YOM KIPPUR – כעם אחד בלב אחד (ONE NATION WITH ONE MIND)

 On Yom Kippur, exactly forty-nine years ago, corresponding with the Gregorian date of 6^th October, an event took place that would forever become ingrained in Jewish history.  At exactly 2.00 pm local time, the armies of Egypt and Syria launched devastating surprise attacks on the State of Israel.  Thus, was born the Yom Kippur War.  When it ended, three weeks later, 2,691 Israelis had been killed, the second highest number of deaths after the War of Independence.  On the Arab side, the body count from the war lay at 19,000¹

One of my earliest childhood memories was catching a sight of our boys on the Golan Heights in the midst of the war, in glorious black and white, on our not particularly glorious ancient television set.  I remember the expression of worry and fear on the faces of my parents as my mother carried me upstairs to my bedroom.  One doesn’t forget moments like that.  Whilst trawling through my parents’ books recently, following the sale of our family home last September, I came across a fascinating book entitled ‘Purnell’s History of the World Wars Special – Weapons of the 1973 Israeli Arab War’ published by Marshall Cavendish shortly after the cessation of hostilities.  Besides the fact that it only cost 55p, I was astounded to read a comparison of the weaponry available to both sides.  The chart was entitled: ‘The relative strengths at the start of the 1973 war’ and I would like to share the information with you²:

1.    Army: Egypt and Syria combined had 380,000 men; Israel had 275,000

2.    Tanks: Egypt and Syria 3,220; Israel 1,700

3.    Guns (excluding anti-tank guns and mortars): Egypt and Syria approx. 1,600; Israel approx. 1,100

4.    Surface to Air (SAM) Missiles: Egypt and Syria 850; Israel 60

5.    Combat Aircraft: Egypt and Syria 920; Israel 490

6.    Helicopters: Egypt and Syria 240; Israel 70.

In every category, Israel was outmanned and outgunned by the enemy. 

If you have seen the recent heart-breaking Israeli TV series ‘Valley of Tears’ on E4, you will understand all too well the terrifying spectacle encountered by the beleaguered Israeli troops on the Golan when their fortifications were overrun by the Syrian tank crews.

I could dwell on the significance of the number ‘49’ in Judaism (for example the forty-nine days of the Omer between Pesach and Shavuot; the forty-nine-year cycle of seven Shmittah years (one of which we are just coming to the end of) and the forty-nine levels of immorality that the Israelites were heading towards had they not been taken out of Egypt) but these are topics for an entirely different sermon!

Returning to the Yom Kippur war, the Egyptians and Syrians believed that by launching their surprise attacks on the holiest day of our calendar, the northern and southern borders would be lightly manned (as they indeed were) due to the troops taking leave to spend time with their families and/or attend synagogue services.  What they hadn’t counted on, was a perceived weakness that turned into our greatest strength.  As hundreds of thousands of soldiers were gathered in the numerous shuls across the country, it was very easy to locate and mobilise them in huge numbers in a record amount of time.

In the Sefer Shemot (Exodus), we are told in Chapter 19, verse 1 that the Bnei Yisrael entered the Sinai Wilderness on the first day of the third month following their departure from Egypt. It was Rosh Chodesh Sivan, less than a week before they would receive the Torah.

Verse 2 tells us:

Setting out from Refidim, they had arrived at the Sinai Desert, encamping in the wilderness, and there Israel camped, facing the mountain.

On the face of it, these words do not seem out of the ordinary, except for an interesting discrepancy in the Hebrew.  The original verse states “Vayavo’uh midbar Sinai (and they had arrived at the Sinai desert), Vayachanu Bamidbar (encamping in the wilderness)…”

However, the next phrase reads “Vayichan sham Yisrael (and there Israel camped)”. The word “Vayichan” refers to a single person camping.  Surely, the verse should have used the same plural suffix of ‘vayachanu’ as was evidenced previously.

Rashi picks up on this and states:

“The singular Vayichan is to be interpreted as ‘one man with one heart (or one mind)’ or in Hebrew כאיש אחד בלב אחד  but all the other encampments were with complaints and with strife”

In other words, The Bnei Yisrael were united in their understanding of the significance of what was about to happen.  It was as though they became a single entity.  A beautiful symphony instead of a collection of random notes.

Our Rabbis used this to interpolate the idea through utilising a process called Parshanut which is a type of Biblical Exegesis. Just as Rashi referred to the notion of ‘one man with one heart’ we, the Jewish people, can if we wish to, act as ‘one nation with one heart – Am Echad Be’Lev Echad’ – And this is exactly what occurred forty-nine years ago.

For had the Egyptian and Syrian operations been launched on any other day, the Israelis would not have been able to respond to the threat in such a rapid and effective manner.  It was a case that the significance and importance of Yom Kippur in the hearts and minds of our people literally enabled them to work together as ‘one people with one mind’ in the joint cause of protecting the State of Israel.

This idea is reflected in the tefillot, the prayers, particularly in the Selichot that we recite from the start of the month of Ellul (if you are Sephardi) or the week before Rosh Hashanah as we do, culminating in the Neilah Service.

From the outset of Yom Kippur, we recited both the Ashamnu and Al Cheit supplications continuously towards the end of each service.  You may have noticed that all of these are conjugated in the plural tense:

Ashamnu – We have trespassed…

Bagadnu – We have dealt treacherously…

Gazalnu – We have robbed…

When it comes to the Al Cheit prayers, the same format applies, where all the verses are prefaced with:

Al Cheit She’chatanu lefanecha – For the sin wherein we have sinned…

If you look through the machzor and siddur, you will see that our prayers are always in the plural tense, on Yom Kippur and in each Amidah because we are one nation.  When we let ourselves down, we also let our people down and crucially, we let Gd down. We hold very dearly the concept of ‘kol Yisrael areivim ze la’ze’ – all of Israel, in other words, all Jews are responsible for one another.  Just as we celebrate together in the happier times, we also join together when things are not so rosy.  One nation with one heart.

Forty-nine years ago, in complete unity, we approached Hashem and He responded to our heartfelt prayers. Despite the terrible human sacrifice, His presence, via the extraordinary operations of the IDF, delivered a victory to our people that could not have been envisaged in those terrible early days of the war, when Jews around the world feared that Israel would be no more. Only the Hand of Gd could have engineered such an outcome.

Within five years, the enemy that had been Egypt put forth a hand of peace. Within fifty, Israel has peace agreements with nearly all the Arab nations, barring Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, some North African countries and a sprinkling of Gulf States.  The relationship between Israel and Saudi Arabia is so warm that I don’t think their hand of friendship will be held back for too long.

The power that Yom Kippur has in bringing us together, despite our differences, is truly remarkable.  May our prayers together bring about a year of peace throughout the world, particularly in Ukraine where we have seen how another nation has united to fight a seemingly implacable foe.

Wishing you a Shana Tova. May we all be inscribed in the book of life, good health and peace.

Amen.

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¹ _{the numbers quoted on both sides are not whole definitive according to other sources and are approximations.}

² _{the exact amount is disputed and these too are approximations.}