My friend, Aharon Horwitz, fellow ROI120 conference participant and contributor for Blogs of Zion, has been called to Miluim, the IDF Reserves. Aharon and his wife, Alieza, who recently celebrated the first anniversary of their aliyah, graciously hosted me in their home during my stay in Jerusalem.For my Israeli friends, I'm sure this is a familiar scene. But for me, this is the first time a friend has been called to duty in a time of war. Aharon, thank you for everything you are doing for us.
Esther K. posts on the ROI120 Blog:
The rest of us, in Israel and abroad, continue to grapple with how we define our relationship with the Jewish State; if we are not serving in the IDF, if we do not live in Israel, if we do not volunteer in Israeli hospitals, if we do not rush north into the eye of the storm to support our extended family who have been displaced by rocket attacks, if we are too poor to support the country and IDF efforts in any meaningful way from the comfort of our homes, if we visit the land but always return to another country we call ‘home,’ if we contribute our time to creating meaning for Diaspora Jews, is it all lip service to the idea of Zionism? Or is it the extent of our current capacity for action? Does it represent laziness? A lack of conviction or commitment? And what lack of action is and isn’t acceptable/forgivable?
2 comments:
I hope your friend stays safe!
It's a pain in the ass worrying about friends in the Isreli army- I have a few fighting there now and it's pretty scary...
B"H Esther K. asks very important questions, and questions which are hardly new. Dare I be the one to mention the "G"-word, so I'll just allude to Him. In answerng Esther's first set of questions, I'll bet it's all those things. But, let me add "lack of faith," "lack of confidence," and codependence of the Jewish People.
To answer her last question, I'm going to hazard a guess that's one of those Divine challenges, which we must all decide for ourselves as individuals.
I will say this, though, that I believe Ben reaching the audience he does, writing this blog IS a form of action.
May the Almighty watch over and protect Aharon and all of our brothers and sisters out there.
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