Jewish Scene
Why I honor Memorial Day
Yair Borochov
Published: 28.04.09, 10:44
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19 Talkbacks for this article
1. respect
Ricardo Macher ,   KarneiShomron-Israel   (04.28.09)
Dear Yair, The reason for standing up is not the one you say nor the previously written by Eliezer. To feel or not when the siren sounds is your own problem, happens you don't live alone, there are children that should learn to respect heroism, to feel admiration and pain for the people who gave 100% to defend their country and us also. Same that every year we tell the story of Pesach and many other things, tradition is important to keep alive memory. You should stand not for not offending, you should stand for the people who gave more that what we gave, for being alive because of what they did and to transmit it to your children!
2. another perspective that goes to
izzy d   (04.28.09)
show how the "charedi" sector is not a hive mind. to anti religious people out there who for some reason or other simply cannot read an article about charedim without leaving a vicious talkback- you have some issues you need to deal with. if all charedim started to serve in the army and pay their taxes but nobody told you - you wouldnt even notice!!! do yourselfs a favour and transfer your confused emotions onto another security blanket.
3. Thank you Yair Borochov
Shalom   (04.28.09)
. . . of course as this is YNet and the vast majority of the readership would never change their views, you will be preaching to the converted, but of course you are 100% correct. I did not stand up; I remained seated; took my sefer Tehillim (book of Psalms) that I keep by my desk and spent the 2 minutes honoring the Fallen, the Jewish way. The former article as I stated before, I consider to be nothing less than a blood libel
4. I agree with the headline...
mostly-chareidi ,   Jerusalem, Israel   (04.28.09)
I agree with the headline...that, you should stand so as not to show disrespect towards the living. Yom Hazikaron can be seen as a day of Hakarat HaTov - these soldiers gave their lives so I can live the way I do - the least I can do is remember them once a year. And it is derech eretz to show respect for their survivors. I don't agree with the author that it is necessary to put down and minimize the way secular israelis mourn. Or to minimize the number of soldiers who put themselves in danger for their country. Yes, I prefer to do my real mourning on tisha ba'av - but others are entitled to do things in their own way. It should be enough to say - "I respect and honor these people for making I sacrifice for me" - without needing to belittle anything.
5. BOROCHOV
nosson tzvi ,   J-M   (04.28.09)
Last week I visited my son who is training to be a combat soldier in a regular unit. No rabbi comes around to spoon feed the boys glatt kosher- although 21 out of 25 come to minyan in the morning. Hundr eds of thousand young Israelimen have volounteered to be in these fighting units- despite hardship and the actual threat of death. It is true the vast majority will survive-but you won't take any chances. If you spout your thesis to the families of the fallen or of the brave- I would be more than willing to pay for the tar and feathers.
6. u stand and honor - persiod
M. ,   Israel   (04.28.09)
Whether you are a haredi or hiloni you stand and honor the ones who gave their lives for both sectors of Israelis - it is the Jewish and Israeli thing to do. It is the right thing to do according to what the Thorah teaches us to be as a People, decent, honoring and resepctive People (whether one believes in Gd or not is not the point) - You stand and honor the ones who gave their lives so you, haredi and hiloni alike can have the freedom to write an article as this or any other one, even argue the pont if one should honor the ones who gave you that freedom to do so! You can pray or not, but you stand in honro of tose who gave their all to this Land!!
7. still no meaning
Jacob Erickson ,   Tel Aviv, Israel   (04.28.09)
Sure this guy doesn't want to disrespect others during the siren, but it sounds to me more like he doesn't want them to look poorly on him for just walking by. Sure, most of us have never seen combat, and never will. I serve this country by building offices and painting walls in the army. But I will stand during the siren in respect and to honor those that have sacrificed their lives so that I can live in Israel. Anyone who cherishes being a Jew here in Eretz Yisrael should do the same.
8. so the writer, not the ultra-orthodox, "adds division"??
mike ,   israel (formerly usa   (04.28.09)
how about the ultra-orthodox not doing things to add division among jewish people in the first place? then any writer would have to resort to making up lies and imaginary things instead of reporting, you know, the FACTS. maybe yair borochov would prefer a palestinian-style press where things harmful to the image of certain groups are not allowed to be printed. then he and his cohorts can continue to do all sorts of divisive and distasteful things with no criticism or repercussion. pathetic..
9. To #2
A concerned Israeli   (04.28.09)
The keyword in your talkback, was IF. If they were serving in the army, there was no reason to criticize them. If they were paying their taxes, again, there wasn't a reason to criticize them. If they were working, instead of studying in Yeshivas, and getting my taxes for being unemployed and having 1 gazillion children, I wouldn't mind. The Charedim are criticized in this country, because they are a sector which demands, while not giving anything to this country. Nobody criticizes you for how you worship god, and how you choose to live at home, I believe that the society hates it when there's a whole sector who doesn't give a damn about the country, doesn't do anything for the country, sometimes objects the country (Neturei Karta), and still demands so much from it, and are trying to force other people to be like them. Think about that.
10. Mr. Borochov thank u 4 the kindness of ur words
a bereaved widow ,   Jerusalem   (04.28.09)
11. not standing on Yom Hazikaron is like eating bread on passov
Golan ,   SL   (04.28.09)
Stop claiming that one tradition is more important than another, or that one tradition is "meaningful" to you so you do it while another is not so you don't. Our culture is one that honors our history. To claim that standing dom on Yom Hazikaron is "not Jewish" is like claiming that lighting a hanukia is not Jewish and meaningless. After all where in the tanaakh does it say to fast on 9th of Av or light Hanukah candles? We are a living people. We add traditions like drinking like Fins on Purim, lighting candles like Hellenists on Hanukah (long story and not important really), Standing Dom like Israelis, and not eating bread on passover. When I hear about someone from our people eating bread on passover or not standing dom on Yom hazikaron I feel shame. There really isn't a difference these traditions, even though one is from the torah and the other from our collective conscious. After all isn't that what being part of a people means, honoring our shared past?
12. For Goodness Sake !
ben ,   singapore   (04.28.09)
Yair Borochov, thank you :- )
13. Well said.
Dvir ,   Sunrise Florida   (04.28.09)
"because courtesy comes before the Torah" and that unfortuently some do not get!
14. 99.99%???
om ,   Israel   (04.29.09)
The writer vastly underestimates the number of Israelis who have risked their life in wars. Far more than 0.01% of the population has served in Gaza or Lebanon, Mr. Borochov, or in other danger zones. Perhaps you meant to refer to the percentage of Israelis currently facing mortal danger? But in that case, you still underestimate the danger posed to "regular" combat soldiers, who are often attacked even while doing something relatively simple such as guard duty. I appreciate your attempt to smooth over the feelings ruffled by Mr Hayon. But by trivializing the sacrifices made by many, many Israelis, you end up sounding like yet another hareidi who just doesn't get it.
15. 'Goy Echod'
Joseph ,   London England   (04.29.09)
Part of what makes us one people is that we share public occasions. This is why Israel publicly, if not privately, observes Shabbat and Chagim. Although placing flowers on graves is clearly non-Jewish, standing for a two minute silence is neutral and should be observed by all. The problem with Holocaust Remembrance Day is that it takes place in Nissan, when mourning is prohibited. In the EU we observe the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz in January. German Haredim often observe the anniversary of Kristallnacht in November. Jews worldwide remember the Holocaust at every Yizkor and on Tisha B'Av. Perhaps Haredim should include Israel's anniversary in Lag B'Omer celebrations. We need to move forward as one people, 'am echod' and 'goy echad.'
16. to #9
Radka ,   Athens, Greece   (04.29.09)
I understand your anger at the haredim, but something in this picture completely baffles me. Who's forcing you and the other regular working tax-payers to financially support the haredim? And it can't be the State; last I checked Israel was a democracy, the citizens are the State.
17. Only Secular Ashkenazi could have created a country.
JMK ,   NYC   (04.29.09)
I would think that the religious would have some humility and apply some rational thought to their lives. Thinking like this belongs to Hamas and Hizbullah and the Dark Ages of the Inquisition. Stand up for the thousands of dead who fought and died to show them some honor, I never saw a religious give a bus seat up for even a pregnant women , the shame to shnoor and have you wives work like dogs and live in poverty without food to eat, you don't want to stand up, don't you and everyone else should kiss the ground the dead walked on, plus the tens of thousands wounded, some with the most horrible life destroying situations, bodies burned, faces blow away, amputees, men unable to father a child, paralyzed. Don't stand up, kiss the ground that there were people ready to give their lives, and I don't know any Israeli family before the Russians came that didn't have deaths and tragedy from the many wars. I really think this writer not a man is magil echad.
18. to the auther
........ ,   ..........   (04.30.09)
power will win but better with tora and also weakness will fail but better with torah
19. Rav Shach
Joe ,   Baltimore USA   (04.30.09)
The Rosh Yeshiva of Ponovitz and spokesman for Torah Jewry in Eretz Yisrael flew the Israeli flag over the yeshiva on Yom HaAtzmaut. Not all Charedim are hostile.
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