1. This column was written before the blood of the pioneers of Samaria who were murdered in the terrorist attack at the Ali gas station dried. Land do not cover their blood.
It is already clear that the situation in northern Samaria has reached a boil, and it would be unwise to wait for additional disasters in order to act comprehensively to halt the process of Lebaneseization taking place in front of us, like rainbow barrages from the centers of the large cities. Northern Samaria is a reflection of what people also think in Lebanon, Gaza, Tehran and other places in the hostile region around us. If we do not deal thoroughly, wisely and firmly with the terrorists' nests there, we will broadcast to the other arenas that the restraint has indeed been loosened and here we are about to collapse, God forbid, which will invite the opening of fronts in the south and north, to the delight of the priests of destruction in Tehran.
Civilians praying at the site of the attack My husband // Photo: Use under Section 27A of Copyright
2. It is worth repeating the basics: These pioneers were murdered because they were Jews. Had the terrorists could, they would have murdered Jews in Hadera or Tel Aviv. The communities in Samaria are our security belt, their brave residents absorb the fire for all of us. It wasn't directed at them, but at all of us. Look at Gaza: We left there completely, and they no longer have anyone to shoot at, so they launch rockets and missiles into the heart of the country, because our very presence bothers them. This could happen if there were no Jews in Samaria. The nests of terror will grow into a terrorist entity that can control us from the back of the mountain and make our lives miserable.
These pioneers also protect the land for all of us. They correct the sin of spies for which we suffered two destructions and the curse of exile. They make sure that we continue to live in these places on which and within them entire chapters of the Bible have been written, eternal ideas that we have bequeathed to humanity, and to which we have dreamed of returning. Ever since we returned to Israel in recent generations, the war has been over the degree of attachment to the land, over clinging to the good land that waited desolate for two thousand years of exile and refused to give dairy to foreigners, until our return to it in recent generations. The country, which was cursed in the words of the writer Mark Twain in 1867, magically became a flourishing land, and from its agricultural flourishing we advanced to its economic, scientific and technological flourishing. We did all this with only one hand, because the other hand grasped and continues to grasp Shelah from those who plough our evil.
Tribal Unification
3. The settlement of Ali is located near Shiloh in the Binyamin Mountains. Ali was the high priest at Shiloh (see the first chapters of <> Samuel). It marks the end of the judges' term.
There was not yet a nationwide political leadership, but a religious center in Shiloh, while society remained tribal (pre-monarchy). His disciple, the prophet Samuel, who was educated by him from childhood, was the link with the next period in our history: he crowned our first king Saul, and then David.
When the elders of Israel (the leadership representing the entire nation, the ancient prototypeof the political leadership that operated alongside the judge or king) ask Samuel to crown them king, they describe the purpose of the appointment: "And we judged (in a sense: he will lead us) our king and went before us (to war) and fought our war."
The security of citizens is the first condition for leadership and monarchy. The idea of a kingdom sought to unite the tribes, to form them into a people with a national consciousness. The kingdom applies the sovereignty of the people over the land and preserves the spiritual and political freedom of the people from those who wish to harm and enslave them. and from Ali and Samuel of about the 11th century BCE, to Ali and northern Samaria today.
4. It is not inconceivable that the terrible public disagreement that has arisen between us - with its ugly expressions and astonishing statements by groups among us against certain sectors of the people - has planted in the hearts of our enemies and soul-seekers the thought that we have been weakened and that it is time to attack us. They read the social networks and our media and political discourse carefully. Fortunately, Jews call each other by the most terrible derogatory terms, there are those who until recently were leaders and commanders, and now, as we are, they cultivate hatred towards others who think differently from their opinions. This is not a dispute for heaven's sake, but hatred that consumes the living tissue that connects us.
Two thousand years ago, we learned: "Sages, beware of your words, lest you be obliged to exile and discover the place of evil water, and the disciples who come after you will drink and die, and we will find a desecrated heaven there." The initial commentary spoke of caution in the content of the study and strict adherence to the accuracy of the statements, so as not to harm the tradition – that is, the Torah that is passed down from generation to generation – since a crack in the first generation may become the dismantling of the method in future generations.
But there is no beit midrash without renewal, and the ancient words have meaning for our times: from a distance of generations, our sages warn opinion leaders, leaders and influencers of public opinion in the media, social networks and the House of Representatives, to be very careful in their words, to avoid irresponsible statements that harm social cohesion, because in the absence of unity of fate between us, we are liable to fall into the hands of our enemies who rejoice at the division and hatred and the absurd historical comparisons to the greatest of our enemies of all time. In the absence of unity of fate, we cannot truly defeat our enemies, neither on the hills of Samaria nor in Tehran. We must beware of the wanton discourse we have experienced in recent months, so as not to owe an obligation to exile again.
Four murdered in shooting attack at gas station near the community of Ali // Yoni Rikner
There is no provision here to avoid the controversy; Not. Controversy is one of the secrets of our intellectual and scholastic development as a people throughout history; Every page of the Talmud proves this. The possibility of thinking differently, of presenting a different perspective on any subject, is a cornerstone of Jewish tradition, and our sages have already said that there is no sharpening knife but the thigh of a friend. Even if the disagreement is difficult and polarized, we should thank each other for presenting the other opinion – such as Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel – because without our opponents, we would not have become a nation that has brought so many treasures of knowledge and faith to the world. We can respectfully disagree with each other. If you read something infuriating, wait a moment or a few before releasing a harsh counterstatement. In particular, avoid attacking a person's body (ad hominem), but only on the merits of a thing, opinion or idea (ad factum): "The opinion you express is wrong, problematic, dangerous" and the like; And not derogatory epithets in the person himself who holds the opinion: "You are such and such."
Wait with the reform
5. We can wait with the legal reform. It seems to me that there is a majority of the public that understands that the court has violated the balance between the branches of government, and while there is judicial review of the legislative and executive branches, there is currently no similar mechanism for monitoring or balancing the court. I have written extensively about this and supported legal reform.
But the past few months have taught us that without broad public consensus, we cannot force an occasional majority on matters that touch the root of our existence as a society. Patience. It's a good idea to be smart and not just right. We need unity among the people in order to fight our enemies near and far. This is not a statement that blurs differences, but an understanding based on the lessons of history and on our formative identity stories. In our souls it is.
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