Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
September 26, 2024
“On Rosh Hashanah it is inscribed, and on Yom Kippur it is sealed.”
These words are part of the solemn High Holy Days liturgy “Unetanneh Tokef,” (Let us express the mighty holiness of this day) a most powerful poem credited to the martyr Rabbi Amnon of Maintz more than 800 years ago. The advent of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year observing the Day of Creation of the World, or the Birthday of the World, ushers in a 10 day period of spiritual introspection and repentance culminating with Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.
In part, the poem asks unanswerable questions that are more than thought provoking about the existence of man in G-d’s world.
How many shall pass on, and how many shall be born;
Who shall live, and who shall die;
Who in his time, and who before his time;
Who by fire, and who by water;
Who by sword, and who by beast;
Who by hunger, and who by thirst;
Who by storm, and who by plague…;
Who shall rest, and who shall wander…;
Who shall be at peace, and who shall suffer;
Who shall become poor, and who shall become rich;
Who shall fall, and who shall rise.
But repentance, prayer, and charity revoke the evil decree.” (www.Chabad.org)
This passionate poem was penned during a dark time for the Jewish people, rife with antisemitism, forced conversions, pogroms, and massacres. More than a thousand years later the Jewish people are once again being confronted with unprovoked massacres, deadly assaults, kidnappings, rapes, bombings, and college campus antisemitism that has reached a level heretofore not seen before. We approach the first year remembrance of the dastardly acts perpetrated against the Jewish people on October 7, 2023 in Israel right between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
For many, October 7, 2023 will be remembered with the same reverence and magnitude as September 11, 2001 - its heinousness as barbaric as September 11, and with an even greater proportionality than September 11. That’s how horrific and diabolical October 7 is felt in Israel, and quite frankly amongst Jews the world over, as well as the Christians who support Israel.
On that clear Shabbat morning, Hamas, a Gaza-based terrorist organization, funded and sponsored by the Islamic Republic of Iran invaded Israel unprovoked and slaughtered upwards of 1,200 innocent children, women, and men. This would be the largest single-day slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust of European Jewry. Hamas terrorists launched a surprise, sneak attack from Gaza across the border into southern Israel. Hamas perpetrated ground attacks on Ashkelon, Be’ eri, Erez Crossing, Kfar Aza, Magen, Nir Am, Nir Oz, Ofakim, Re’ im Army Base, Sderot, and Zikim Base. Additional assaults found their targets in Tel Aviv, Israel’s largest city, and Jerusalem, Israel’s capital, as well as Be’ er Sheva, Kerem Shalom, Kibbutz Re’ im, Kibbutz Sufa, Kissufim, Nahal Oz, Netiv Haasara, and Yakhini. Within 24 hours the militant, radical, Islamic terrorist group Hezbollah launched a dozen rockets into Israel from Lebanon. To date, Hezbollah has launched more than 10,000 rockets at Israel. This is now a three front conflagration with Hezbollah attacking from the north along with Hamas invading from the Gaza Strip, and the Houthis from the east.
Kfar Aza saw perhaps the most unconscionable measure of depravity one could imagine - or not imagine - 40 babies slaughtered, many beheaded - decapitated, left strewn about, among the more than 200 corpses discovered by the IDF (Israel Defense Forces). Some of the parents witnessed the executions of their babies, just before Hamas terrorists killed those very parents. More stories of man’s inhumanity to man could be witnessed on the very videos shot by the Hamas terrorists themselves as acts of pride. (It seems Hamas took a page out of the Nazis playbook as there are films of Nazis slaughtering Jews en masse.) Entire families burned alive. A murdered woman with her newborn baby still attached to the mother’s umbilical cord could be found. These reports were multi-sourced.
Israeli soldiers invited the media to bear witness to the unspeakable carnage and report the truth. A truth including what many said featured the “smell of death.” Additional atrocities as reported by i24 News Israel included 70 Hamas terrorists butchering their way through a town of 700. And the taking of hostages - women and children of all ages from infants to the elderly and infirmed in wheelchairs, even an 85 year old Holocaust survivor - victimized again, for the second time in her life, this time by Palestinian Nazis.
Videos of kidnappings, shootings - bodies found with a dozen, 20, or more bullet holes. These Hamas terrorists kept killing the Israelis even after they were dead. These soulless ghouls pulling people out of their vehicles, invading their homes, dragging people out of their beds, conducting house to house and apartment to apartment searches reminiscent of the methodical searches for Jewish people masterminded by the Nazis during the Holocaust. And there was the wanton massacre of 260 young people simply attending and enjoying a music festival in the Negev Region near Kibbutz Re’ im as bullets rained down upon them.
Israel does not start wars, but Israel will do everything necessary to ensure its survival. The day Israel loses a war, is the day Israel ceases to exist. Israelis would prefer not to enter into armed conflict. They don’t suffer from the same maniacal bloodlust as Hamas, Hezbollah, Isis, the Taliban, the Houthis, and al-Qaeda, among, sadly, many others who have mastered deviance and moral turpitude to an art form.
Former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir said it best more than 50 years ago. “When peace comes we will perhaps in time be able to forgive the Arabs for killing our sons, but it will be harder for us to forgive them for having forced us to kill their sons. Peace will come when the Arabs will love their children more than they hate us.” Meir’s sentiment continues to ring true in 2024.
This should not be political, but Kamala Harris and most of the Congressional Democrats have made this political - supporting Hamas, demanding a ceasefire from Israel specifically, condemning Israel for killing Palestinians, and not giving enough aid to the Gazans. There continues to be a double standard where Israel is concerned. Only Israel provides humanitarian aid and warns their enemies of pending retaliatory military strikes. What other nation at war behaves with such benevolence? And yet, the so-called squad and myriad Democrats have, time and time again, consistently voted against support of Israel, and even against condemning antisemitism.
Israel stands for, and desires peace. “Israel was attacked on October 7 by Hamas, and October 8 by Hezbollah. Israel never would have fired a single rocket, or shot, or killed a single person in Gaza or in Lebanon if they [Israel] hadn’t been attacked,” said Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tis past week. “Israel chooses the blessing of peace,” he added.
This should not be political, but Harris and her far left Democrats have supported the egregious antisemitism on numerous college campuses. Jewish students and even faculty are not safe on or near their campuses. Harris has said she understands the emotions of the Hamas supporters, the antisemites, the anti-Zionists - they burn both American and Israeli flags as they parade around campus chanting “death to America, death to Israel,” as well as “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” These are serious threats against Jewish students on campus, and Jewish communities at-large.
This should not be political, but it is when supporting a two-state solution is supporting terrorism and the right of terrorist organizations like Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, funded by the Islamic Republic of Iran, to continue in their quests, as written in their charters, calling for the evisceration of Israel and the slaughter of the Jewish people. Hamas vowed after October 7 that there would be not 10, not 100, but 1,000 more October sevens. When terrorists speak of their plans of death and destruction, take them at their word. It’s ironic that when Israel rejects a two-state solution they get lambasted by the Biden-Harris administration, the progressives, and the media. Yet when the Islamic Republic of Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis reject a two-state solution, which to them means the destruction of Israel and the elimination of the Jewish people, nary a word of pushback is uttered.
This should not be political, but it is when Harris and others say they support the right of Israel to defend itself, but want to handcuff that defense. Threatening to withhold vital military aid is not evidence of supporting Israel’s right of self defense. Israel is a sovereign nation and does not need permission to defend itself. It is political when Harris and the Democrats demand that defense be tempered and scaled back. Was the October 7 invasion of Israel and slaughter of 1,200 innocent men, women, and children tempered or scaled back?
Immediately following the Hamas incursion of Israel there was a global demand for a ceasefire. A ceasefire existed on October 6, until violated by Hamas with its invasion of Israel and massacre of 1,200 people and the taking of more than 250 hostages, many of whom are dead or status unknown. The hostages, like the murdered, are from the United States, Israel, and dozens of other countries. And let the record show, Hamas has rejected all overtures for a ceasefire, and Hezbollah is now also rejecting calls for a ceasefire.
This should not be political, but it is, as on the American homefront, the war initiated by Hamas is a key debating point in the campaign for president between former president Donald Trump and VP Harris. Trump is a proven strong supporter of Israel as evidenced through his words and deeds, while Harris offers campaign rhetoric and lip-service in a failed attempt to placate both Jewish and Muslim voters.
And as the campaign presses on toward November 5, Jewish communities are observing the first High Holy Days since October 7, 2023. Shuls/synagogues have typically been protected for a number of years now during this period of high traffic at shuls by visible law enforcement. (Thank them for their presence while heading into services.) Unfortunately the shuls, Chabads, and campus Hillels must take extra precautions to keep their students and buildings safe. Students must not allow themselves to be intimidated or prevented by protesters from entering these buildings to observe the High Holy Days. These protesters - some fellow students, some imported agitators - are ignorant of the truth and real history.
This period of introspection and repentance must not be marred anywhere by protesters. The protesters certainly have the right of free speech, as afforded by the First Amendment. They do not have the right to elevate that speech to threats of violence or actual violence. They do not have the right to prevent anyone from freely observing their faith. Shortly after these 10 days of solemnity there is another nine days for Sukkot, the celebration of the harvest where people enjoy their meals in a festive hut, Shemini Atzeret, and Simchat Torah which celebrates the completion of the yearly cycle of the Torah, and immediately begins anew, reading the first portion of the Torah, and dancing with the Torah scrolls. Anyone and everyone participating in these observances and celebrations must be able to do so unmolested by protesters in a free and open manner without fear of retribution or for one’s safety and well being. Let not the United States of America become Germany in 1938.
Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.
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