Rabbi Yitzchok Grossman, the Chief Rabbi of Migdal HaEmek, founder and dean of Migdal Ohr educational institutions, and a member of the Chief Rabbinate Council of Israel, was interviewed by Hebrew-language Channel 14 News about the war.
The newscaster opened by asking Rabbi Grossman about the strong wave of unity that has taken hold of Israel since the horrific Palestinian Hamas terrorist attack on October 7.
Rabbi Grossman responded that he had been speaking out about the division over judicial reforms that had torn Israel apart for several months prior to the war. That division has entirely disappeared in the two weeks since the Hamas attack.
The rabbi cited a Midrash that compared the era of King David to the era of King Ahab.
“In the time of King David, there was a lot of Torah learning, mitzvoth, and good deeds,” Rabbi Grossman said. “But at the same time, since there was discord and hatred, a lot of victims from Israel fell.”
“During the time of Ahab, king of Israel, there were terrible, bad sins,” Rabbi Grossman said. “But no victims from Israel fell because they were unified as a nation.”
The rabbi noted that since the nation was united, Jewish lives were spared. Rabbi Grossman noted that in the wake of the terrorist attack, Israelis have set aside their political disagreements and the nation has become united.
“Now, what is being revealed, is the inner light of the people of Israel that in the moment of trouble in a moment of mutual responsibility, everyone is together as one man with one heart,” Rabbi Grossman said.
“I visited IDF bases,” the rabbi said. “We brought hundreds of packages, gifts to the pilots who were flying into Gaza. putting themselves at risk. When they saw us, they jumped out of the planes, kissing us, connecting with us, and asking for blessings. This was true for each and every soldier on every base.”
Rabbi Grossman also said that he had seen a powerful spirit of unity with Israelis coming together to help displaced communities.
“I have met so many Israelis who you could assume look at the Ultra-Orthodox as being problematic,” Rabbi Grossman said. “But they want us to bless them. They want to connect with us, to hear a good word.”
“When you say a good word you witness miracles, truly visible miracles. Israel at its root is one that is the foundation of the nation of Israel.”
The rabbi cited a case in the Talmud in which a non-Jew challenged Hillel the Elder to teach him one principle that would lead him to convert to Judaism Hillel responded that the basic principle of Torah was, “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
“We just have to strive towards this and with God’s help, we will win,” Rabbi Grossman said. “This is the salvation of the people of Israel. This is the fixing of all the arguing and fighting and division that dominated Israel for months and months.”
Rabbi Grossman brought an example, citing a pre-prayer meditation that is written in many Jewish prayer books.
“It is written, ‘I accept upon myself, the mitzvah of Love your neighbor as yourself,” Rabbi Grossman said. “There was one of the big rabbis who, when he was a little boy, asked his father what is the connection between ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’ to prayer.”
The boy told his father that it would be more appropriate to meditate on accepting the mitzvah of you ‘Love God Your master’
“You’re about to talk to God,” Rabbi Grossman reasoned. “Before praying, you should tell Him how much you love HIm, not how much you love someone else. The father replied, ‘You’re speaking logically but your problem is that you have not been a father. When you become a father. Your children will ask you, Dad, what do you want? That we should show you love? Or that you see that we love each other? What will the Father say to them? I want to see how you love each other much more than how much you love me.”
Rabbi Grossman emphasized that it is more important to show God that we love each other than to show Him that we love Him.
“I always say there is no right-wing, no left-wing, no religious, no secular, no Sephardi or Ashkenazi,” Rabbi Grossman said. “We are all one man, one heart. This is our secret. Bless us, our Father, all of us together, as we are united spirits.”
The rabbi urged people to volunteer to help their neighbors.
“We need to come together in this time of distress, so that not only during the war, not only during this time of grief can we unite, but so that we can be united for all time,” Rabbi Grossman said.”
“The nation of Israel is strong and we’re getting closer to redemption,” he said. “We will now have a difficult six months but then we will be approaching the month of Nissan, the month of Passover and redemption. This year, there will be a great redemption. What we are going through now is all the preparation for redemption. Our unity is to bless our Father as one and as one undivided nation.”
