Rabbi Jack Engel - Sharing my thoughts as I depart Israel - March 12,2024
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B"H
Sharing my thoughts as I depart Israel
I’m excited to be going to Delray Beach but sad to leave Israel. Initially, I wrote I’m excited about going home, but now I have to reconsider such phraseology. I think that for many Jews, the aftermath of October 7th has opened their eyes. Thank God, Jews are welcomed and have succeeded in many countries but there is only one country that promotes the interest of Jews worldwide above all else. Of course, I’ll miss Avner and his family who live in Jerusalem, but I’ll also see Na’ama and her family who live in Boca. From a personal perspective having grandchildren on two continents isn't perfect, but I’m certainly not complaining. I even discussed with Miriam the possibility of buying a residence in Israel, but we are not quite ready to bite that bullet.
However, our connection to Israel is far greater than visiting grandchildren. Israel has the largest concentration of Jews in the world and despite being in the midst of war is still an amazing place for Jews to reside. Israel has become the epicenter of Jewry and I believe it’s finally time to abandon customs that emanated from Poland or Lithuania and commence adapting customs that emanate from Israel. The first custom I would change is the rule that bans eating legumes on Passover. For thousands of years all Jews ate legumes on Passover but when Jewry moved to Poland the rabbis of that country decided that legumes can be ground into a flour substance and thus easily confused with wheat flour. For centuries this custom has been accepted as almost a Godly rule amongst Ashkenazi Jews. However, in Israel today, most Jews follow the Israeli custom of eating legumes on Passover. Hence, I believe, that it’s time world Jewry started eating what their ancestors ate before the Polish rabbinate changed those habits.
Although I truly see Israel's inherent beauty it has now become one of the saddest places on earth. Everyone you speak to knows someone who has been killed, injured or taken hostage. There are still tens of thousands of displaced residents from the south and north. Outwardly, life may appear to resemble normality, but a new reality has overtaken the people. No Israeli remained who they were before October 7. They really wanted to live in harmony with their neighbors but are now cognizant that this may no longer be doable. Their neighbors too have changed and the status quo of yesterday plainly ceases to exist. Trust is no longer a possibility as behind every smile is a potential of an October 7th terrorist. It may be illogical but logic should have dictated a world who saw Hamas for the terrorist they are. And sadly, we know the world was silenced again, failing to stand up to the tyranny and oppression targeting the Jewish people.
A few hours ago, I received a phone call from a woman I had never met. She is a widow with three children who are orphans. She told me that her family wasn’t forced to evacuate from up north but felt for her children’s safety that she must leave. Bombs and missiles didn’t reign down in her neighborhood every night, so the government considered it safe enough to remain there. She however, felt otherwise and decided to resettle in Jerusalem. Her decision catapulted her and her family into debt, but the government deems her departure unnecessary and won’t aid her financially. Somehow, she heard that I, in conjunction with my community are helping evacuees and she asked for my assistance.
To be honest, I don’t know what to do. Her story is very emotional but one of thousands of similar stories. We don’t have the financial wherewithal to finance the needs of the Israeli public. Yet the Torah unequivocally states “don’t oppress widows and orphans”. Although I don’t know the lady who phoned and certainly didn’t knowingly do anything to oppress her or her children nevertheless, I still feel the biblical texts sending me a message. I think that perhaps her having no one to turn to except a complete stranger puts me in a bind. Is turning a blind eye to her situation not in some way being oppressive?
All I can do is continue to help in a manner that I perceive to be rational . Since the war started the generosity of our community has been overwhelming. We raised in excess of $80,000 to assist in our mission objectives and in addition hundreds of thousands of dollars were given by our members to other organizations and individuals. I know of individual members of our shul who have given in excess of $50,000 to help assist Israel and its people.
Miriam and I have been wanting to buy artwork for the last 40 years. We have always had an excuse why it wasn’t the correct time. We finally decided that it’s a good time to support the Israeli economy and we bought one painting in Israel. We were contemplating buying a second painting and then decided, that in lieu of purchasing something that we have wanted for many years it’s more appropriate to use those funds to help those who are suffering. I wrote to the proprietor of the gallery, and he responded by writing: “Thank you for your email. I appreciate your understanding of the difficult situation of many people in Israel. Of course, I would not want you to purchase anything that you do not want, but please take into consideration the highest level of tzedakah is helping people remain employed and every business is suffering here. Without a doubt, any purchase that you make in Israel, particularly from businesses who are dependent upon tourism is a tremendous act of kindness”. After receiving his response I am now more confused than before and will have to think about the sentiments he expressed.
Miriam and I have decided to at least start a new project in motion. One of our members, Chavi Kahan and her Husband Abe have been to Israel three times since October 7th and she has been the force behind our shuls two successful missions. She has dedicated the last five months to helping Israel in numerous ways and if you are in her email list you will already know the myriad of projects, she is raising funds for. We decided to start a shul fund called: The ‘Chavi Kahan Israel giving fund’ to help her raise money. Everyone will have an opportunity when selling their chametz to allocate some tzedaka for this cause. I have never knowingly used these articles as a means of raising funds or promoting myself. However, current times demand a change. Thus, Miriam and I want to publicly commit the sum of $1,800 to assist Chavi. I only hope that others see the great need and value in allocating tzedaka to the people in Israel.
