Parsha Va'etchanan -- Is There Consolation After Jews Expel Jews??
         by, Moshe Burt

The Haftorah for our Parsha begins, "Nachamu, Nachamu Ami yomar Elokeichem"  -- "Comfort, comfort my people -- says your G'd." (Yishaiya, 40:1) This sentiment seems to be silent, but yet a theme of Parsha Va'etchanan. 

While in the beginning of the Parsha, Moshe Rabbeinu recalls for the B'nai Yisrael how he entreated Hashem for permission to cross the Jordan River but that his request was denied.  Instead, he was consoled by viewing the Land from Mount Pisgah. (L'lmod Ul'Lamed - Parsha Va'etchanan, page 161)

And after the destruction of the First and Second Beit HaMikdash, the starving, the famine, the presecutions, there was comfort and consolation that one day, the B'nai Yisrael would be redeemed and returned to our former state; a people in it's land with it's Beit HaMikdash for all time.

Back in Philadelphia, in the old country,  a Holacaust story was told of how Nazis confronted a group of Chassidim.  And the Nazis rousted and harrassed the Chassidim, telling them "dance Chassidim, dance and sing!"  And the Chassidim were silent.  Again, the Nazis accosted the Chassidim, "Chassidim, dance and sing!"  Then, the Nazis aimed their rifles, "Chassidim, dance and sing, or we will kill you!"

At first, slowly, muted, nervously, a niggun with words was heard faintly.  The niggun and the words grew in volume as the Chassidim began to dance.  "Mir Villen zei Ibber Leiben, Ibber Leiben, Ibber Leiben, Mir Villen zei Ibber Leiben..."  "We will outlive you!"

And yes, we have outlived every nation which put upon B'nai Yisrael and so, we are comforted.

But this year?  This Shabbos Nachamu?  One wonders how long it took B'nai Yisrael to console ourselves after each of the destructions, the persecutions throughout our history.  The wounds of this past week are too fresh, too raw.

Many of us have fought with all of our being that our brethren be not harmed, that their lives not be hounded and persecuted by the evil ones who brainwash and pit Jew against Jew, who slander the term "settler" -- the noblest title of Jews who are linked and inseparable from The Land of Israel.  We sought for and fought that our brothers have as we have -- that he is like me -- V'ahavta L'rei'cha Komocha.  We literally put our lives on hold to aid our brethren against the evil regime of our time, against certain types of hard-hearted Jews who hate and despise Torah and Ahavat Yisrael and seek their own self-enrichment, self-interest and self-aggrandizement at our expense and show utter disdain and disregard for the electorate they claim leadership of and enforcement of laws against.

We who have fought physically, with our tefillos, with our kindness, have cried rivers, lo oceans at this week's catastrophe which will extend into next week.  The pictures and sound-bites speak volumes.

But most were complacent, indifferent, business as usual and even disdainful of these beautiful people of both Gush Katif and of the Shomron towns.  They long ago bought into the regime's brainwashing and dumbing down and many of them hate us -- "the smelly Orthodox."
They are descendants of the so-called "new Jews" who disdain Torah and the old ways and yet the  "new Jew" is so shallow and devoid of meaning and principle that they no longer have heart for what is their's/ours.

But perhaps there is Nachamu, even now. 

Last night, I attended a Chassuna, the second oldest son of my cousins in Rechovot is a Chasson.  I danced and sang as not in a long time as I tried hard to shed some of the sharp edge of sorrow.

Arik Sharon, you must be feeling real good, real powerful right now in your Chillul Hashem.  You think that you've won?  You think that your enemy; Torah and religion are on the run and vanquished?

You and your son Kojak, and your blackmailers Peres, Barak, Ramon, Beilin, Sarid et al may have won a battle, but the war is still to be fought.  Look at history!  We will outlive you as we have every regime which has ever persecuted us.  Hey, guy, have you seen any Romans, Nazi or Soviet governments around lately (outside of your regime.)?

Our casualties are high but we will keep fighting, praying, giving limitless kindness to our Gush Katif brethren and seeking Moshiach daily.  And yes Arik, in the annals of history "we, the Jews will outlive you."

And every believing Jew belongs taking part in this battle to his fullest and beyond, to the extent that he can.  Every believing Jew must be his own leader within the body of B'nai Yisrael, but without the contentiousness of a million generals.  We must knife through the apathy, the indifference, the "business as usual" and the fear of the regime.

We and Hashem will win out in the end.  "Nachamu, Nachamu Ami yomar Elokeichem"  -- "Comfort, comfort my people -- says your G'd."

B'Ezrat Hashem, may it be that this Tisha B'av be the last Tzom for B'nai Yisrael. 

B'Ezrat Hashem, may we soon know the day when Torah is the law of the land, when we pray thanks to Hashem for the Ge’ula Shlaima and for the restoration of our Brethren in Gush Katif to bigger and more beautiful homes and neighborhoods, Bati Knesset, Yeshivot, agriculture and only happiness and success for all time.  May this abominable period of history called hitnatkut be as a bad dream.    And may we soon see freedom and long life in Eretz Yisrael for Jonathan Pollard.

May we see the “Yom Hashem Al Kol HaGoyim,” Achshav, Chik Chuk, Miyad,
Etmol.