Page 22 - HaMizrachi Sukkot 5783 USA

“The Song Will

Never be Stopped”

Rabbi Dovid
Fendel Rav Chanan Porat and the

Betrayal of Gush Katif

av Chanan Porat zt”l had and then abandon the settlers of Gush for the soldiers to be involved, but who
a special relationship with Katif?” In Parashat Vayigash, while could possibly ostracize our soldiers
Sderot. He understood discussing the need for Yosef’s brothers who protect us?”
Rour challenges and felt a to repent, he writes: “The sin of the In his commentary to Devarim, Rav
personal responsibility to teach at the disengagement won’t be forgiven until Chanan explains that our chief
yeshivah and build something special all those who participated recognize
in this border town. His relationship their sin – not by offering demeaning challenge is to conquer the land, but
at the same time to never forget banim
with Sderot stemmed from his reparations to the settlers, but by
tremendous love of Sinai and Gush asking forgiveness, placing them on atem – that G-d loves all of His children,
Katif and his deep mourning over the their shoulders, and bringing them even if they sin and oppose the settling
tragic evictions from those beautiful back home with love and mercy. Until of the Land! We must do everything
places. that day comes, we will not forget possible to stop them from sinning,
nor forgive those responsible for this but we must never hate!
I vividly remember the day in 1982 crime. Without proper teshuvah, the sin
when bulldozers were destroying the will remain forever with them. We will In a postscript to Terumah, Rav
settlement of Atzmona in the Sinai. not rest until we erase this disgrace Chanan explains Am Yisrael’s passion
Rav Chanan entered the shul and said and fulfill the message of the prophet: for the Mikdash, and describes an
Tehillim, verse by verse, with a fervor v’shavu banim ligvulam, “the children unforgettable Tisha B’Av night in Gush
and intensity I had never seen before. will return to their borders!” He was Katif in 2005. After Eicha, someone
I learned that day that buildings confident that the government would began singing Yosele Rosenblatt’s
can be destroyed, but our spirit and not succeed in erasing the memory sheyibaneh beis haMikdash, “may Your
our connection to G-d is eternal and of the disengagement, and just as we Temple be built”. The singing went
unbreakable. Twenty years later, I returned to Gush Etzion, so too will on for over half an hour, growing
was with Rav Chanan once again our people return to Gush Katif.” ever more intense, until the very
in Gush Katif during those terrible walls of the shul began to sway. Rav
days of destruction. I’ll never forget While discussing the mitzvah of Chanan writes that never before did
how Rav Chanan spoke with genuine conquering Eretz Yisrael in Parashat he experience singing so powerful.
anger but also with love, rebuking the Re’eh, Rav Chanan writes that “the “I looked carefully at the hundreds
government but also maintaining a day is not far when, against our will, of people, young and old, who were
deep respect for our country and its we will be forced to reconquer Gaza praying with closed and teary eyes.
soldiers. in order to protect the Negev.” As I thought to myself, very soon the
someone who lives in Sderot under bulldozers will knock down these
Like thousands of others, I am an avid the constant threat of rocket fire from
reader of Rav Chanan’s legendary Gaza, his words ring true. people’s houses and yet, here they are,
united, telling G-d that all they care
work, Me’at Min Ha’or. So many of
my divrei Torah are stolen from that Though Rav Chanan was deeply about is His house! I knew then that
wounded by the disengagement from
masterpiece! After years of reading, even if Gush Katif is destroyed, this
I am struck by how much of his Gush Katif, he remained full of love – song will never be stopped – and that
even for those who caused him and
Torah was shaped by the trauma he Am Yisrael so much pain. In Parashat the beautiful singing of these Jews will
experienced during the evacuation of Mishpatim, Rav Chanan ridicules those one day build our Beit HaMikdash!”
Gush Katif. May his memory inspire in us an
who wouldn’t give a ride to people
In his commentary to Matot, Rav who supported and participated in intensified love of Am Yisrael, Eretz
Chanan cries out, “Oy, Ariel! How could the disengagement. He writes “there Yisrael, and Torat Yisrael.
Ariel Sharon say that the settlement of is no doubt the disengagement was a Rabbi Dovid Fendel is the founder and Rosh
Netzarim is as important as Tel Aviv, hideous crime and it was forbidden Yeshivah of Yeshivat Hesder of Sderot.

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