No More Humiliation

There is a prophecy related to Yechezkel that says, על כן נתתיך לחרפה לגויים, which means that we are warned that if we don’t follow the Torah, we will be shamed among the nations. This Pasuk would have been in the Haftarah had it not been Rosh Chodesh.

There is a startling Midrash from איכה, that describes a conversation between two non-Jewish women. One woman got angry at the other and called her a יהודי, a Jew. The other woman was so insulted that she told her, “You can call me any name you want and I would forgive you. But I can never forgive you for calling me a Jew.”

This is the fulfillment of that prophecy. There will come a time when we will be so despised by the nations. Thankfully, the period where that prophecy existed, is behind us. Although anti-semitism still exists in the world, the situation for the Jewish people has dramatically changed.

This represents the coming week where we pay tribute to the State of Israel. We acknowledge and mourn for our fallen heroes, who gave their lives so that there would be a Jewish homeland.

We will celebrate the miracle of the State of Israel that is now seventy-four years old. It represents an end to the shame and degradation the Jewish people faced in the Exile. Today Jews hold their heads high, and the image of the Jews has changed.

When we will see Israeli fighter jets flying overhead this Thursday, it is an assurance to us that we will never again have to suffer such humiliation.