The most important factory in Israel

A guard dressed in a black uniform sits behind a desk at the entrance to the facility. His weapon is not visible, but it’s definitely there, and he will use it if necessary. Glass doors to the entrance are sealed. They will only be opened to persons with appropriate identification which must be on display to the guard. Only two persons at a time are entitled to enter. Massively thick metal protective doors can fully enclose the facility and are put into action to seal off the area in case of a threatened or real missile attack. Sadly, the guard has had to seal the area more times than he wished since October 7, 2023. Those heavy metal doors, those glass doors, and this guard protects Israel’s most important and most precious asset. Together, they all shield and safeguard the newborn babies of Israel.

Nowhere in the world is the value of new life more precious than in the Jewish world. One can see it everywhere in Israel. Streets are overflowing with baby carriages, and expensive ones at that. No matter the religious affiliation, no matter the income, children rule supreme. Mothers on maternity leave, ( generous – from a minimum of 15 weeks up to 26 weeks, and often more) sit in cafes , relaxed, drinking their coffee, eating their pastry, breastfeeding or bottle feeding in public, with, grandmothers, grandfathers, aunts, and uncles, sisters, and girlfriends. The deep sense of joy and blessing is palpable. It is normal, and natural. And, while there has been a decline in fertility rates in Israel over the past 10 years from 3.1 in 2015 to 2.9 (2022) , Israel vastly exceeds the fertility rates of the OECD countries- countries where there is quiet, peace, affluence, no threats from terrorists, missile attacks, or the constant barrage of antisemitic and anti -Israel propaganda, praying for our ultimate demise. It is most interesting to note that in the impoverished nascent years from Israel’s birth, 1950, the first year in which records were kept, the fertility rate was 4.508.

How do we understand this? Ask any survivor of the Shoah. It is not clear that they will be able to answer in a succinct, persuasive or rational manner. But their actions are more powerful than their words. My anecdotal observations tell it all. Almost every survivor family with which I had contact, and that is a great many , my parents being prime examples, and all their friends in the Displaced Persons Camps that dotted Germany and Italy, all had babies almost nine months to the day they were married. Whether they were on their way by illegal ships destined for Israel, or to other havens seeking refuge after the War, they had neither family, nor money, nor jobs, nor professions. They did not consider ” waiting” till they had completed college, or till they had bought a house, or some other external goal. Consciously, or unconsciously, they understood the urgency to replenish their lost families, and to name those born after loved ones brutally taken away from them.

Here in Israel, the determination to have children remains a foremost value within Israeli society evidenced by the myriad of benefits and subsidies granted to families from maternity leaves, to cheap formula to subsidized IVF . Chiloni families who will attest to the secular bent of their family culture will still have three children, while Datiim sprout five as a rule, and the Haredim even more. We can look to this week’s Parsha Mishpatim, 23: 26 “ there shall be no woman who loses her young or is infertile in your land” as a promise that Hashem gave us for fertility and the importance of children in the land of Israel.

As I have written previously, there have been non-stop weddings during these past 500 plus days of horror and brutality. The same can be said for the large number of births that have taken place during our time of trauma. It is the resilience of the Jewish people, our insistence that we continue to not just live, but thrive, that has been the Holy gift given to us. And while we mourn, and will continue to mourn for the innocent lives that have been savagely and mercilessly taken from us, we know that their souls have not been forgotten, and, that new births will take back their blessed names and their memories, to continue to fulfilled their unfinished dreams.

May we continue to be blessed with fecundity, and rebuild that which was ruthlessly and viciously taken from us, in memory of all our beloved soldiers, and all those that have been lost since October 7, 2023.

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In the memory of Ariel and Kfir Bibas H’YD