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Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
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Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
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January 27, 2012
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Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
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Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
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Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
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Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
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January 13, 2012
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January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
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Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
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January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
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January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
May 25, 2004
/ 5 Sivan, 5764
Desert (brain)storm
By
Jay D. Homnick
http://www.jewishworldreview.com |
In the desert no edifice stands. There are no walls to keep out the urgency of life. No artifice oils the gaps between transient lives in motion. No shadow obscures petty scuffles for dominance.
Here life teems under the sparest façade, raw and real and rough. The terms for survival are stark, daring the soul into ultimate alertness.
In the desert a man is a man.
In the desert a man knows his enemies. He can see the sun bearing down; the hiss of the rattlesnake is an echo in his ear. He seeks to carry on, even as overhead the buzzard circles, marking him for its carrion.
In the desert a man knows who does not care. The coyote is no friend, scratching for his own sustenance. The camel glides through unconcerned, hoarding his private stock.
In the desert a man knows his friends. The gentle cloud hovers overhead, bringing a window of respite before dissipating. The hardy palm hunches and shelters; the tinkly spring is Nature's smile. At evenfall, the breezes come and whisk the sun away before his scold turns into scald.
In such a place, a man can be taught the principles of life. No drama, no romance, no glory. Gritty everyday boundaries, the better to fashion a home for creative life. Then, only then, can we take him into the Promised Land.
In the desert a man is a man.
Note the passages that begin the book of Numbers (1:2,3), known in the original Hebrew as Bamidbar (In The Desert). "Calculate the heads of the entire community of the People of Israel by their families and households, until (you reach) a number of names, every male by their skulls. From the age of twenty years and above, every member of the army of Israel, you should count them by their military units."
The first verse concentrates on the personal and domestic characteristics of its subjects. The second veers abruptly into matters martial; from Social Security numbers to Selective Service numbers, you might say.
Within the context that we have outlined, these passages assume a clear meaning. As the Scripture prepares to celebrate Jewish individuality by counting each person, it outlines parallel tracks by which that is measured.
Man is measured for what he is, for his essence, for his character. That is expressed by his head, his skull standing tall, his family, his household, his place in the community. These are sketched in the first verse.
Man is also measured by what he does, his work, his actions, his achievements. This is perceived through his membership in a standing Army of the Jewish people. It is a metaphor for everything he does to nudge the world onward to perfection.
In the desert a man is a man. A man is what he is. A man is what he does. The personal, familial, communal man and the business, military and activist man meet in the desert and they are one.
The war in Iraq really began in the desert in 1991. This is not the quagmire of marshy Vietnam, where all things bright and beautiful are sucked into the swamp. Here a clarity can emerge. We can see who wants to build the world, who wants to wreck the world. Our boys and girls are out there, their lives on the line: we need them to be our eyes and they need us to see.
The same holds true in the desert of Gaza, where our Israeli brethren and sistren face down a vicious foe, even while the Egyptian guardians of the cold peace look on nonchalantly from their watchtowers. It is not enough for our hearts to warm to the plight of these young soldiers. They must have our minds sharp, not lulled by time, not gulled by slime, nor pulled into the crime of random murderousness.
Sundown on May 25 through sundown of May 27 is the Jewish holiday of Shavuos, celebrating anniversary number 3316 of the Encounter at Sinai. Every sociological study of Jewish behavior finds this to be the least observed of holidays. The theory is that since each holiday has a specific observance — matzo on Passover, the ram's horn on Rosh Hashana, fasting on Yom Kippur, the sukkah hut on Sukkos, candles on Hannukah, costumes on Purim — it occupies a place in the public imagination.
This one holiday was left completely as the clay for human creativity: "And you should fashion a holiday of Shavuos." (Deuteronomy 16:10). As such, it has suffered for the paucity of our imaginations.
After all, it is hard to think about what it means to be camped in a desert, surrounded by human enemies and strafing natural conditions, yet buoyed by a vision of freedom for all mankind. Tough to relate to the challenges of following the rule book to curb rapacious appetites, yet fostering passion to meet life's great missions and keeping the stamina to survive life's punishing battles. That seemed so remote from our prosperous life in the modern world.
Well, it used to, anyway.
Forgive me, please, just this once and allow me to step out of my journalistic role as observer and commentator. I would like to issue an appeal to every person on this planet who believes that his or her life has been enhanced in some way by what David Ben-Gurion called the "Book of books". Even if you have never celebrated or acknowledged this holiday before, show solidarity with our "slogging" desert fighters. Please invest time on this holiday meditating on the values for which we risk our sons and daughters.
If you are a Jew, spend time in the synagogue, spend time at a festive meal with loved ones. If you are not a Jew, you might choose a personal approach and place that provides inspiration. In either case, please be creative and thoughtful in acknowledging the extent of the revolution in the orientation of humankind that has been effected by that book. I feel confident in assuring you that you will experience a palpable moment of growth.
And please write to share with me the results of this special effort; I will read every word, and respond if possible. Because if we are together in the desert, fighting side by side, first to survive and then to build our promised land, I don't need to check your lineage or your skin color, I know that you are my friend.
In the desert a man knows his friends.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in Washington and in the media consider "must reading." Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Jay D. Homnick is the author of many books and essays on Jewish political and religious affairs. Comment by clicking here.
© 2004, Jay D. Homnick
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