Rav Gideon Perl, Regional Rabbi of Gush Etzion, explains why and how to do our part to hold onto our holy land in today's climate of "facts on the ground" warfare.
These days, money's tight all over. Help if you can. If you cannot, your prayers will make me feel just a little safer in my home here in the beautiful Judean Hills.
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Youth Plant 'Facts on the Ground' at Gush Etzion
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/138569
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Sixty youth are literally putting “facts on the ground” for a "Netzer” agricultural camp that also is aimed at keeping the land in Jewish hands. The goal is to plant olive trees and vineyards in the Gush Etzion area and prevent Arabs and anarchists from continuing an escalating takeover of government land in Judea and Samaria.
The battle for the Land of Israel has been quietly raging since the Oslo Accords, after which government policy has allowed Arabs and leftist supporters to take over state land, much of which had been planted by Jewish farmers.
International anti-Israel groups have been using humanitarian aid money to support Arabs who work and live on the land that had been idle for decades.
The Netzer project at the community of Elazar, located across the road from Efrat in Gush Etzion and south of Jerusalem, began after the government expelled all Jewish residents from Gush Katif, northern Gaza and parts of northern Samaria in 2005. The government and activists have fought a see-saw battle in which police destroy Spartan structures built by the nationalists, who have rebuilt them eight times.
Since the founding of the YIBANEH fund for building and expanding in the hills of Judea, founded by Women for Israel's Tomorrow (Women in Green), nearly an acre of olive trees and grape vines has been planted.
Filmed by Rivkah Rybak www.yeshabulletin.com
Very heart-warming video. May we merit soon to gather in all Jews to this great, beautiful land of ours.
And only ours.
Ruti, please prominently post on your blog the details of how to give--who the check is made payable to and where it should be sent. If I want to give but don't know where to send my money to or who to make the check out to, I probably won't give! Thanks for getting the word out!
Hillel: Thank you for the extra details.
At The Edge: Nicely said.
Shalomis: Good point. Please send your donations to "Women for Israel's Tomorrow (Women in Green) - Yibaneh Fund," POB 7352 Jerusalem 91072, Israel
(For US tax deductions please contact: Nadia Matar 050-5500834 (nmatar@netvision.net.il) or Yehudit Katsover 050-7161818 (ihuditk@gmail.com)
Full information at www.womeningreen.org
Unfortunately, Ruti, war IS about force, sometimes lethal force, and violence. And I know you would like to fantasize and say that you can take over the land without driving out the Arabs first-but you can't. The mitzvah of settling the land is dependent on the mitzvah of driving the non Jewish inhabitants out. It is right there in the Torah. And all the wishful thinking in the world will not make that fact go away.
It is time we realized that the real enemy is the government of Israel which gives away our land, and rigs the general elections so that certain parties cannot run, so you can never take control of the Israeli government back.
Until we find a way to drive out the non Jewish inhabitants of the land of Israel we will fail to settle that land. Period. As it says in the Torah, "...and those of them (the non Jewish inhabitants in the land of Israel) that you let stay will be thistles in your eyes and thorns in your sides, and they will attack you on the land where you already live..." .
Avraham, you're 100% right. I tried once to post something like what you wrote and Ruti disallowed it. We are given knives. Sometimes they need to be used for spreading butter on bread - but sometimes not. Only AFTER Moshiach reveals himself will come a period whence "You'll turn your swords into ploughshares...."
With all these Torah words flying around, I am reminded of the fact that in reality we all a small people and Hashem is the only one protecting us.
The arabs, the government they are pawns...powerless pawns. It is Hashem who is in charge. We must make sure that we correct our own ways, return to Hashem in purity and I promise you the arabs won't be able to do anything. Before we declare war on the massive arab populace, lets make sure "Moshe's hands are raised"--Our emuna and our love for Hashem and His children is to the level it could be.
Also let us not forget the gemara in Ketubot 111a which discusses the three swears administred to keep the Jews in exile until the final and elevated (from physical war) Redemption. One of those swears are: "The Jewish people should not converge upon Eretz Yirael in a wall (of force)."
Lets daven, learn, love and even plant and prepare for Moshiach. Let us return to G-dly service. Let us show Hashem we don't want to kill, we don't want to have war, we just want to be His people in His land.
"We may forgive you one day for killing our sons, but we will never forgive you for making our soldiers kill."--Golda Meir
We are not a violent people. Lets make sure we are doing everything we can on ourselves, before we kill others!
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