Op-Ed on Gaza Conflict: Keeping Hope in the Darkness Op-ed on Gaza conflict–bringing a sense of hope as we head into Shabbat. It’s been a rough week. No one seems to understand us or why we are doing what we have to do, with accusations of “Israel is carrying out genocide” and Nazi comparisons. They really know how to hit below the belt. Our bubble has been shattered of late. People hide behind the banner of “Israel is killing babies and mothers.” Do they not understand what we are fighting? Can’t they see that this simply goes against our very nature? We are not destructive people. Jews like to create, cure, and mend. We cured polio and invented insulin. Israel is on the forefront of stem cell research that will one day save millions of lives. Does that sound like a country or a people that like to destroy, fight and kill? The more I delve into the Arab Israeli conflict (so I can be fluent of the facts, if called upon), the more I learn of each nasty ratchet detail of this incredibly long and multi layered insanity between us and the Arab nations. It’s brought me to a place that I don’t know well–one of hopelessness, the feeling of complete and utter despair. It’s a feeling that no matter what we do, no matter how much we try, whatever we will give, peace with our Moslem cousins is an impossibility, a non starter, a dream, a childlike naivety. Hamas doesn’t give a damn about peace or land, they just want to destroy Israel–the Jewish people–and they make no bones about it. Every fiber of our neighbors seems full of hate. Mothers glorify their children’s sacrifice, tell them as infants that the greatest thing they can do is die for Allah by killing Jews. Mullahs preach that it’s G-d’s will. How do you top that, argue against it? It’s Allah, their god’s law. I think that’s what most “neutrals” don’t grasp when they say “what parent would let her child be a human shield?” They don’t let, they encourage. We can invest billions, build each one a palatial palace and still I fear as long as our homes are down the road peace would not prevail. I never truly understood Golda Meir’s speech, “Peace will only come when the Arabs love their children more than they hate ours.” Sadly, now I do. I want so much to just be resigned to the fact, to just accept it and give up on peace–stop the praying, become vengeful, destructive and full of immense hate. But something inside of me, some small tiny part, won’t allow this despondency, this helplessness, this hate. I shall retain hope. I will pray as will you that things can change, miracles can happen. We are people that see light in the darkest of times, we sing and rejoice for we love life. No matter how many times we are wronged we can’t help but believe this time, for some reason, things will be different. We are a people of immense resilience, blanketed in hope, wanting so much to believe in the human spirit. So even with all of of this, this blackness, this undeniable logic that this looks like a futile hop,e I go into Shabbat full of hope. And so should you. The post Op-Ed on Gaza Conflict: Keeping Hope in the Darkness appeared first on Jspace News. ift.tt/1m6ak1P
Posted on: Fri, 01 Aug 2014 18:24:50 +0000
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