
 |
|
May 24, 2013
May 22, 2013
John Thorne:
They launched the 'Arab Spring' but now yearn for the good old days of a strongman
May 20, 2013
Richard A. Serrano: Is Meir Kahane's assassin now a changed man?
Melissa Healy: Genetic copies of living people from embryos no longer science fiction
Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Jews Inducted into Rock Hall of Fame; Anton Yelchin co-stars in New "Trek" film; Kutcher (but not Kunis) visits Israel; Jewish TV Star Praises Jewish Rap Star
The Kosher Gourmet by Cathy Pollak: WARNING: This WALNUT CAKE WITH PRALINE FROSTING, perfect for afternoon coffee, is addicting
May 13, 2013
Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo: Why the giving of the document that would permanently change the world could only be done in desolation
David G. Savage: Church-state, literally? Supreme Court weighing public school graduation in a church
May 10, 2013
Rabbi Berel Wein: Be all that you should be
May 8, 2013
Peter Ford: Why China is welcoming both Israel's Netanyahu and Palestinians' Abbas
Warren Richey: Obama administration quietly backs out of appeal over new contraceptive mandate
Fred Weir: At Kerry-Putin meeting, US-Russia relations thaw --- a tad
The Kosher Gourmet by Leela Cyd Ross : Almost too pretty to eat, this colorful salad with Sicilian inspiration will tickle the taste buds and delight your visual sensibility
May 6, 2013
May 3, 2013
Kids, kittens the Same? With employee perks at struggling Internet pioneer Yahoo! it's hard to tell
Sandy Kleffman: Artificial kidney offers hope to patients tethered to a dialysis machine
April 29, 2013
Roy Gutman: Poland's new Jewish museum celebrates life, doesn't revisit Holocaust
Mark Clayton: Terrorism in America: Is US missing a chance to learn from failed plots?
Kim Murphy: Boston Bomber's 'Svengali' Revealed
Pete Spotts: Tiny satellites + cellphones = cheaper 'eyes in the sky' for NASA
April 26, 2013
Clifford D. May: Defense in the Age of Jihadist Terrorism
Sharon Palmer, R.D.: How to feel your best -- with plenty of energy, a healthy weight and optimal mental and physical function -- without driving yourself batty
April 24, 2013
|
| |
Jewish World Review
Oct. 20, 2010
/ 12 Mar-Cheshvan, 5771
Returned to Life
By
Paul Greenberg
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
E quindi uscimmo a riveder le stelle. We emerged to again see the stars.
--The last line of Dante's "Inferno"
The times were uncertain, as they always are. Wars raged, the after-effects of a financial panic still reverberated, and another political season was under way in the United States with all its biennial acrimony and rising pettiness as an election day approached. Politicians postured, people worried about the economy, tensions great and small mounted, and even reason made an appearance now and then. Only an occasional sportsmanlike gesture illuminated the daily dross called the news. Some people rose above the din, others added to it. It was, in short, the best and worst of times, like all others.
Then came the news that attracted the world's attention: Thirty-three men were entombed deep in a Chilean mine, cut off in the darkness. A rescue would require resources both technological and moral, a display of courage and initiative on the part of all involved, both above and under ground.
Impossible, the usual cynics had warned. Government and business, officials and private citizens work smoothly together despite all the odds? Yeah, the way they did when oil spilled into the Gulf day after day, week after week. Or in the disastrous aftermath of Katrina. The miners were lost, doomed to a slow death. Days passed, then weeks, as the wait lengthened.
The world held its breath. Could it be done? It was. Sooner and better than was thought possible. The president of Chile went to the mine site to welcome the rescued, ignoring advisors who urged him to stay away lest he be associated with a disaster. Yet everything went smoothly, despite all the fears. The last man up was the foreman of the crew, who understood that a leader makes sure his men are safe before he himself is rescued.
"We have done what the whole world was waiting for," Luis Urzua proclaimed, raising his arm in triumph. "The 70 days that we fought so hard were not in vain. We had strength, we had spirit, we wanted to fight, we wanted to fight for our families, and that was the greatest thing." Cheers, songs and Chilean flags filled the night air. Jubilation reigned. It was a night to celebrate. And, let us hope, a night to remember as normalcy returns and memory fades.
The ordinary detritus of the news was swept away as the world watched in astonishment and, thanksgiving. Man was reminded of the great things he is capable of in a crisis: individual spirit and mutual cooperation, self-discipline and solidarity, organization and daring, charity for others and the highest demands on one's self, faith and forbearance, pride and humility, patience and endurance, thought and action, all bound up together. And once again the world was reminded, as it isn't nearly often enough:
What a piece of work is a man, how noble in reason, how infinite in faculties, in form and moving how express and admirable, in action how like an angel, in apprehension how like a god!
It may be whole days before the usual backbiting, finger pointing and second-guessing begin. It would be another monumental achievement if it never did. What a wonder it would be if, not only in crisis but in the course of human events, man remembered what he is capable of, and, remembering, raised his expectations of himself. And proceeded to live up to them, to exceed them. As did these miners. And their families. And all those technicians and advisers from around the world.
An audience of millions followed this human -- and humane -- story. First with trepidation, then celebration. And always with fascination. And with that secret weapon in every crisis, personal prayer. For once mankind was united in faith, hope and charity.
Yes, let us celebrate. For to celebrate triumphs is to assure that there will be more of them. In celebrating this one, let us rehearse all the qualities, the virtues and strengths, that made it possible. And so perpetuate them. There is indeed something wondrous about the stars in the night sky. If we would but remember to look up.
Paul Greenberg Archives
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Paul Greenberg, editorial page editor of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, has won the Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing. Send your comments by clicking here.
include "/home/jwreview/public_html/t-ssi/jwr_squaread_300x250.php";
if (strpos(, "printer_friendly") === 0)
{}
else {
=<<
© 2006 Tribune Media Services, Inc.
|
|

Arnold Ahlert
Mitch Albom
Jay Ambrose
Michael Barone
Barrywood
Lori Borgman
Stratfor Briefing
Mona Charen
Linda Chavez
Richard Z. Chesnoff
Ann Coulter
Greg Crosby
Larry Elder
Suzanne Fields
Christine Flowers
Frank J. Gaffney
Bernie Goldberg
Jonah Goldberg
Julia Gorin
Jonathan Gurwitz
Paul Greenberg
Argus Hamilton
Victor Davis Hanson
Betsy Hart
Ron Hart
Nat Hentoff
A. Barton Hinkle
Jeff Jacoby
Paul Johnson
Jack Kelly
Ch. Krauthammer
David Limbaugh
Kathryn Lopez
Rich Lowry
Michelle Malkin
Jackie Mason
Ann McFeatters
Dale McFeatters
Dana Milbank
Jeanne Moos
Dick Morris
Jim Mullen
Deroy Murdock
Judge A. Napolitano
Bill O'Reilly
Clarence Page
Kathleen Parker
Star Parker
Dennis Prager
Wesley Pruden
Tom Purcell
Sharon Randall
Robert Robb
Cokie & Steve Roberts
Heather Robinson
Debra J. Saunders
Martin Schram
Greg Schwem
Culture Shlock
David Shribman
Roger Simon
Lenore Skenazy
Michael Smerconish
Thomas Sowell
Ben Stein
Mark Steyn
John Stossel
Cal Thomas
Dan Thomasson
Bob Tyrrell
Diana West
Dave Weinbaum
George Will
Walter Williams
Byron York
ZeitGeist
Mort Zuckerman

Robert Arial
Chuck Asay
Baloo
Lisa Benson
Chip Bok
Dry Bones
John Branch
John Cole
J. D. Crowe
Matt Davies
John Deering
Brian Duffy
Everything's Relative
Mallard Fillmore
Glenn Foden
Jake Fuller
Bob Gorrel
Walt Handelsman
Joe Heller
David Hitch
Jerry Holbert
David Horsey
Lee Judge
Steve Kelley
Jeff Koterba
Dick Locher
Chan Lowe
Jimmy Margulies
Jack Ohman
Michael Ramirez
Rob Rogers
Drew Sheneman
Kevin Siers
Jeff Stahler
Scott Stantis
Danna Summers
Gary Varvel
Kirk Walters
Dan Wasserman

Tech Q&A
Mr. Know-It-All
Ask Doctor K
Richard Lederer
Frugal Living
On Nutrition
Bookmark These
Bruce Williams
|