God of war and peace: A soldier’s mikveh prayer

A man named Nadav Leibovitz called me last week, asking if he could immerse at Shmaya: A Mikveh for Mind, Body, and Soul, in Kibbutz Hannaton, on his way back home to Haifa from his fourth round of reserve duty. He had done over 250 days of reserve duty in Gaza in this war, with a 5-year-old son and spouse at home.

He was hoping, praying, that the war will end and this would be his last round. It was very hard for him, he said, to see our government refusing to agree to a ceasefire hostage agreement.

He decided to mark this transition, and hopefully a transition into a long stretch of civilian life, by stopping at the mikveh on his way home from his reserve duty — going into the mikveh building in his army uniform, immersing, and coming out in his civilian clothing. That was his vision.

Photo credit: Nadav Leibovitz

I thought that was one of the most beautiful ideas for a mikveh ceremony I had ever heard.

And so, he came and went, and called me when he was on his way out to thank me and ask where to leave his donation. I, of course, told him his immersion was on the house. I thanked him for his service and said I wished him a lovely Shabbat with his spouse and son.

Photo credit: Nadav Leibovitz

When I came the next morning to officiate a conversion, I saw he had left a donation nonetheless — in addition to his handwritten kavanah, his sacred intention for his immersion (in the photo below), scribbled on a scrap of paper.

Photo credit: Haviva Ner-David

Here is my translation of his touchingly simple and oh so deep words:

Master of the Universe, God of War and Peace,
I stand here before you as a soldier of the IDF in order to release myself physically and mentally from the burden that fell upon me, and to return to the bosom of my family, as a partner and father, with a pure heart and a clear head. Please God, let these waters that surround me purify my heart and cleanse my thoughts from background noise, and plant in my soul peace, calm, and quiet of soul. I thank You for the strength to stand here and immerse in these living waters, and for the courage to deal with the challenges ahead. May the One who makes peace in the heavens make peace for us and all of Israel and all of the world. And let us say, Amen.

I later discovered Nadav is a rabbinical student at the Hebrew Union College in Jerusalem and got the idea to do this ceremony when he visited the Mayyim Hayyim Living Waters Community Mikveh and Education in the Boston area and heard about a US soldier who comes to immerse each time he transitions from military to civilian life.

I pray with my whole being that Nadav or any other soldiers will not have to return to Gaza, that the planned operation there will be stopped in its tracks. In fact, I sat beside a friend this Shabbat in synagogue whose son was drafted recently and is just now finishing his training. His unit is scheduled to go into Gaza soon, she told me, with tears in her eyes.

I do not know how she feels about the current escalation of this war on Israel’s part, and of Israel’s refusal to consider ending the war as a condition for returning the hostages. I do not know where she stands on this ideologically, but I do know she donated a needlepoint of the word “Shalom” (Peace) to the mikveh, and it is hanging above the immersion pool.

Photo credit: Haviva Ner-David

I told my friend I will continue to protest to end this war so her son does not have to go into Gaza and so that no more lives will be lost in a war I do not support.

I had Nadav in mind, too, when I said this. I hope he saw the needlepoint when he immersed, as I noticed the peace sign on his uniform when I asked him to send me “before and after” photos.

May Nadav’s immersion bring more peace into his life and the region.

Photo credit: Nadav Leibovitz