Say a special prayer for the soldiers of the IDF.
Here’s Chabad’s Shabbat candlelighting times.
And remember tonight, at synagogues all over the world, Jews will also sing Oseh Shalom—a prayer that asks for peace for Israel and for the world.
All Jews have ever wanted was to be left in peace to live and worship as we choose. It seems to be too much to ask.
I do believe that all the Jewish people have ever wanted is to be left in peace. Throughout history the Jewish people have attempted to live in many countries, and each time they became affluent the persecution would begin, and they would be expelled from that country – minus their wealth. The culmination of this persecution was the Holocaust. Who can really blame Israel for insisting on their right to exist and live in peace. Protesters seem to be ignoring the fact that it is the stated objective of Hamas to wipe out the Jewish people and/or drive them out of the region. Hamas objectives have been quite clear, and I fail to understand why none of this is ever reported in newscasts. I also fail to understand why Hamas insisted on continually poking the wasp’s nest unless it was to provoke such a reaction from Israel who, in my opinion, has shown great restraint in the past. Being an atheist, I respect each side’s right to their religious beliefs; however, I believe that common sense and reason would be a better ground on which to make decisions concerning how to get along. War sucks for the civilian population of both sides, and both civilian populations should be pressuring their government to make compromises that will allow both countries to live side-by-side in peace and prosperity. Unfortunately, until a times comes when education of young Muslims consists of more than learning to recite the Koran in a language they do not understand and relying on radical, angry, and bloodthirsty Imams there won’t be reason and commonsense in the majority of Muslim community. It’s interesting that the majority of western educated Muslims adhere to a more reasoned interpretation of the Koran. For what it’s worth, I hope Israel is able to obtain their objectives in this war against Hamas. And I think that’s an important distinction some people have missed. This is not a war against the Palestinian people, but a war against Hamas even though, as in all wars, the common people will also pay the price of governments not being able to come to a peaceful compromise. And now we are back to reason and commonsensed.