The Jewish Voice

Burning Bushes that do not burn. A Chariot of Fire that does not harm a prophet. Here's a burning question that consumes me daily.

Should Israel stop fighting and lose the war against Hamas/Iran, the intended genocidal war against the Jews, for the sake of redeeming the still barely living Israeli hostages before they die--as well as the corpses of the martyred for burial?

How can I--or anyone--answer this question? Israelis and Jews are hotly divided on this issue. Some blame PM Netanyahu for everything that, in their view, has gone wrong in the country, especially the unbelievable failure of Israeli military intelligence in terms of 10/7. Such Israelis and Jews are so desperate and so bitter about all the issues that they are prioritizing the lives of the hostages over and above the future survival of Israel. Their slogans reveal their state of mind: "Bring Them Home" rather than "Let Them Go."

Let My People Go.

But we are no longer slaves in Egypt; we are the most militarily powerful ghetto that we've ever been forced to inhabit; but we are totally at the mercy of a world-wide propaganda campaign, one that stays our hand, judges us unjustly, demonizes us as the aggressor when that is not true.

Who are we to sacrifice a single living soul? But how can we value a single living soul over and above the future possibility that millions more will be kidnapped, enslaved, murdered, exiled, or that Israel itself will be wiped off the map? It's happened before, and more than once.

Isn't this a question for God--not for mere mortals?

We did not, and could not, save ourselves when we were slaves in Egypt; that was God's doing. And yet, many humans played pivotal roles in this drama.

I hereby implore God for a miracle. But I also call upon Israelis and the world to do all that we can do in terms of the Islamist war against Israel and Western civilization.

About fourteen years ago, on April 18, 2011, I published a piece at Israel National News titled "The Exodus Lessons." Please note how many mortals were involved in the story of our redemption. Joseph, the former Grand Vizier of Egypt; the midwives; Miriam, Moses's sister; Yocheved, his mother; Bat-Ya, the daughter of both Pharaoh and God, the woman who adopts the baby Moses; the reluctant and ultimately radiant Moses; Moses's father-in-law Yitro, the High Priest of Midian who both shelters and advises him. Moses's wife, Zipporah, who saves his life; Moses's brother, Aharon, who "speaks" for him.

Here's what I wrote back then. I might write something entirely different now but...I haven't, as yet.