Waking Up to Horrific News, Hadar Goldin, HaYa"D

Hadar Goldin, HaYa"D (family)

Yes, I'm up early after little sleep and that's the news. From everything the IDF has been able to find out, Hadar Goldin, HaYa"D was killed in battle and left on the field.

Hadar's twin and sister
(from my tv screen)

The last thing I saw last night on television, or the last image I have in my mind is of his twin brother stating that he feels that Hadar is alive.  If Hadar was dead, he'd feel it.  I was convinced, certainly more convinced than I was of the well-prepped statements of the families, especially the mothers of the three kidnapped boys just over a month ago when they would fill our screens with yearnings to have their boys back home.

I went to bed pretty late last night, and like everyone else, I barely slept hoping and praying to wake up to good news this morning. But our news just gets blacker and blacker. This is not the summer vacation people had been planning.

We are now in the period of the Jewish Calendar that has too much historic precedent as a time of bad news. It's the beginning of the Month of Av, and we are now in the week of Tisha (the 9th of) b'Av, the most mourning and restrictive of fast days. The restrictions are similar to that of Yom Kippur, but instead of inspiring prayers, we read of tragedies, איכה Aicha, Lamentations:

א  אֵיכָה יָשְׁבָה בָדָד, הָעִיר רַבָּתִי עָם--הָיְתָה, כְּאַלְמָנָה; רַבָּתִי בַגּוֹיִם, שָׂרָתִי בַּמְּדִינוֹת--הָיְתָה, לָמַס.  {ס}	1 How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people! How is she become as a widow! She that was great among the nations, and princess among the provinces, how is she become tributary!{S}
ב  בָּכוֹ תִבְכֶּה בַּלַּיְלָה, וְדִמְעָתָהּ עַל לֶחֱיָהּ--אֵין-לָהּ מְנַחֵם, מִכָּל-אֹהֲבֶיהָ:  כָּל-רֵעֶיהָ בָּגְדוּ בָהּ, הָיוּ לָהּ לְאֹיְבִים.  {ס}	2 She weepeth sore in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks; she hath none to comfort her among all her lovers; all her friends have dealt treacherously with her, they are become her enemies. {S}
ג  גָּלְתָה יְהוּדָה מֵעֹנִי, וּמֵרֹב עֲבֹדָה--הִיא יָשְׁבָה בַגּוֹיִם, לֹא מָצְאָה מָנוֹחַ; כָּל-רֹדְפֶיהָ הִשִּׂיגוּהָ, בֵּין הַמְּצָרִים.  {ס}	3 Judah is gone into exile because of affliction, and because of great servitude; she dwelleth among the nations, she findeth no rest; all her pursuers overtook her within the straits. {S}
ד  דַּרְכֵי צִיּוֹן אֲבֵלוֹת, מִבְּלִי בָּאֵי מוֹעֵד--כָּל-שְׁעָרֶיהָ שׁוֹמֵמִין, כֹּהֲנֶיהָ נֶאֱנָחִים; בְּתוּלֹתֶיהָ נּוּגוֹת, וְהִיא מַר-לָהּ.  {ס}	4 The ways of Zion do mourn, because none come to the solemn assembly; all her gates are desolate, her priests sigh; her virgins are afflicted, and she herself is in bitterness. {S}
ה  הָיוּ צָרֶיהָ לְרֹאשׁ אֹיְבֶיהָ שָׁלוּ, כִּי-יְהוָה הוֹגָהּ עַל רֹב-פְּשָׁעֶיהָ; עוֹלָלֶיהָ הָלְכוּ שְׁבִי, לִפְנֵי-צָר.  {ס}	5 Her adversaries are become the head, her enemies are at ease; for the LORD hath afflicted her for the multitude of her transgressions; her young children are gone into captivity before the adversary. {S}

It's a wake up call.

And we must listen.

Since June 1967 when the three Arab armies surrendered to the IDF after just six days of fighting, trying to destroy the State of Israel, our military experts have believed the myth that we are invincible. That is a very serious mistake on our part. That mistake caused the Arabs to attack just six years later on Yom Kippur, 1973.

Our victory in 1967 was a miracle. All military experts from all over the world say it outright.  It wasn't because the State of Israel and the IDF were stronger and more superior than the Egyptian, Jordanian and Syrian armies. Israel's battle plan at the time was just to preserve status quo and if add any land, it was just to be in Jerusalem, so we would have access to the "Wailing Wall, " the Western Wall, the Kotel,  of the Hordus expanded Temple Mount. G-d interfered and helped Israel win a decisive victory. Since then we have sinned by not embracing the gifts of our Land that G-d had given us.

We have another chance to repent. We must fight this war as a war for survival and not as if we're playing a game of Touch Football for Kids. Let's start fighting like soldiers and not like cricket players!