever you are doing, irrespective of the direction of your prayers, you
pray to Jerusalem.
Be safe, be well, be strong, together we can face up to any threat.
With love
Sheila
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