Israeli Courage

What is it that allows so many Israelis to display courage and resilience in the face of tremendous challenge and difficulty?

"Welcome Brave Tourists: Special Discount For You," the signs in Ben Yehudah beseech passersby. Written in a homemade scrawl, signs similar to this are posted in many of the windows of Jerusalem's souvenir, silver, Judaica and craft shops.

Yet who are the truly brave ones? While Israelis have been experiencing overwhelming stress in their daily lives due to the current conflict, they collectively remain strong and resourceful. What is it that allows so many Israelis to display courage and resilience in the face of tremendous challenge and difficulty? What are the lessons that we in the Diaspora can learn from them in this post-9/11 era?

There are certain qualities that many Israelis share that I believe helps them cope with even the most traumatic of circumstances.

Israelis Live For The Present

Israelis do not spend great amounts of time ruminating over issues or events that have occurred years, months or even weeks ago. Israelis live each day anew, understanding in the face of overwhelming daily challenges that each day is a blessing and life must be lived one day at a time.

Israelis Anticipate Challenges as a Normal Course of Events

Israelis do not expect a smooth ride in life. They won their independence and right to exist against great odds, and over the years have never had an extended period of relaxation and complacency where they did not have to be concerned about fighting anew for their survival.

The Talmud states that the Almighty gave the people of Israel three precious gifts, but none were given without suffering. They are Torah, the Land of Israel and the World to Come (Brachot 5). Anticipating challenges and sacrifice as a normal, expected occurrence toward achieving a desired outcome helps to alleviate frustration and successfully manage these challenges.

Israelis live the axiom, "No Pain, No Gain." What is meaningful in life is only achieved with great effort, and the results are valuable not in spite of the struggle but precisely because of it.

Israelis Are Genuine

Spend five minutes with an Israeli cabdriver, shopkeeper or yeshiva student, and you will probably know exactly what they are thinking. Israelis lack pretensions and will often readily share their opinions and feelings about current issues. They say what they mean and mean what they say. Israelis are not shy about expressing themselves and often do so with an honesty that is poignant, refreshing and adaptive.

Israelis Have A Cause

Most Israelis know what they are fighting for. For some it is a religious and spiritual understanding of the importance of the land of Israel to the very existence and soul of the Jewish people. For others it is a fierce determination to ensure that the Holocaust never be repeated by having a safe refuge for every Jew to call home.

Israeli soldiers have the lowest incidence of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder compared to other nations' military officers. Many have attributed this to an unwritten rule among Israeli soldiers: staying in touch with and taking care of the families of their fallen comrades for life. Having this purpose to live for helps the surviving soldiers find meaning and cope with their traumatic experiences.

Israelis Have Hope For The Future

Despite the many challenges they are facing, most Israelis have maintained the ability to say "Yihiyeh Tov" -- It will be good.

Despair is a greater enemy to the Jewish people than any external force could ever be. It is important to remember that God Himself declared in an eternal message to the Jewish people, "There is hope for your future" Jeremiah 31:16. It is hope that keeps the Jewish people trusting in God, looking toward the future and believing in the promise of redemption and a better tomorrow.

May the optimism, perseverance and courage of the people of Israel be a model to all Jews in these troubling times and help us merit the redemption speedily in our days.

About the Author

Tzivia Reiter is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a Director at OHEL Bais Ezra, where she has dedicated her career to helping individuals with disabilities and their families. Her many articles on topics impacting the Jewish community, including Shidduchim, Mental Health and Disabilities, have appeared in major Jewish publications. A working mother of a growing family, her efforts to find the elusive balance between family, work and community inspired her to write the ultimate guide for observant Jewish working mothers: "Briefcases and baby Bottles: The working mothers guide to nurturing a Jewish home. A life-long multi-generational resident of the Lower East Side of Manhattan, she recently moved to Passaic, NJ with her family.

The opinions expressed in the comment section are the personal views of the commenters. Comments are moderated, so please keep it civil.

Visitor Comments: 4

(4)
Anonymous,
November 15, 2012 4:34 PM

Another good point

The presence of people like Anonymous (1) and Anonymous (2)

(3)
Robin Starkman-Garbe,
December 27, 2002 12:00 AM

I am on my way........

It was only in the last few months that I even considered a vacation to Isreal! Now I am saving every penny to come. It is what I must do as a Jew to show my support to my homeland and to my people. It is right now that Isreal needs our support and money to help us in OUR LAND! See you soon, until then you are in my heart and mind everyday!

(2)
Anonymous,
December 26, 2002 12:00 AM

You have to live it to believe it!

Come here for a visit. Your experience will be 2nd to none. You have to live it to believe it.

(1)
Anonymous,
December 23, 2002 12:00 AM

Thank you for the compliment

I had no idea I was so brave!
Thank you for the compliment.
Life here in Israel is indeed very stressful and hectic.
Impossible bills to pay with a tiny salary.
Fear of losing my job each day.
My son is going in for an operation soon.
Threat of war.
Threat of water shortages.
Threat of terrorism.

My trick is to make a list of the good points in life.

1. I'm earning valuable experience at work.
2. Yeiye Tov.
3. The Health service, doctors and nurses here in Israel are simply fantastic. They are the best in the world.

4. Yeiye tov.

5. The Jewish/Torah education my kids are getting here in Israel is second to none. The dedication and love of the teachers is breath taking. The care that my children's teachers give leaves me with a lump in my throat sometimes.

6. We have here in Israel the world's first country wide multi level missile defense system.

7. You walk the streets of Israel and see tzadikim. People that care. People that run to do mitzvot. I suppose that's why No.8 on my list is so important to remember.

8. Yeiye tov, Be'ezrat Hashem - It will all work out for the good, with Hashem's help.

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This year during Chanukah I will be on a wilderness survival trip, and it will be very difficult to properly celebrate the holiday. I certainty won't be able to bring along a Menorah.

So if I am going to celebrate only one day of Chanukah, which is the most significant?

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

If a person can only celebrate one day of Chanukah, he should celebrate the first day.

This is similar to a case where a person is in prison, and the authorities agree to permit him to go to synagogue one day. The law is that he should go at the first opportunity, and not wait for a more important day like the High Holidays.

The reason is because one should not allow the opportunity of a mitzvah to pass. Moreover, it is quite conceivable that circumstances will later change and allow for additional observance. Therefore, we do not let the first chance pass. (Sources: Code of Jewish Law OC 90, Mishnah Berurah 28.)

As an important aside, Chanukah candles must be lit in (or at the entrance to) a home rather than out of doors. Thus, you should not light in actual "wilderness," but only after you've pitched your tent for the night.

There may be another reason why the first night is the one to focus on. Chanukah is celebrated for eight days to commemorate the one-day supply of oil that miraculously burned for eight days. But if you think about it, since there was enough oil to burn naturally for one night, nothing miraculous happened on that first night! So why shouldn't Chanukah be just seven days?!

There are many wonderful answers given to this question, highlighting the special aspect of the first day. Here are a few:

1) True, the miracle of the oil did not begin until the second day, and lasted for only seven days. But the Sages designated the first day of Chanukah in commemoration of the miraculous military victory.

2) Having returned to the Temple and found it in shambles, the Jews had no logical reason to think they would find any pure oil. The fact that the Maccabees didn't give up hope, and then actually found any pure oil at all, is in itself a miracle.

3) The Sages chose Chanukah, a festival that revolves around oil's ability to burn, as the time to teach the fundamental truth that even so-called "natural" events take place only because God wants them to.

The Talmudic Sage Rabbi Chanina Ben Dosa expressed this truth in explaining a miracle that occurred in his own home. Once, his daughter realized that she had lit the Shabbos candles with vinegar instead of oil. Rabbi Chanina calmed her, saying, "Why are you concerned! The One Who commanded oil to burn, can also command vinegar to burn!" The Talmud goes on to say that those Shabbos lights burned bright for many hours (Taanit 25a).

To drive this truth home, the Sages decreed that Chanukah be observed for eight days: The last seven to commemorate the miracle of the Menorah, and the first to remind us that even the “normal” burning of oil is only in obedience to God's wish.

In closing, I'm not sure what's stopping you from celebrating more than one day? At a minimum, you can light one candle sometime during the evening, and that fulfills the mitzvah of Chanukah - no “official Menorah” necessary. With so much joy to be had, why limit yourself to one night only?!

In 165 BCE, the Maccabees defeated the Greek army and rededicated the Holy Temple in Jerusalem. Finding only one jar of pure oil, they lit the Menorah, which miraculously burned for eight days. Also on this day -- 1,100 years earlier -- Moses and the Jewish people completed construction of the Tabernacle, the portable sanctuary that accompanied them during 40 years of wandering in the desert. The Tabernacle was not dedicated, however, for another three months; tradition says that the day of Kislev 25 was then "compensated" centuries later -- when the miracle of Chanukah occurred and the Temple was rededicated. Today, Jews around the world light a Chanukah menorah, to commemorate the miracle of the oil, and its message that continues to illuminate our lives today.

A person who utilizes suffering to arouse himself in spiritual matters will find consolation. He will recognize that even though the suffering was difficult for him, it nevertheless helped him for eternity.

When you see yourself growing spiritually through your suffering, you will even be able to feel joy because of that suffering.

They established these eight days of Chanukah to give thanks and praise to Your great Name(Siddur).

Jewish history is replete with miracles that transcend the miracle of the Menorah. Why is the latter so prominently celebrated while the others are relegated to relative obscurity?

Perhaps the reason is that most other miracles were Divinely initiated; i.e. God intervened to suspend the laws of nature in order to save His people from calamity.

The miracle of the Menorah was something different. Having defeated the Seleucid Greek invaders, the triumphant Jews entered the Sanctuary. There they found that they could light the Menorah for only one day, due to a lack of undefiled oil. Further, they had no chance of replenishing the supply for eight days. They did light the Menorah anyway, reasoning that it was best to do what was within their ability to do and to postpone worrying about the next day until such worry was appropriate. This decision elicited a Divine response and the Menorah stayed lit for that day and for seven more.

This miracle was thus initiated by the Jews themselves, and the incident was set down as a teaching for all future generations: concentrate your efforts on what you can do, and do it! Leave the rest to God.

While even our best and most sincere efforts do not necessarily bring about miracles, the teaching is nevertheless valid. Even the likelihood of failure in the future should not discourage us from any constructive action that we can take now.

Today I shall...

focus my attention on what it is that I can do now, and do it to the best of my ability.

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