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4 Sivan 5762 - May 15, 2002 | Mordecai Plaut, director Published Weekly
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Opinion & Comment
Recognize Hashem's Hand in History

To The Editor:

During the Gulf War the world witnessed 39 Iraqi Scud missiles landing in Israel, destroying 1,500 homes, but failing to cause serious numbers of casualties, possibly as few as one person being killed directly by falling masonry; the Israel Defense Force took no part in the fighting. World leaders, including [then] British Prime Minister John Major, did not hesitate to call what they saw a "miracle" and people of all faiths praised G-d for his Divine Providence. One of the few governments to see this salvation in more prosaic terms was that of Israel herself.

During the past eighteen-month intifadah we have seen unbearable numbers of casualties -- young and old, male and female, religious and secular. Where is the public revelation of Divine Providence?

When we see open miracles we must become different people and see the world in different terms. How has the Israeli government changed its vision in the years following the Gulf War? It has moved increasingly towards a secular revolution, led by a secular judiciary who have increasingly extended their remit to interfere in matters of religion, strengthened by a misguided and tabloid-style media blitz on the chareidi section of Israeli society. The religious status quo agreed by Ben Gurion with the Chazon Ish and other Orthodox leaders has been increasingly torn apart and society increasingly both secularized and polarized.

If Israel sees less of the revelation of the Shechina (G-d's Presence in history) it may be because she has not understood the message of the Gulf War and has returned to believing in human power to solve her problems. History is literally "His Story" and while we are writing to the world's media about its profound anti-Israel bias we should also be writing to the Israeli government about its profound anti- Jewish bias.

Yours faithfully,

Joseph Feld

London


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