Parashat Va’etchanan: What is so Special About Living in Israel Even During These Times of War?

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Parashat Va’etchanan
What is so Special About Living in Israel Even During These Times of War?

Divine Promise and Increased Aliyah Rates
I am always moved to tears whenever we get up to Parashat Va’etchanan where Moshe expresses his deepest love and yearning for the land of Israel, and the pain that he won’t be able to live here. This Parasha is also permeated with words of the overflowing goodness awaiting those of us who merit to make Aliyah to the Promised Land. If you feel afraid of Iran, Chamas, and Hezbollah, the end of Parashat Va’etchanan brings strength and encouragement: “When Hashem, your G-d, brings you into the land to which you are coming to possess it, He will cast away many nations from before you… nations more numerous and powerful than you. But Hashem, your G-d, will deliver them to you, and you shall smite them. You shall utterly destroy them; neither shall you make a covenant with them, nor be gracious to them” (Devarim 7:1-2). Rashi explains, וְלֹא תְחָנֵּם NOR BE GRACIOUS TO THEM - Do not grant them a settlement (חֲניָּה) in the land (Babylonian Talmud, Avodah Zarah 20a). How pertinent is this divine message to the present political conflict! Even during the current long-winded war, I’m so grateful to be one of the 7,427,000 Jewish residents of Israel! I feel so privileged to be living under Hashem’s direct supervision and much safer than anywhere else in the world, as international antisemitism is on the rise. Although sadly European Jews are canceling their flights to Israel these days, it turns out that the current war is not deterring Jews from the USA, Canada, and Mexico from making Aliyah to Israel, rather, interest has only increased. After years of a consistent Aliyah decline from these countries, since October 7, we have seen an Aliyah surge from North America. These are numbers we haven’t seen in decades. Compared to last year’s 7.2 million Jewish inhabitants in Israel over two hundred thousand more Jews live here today! I find it especially touching that several parents of fallen lone soldiers decided to make Aliyah to honor the memory of their sons. Many of the women who attended my annual lectures in North America over the years are now either building homes here or streaming into Israel with their families as it is becoming clearer than crystal that Israel is the only place for every Jew. I look forward to welcoming such a new family to Bat Ayin next month B”H (With Hashem’s help)!

Waking Up to Sing Hashem’s Praises With the Birds of Our Homeland! 
Moshe’s personal repetition of the Torah is sprinkled with words of encouragement describing the goodness to be enjoyed in the Holy Land and his yearning for it: “Pray let me cross over and see the good land that is on the other side of the Jordan, this good mountain and Levanon” (Devarim 3:25). “For I will die in this land; I will not cross the Jordan, but you will pass over, and you will possess this good land” (Devarim 4:22). With words like these Moshe instills in us the gratitude for being able to enter the Land of Israel and even more so to conquer it and to live permanently within it. He also admonishes us that the privilege of living in Israel comes with strings attached to keeping the laws of Hashem’s holy Torah. This too, is a great advantage for us as “what great nation is there that has G-d so near to it, as Hashem our G-d is at all times that we call upon Him? Which great nation has righteous statutes and ordinances, as this entire Torah, that I set before you this day? (Devarim 4:7-8). When I think back to all the pogroms, exploitation, and poverty my ancestors have lived through on foreign soil, how can I not wake up singing Hashem’s praises with birds of my homeland, enthusiastically jumping into the mitzvot of being involved in Torah and tending the Land of Israel?  How can I not keep my windows clean and let all the light of the holy land shine through? How can I not continue to thank Hashem all day long for taking me under His wings and bringing me close to Him? We must strengthen our emunah that every single day, Hashem performs miracles for His Chosen People, even if it isn’t written in the daily news. Learning about some of the recent miracles teaches us to extrapolate and believe that G-d, the Almighty does many more hidden miracles to protect his people. Even if we don’t deserve it – if we don’t all keep his mitzvot or don’t keep them well enough – we do deserve Hashem’s love and protection! This is due to all the suffering we have been through during the last century and all the brave soldiers and pioneers who have sacrificed their lives so that we can live relatively safely in our homeland. We must stop having guilty consciousness – let us stop being afraid, negative, and fearful. Our attitude of hope, prayer, and faith will attract deliverance and bring about the final redemption!

Ensuring Perpetual Goodness for the Jewish People
In Parashat Va’etchanan, Moshe’s Repetition of the Ten Commandments includes several changes. There are two views in the Talmud regarding these changes. According to Rabbi Tanchum bar Chanilai the Ten Commandments mentioned in Shemot were written on the first set of tablets. Whereas the repetition in Devarim represents what was written on the second tablets. According to the other approach, the Ten Commandments as recorded in Shemot is the exact quotation of G-d’s words, while in Devarim they are Moshe’s personal paraphrasing (Babylonian Talmud, Bava Kama 54b-55a). One of the changes that strikes me is that in Devarim during the fifth commandment to honor your parents the phrase “that it be good for you” is added:

ספר שמות פרק כ פסוק יב כַּבֵּד אֶת אָבִיךָ וְאֶת אִמֶּךָ לְמַעַן יַאֲרִכוּן יָמֶיךָ עַל הָאֲדָמָה אֲשֶׁר הָשֵׁם אֱלֹהֶיךָ נֹתֵן לָךְ:

“Honor your father and your mother, so that your days be lengthened on the land that Hashem, your 

G-d, is giving you” (Shemot 20:12).

ספר דברים פרק ה פסוק טז 

כַּבֵּד אֶת אָבִיךָ וְאֶת אִמֶּךָ כַּאֲשֶׁר צִוְּךָ הָשֵׁם אֱלֹהֶיךָ לְמַעַן יַאֲרִיכֻן יָמֶיךָ וּלְמַעַן יִיטַב לָךְ עַל הָאֲדָמָה אֲשֶׁר הָשֵׁם אֱלֹהֶיךָ נֹתֵן לָךְ:

“Honor your father and your mother as Hashem your G-d commanded you, so that your days be lengthened, and that it may go well with you on the land that Hashem, your G-d, is giving you” (Devarim 5:16).

It does not mention the word good in the first tablets, since they were ultimately destined to be broken… If this term had been mentioned in the first tablets, all good would have, G-d forbid, ceased from Israel once they broke (Babylonian Talmud, Bava Kama 54b-55a).  Therefore, only the second version, written after the breaking of the tablets, contains the word ‘good,’ so that there would always be good for the Jewish people. Moshe adds to the individual reward for honoring parents – longevity – the general reward for fulfilling all the mitzvot. Thus, the mitzvah to honor parents becomes a model for all the mitzvot and its reward similarly is the model of the reward for fulfilling them all as it states, “In all the way which Hashem, your G-d, has commanded you, you shall go, so that you may live and that it may be well with you, and so that you may prolong your days in the land you will possess” (Devarim 5:30). 

Only in the Land of Israel is it Surely Good for the Jews
As is well known, the mitzvah of honoring parents is the only one of the Ten Commandments whose reward is explicitly stated both in er Shemot and in Devarim: “So that your days be lengthened.” This reward for honoring parents makes sense: When we honor our parents, who gave us life, we too will merit life – i.e. to live a long life. Yet, it strikes me that both Torah verses mention an additional aspect of the reward for honoring parents, which is often overseen. The reward of a long life is promised specifically “on the land that Hashem, your G-d, is giving you.” Not only is the reward for honoring parents to live a long life, the reward also includes the privilege of living in the promised land. This second lesser-known reward for honoring parents is surely no less valuable than the first. But what is the connection between honoring parents and being fortunate to live in the land of Israel? Perhaps we can explain that living in the land of Israel is the greatest honor. Rather than bowing our heads with a hunched over back through the effect of millennia of exile antisemitism, here in Israel we live to see the fulfillment of the prayer, “May the Merciful One break the yoke of exile from our neck, and may He lead us upright to our land” (Grace after Meals). As a reward for honoring our parents, we become honored to live an upright life in our homeland also called our Motherland and Fatherland. In a certain sense, the land of Israel is our parent, as all human souls are created at the Temple Mount. The Temple below is connected to the Temple above. From this place, the souls descend and ascend on the ladder (Kli Yakar, Bereishit 12:1). Since the land of Israel is linked to goodness in several Torah verses such as “For Hashem your G-d is bringing you to a good land…” (Devarim 8:7); it may also be that Moshe added the phrase “that it be good for you” in the book of Devarim because now that the Israelites are on the verge of entering the Holy Land, only now will it surely be good!

Gratitude Focus for the Week of Parashat Va’etchanan – 

Some Tips for Appreciating the Land of Israel Even During Times of War

Friends from abroad often ask, “Are you ok? Is your life in danger?” “What’s it like to live in Israel now in times of war?” Especially during wars or trying times, people question, “Isn’t it scary to live in Israel?” Of course, there are challenges, as with all good things in life. Indeed, our rabbis teach that the Land of Israel is acquired through tribulation (Babylonian Talmud, Brachot 5a). There are many strong positives about living in Israel. The strongest is very much a sense of belonging – of a shared destiny. Even with people you don’t know or don’t agree with there is a strong sense that we are all in it together. People are also truly friendly in Israel. I am not talking about the American friendliness of smiling and saying, “have a nice day!”
The population is both diverse and similar at the same time. I have never come across such a sense of community in any other place. Imagine, on Yom Kippur, most Jews (both religious and secular) fast for an entire day and stay away from any electronics. In almost all of Israel, everything shuts down, stores, businesses, cars, and more.  The whole country stops, and there is no traffic in the Jewish areas whatsoever. When you believe that Israel is the destiny of the Jewish people, living here you have a sense of history, and being part of it.

Tips for Loving the Land

• Israel is One of the World’s Safest Countries – The media is continually reporting that Israel is at war, that there are explosions, terrorist assaults, rockets, and so on. This is quite rare. The benefit of Israel is that the country is always prepared for a military emergency; the Iron Dome system shields us from the sky, and soldiers are stationed on the borders, ready to defend. Simultaneously, homes in Israel are outfitted with bomb shelters, and in new homes, there is a security room located in the apartments, so inhabitants do not have to run far to find cover. All of the people of our small country are united by war. It is a fantastic sensation when everyone becomes more tolerant and considerate of one another.

• There Simply isn’t Another Country for Jews – If Russians, Germans, British, Americans, Swedes, and other nations may live anywhere in the globe without encountering hostility, the tendency to reject Jews and occasional outbreaks of violence against us is concerning. In this aspect, “we have no other country. As a result, we cleave to this small piece of land, we love it so much, we raise families here, and we wish each other to live to the age of 120. Without Israel, where would we be?  There simply would be no place for us, G-d forbid.

• Israel Gives Me the Feeling of Being at Home – What does it feel like when you land at Ben-Gurion International Airport, and everyone claps? The clear Tel Aviv sky stretches before you; the warm air of Israel surrounds you like a cocoon. The palm trees wave in the breeze as if greeting your arrival. To me and so many others, it feels like home. In Israel, wherever you go and whatever you do is a Jewish experience. From shopping to using public transportation, you are bound to mingle with fellow Jews and learn something special about them in the process. A person on the bus sitting next to you, may ask you to listen to her blessing over her drink and to answer, “Amen.” I am grateful that our children grew up in an atmosphere where being Jewish is the most natural thing in the world, where we can feel at home among fellow Jews.

• You Really Experience Jewish Holidays in Israel – When winter approaches we are surrounded by Chanukah menorahs and decorations that bring the festive atmosphere to highways and malls. Even the radio stations air familiar Chanukah songs. Around Pesach, the soda bottles have an attractive new design and bear the words, “Chag Sameach!” (Happy Holiday). On Lag B’Omer, traditional bonfires illuminate almost every park and lot throughout the country. Yom Kippur is particularly heartwarming. The roads are car-free, as the sanctity of the day pervades all of Israel. White-clad Jews of every religious denomination mingle in the streets, wishing each other a happy and blessed year.

• Miracles Are the Norm – In Israel, G‑d’s Divine Providence is apparent. The numbers don’t always seem like they will work out on paper; but somehow, things miraculously fall into place. We experienced this personally after we made aliyah. I recall making a budget and writing all our expenses on one side of the paper and our meager income on the other. The numbers didn’t match up. In the end, I just tossed the paper and somehow we never lacked the essentials even though we both learned full-time and none of us worked consistently. We tasted G‑d’s blessing to the Land of Israel: “Forever are the eyes of Hashem your G‑d upon it, from the beginning of the year to the end of the year” (Devarim 11:12).

• Experiencing Jewish Unity – One of the best things about living in Israel is witnessing the kindness and unity of our people. This is especially evident at the holy sites in Eretz Yisrael. At King David’s and Rachel’s Tombs, drinks and pastries are distributed in abundance. Children offer books of Tehillim as gifts to passersby. At the Kotel (Western Wall), young girls may share packages of homemade challah and treats, soothing crying youngsters and warming the hearts of all those present. Wherever we go in Israel, while the styles of dress and religious backgrounds are different, the look of excitement and belonging in every pair of eyes is alike. These experiences strengthen our love and passion for being here. We pray for the time when G‑d will gather all Jews from around the world and return us as a nation to our beloved homeland! (Inspired by Nechama Dina Hendel, Three Reasons I Love Living in Israel).