Page 2 - HaMizrachi_2_USA

Rabbi David Israel

Israel and

US Jerusalem Within

ָהֶנְנוֹכְי אוּהְו הּּ ָב דַּלֻי שׁי ִאְו שׁי ִא ר ַמ ָאֵי ןוֹיִּצֲלוּ in Gaza during Operation Cast Lead in our lives as moving toward the Holy Land.
הָיּ ִר ְ בּ ר ָבּ אשיימ ר”א .)ה ,זפ םיִלּ ִה ְ תּ( ןוֹיְל ֶע 2009. After a long day of exercises in the And if we are temporarily stuck in the
ד ָח ֶאְו הּ ָבּ דָלוֹנּ ַה ד ֵח ַא :יִוֵל ן ֶבּ ַע ֻשׁוֹהְי ’ר ָדּ hot Negev desert, Dagan allowed his sol- Diaspora, for whatever reason, we should
).הע תוֹבוּתְ כּ(.הּ ָתוֹא ְ רִל ה ֶפּ ְ צ ִמּ ַה diers to rest and sleep. Suddenly, in the know that we always carry Israel inside us.
middle of the night, he shouted: “Wake
“And of Zion it will be said, this man and up, wake up, wake up!” They were a little Similarly, Major Dagan Wertman taught us
this man were born in her, and God on shocked. Then Dagan ordered them into that we must always be “walking to Jerusa-
High will establish her (Psalms 87:5). formation and they began to hike. “Go, go, lem,” even if we find ourselves in the Negev,
Rabbi Meyasha, son of the son of Rabbi go!” he shouted as he encouraged them New York or Nebraska. The rabbis tell us
Yehoshua ben Levi, said: Both the man forward. After 20 minutes, one of the sol- that Jerusalem is the center of Israel, indeed
who was actually born in Zion and the one diers asked, “We worked hard all day, we the center of the world! It touches the very
who looks forward to seeing her, are equally haven’t slept, where are we going?” “To essence of what it means to have a Jewish
considered children of Zion.”(Ketubot 75a) Jerusalem,” replied Dagan. Knowing that State. And it is the reason the Hatikvah, the
Jerusalem was hundreds of kilometers Israeli national anthem, ends with “to be a
he Gemara continues by praising away, the soldier was at a loss for words. free people in our land, the Land of Zion,
somone who makes Aliyah and “It’s Yom Yerushalayim,” said Dagan, Yerushalayim.”
T returns to the Land of Israel “We’re going up to Jerusalem.”
as even greater than a person born there. We are all “children of Zion.” If we are not
Yom Yerushalayim, which marks the Ten minutes later, they were told, “We’ve lucky enough this year to celebrate Yom
reunification of our eternal capital, the arrived!” and Dagan ordered them to stop. Yerushalayim in Jerusalem – or even in
return to the place of the Beit HaMikdash, Right there in the middle of the desert, Israel – know that we still carry Jerusalem
is best celebrated in Jerusalem. But what he had prepared a party to celebrate Yom inside us at all times. Let us celebrate by
if we are not in Jerusalem? And how shall Yerushalayim. The soldiers switched from always remembering that “we are going up
we who are celebrating Yom Yerushalayim anger and frustration to joy and laughter as to Jerusalem.”
neither in Jerusalem nor even in Israel, they feasted on soda, sweets and cakes.
approach this day?
Rabbi Nachman of Breslov said, “Everywhere Rabbi David Israel is the
I heard a particularly poignant story about I go, I am going to the Land of Israel.” Rabbi Executive Vice-President of
Yom Yerushalayim in a eulogy for Major Nachman implied that we must always Religious Zionists of America –
Dagan Wertman, who was tragically killed yearn to be traveling to Israel. We must see Mizrachi USA

A panoramic view of the Old City of Jerusalem

305 Seventh Avenue Presidium
New York, NY 10001 Dr. Ernest Agatstein
212.465.9234 Rabbi Leonard Matanky
office@rza.org Martin Oliner
www.rza.org Executive Vice-President
2 Rabbi David Israel