Sunday, January 09, 2011

Light Up Israel to Light Up The Universe

By Nurit Greenger

As tiny as it is, almost daily Israel occupies the world's stage at large, not always in a positive way.

Israel has a colossal magnetism on the world.

The Spanish Jewish physician, poet and philosopher Rabbi Yehuda Halevi said, "my heart is in the east and I am in the west." ("ליבי במזרח ואני במערב")

In the Torah we read, "God's eyes is focused on the land of Israel from the onset of the year to the end of the year." (("עיני אלוקי עליך מראשית השנה עד אחרית השנה."

Perhaps the obsession of the world, negative and positive, over the Land of Israel and Jews is a calling to the Jewish People to stand up. It keeps Jews on the alert; it does not allow us to forget our identity and always reminds us we are unique People who have a homeland.

This calling is twofold: one, to "obliterate the evil from amongst you";

("ובערת הרע מקירבך")

exposing evil, lies and immoral behavior that festers like the mould in the darkness, hiding from light that will destroy it. This amoral festering mould hidden so it is not exposed must be brought to the light where, the light of truth will melt away. Lies, deception, evil and immorality love the darkness, the lack of exposure, so it can do the damage from its hiding place, from within. In the light of exposure, eventually it dies.

Second, when we see something unjust and immoral, we take it to task; speak about it, post it on the Internet. We are the media now, be not afraid.

The Talmud tells us, "little bit of light pushes away much darkness."

("מעט אור דוחה הרבה חושך")

One light can light up a very large dark room. The little light is each one of us and we, with our actions spread it, together we make a brilliant light of just and truth.

By standing up for the State of Israel, where the rights of the Jewish People were established, already in the Torah, where God gave the Jewish People a mission we carry out this eternal mission. And we must not be afraid of our sacred duty.

Anything we, Jews, do, adds light into our life and then into the entire universe.

יהודה הלוי "ליבי במזרח ואני במערב"

"עיני אלוקי עליך מראשית השנה עד אחרית השנה."

"ובערת הרע מקירבך"

"מעט אור דוחה הרבה חושך

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