The Start of Dialogue - Clarifying Our National Identity

by HaRav Dov Begon
Rosh HaYeshiva, Machon Meir

In the Shmonah Esreh prayer, after the request for the ingathering of the exiles, comes the request: “Restore our judges as at the first, and our counselors as at the beginning; remove from us grief and suffering.” This ordering is no coincidence. As the ingathering of the exiles continues, we make the urgent request that G-d set up legal and educational systems for the Jewish People as they originally were, so that “Remove from us grief and suffering” can be fulfilled. Indeed, the individual and national mood depends upon these two systems - that of education and that of law. If these systems operate properly, resting upon kindness, mercy, and justice, there is joy and happiness in the world. If, however, education and law are corrupt, then there is grief and suffering, and the nation is engulfed in sadness.

In the past, in Biblical times, those in charge of education and law were the wise men, the rabbis and prophets -- the noble men of spirit whose task it was to educate the Jewish People in the light of the holy Torah to follow in G-d’s path. It was Hillel who said, “Be among the students of Aaron, loving peace and pursuing peace, loving people and bringing them close to the Torah” (Pirkei Avot 1). The legal system was in the hands of the Sanhedrin, in which sat the greatest Torah scholars, men of sterling character, fearful of sin, chosen carefully to stand at the head of the legal system. The whole nation was nourished spiritually and morally by these noble, superior personages.

Right now, we are at the height of a period of ingathering of exiles. As such, it is only natural that there be tension as the different streams of Israeli society struggle over the spiritual, cultural and legal fabric that that society should have. In these struggles, we must scrupulously safeguard the unity of the people despite differences of opinion.

Rav Tzvi Yehuda Kook used to say that education and law are two spheres that must be rectified within the Jewish People, and that this can be achieved through returning to the sources, for through this we become one. Moreover, the more we delve into those sources, the greater will be our common ground. Yet in order to begin rapprochement between the different camps, what is most important is clarifying such questions as who and what we are as a nation, and what is unique about us. By studying and clarifying the identity and destiny of the Jewish People, we will understand that we are a chosen people whose historic destiny was already stated to the father of our nation, Avraham: “I will make you into a great nation... You shall become a blessing.... All the families of the earth will be blessed through you” (Bereisheet 12:2-3). When these ideas are set firmly in the hearts of the Jewish masses, we will continue together on the winding pathway upward towards complete, redemption, secure and joyful.

Looking forward to salvation,
With the Love of Israel,
Shabbat Shalom.