for my friends in IsraelLit. ''the one who struggles with God.'' Israel means many things. It is first used with reference to Jacob, whose name is changed to Israel (Genesis 32:29), the one who struggles with God. Jacob's children, the Jewish people, become B'nai Israel, the children of Israel. The name also refers to the land of Israel and the State of Israel.: Malka, David, Marlene, Peggy, Michael, Judy—October 1973
When the hours of insanity
intrude upon
and shatter the day of introspection,
when the ill-blessed missiles
and unholy convoys
roll again
through the rocky hillsides,
carefully cultivated valleys
and wilderness sands,
give yourself up not
to the maelstroms of destructions.
When the land teems
with the tense pressure
of absent faces,
of uncertain radio announcements,
of yet another death
give yourself up not
to the passions of certainty.
When the work in tomato fields
or hospital corridors
gathers you up
in its daily currents
leaving exhaustion
and solidarity,
give yourself up not
to unanswered self-doubts
clouded pictures of hindsight
or blacked out windows of fear.
And when the gunfire
once again slackens,
and dirty teenagers
whose nostrils have smelled
things one would wish no one,
again frequent King George and Dizengoff
when the last new graves
on Har Herzl are closed
and some semblance of normality
(hastily assembled)
returns again to JerusalemLit. City of peace From the time of David to the Roman destruction, Jerusalem was the capital of Israel and the spiritual and governmental center of the Jewish people. During the long exile, Jews longed to return to Jerusalem and wrote poems, prayers, and songs about the beloved city. In 1967, with the capture of the Old City, Jerusalem was reunited, becoming "the eternal capital of Israel." Still, the longing for peace is unfulfilled. and Rosh Pina
to Damascus and Port Sa’id
give yourself up not
to once secure illusions,
but give up not
your quest for peace,
your longing for justice
for you and your cousins,
your vision of a tomorrow
and your duty
–perhaps a bit like Yirmiyahu—
to speak words
(that lead to deeds)
that others may not wish to hear.
Author’s note:
This poem, written as a young rabbinical student in Philadelphia during the Yom KippurThe holiest day of the Jewish year and the culmination of a season of self-reflection. Jews fast, abstain from other worldly pleasures, and gather in prayers that last throughout the day. Following Ne'ilah, the final prayers, during which Jews envision the Gates of Repentance closing, the shofar is sounded in one long blast to conclude the holy day. It is customary to begin building one's sukkah as soon as the day ends. war in 1973, was sent to friends in Israel. It was later published twice: in the Reconstructionist journal (June 1974) and in the Philadelphia Jewish Exponent in October 1974 on the first anniversary of the war.
