In honor of Yom Yerushalayim 5779...בכבוד יום ירושלים ה"תשע"ט
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I hope we will be greeting Mashiah soon, here in Yerushalayim! The Rav will be able to serve in the Third Holy Temple, along with my husband, a Levi. (Can't find the source. Sorry.) |
reformatted slightly by HDG
IN HONOR OF THE 52nd YEAR OF
RE-UNIFICATION OF YERUSHALAYIM – YOM YERUSHALAYIM
The following is a translation of a
composition by Mr. Yitzchak Navon, in honor of Yerushalayim, written when he
was serving as our 5th president.
In June 1967, the Six Day War broke
out. Israel’s soldiers fought bravely and won many victories. Soon they
reached the Old City of Jerusalem. They prepared to fight for it, and to take
it back from Jordan. But they did not know through which of the seven
gates to enter. As they tried to decide what to do, each gate begged, one
louder than the other, “Enter the Old City through me. Enter the Old City
through me.”
Their voices reached heaven, but God
and his angels could not decide which gate deserved to be the one through which
the soldiers would enter. Then the angel Michael spoke. “God in Heaven,
All the gates are beautiful, and each deserves to be the one through which the
soldiers will enter the Old City. Let each gate speak and explain why it
should be chosen. Then You will decide which gate is most worthy.
God thought this was an excellent
idea and asked each gate to speak for itself. Sha’ar Yafo, the
Jaffa Gate, spoke first.
Two
important roads go out from me. One leads to the city of Yafo and to the
Mediterranean Sea. The other goes to Hevron where our ancestors Avraham
and Sarah, Yitzchak and Rivkah, and Ya`akov and Leah are buried in the Me’a-rat
Ha-mach-pe-lah. Near me stands the Tower of David. I will make sure
that the soldiers of Israel enter the Old City safely.
Then Sha’ar Sh’khem, the
Damascus Gate, spoke out in a loud voice and said:
I
am the biggest and most beautiful of all the gates. All roads leading
north from Jerusalem start here with me. Let the soldiers of Israel enter
the Old City through me.
Sha’ar Tzion, the Zion Gate, was the next to speak:
God
in Heaven, I am named for your holy city—Tzion. Look at me. I am
bruised and broken from all the fighting around me. It is only right that
victory should come through me. Choose me, choose me.
Raising its voice, Sha’ar HaAshpot,
the Dung Gate, said:
Dear
God, look at me. I am miserable and ashamed. For centuries,
Jerusalem’s garbage was dumped on me. Now don’t misunderstand, I would
rather be covered with the garbage of Jerusalem than with all the precious
jewels in the world. Every day, I try to comfort the Kotel, which is
right next to me. It is sad because Jews cannot pray there now. Make
us happy and let Israel’s soldiers enter the Old City through me.
It was then the turn of Sha’ar
HaPerahim, the Flower Gate:
It
would not be right for the soldiers of Israel to enter the Old City through the
dirty Dung Gate. Let the soldiers of Israel enter through me and I will
give them wreaths of flowers. It should be through me, through me.
Next the voice of Sha’ar HeHadash,
the New Gate, was heard.
I
am the smallest and newest of the gates. I am so new that I am not even
counted as one of the seven gates. I am near the Israeli side of the
city, and every day I watch as Israel’s enemies fire upon her. I try to protect
Israel, but I cannot. Please let Israel’s soldiers enter through me.
Next in line to speak was Sha’ar
HaRahamim, the Golden Gate. Its voice was muffled because it was
closed in on both sides.
Master
of the Universe. For years my entrance has been sealed shut. The
other gates open and close, but large stones block me up. You promised that the
Jews would return to rebuild the Beit HaMikdash through me, and that is why
Israel’s enemies sealed me shut. It is only right that the soldiers of
Israel enter through me.
Only Sha’ar Ha’Arayot, the
Lions’ Gate, was left to speak. God pointed to it, but it remained
silent. Finally, it began to speak in a soft voice:
God
in Heaven. From all directions I see soldiers fighting and being wounded.
My heart is breaking, and I cannot bear to watch any longer. It doesn’t
matter through which gate the soldiers enter. Just make the fighting stop.
God and the angels heard these words
and whispered among themselves. Then God turned to the Lions’ Gate and
said: All the other gates are interested in their own honor. But you care
more about the soldiers of Israel than about yourself. Therefore, we have
decided that the soldiers of Israel will enter the Old City through you.
Let them enter through the Lions’ Gate. Their armored cars swept through
the alleyways, and they set the city free. At the Western Wall they blew
a great blast on the shofar. The blast was heard throughout the land and
everyone knew that the gates of the Old City were once again open to
Jews. A miracle had occurred. Jerusalem was united.
Dear Friends:
Chag Samayach to the entire House of
Israel on the anniversary of one of the greatest miracles to ever have been
performed by our Father in Heaven – and this in our own time – the
re-unification of Yerushalayim. We are now sovereign over the holy city for the
first time in over 2000 years, and it will never be taken away from us –
be’ezrat HaShem
Shabbat Shalom | Nachman Kahana | Copyright
© 5779/2019 Nachman Kahana
Bs''d
ReplyDeleteBeautiful Hava, thank you and MAZAL TOV TO US!
Every time i do Afarshat Chala, i think about...LEHEM HA PANIM..
Can you imagine?
We live in such beautiful times! Almost there!
Shavuah tov!
And the music of Leviim, must sound so heavenly...may it be now, that we can hear..
May it be now, that we can see, may it be now that we can feel the KDUSHA AND THE PRESENCE OF SCHINA IN THE BET HA MIKDASH!