To The Editor:
During the Gulf War the world witnessed 39 Iraqi Scud
missiles landing in Israel, destroying 1,500 homes, but
failing to cause serious numbers of casualties, possibly as
few as one person being killed directly by falling masonry;
the Israel Defense Force took no part in the fighting. World
leaders, including [then] British Prime Minister John Major,
did not hesitate to call what they saw a "miracle" and people
of all faiths praised G-d for his Divine Providence. One of
the few governments to see this salvation in more prosaic
terms was that of Israel herself.
During the past eighteen-month intifadah we have seen
unbearable numbers of casualties -- young and old, male and
female, religious and secular. Where is the public revelation
of Divine Providence?
When we see open miracles we must become different people and
see the world in different terms. How has the Israeli
government changed its vision in the years following the Gulf
War? It has moved increasingly towards a secular revolution,
led by a secular judiciary who have increasingly extended
their remit to interfere in matters of religion, strengthened
by a misguided and tabloid-style media blitz on the chareidi
section of Israeli society. The religious status quo agreed
by Ben Gurion with the Chazon Ish and other Orthodox leaders
has been increasingly torn apart and society increasingly
both secularized and polarized.
If Israel sees less of the revelation of the Shechina
(G-d's Presence in history) it may be because she has not
understood the message of the Gulf War and has returned to
believing in human power to solve her problems. History is
literally "His Story" and while we are writing to the world's
media about its profound anti-Israel bias we should also be
writing to the Israeli government about its profound anti-
Jewish bias.
Yours faithfully,
Joseph Feld
London
