Day 5: Tsfat and Raanana

Tsfat and Raanana

Tuesday: July 25, 2006

Today was a transition day as we moved from the north to Jerusalem in preparation for going south to Sderot, Ashkelon and the communities near Gaza tomorrow.

This morning, as we drove toward Tsfat’s Sieff Hospital to visit the wounded, the siren sounded. Having experienced a close call in Tiberias the day before, Yonah Berman, my student and traveling companion stopped the car and we jumped out and hit the ground to avoid flying shrapnel. As I lay there, I offered a prayer that no one be hurt. We got up only to see that the rocket had landed 200 yards from us in an open area just missing the Emergency Room of the hospital. Last week there was a direct hit on one wing of the hospital.

In the wards of Sieff Hospital we saw all kinds of efforts being made by caring people to bring relief to those in distress. A protected room had been converted to an early childhood center, where the children of hospital workers are cared for. With the constant sirens and rocket attacks, the only way parents can come to work is if they can keep their children with them. Clowns and volunteers with guitars and bongos keep the kids entertained. The kids crowded around as smiles crossed their faces. I spotted a beautiful little Ethiopian boy and lifted him in the air. Like me, his name is Avraham, and his father is Moshe.

In another area of the hospital, Miriam Botzer of Livnot U’Lehibanot and some other volunteers have created a Snoezelen room, a special relaxation area that both stimulates and relaxes the senses. It was created especially for those who need a calm environment.

We went on to room after room filled with wounded soldiers. I was deeply struck by Guy, 33, the commander of a tank brigade. Looking into his face one can see he is seriously wounded. His eyes are sunken and deep as he explains how his tank gunner died in his arms. As we walked in, I could see he was dictating something to a woman soldier. Guy's mother, Rachel, told me he was dictating the eulogy to be given at the funeral of his friend, Lotan Slavin, 21. I told Guy that we would be offering prayers for his recovery in shul this Shabbat in New York. He looked up and said, “Rather than pray for me, pray for my soldiers.”

In another bed lay Tiran, a Druze soldier named after Israel's capture of the Tiran Straits in 1967. I asked Tiran what message I could bring to my community. Somewhat surprisingly, he said, “Tell them to come and live in Israel.”

Nearby lay Avraham. He too was seriously wounded. I'll never forget his words. “We must go in. Better we are hit than the civilians.” I expressed the deep support from Jews around the world. The highest level of love, I remarked to Avraham as well as a group of 30 soldiers we met a day earlier, is not when you love someone else, but when you just know that the other person loves you. I offered the prayer that the soldiers realize how much they are loved.

As we drove south, we picked up Yonatan, a soldier waiting for a ride on the road. Yonah, my student, who had served in the army, engaged him in conversation. It turned out that Yonatan was in the tank behind Guy, whom we had just left in Sieff Hospital, and helped treat Guy after he was wounded.

We quickly felt extraordinary closeness with Yonatan as we expressed our support. We took him directly to his home before he went on to Lotan’s funeral. As we parted, we pleaded with him to take money for gifts for all his fellow soldiers. We embraced and promised we would meet again soon.

Continuing on our way, we stopped in Raanana to pay a shiva visit at the home of fallen Egoz commander, Benjy Hillman. All we could do was sit in silence. The pain is beyond words when a young man like Benjy is lost. When I finally managed to explain to his mother, Judy, why we were there, she said quietly, “It makes a great difference when people say they care.”

Tomorrow we’re on our way down south. With all that's happening in the north, we forget that Kassams are still dropping on Jewish communities in the south. The fighting is easier because Hamas has not been given a chance to dig in. Hezbollah has had six years to regroup and build itself up since Israel withdrew from Lebanon in 2000.

I’m not a military man, and know little about military matters. But what I'm sensing from everyone here is that Israel has been taken by surprise. We’ve been surprised by the number of Katyushas, their range and even their whereabouts.

Some military analysts are claiming that Hezbollah can’t be eliminated by air strikes alone, since the terrorists are operating from inside deep bunkers. It appears that more ground forces will be sent in to do the job, which means that things will likely get worse before they get better.

Traveling today from north to south, I literally saw two countries. Up north, there’s hardly a car on the road; stores and banks are closed and there’s no one on the streets. As we moved south of Haifa, we saw people relaxing on the beaches and I actually enjoyed being in a typical Israeli traffic jam! South of Haifa, cities are bustling and people are going about their everyday lives.

But of course Israel is not two countries it is one. Now is not the time for political debates, or for exacerbating the tension that too often exists between religious and secular Israelis. The only way we will overcome is if we unite as one people with one heart.

In recent years it was the belly of Israel, Netanya, Hadera and Tel Aviv that was vulnerable and suffered from terrorists coming from Judea and Samaria. At times the south suffered as Kassams rained down from Gaza. Now it is the north that's a war zone. We can overcome it all if we live the message of Rabbi Yehudah Halevi that in the end the Jewish people is like a body. If any part of the body hurts, then every part of the body hurts. So too with the land and the people of Israel.

Introduction: Diary Of Rabbi Avi Weiss' Week Long Trip In Israel
Day 1: Arrival in Tsfat
Day 2: Shabbat in Tsfat
Day 3: Haifa
Day 4: Tiberias and Nahariya
Day 5: Tsfat and Raanana
Day 6: Sderot, Kiryat Gat and Jerusalem
Day 7: Haifa and The Shomron

Diary of Rabbi Avi Weiss' Return Trip To Israel--Following the Ceasefire

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