An Old Fashioned Purim
Yesterday we celebrated Purim (and in Jerusalem they are celebrating today) the same way we Jews have been celebrating for thousands of years - hearing the book of Esther, giving gifts of food to friends and charity to the poor, and eating and drinking to our hearts content.
Some Jews in Israel "celebrated" Purim in a different way. They did what the Jews did on the very first Purim in history - they took up arms to defend their people.
The IDF soldiers who took part in the siege of the Jericho prison and the capture of the killers of Rechavam Ze'evi z'l (sometimes known by his nickname Gandhi) were in essence re-enacting the scene that occurred thousands of years ago in the kingdom of Persia.
Unlike other holidays that commemorate miracles that G-d did for the Jewish people, Purim is a holiday which in essence celebrates a very simple thing - which unfortunately has been too rare in our long history - the fact that the Jews could take up arms and defend themselves. At the end of the book of Esther it records that the king sent out letters to all parts of his kingdom giving the Jews permission to kill their enemies. G-d didn't wipe out the enemies of the Jews with a plague or a miracle like the one at the Reed Sea. The Jews of the time simply did what most nations take for granted - they killed their enemies before they themselves were killed.
The IDF soldiers were given permission yesterday to perform a mission - surround the prison and capture the terrorists - and if they couldn't capture them alive then they were instructed to bulldoze the building and kill them if necessary. A straightforward mission, which they performed to perfection, but unfortunately in this day and age of political turmoil and mixed messages, a very rare one.
Hopefully these soldiers got today off, and could "celebrate" a second time.
Yesterday we celebrated Purim (and in Jerusalem they are celebrating today) the same way we Jews have been celebrating for thousands of years - hearing the book of Esther, giving gifts of food to friends and charity to the poor, and eating and drinking to our hearts content.
Some Jews in Israel "celebrated" Purim in a different way. They did what the Jews did on the very first Purim in history - they took up arms to defend their people.
The IDF soldiers who took part in the siege of the Jericho prison and the capture of the killers of Rechavam Ze'evi z'l (sometimes known by his nickname Gandhi) were in essence re-enacting the scene that occurred thousands of years ago in the kingdom of Persia.
Unlike other holidays that commemorate miracles that G-d did for the Jewish people, Purim is a holiday which in essence celebrates a very simple thing - which unfortunately has been too rare in our long history - the fact that the Jews could take up arms and defend themselves. At the end of the book of Esther it records that the king sent out letters to all parts of his kingdom giving the Jews permission to kill their enemies. G-d didn't wipe out the enemies of the Jews with a plague or a miracle like the one at the Reed Sea. The Jews of the time simply did what most nations take for granted - they killed their enemies before they themselves were killed.
The IDF soldiers were given permission yesterday to perform a mission - surround the prison and capture the terrorists - and if they couldn't capture them alive then they were instructed to bulldoze the building and kill them if necessary. A straightforward mission, which they performed to perfection, but unfortunately in this day and age of political turmoil and mixed messages, a very rare one.
Hopefully these soldiers got today off, and could "celebrate" a second time.
posted by westbankmama at 8:58 AM
4 Comments:
And it made perfect sense from a historical perspective, since yericho is a walled city.
Therefore, it was fitting that yesterday was they day they got the terrorists, so that TODAY on Shushan Purim, they could celebrate as they should.
Jews with guns---the rest of the world's worst nightmare. You go, IDF! Kol hakavod!
They did a fine job.
phish - yes, we are all proud
Jameel - I hadn't thought of that!
aliyah06 - yes, Jews who defend themselves are not easy pickings
jack - they usually do when they are allowed to perform without one hand tied behind their backs...
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