Page 15 - HaMizrachi #26 Tu Bishvat USA 2021

MIZRACHI SCHOLARS-IN-RESIDENCE TORAT MIZRACHI

She is a lonely and hopeful woman, and of the hall and declared, ‘Wait, isn’t it Current Israeli politics has not been a
she knows that ‘in every expectation, something about Moshe Rabbeinu?’ big source of festive celebration. Most
there is the sadness of Nevo.’ This is one I remember another meeting, at a school of the time we are either before or after
of the most beautiful lines of poetry in in one of the kibbutzim in Emek Yizrael. elections. Four election campaigns in
the world, for all generations. We read Rachel’s poem ‘Barren.’ It begins two years is a big challenge. Our son
I told my students that if I would be a with ‘A son, I had’ and continues with ‘I once asked, “Ima, I know we’re the only
Nobel Prize judge for poetry, I would will still bear my indignation like Mother democracy in the Middle East, but aren’t
give two prizes to two lines in this won- Rachel, I will still pray like Chana at we exaggerating with this democracy
derful, troubled poem. The poem ends Shilo.’ They had heard about Mother thing?”
with a line engraved on the author’s Rachel, but not one of them knew who Indeed, Tu BiShvat this year is perhaps
tombstone by the Kinneret: ‘Each man Chana at Shiloh was, the woman whose a day of cheshbon nefesh – introspec-
and his Nevo, upon the great land,’ mean- prayer for fruit of the womb is one of tion – about the state of Israeli politics.
ing, each person and his unachievable. the most wondrous reflections of a tor- How can it be that the Jewish nation has
mented soul in all of world literature.
I once recited this poem by heart to my returned to its Land, built a magnificent
students, and I felt they weren’t with I thought they should know that. country, Arab countries are standing in
me. I personally feel chills every time I At the end of the meeting, the Princi- line to sign peace deals with us, and
read it, but they didn’t understand at all pal said to me: ‘Why did you come? To yet we have failed to create any sort of
what it was about, so they couldn’t be embarrass and offend them?’ ‘No,’ I said. political stability? How can we succeed
moved by it. I call this the ‘associative ‘I didn’t come for that, but to show them and fail at the same time? How is it that
disconnect.’ Our Hebrew has been accu- the danger of detachment. As heirs of during a pandemic of these proportions
mulated from all the generations of Jews, a rich, multi-generational culture, they we have not learned to unite?
Tanach and Midrash, liturgy and prayer. need to be aware of that. They need to This is not a column of political analy-

This kind of disconnect is a very dan- know what they don’t’.” sis, but it is a platform to request your
gerous thing. prayers. We invite you to add stability

At that point, I placed the book in my Tu BiShvat is also the birthday of and unity in Israel to your prayers. And
bag, looked at the clock and told my stu- the Israeli Knesset. In 1949, after may we all live to see the fruits of our
dents, ‘It was nice to meet you. Today 4the first elections, the first Knesset efforts!
at 11:15, in this school, Hebrew poetry of the State of Israel began to serve the Happy Tu BiShvat!
died.’ country. In a festive ceremony on Febru-
ary 14 , 1949, the first ceremonial ses-
th
They were silent.
sion opened, and Dr. Chaim Weizman, Sivan Rahav Meir and Yedidya Meir are pop-
The prolonged silence was finally broken then interim President, conducted the ular Israeli media personalities and World
by a student who stood up at the end event with emotion. Mizrachi’s Scholars-in-Residence.

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