As the rockets pour down on Israel, our prayers are with those in harm’s way, and with the courageous soldiers in the IDF. It is nothing short of miraculous that, as of yet, there has not been one human casualty in Israel from a direct rocket impact. These are G-d’s miracles, though the Almighty is at times clothed in the forms of bomb shelters, the remarkable Iron Dome system and smartphone apps.
One thing that all Jews and non-Jews in our Holy Land have learned is that you cannot just ignore the situation. Residents are forced to suddenly flee to shelters for protection upon hearing a siren. Even Israel’s heartland, long immune to such rockets, is now under threat as well. The terrorists have extended their reach to the financial, political and spiritual center of our homeland. Civilian or military, everyone is part of this operation.
Whether to their glee or dismay, civilians have also been dragged into this situation as human shields. In Gaza, Hamas operatives are also terrorizing their own – hiding in hospitals, launching rockets from mosques and residential complexes and hijacking schools and the like for their attacks. All of this, I might add, unprovoked. In fact, no Jew or Israeli soldier has been stationed in Gaza for nearly a decade.
In contrast to previous conflicts, this one is affecting everyone. No one can ignore it. No wonder the support for Operation Protective Edge is so high in Israel.
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This week’s parsha is called Pinchas. It is named after one person who took action when others did not. According to the Talmud, Pinchas suggested that Moshe – the leader of the people – should take action against an egregious sinful act that was causing a terrible plague amongst the Children of Israel. Instead Moshe responded, “Let the one who reads the letter be the agent to carry it out.” Pinchas accepted the challenge and was duly rewarded.
Pinchas was not special merely because he had a grand idea. Nor was he exceptional because he stood up while others looked the other way. His outstanding characteristic was that he accepted that it was his singular duty. He recognized that if, by Divine Providence, he was indeed the one ‘holding the letter and reading it,’ he is the one that must spring into action.
In a 1988 farbrengen the Rebbe observed that there were many highly qualified people who could have acted instead of Pinchas. Moshe, Aharon and other leaders were present. But no-name Pinchas accepted that it was his duty to act. And that’s why he went down in history with such noble repute.
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Our brothers and sisters are no longer able to sit on the sidelines. The code red alert is not simply a collective call to action. It’s a personal message. One ignores its exclusivity at one’s one peril.
Perhaps this is a wake-up call for all of us. It’s easy to look around and determine who is better qualified than I am. Certainly, I could develop a long list of better suited parents, employees, neighbors, friends and Jews. But G-d chose me to do my mission. If He sends something my way, it is His personal code red alert that it’s time for me to act.
I ignore the call to action at my own peril.
Let’s all look out for G-d’s code red alert and do an extra mitzvah today for peace and safety in our Holy Land.