Forever on the Brink

Israel has been, since 1948 and even before, forever on the brink. In exile, we were often on the brink of whatever disaster our hosts and neighbors had in store for us. Crusades. Pogroms. Inquisitions. Gas chambers. Ghettoes. Blood libels. Kristallnacht....

On May 14, 1948, Israel issued a proclamation and a promise. The proclamation was to the world. We are here; we are home. We are back; we are never leaving. What we were, we are again. We are the nation of Israel, now home again in our land. And a promise to our people - you will know no more sorrows. We are here to protect you. No matter where you are, we will come for you.

We have spent most of that time on the brink of war. I've lost count of how many times we fell over the brink into the abyss.

And here we are, 75 years later, again on the brink. Ironically, we are on the brink of a second war while still in the midst of a first one. I think that's somewhat unique. But the fear and worry of the Lebanon brink is too familiar to those of us who have become accustomed to the suddenness with which brinks appear in our lives.

It often starts with rhetoric, then a show of force. In the past it was amassing armies on our borders. Today it is firing rockets into civilian towns and cities.

October 7 was more sudden. A war with no brink is unheard of in our history. Even the Yom Kippur war had a brink. Then, like now, we know we were headed into war. Lebanon will have it no other way, this time.

October 7 had no brink, no time to prepare. We finished our holiday, opened the computers, radios, televisions and all had the same thought, "we are at war." Now, we fight there while watching the northern border. All over Israel, there is certainty. It is whispered in the supermarket, spoken about in our living rooms. Hezbollah has 160,000 rockets aimed at Israel and Iran has determined that now is the time to use them. 

My nightmare is approaching. That moment when sirens and explosions are everywhere. Hope is diminishing with every day on the northern front even as there is a glimmer of hope that maybe a temporary ceasefire will bring more Israelis home.

We all know the cost of that ceasefire will be huge. I can't wait to hear the same BBC news anchor ask an Israeli spokesperson why Israel insists on such an unfair tally - as if we are saying that the lives of Jews is of more value than the lives of Arabs. 

Eilon Levy's eyes showed it all, the idiocy of that comment. After all, as Levy explained, the equation was the making of the Arabs, not Israel. And so, if this ceasefire happens, we will again release murderers and terrorists to bring our people home.

A few weeks ago, I was introduced to a beautiful song. I thought it was written for October 7 but it was actually written about 5 years ago. And still, the word's are perfect today for the darkness in which our hostages have been thrust, and the hope we have that our army will rescue them and bring them home.

So that's what we will do  - deal with the Gazans, deal with the Lebanese...perhaps even the Jordanians...whatever it takes.

Lauren Diagle's incredible song I Will Rescue You
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6xJxeaHODo