Israel, Stand Proud-Hashem Has Our Back

It’s time to get off the pity pot to trash the victim narrative.

You know, the sad sack retelling of our history as one long unmitigated disaster. How we were the weaklings. How the bullies of the world light into us again and again.

That attitude has crept into our DNA. It’s even crept into speeches by so-called thought leaders. It’s been inculcated into our children.

The world loves it–as Dara Horn astutely observed, “People love dead Jews” but this self-image is toxic. For one thing, it promotes assimilation. Who in their right mind would sign up for victimhood?

And it’s a lie. We aren’t victims.

We are G-ds chosen people. The Creator of the world has our back . The IDF is merely a tool. We pray that our generals make the right calls that our soldiers are protected but it’s G-d who calls the shots.

Read the Torah. You’ll discover that we are a tribe of spiritual warriors tasked with modeling morality for the rest of humankind. We are the “start-up nations,” but we are so much more. We are the nation of Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel.

We need to remember this. The situation looks bleak right now. Even if we have to coexist with missile raids, it remains a privilege to be part of this holy nation.

With that status comes responsibility, and sometimes (often), we don’t live up to our role.

God is a loving father but also a chastising one. When we screw up, as we have royally, G-d tells us to clean up our act. That’s what He is doing right now with this war.

That is the story of our history. We sin. G-d sics an enemy on us, we will be smart enough to take the hint, repent, and avoid incipient disaster.

What to repair? That’s a question we need to answer for ourselves. All the mitzvot. 613. Pick any and all and pray like your life depends upon it because it does.

Prayer is our superpower. It got us out of Egypt. It spared us from genocide in the times of Mordechai and Esther, and please G-d it will save us now.

Yes, we have the IDF, but as it says in the Pslams, “if G-d won’t protect a city, the watchman’s work is in vain.” The IDF needs Hashem. To elicit Divine protection, we need to pray and do good deeds  -all of us together.

And to our leaders Bibi and Benny and Yoav what about leading us in our collective teshuva?

We are here because of G-d. The Torah, Even our diplomats acknowledge that our claim to this land rests on G-d promise to Abraham–why Arthur Balfour signed his declaration. Now it’s time to consider the other part of that promise–that we live according to G-d’s rules in G-d’s land.

We’re getting there. Our soldiers are requesting tzitzis. Our soldiers are singing songs of faith–“Anachnu ma;aminiim benai maaminim” We are believers the sons of believers is at the top of our wartime hit parade.

This war will be won when we right our relationship with Hashem, nothing more and nothing less. Instead of basking in self pity, let’s remember who we are and what our mission statement is.

With God’s help  our nation will live forever. Am Yisrael Chai!