All of Israel mourns last night's tragic and despicably evil murder of two holy martyrs, Rabbi Eitam and Naama Henkin, Hy"d, a couple in their thirties from the village of Neria in Samaria. Their four children, aged 9, 7, 4, and 4-months, were in the car when drive-by terrorists affiliated with Abbas's Fatah party shot their parents at close range with automatic weapons. Although their bodies are unscathed, who can fathom the scars on the children's souls from witnessing their parents being shot to death. May Hashem avenge the blood of this holy couple, who represented everything beautiful about the Land of Israel and its finest people, and may Hashem comfort the orphans and raise them in health of body and soul.
Terror attacks and violence are nothing new here, but this incident is jolting the people of Israel to the core of their souls. Such indescribable pain comes at the time of the year's greatest joy, Chol Hamoed Succoth. Undoubtedly, since we lack our Holy Temple and ritual sacrifices, the martyred Henkin couple are the two unblemished sacrifices that Hashem has chosen to atone for the Jewish People.
With eyes of emuna, what message can we discern? What is Hashem telling us?
The message is twofold: first, Hashem is reminding all of us, in case we have forgotten, Heaven forbid, that we are Jews. When we forget that fact and pursue all types of anti-Torah lifestyles, our enemies remind us who we really are. Therefore, in loving memory of Eitam and Naama hy"d, each one of us must strengthen his or her relationship with Hashem by reinforcing emuna and more careful observance of Torah, especially here in the Land of Israel, which does not tolerate unholiness. Second, we must trust completely in Hashem and not lean on the wobbly reed of so-called foreign allies who are systematically selling us out. This means doing what we must do without bowing to any foreign dictates, no matter what, including declaring Israeli sovereignty over all the Land of Israel, period.
The Torah says that when the Name of Hashem is upon you, your enemies fear you. This is the deterrence that the IDF needs. A proper government response to Abbas and his Fatah terrorist would be to build two new cities in Judea and Samaria, and call them "Eitam" and "Naama".
One might ask, "How can I dance on Simchat Torah with such a heavy heart and with the tears of four fresh orphans?" Eitam and Naama are dancing for us in the highest Heavenly realm, in the Hall of the Holy Martyrs. It's only proper that we should dance for them down here. Shabbat Shalom, moadim l'simcha, and may we see Moshiach soon, amen!
All of Israel mourns last night's tragic and despicably evil murder of two holy martyrs, Rabbi Eitam and Naama Henkin, Hy"d, a couple in their thirties from the village of Neria in Samaria. Their four children, aged 9, 7, 4, and 4-months, were in the car when drive-by terrorists affiliated with Abbas's Fatah party shot their parents at close range with automatic weapons. Although their bodies are unscathed, who can fathom the scars on the children's souls from witnessing their parents being shot to death. May Hashem avenge the blood of this holy couple, who represented everything beautiful about the Land of Israel and its finest people, and may Hashem comfort the orphans and raise them in health of body and soul.
Terror attacks and violence are nothing new here, but this incident is jolting the people of Israel to the core of their souls. Such indescribable pain comes at the time of the year's greatest joy, Chol Hamoed Succoth. Undoubtedly, since we lack our Holy Temple and ritual sacrifices, the martyred Henkin couple are the two unblemished sacrifices that Hashem has chosen to atone for the Jewish People.
With eyes of emuna, what message can we discern? What is Hashem telling us?
The message is twofold: first, Hashem is reminding all of us, in case we have forgotten, Heaven forbid, that we are Jews. When we forget that fact and pursue all types of anti-Torah lifestyles, our enemies remind us who we really are. Therefore, in loving memory of Eitam and Naama hy"d, each one of us must strengthen his or her relationship with Hashem by reinforcing emuna and more careful observance of Torah, especially here in the Land of Israel, which does not tolerate unholiness. Second, we must trust completely in Hashem and not lean on the wobbly reed of so-called foreign allies who are systematically selling us out. This means doing what we must do without bowing to any foreign dictates, no matter what, including declaring Israeli sovereignty over all the Land of Israel, period.
The Torah says that when the Name of Hashem is upon you, your enemies fear you. This is the deterrence that the IDF needs. A proper government response to Abbas and his Fatah terrorist would be to build two new cities in Judea and Samaria, and call them "Eitam" and "Naama".
One might ask, "How can I dance on Simchat Torah with such a heavy heart and with the tears of four fresh orphans?" Eitam and Naama are dancing for us in the highest Heavenly realm, in the Hall of the Holy Martyrs. It's only proper that we should dance for them down here. Shabbat Shalom, moadim l'simcha, and may we see Moshiach soon, amen!
- See more at: http://lazerbrody.typepad.com/lazer_beams/2015/10/rabbi-eitam-and-naama-henkin-of-saintly-and-martyred-memory.html#sthash.QOgT2sa8.dpuf
