Today's date and time:

Sermon for Sidra Behar-Bechukosaye
May 2007
by Rabbi Geoffrey Hyman

Most of you would know the old story of the Shmuelik drowning in the Irish Sea - he pleads with G-d to be saved, a fishing boat comes by and offers him help, but he refuses saying: “No, G-d’s going to save me”. A luxurious cruise ship comes by and offers him help and he refuses saying: “No, G-d’s going to save me”. Then a helicopter comes by and offers him help - but he still refuses because he believes G-d will save him. And so finally he drowns and comes before the Almighty - G-d welcomes Shmuelik into the great other world but Shmuelik refuses and complains to G-d: “Where were you? I prayed for your divine salvation when I was drowning but You didn’t answer.” G-d replied: “Reb Shmuelik, I sent the fishing boat, a cruise ship and a helicopter and you say I didn’t answer your prayers”!!!

For 2000 years, three times a day we Jews prayed “Vesechazeno einenu”, may our eyes see G-d’s return to Zion, and “Velerushalyim Irecho”, return in mercy to Jerusalem Your city. Then one day in June 1967, G-d answered our prayers and saved our people against the most vicious attack on Israel from all the surrounding Arab countries and gave us back Yerushalyim Ir Hakodesh - but yet we remain unable to unite as a people and thank the Almighty and recognize the great miracle that happened those forty years ago when our old city Jerusalem was liberated and re-united with our people; when at last we could pray at the Western Wall in freedom!!! We pray but refuse to recognize that G-d has at least partially answered our prayers.

Like many of you here, I remember the 6 day war. I was 14 and in Gateshead Jewish Boarding School. Every day the whole of the Gateshead Community assembled to pray for Israel in the Yeshivah. We cried out together with the whole of the Jewish people for G-d to save our people and the Land of Israel and G-d answered us, and not only was Israel victorious but it gained back the Old City after being bereft of it all those years back - how tremendous!!! I remember after the news that we had back Jerusalem how one of the senior teachers told us in an assembly in the playground, that we can see from this victory the incredible power and strength of what Jewish unity can achieve!!! G-d answered our prayers because we as Jews were united throughout the world. How incredible but how sad that those days have been forgotten and ignored by so many today.

In the Parsho of the Tochocho - the verses of rebuke which we read in the second sidra Bechukosaye - let me share with you one verse: 26;32: “Vahashimosi ani es ho-oretz” - And I will make desolate the land - “veshomemu oleho oiyvechem hayoishvim bo” - and your enemies who dwell on it will remain desolate - or as some translate - “your enemies who dwell on it will be astonished”. Many commentators take this verse to mean that even under foreign occupation the land will remain desolate - no one will be able to make the land flourish. And do you know for two thousand years this has been the case - under Rome, and under all the occupying countries who took our beloved Eretz Yisroel from us, the land remained barren and unyielding, desolate - “Shomemo”!!! But we never forgot it nor Yerusalyim - we remembered the words “im eshachek yerushalyim tishkach yimini - if I forget thee Jerusalem may my right hand be forgotten. But then at the turn of the 19th century, under the return of numerous Jews, the land began to blossom, instead of swamps forests grew, out of the ruins buildings rose, and once again it became a land flowing with milk and honey; and so it continues to blossom and develop. What a prophetic vision, what magnificent words of comfort, yet so hidden away in the starkest rebuke to our people; in the depth of the tochocho - here G-d planted inspirational words of hope for our future. And it is we in this century who have been privileged to glimpse the beginning of this great “return and redemption” to our homeland, to witness the rebirth of an evolving Eretz Yisrael together with the Jerusalem of old, no longer suffering in desolation - but radiant with the Divine Presence.

In returning from Israel this week both my wife and I can bear witness to this testimony - wherever we turned - all over Israel and in Jerusalem we saw new developments, building and planting, a land thriving despite the threat from its enemies.

Throughout the Torah when G-d commands the people on a mitzvah “hatiluoh beoretz” - on a mitzvah regarding the land of Israel, it is introduced with the words of “Ki sovou el hooretz” - when you come to the land, that even though they were in the wilderness, the time would come when their children would enter the land to plant, build and flourish - the power of hope!!!

We will, please G-d, celebrate the fortieth anniversary of the Re-unification of Jerusalem this Wednesday. In Shul at Shacharis, Hallel will be sung as a thanksgiving to the Almighty and I hope many of you will join us and mark Yom Yerushalayim in celebration.

May the Almighty bless us with the fulfillment of the words of King David who made Jerusalem the Jewish Capital more than 3000 years ago: “Shaalu shalom Yerushalyim - Pray for the peace of Jerusalem. “May those who love you prosper. May there be peace within your ramparts, prosperity in your palaces”.

Shalom al Yisrael - Peace be upon Israel.
Amen.