May 27, 2025
Sondra Oster Baras
Time for some good news! This war has gone on for so long. We have lost loved ones. Our sons, husbands, and grandsons have been serving in Reserves, on and off, for more than a year and a half. (My son was recently called up for the 4th time for service on the Lebanese border — for an indefinite period of time). The war is becoming more intense — which is good if it brings the desired results but it has already brought with it tragic deaths. Eight soldiers fell in battle just this month! And 58 hostages still remain in the dark tunnels of Gaza, 20 of whom are still alive!
But I want to escape from all of that for a few minutes and talk about the good things that we are witnessing. Sometimes, it’s just about changing perspective, dwelling on the miracles of our lives rather than on the sorrows. The sorrows will always wait for us but let’s focus on the joys for just a bit.
Last week we had a wonderful Bible lesson in our community, delivered by one of the most prominent teachers of the Bible in Israel today. I always love listening to her because in addition to her amazing fountain of knowledge, she is always so enthusiastic, passionate and positive! This lecture was no exception.
She presented a brief review of the first 10 chapters of the Book of Numbers and then, by focusing on the dates listed in the Bible, helped us to understand that the events of those chapters all took place in the month of Iyar (the 2nd Biblical month) in the second year since the Exodus from Egypt. After several chapters of census taking, meant to prepare an army to capture the Land of Israel, in Chapter 10 we meet a nation ready to enter the land. They begin their journey on the 20th day of the month (10:11). And when the ark set out, Moses said, “Arise, O Lord, and let your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate you flee before you.” And when it rested, he said, “Return, O Lord, to the ten thousand thousands of Israel” (10:35-36).
As we all know, after that everything fell apart They complain, demand better food, and then the spies come back with their evil report. And they wander in the dessert for 39 more years. But what was supposed to happen? They would have entered the Land of Israel in the second month and by the beginning of the 3rd month, perhaps even around the 6th day, they would have arrived in Shechem. They would have entered into their covenant with G-d on Mt. Ebal and Mt Gerizim one year after receiving the 10 Commandments on Sinai. What an amazing story that would have been! Instead, they waited years.
This fabulous lecturer then brought it home to us: initially, the second month would have been the month of redemption — not the Exodus from Egypt which took place in the 1st month, but the entry into the Land of Israel — the true goal of the Exodus. The actual redemption. And that never happened, until now.
We are now at the end of the 2nd month, just a week before Shavuot (Pentecost) when we celebrate Revelation at Sinai. But just think about what this month has brought to us in our day, in this newest move towards Redemption. On the fifth day of Iyar, the State of Israel was proclaimed and we became an independent nation again. And on the 28th day of Iyar, Jerusalem was reunited in the miraculous Six Day War. In fact this entire week, we celebrate 58 years since Judea, Samaria and Jerusalem were reunited with Israel. This, then, is the realization of that original month of redemption that was intended but missed by the Children of Israel in the Desert so many centuries ago.
Last week, I was privileged to hear Yisrael Harel give a talk about his personal experiences during the Six Day War. Yisrael was a young man, married with a child, when the war broke out. He was called up for reserve duty and was part of the paratrooper unit that liberated the Old City of Jerusalem. He was on the Temple Mount when the head of the Muslim Trust handed Moshe Dayan the keys to the Temple Mount, which he then returned (terrible mistake!). He was there when two soldiers risked their lives to climb up the Dome of the Rock and place the Israeli flag on top. He was also there when a senior commander ordered the flags taken down. He described the enormity of the miracle, the indescribable excitement that they all felt at that moment of Jewish control over the Old City of Jerusalem for the first time since the second century. And he described the enormity of the frustration to see our leadership miss opportunities that would cost us so much.
Yisrael went on to become one of the founders of the settlement movement and a founder of the community of Ofra. Our movement has known many frustrations and challenges over the years. But we have always been fueled by the knowledge that we are living the miracle of Redemption. That what our ancestors missed, we are experiencing. And we have remained determined to correct whatever mistakes may have been made over the years.
Today we celebrate Israel’s independence and the liberation of Jerusalem with songs of prayer and praise to God. And we sing the Psalm originally written by David, in anticipation of what Jerusalem would become, a reality that was never completely realized. A reality that we are on our way to realizing in our day: Jerusalem, that has been built as a city that is firmly joined together . . Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. May peace be within your walls (Psalm 122).
