                                             AVoice From Hebron
                     by Gary M. Cooperberg
                        August 14, 1995
                  The Living Heroes of Israel
                                
     This morning, once again, I had the privilege to attend a brit mila in Kiryat Arba.  It seems
that of late we have been blessed with quite a few such simchas.  This particular simcha, which
was very well attended, was a bittersweet experience.  After three girls the Partushes were blessed
with a boy.  I remember the joy of entering my son into this ancient covenant nearly fourteen
years ago at the Cave of Machpela.  He too was born after three of his sisters.  In this case the
grandfather entered the child into the covenant of Abraham.  The father of the newborn was
unable to attend.  Yehuda Partush, of blessed memory, was one of the two Jews shot down in
cold blood in the bus to Kiryat Arba on his way home from Jerusalem several months ago.  
       How does one carry on after such a heavy tragedy?  How many Jews living in Kiryat
Arba can answer that question from experience?   As I listened to the naming of the boy, Aviel
Yehuda ben Yehuda, my moistened eyes looked around the crowded hall.  In the distance I could
see Chaya Yairi, a righteous convert whose strength is an example for us all.   Less than two years
ago her husband was shot down in his car.  I will never forget the moment at his funeral when this
brave young lady stood tall and proud and shouted out the blessing "Baruch Dayan Haemet",
"Blessed is our G-d, the Judge of Truth."
     There are so many examples of such special Jews.  Weddings, funerals, protests, building
new settlements; at every mitzvah the many bright and optimistic faces have become a familiar
sight.  The simple, beautiful Jews of Kiryat Arba are the secret weapon which will yet prevail over
the forces of evil which seek to destroy us.  No, they are not "militant extremists" as labeled by
the New York Times or the Jerusalem Post.   These are the true heroes of modern Israel.   These
are the Jews who have literally placed their lives on the line for their homeland and their people. 
They have lost sons and daughters, husbands and wives, to this perverted "peace" plan, yet they
refuse to give up.   Their battle is the hardest of all.   It is the battle of continuing to live a normal
life in spite of an intense campaign of terror being waged against us both by our enemies and our
by own government.
     From the moment he entered office, and even before that, Rabin has been driving a wedge
designed to separate the patriotic Jews living in Judea Samaria and Gaza, from the rest of the
country.   His most loyal citizens have been maligned and placed outside of the pale, as "obstacles
to peace".   Why should he "waste" so much money and manpower to protect a mere 3% of the
population who voluntarily chose to live in such places as Hebron or Netzerim?  
     Taken to its logical, if absurd, conclusion, Rabin could save a fortune, and make instant
peace by moving the Jewish State to Brooklyn.
     When will we stop playing silly games and be honest with ourselves?   There is no "peace"
process.   All of our so called leaders are trying to turn the redemption of the Jewish people into a
quest to turn Israel into a secular entity which has no meaning or reason to exist!   If they were to
succeed in achieving the "peace" they are seeking, they would also succeed in destroying the two
thousand year old dream of return to Zion.   They would succeed where Pharaoh, Haman and
Hitler failed.
     What is the antidote to the sickness which pervades our country?   The American
experience finds many calling for new elections as the solution to our problems.   Unfortunately
the entire system of government in this country is designed to prevent true democracy from
working.  There is no honest representation of the will of the people, nor can any new party which
seriously challenges the present major parties as much as run for office.   The only difference
between Likud and Labor is style.   The direction is exactly the same.
     We can look far and wide, but leadership is just not to be found.   So what can we do?  
As we find ourselves speeding ever more rapidly toward the precipice, every Jew must stop and
recognize his personal responsibility to his G-d, his people and his country.  The Jew living in
Exile must come home and he must come home very soon.   Time is running out.   And the Jew
living in Israel must reject, outright, any attempt to have his heritage denied him whether it be by
his enemies or by his government.   
     The young, proud "peace" widows who, in spite of the most bitter adversity,  continue to
raise their little ones as proud Jews in their land are the unsung heroines of the Jewish people.  
They have paid the very highest price, yet rather than showing bitterness or despondency, they
have become the examples to us all.  If they can be strong; if they can continue with their every
day lives; if they can keep faith with the Promise of G-d to our Father, Abraham; if they can enter
their sons into the Covenant of Abraham; than how can we, who have never approached such
adversity do less?
     We have reached the stage of redemption where it is clear that we have no one to lead us. 
We are sheep without shepherds.  This too has been predicted by our Torah.   
     Rather than lose hope, now is the time to take courage.  The G-d of Israel is our only
Leader now, and it is only to Him that we may turn.   And, aside from prayer, the best way we
can demonstrate our faith in the Living G-d of Israel is to come home to our inheritance and live
in all parts of our holy country, no matter what the apparent obstacles.   
     Rabin and Peres want to give away the resting place of our Patriarchs to Arafat.   MK
Yigal Bibi of the National Religious (sic!) Party had the nerve to call our local religious council in
Kiryat Arba to suggest the insanity of digging a tunnel from Kiryat Arba to Machpelah through
which Jews might crawl to offer their prayers!  If this is our "religious" party who needs Shulamit
Aloni?
     No tunnels; no barbed wire; no bypass roads; no bullet proof buses; and no giving of
Jewish land to goyim, be they terrorists or sweethearts.  Every Jew who believes in the Living G-d
of Israel has an obligation to oppose such treason with every fiber of his being.
     In Bet El in the Shomron, the Arabs decided to have a demonstration of their own.  They
stampeded the makeshift appended settlement, burned prayer books and the Jewish flag, and
terrorized women and children who fled for help.   Rather than mowing down the entire terrorist
insurrection, only one Arab was killed.   And for this Jews were placed in prison by the insane
government which would prove to Arabs that they have a legitimate right to attack the state of
Israel!   
     But, on the other side of the coin, another demonstration is taking place.   On a hill in the
Shomron called Magen Dan, Jews whose homes are located within the so called "green line",
have set up their own new settlement.   None of these demonstrators live in Judea Samaria or
Gaza.   They live in Tel Aviv, Ramat Gan, Raanana, Bnei Brak and other communities in the Dan
region.   They are living proof that Rabin has far more than 3% of the population to deal with in
his quest to dismantle the Jewish State.
     My tiny minyan at vatiken (sunrise) at the Cave of Machpelah has recently been swamped
by Jews from Jerusalem.  Every morning anywhere from two to twenty buses from Har Nof and
other parts of Jerusalem bring caring men, women and children who demonstrate their love of our
heritage.  If so many Jews can wake up so early in the morning to pray for our people and our
country, you can imagine how many will come to defend her should the need arise.   It is not only
Jews who live in Hebron and other parts of Judea, Samaria and Gaza who have a stake in the
future of Israel.   It belongs to every Jew in the world equally.   Let us take strength from Miriam
Lapid, Chaya Yairi, Avigail Hoss and so many other countless widows and orphans of "peace", to
fight for our future by living as proud Jews.   The next leader of the Jewish people will be
Mashiach, and he will come as soon as we show our faith in G-d by just being good Jews.