September 2001
September 4, 2001 Faith
September 9, 2001 A New Shira
September 10, 2001 Fiddler On The Roof
September 10, 2001 The Oslo Catastrophe
September 13, 2001 The Extraordinary Deceiver
September 14, 2001 Letter to Prime Minister Sharon
September 14, 2001 Fax Sharon Now!
September 17, 2001 A Message For The New Year
September 19, 2001 A Letter to President Bush
September 21, 2001 Sharon's Government Spits In The Face of The Nation!
September 26, 2001 Peres, the Attacker of Jewish Values
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Jerusalem, September 4, 2001
Faith
Last week's Torah portion begins with the phrase "When you go out to war
against your enemies..." and ends with a warning that the People of Israel are
never to forget the enmity of Amalek. It never ceases to amaze how our
present leadership can ignore the clear parallel of the hatred of Arafat,
with what our Bible recounts of what Amalek did to us. At the time when our
ancestors went out of Egypt on their way to the Promised Land, Amalek was a
ruthless enemy. Without any reason, Amalek attacked and murdered defenseless
Jews along the way. Amalek has re-appeared on the world scene over and over
again. Haman, Hitler and now Arafat are but a few examples of this
repetitious phenomenon. Both the Bible and our Sages tell us that there is
only one remedy for such enmity and hatred; it must be mercilessly and
completely rooted out wherever and wherever it is to be found.
King Saul failed in this regard, and the Prophet Samuel accordingly foretold
that this king could not therefore continue to lead the Jewish People.
Ariel Sharon would be wise to understand fully this precedent in Jewish
history. As Sharon himself has said in the past, "You cannot dance with a
liar and a murderer." Neither can you make any Oslo, or other agreements,
cease-fire or otherwise, with him. Unfortunately, the failed orientation
of the Peres approach to Arafat is being presently followed, rather than the
advice of the Lord God of Israel, and the wisdom of our Sages.
It all boils down to a matter of faith. Many of us, in our private lives,
are believers that there is a God of Israel, and that our ultimate salvation
must come from Him alone. Yet, in the day to day national decision making
that our leaders are called upon to make, there is no attempt to seek out
the Will of this omnipotent God of Israel. The long and ancient history of
the Jewish People should be able to provide us with most of the answers to
the problems we face today. Yet, we do not possess a leadership that is
able to recognize how invaluable and applicable is our Torah and the
teachings of our Sages to the problems we face today.
Evil Amalek is modern day Arafat. The Torah of Israel tells us how to deal
with him. Why aren't you following that sound advice, Prime Minister
Sharon?
Ruth and Nadia Matar
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Jerusalem, September 9, 2001
A New Shira
Dear Friends,
We received the following from Miriam [Ellen] Sones,
Director
AMERICAN FRIENDS OF ISRAELIS IN DANGER
esones@bellatlantic.net
Nadia and Ruth
-------------------------
Ben-Zion Nemett's daughter, Shira, 15 years old,
is a high-school student from Jerusalem. She was
seriously wounded in the suicide-bombing attack
in the Sbarro restaurant in central Jerusalem on
August 9 while lunching with two girlfriends who
were also injured. She was released from Shaare
Zedek Medical Center on August 21, but still faces
a long period of recuperation.
A NEW SHIRA
by Ben-Zion Nemett
Friday night, Sabbath evening, after evening
services, my daughter and I were discussing the
weekly Torah portion. What does the commentator
Rashi say at the beginning of the portion, I asked?
And Shira (Hebrew for "song") aanswered me,
paraphrasing Rashi. I breathed a contented sigh.
When people change the phrasing, it is sometimes
a sign that they have thought about its meaning.
And why would I burden you with a description of
a situation that is so familiar in our circles? It is
such a common sight - that of a father discussing
the weekly Torah portion with his son or daughter.
Except that everything is new here - the person,
the time and the place.
The place - the Recovery Room, Intensive Care
Unit, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Jerusalem.
The time - 24 hours after the suicide bomber
terrorist attack at the "Sbarro" pizza restaurant in
central Jerusalem. The person is my daughter.
Her body is bruised, battered and broken after a
long surgery that bestowed upon her the gift of life.
A new Shira, a new song.
Sabbath evening, the Recovery Room, Shaare
Zedek Medical Center, Jerusalem. The color white
dominates every corner, so different from the
Sabbath white that we are used to. The white of the
operating room feels nerve-wracking and threatening,
compared to the white of the Sabbath with its
soothing aura of splendor and sanctity. Until then,
I had no idea that there was such different
significance to the color white, depending on where
you are.
Shira is alternately sleeping and awake. She is
drowsy from the many painkillers she is being
given. At one point she wants to ask me something.
I lean down to listen. "Daddy, what about that family
that was right in front of us in line for pizza? What
happened to them?"
I know what family she is talking about. Both parents
and three children were killed. In a choked voice, I
tell her that G-d willing, the Almighty will help them.
That way, I thought I could protect my child from the
bitter news until a later stage. Fortunately, the
humming of the machines around her drowns out
the emotional storm that encompasses me.
But after several minutes Shira asks again, "Daddy,
how is that family?" I ask her why she is asking
specifically about them. Shira tells me that when
the terrible explosion occurred, the children were
seriously injured. "They were actually burning.
Then one of the small ones cried 'Daddy, Daddy,
save me!' and the father yelled back to him 'Don't
worry, say with me Shema Yisrael -- Hear O Israel,
the Lord our G-d, the Lord is One.' And suddenly
there was quiet, Daddy." She stares at me, "What
happened to them?"
And I, the son of my father, the almost sole survivor
of his family that was destroyed in the Holocaust,
grew up on the "Shema Yisrael" that Jews said
before they were murdered, and knew well the
spine-chilling stories of the Jews led to slaughter,
losing their lives at the end of that phrase, "The
Lord is One."
And here, now, I hear from my little girl the same
story, and the Treblinka death camp and Sbarro
join and become one. Grandfather, granddaughter,
and I the father in between. A genetic code -
mysterious, painful, deep, connects the holy victims
of the Holocaust and the holy victims of Sbarro,
holy victims whose only sin was being a part of
the Jewish people. Children were murdered then
and are being murdered now for being Jews.
The father, mother and three children standing in
front of Shira were killed for being Jews. Images
merge of the child of then and now that wanted
his father to save him, and the father who knows
where they are going, cries to our Father in heaven
the phrase "Shema Yisrael" together with his dying
son. "Shema Yisrael" from within the flames, there
and here, then and now. I can hardly choke back
the tears, and the heart refuses to believe. And I
hear Shira's voice bringing me back to the present,
"Daddy, I will never forget those voices. Never."
And then a difficult thought passes through my head.
Maybe I myself forgot? Maybe I fell asleep while on
guard? Maybe my father remembers that, "In every
generation enemies rise up to destroy us," because
he was there and felt the Holocaust. But, my friends
and I, the generation of Israel's revival, have already
sensed the light at the end of the tunnel, the vision of
peace and humanity at our doorstep. And I understand
now that the images of flames and smoke, the voices
crying out "Shema Yisrael", were heard by two
generations in my family - my father's and my daughter's.
Shira, I want you to be able to forget the horrible
images. I want you to have peace of mind. But I
don't want you to forget the significance of those
voices. Because faith from within the flames is
refined, pure, unrestrained, firm and burning.
But how can I ask you not to forget when I
myself lapsed into forgetfulness and allowed
myself to be led astray by illusions of a new
Middle East? A day earlier, when a doctor
showed me the pre-operation X-rays, I saw
nails, bolts and screws that were part of the
bomb and were intended to increase the
magnitude of injuries and deaths.
Now they were all in your small body. You had
become a veritable hardware store. Materials
used by people to build and construct are used
by savage murderers to wreak havoc and
destruction. Then I recognized one of the screws.
I recognized it at once. It was mine. "Hey!" my
friends and I used to tease each other, "You've
got a screw loose!" I saw the screw in the X-ray
and recognized it at once. It was the screw that
had become loose in my head. And I thought
that maybe I could prevent the excruciating
pain and unbearable suffering from others in
my generation.
Maybe others could tighten their loose screws in
order to better comprehend who we are dealing
with. And I thought, in the pantheon of horrors that
will be remembered for all time, there is a place
reserved for those terrorists and their handlers in
the "East" of hell, together with their Nazi
predecessors.
"Shema Yisrael" is heard, blood flows into blood,
and we here in the Land of Israel will continue to
raise a generation with a healthy soul and with
faith, a generation that can eat a slice of pizza
without fear. A generation that remembers it all.
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Jerusalem, September 10, 2001
Fiddler On The Roof
Throughout the ages Jews were dispersed among the gentile nations, and had
to adapt to living in what was generally an extremely hostile environment.
Accordingly, they became adept in adjusting to even the most ludicrous
circumstances in order to merely survive. Shalom Aleichem astutely
recognized this sad state of affairs. He wrote about the ability of the Jew
to adjust, even in the severest type of circumstances that threatened his
very existence. He depicted this type of precarious living in his story
entitled "Fiddler on the Roof". The humerous tale carried the underlying
message that a Jew had to continually adjust to adversity. He had to learn
how to fiddle his violin while on a precarious roof.
All that was supposed to change, once the Jew returned to his own homeland.
But it hasn't. Today, after returning to a barren and neglected wasteland,
which the Jews miraculously rebuilt once again into a land of milk and
honey, they find themselves still behaving as if they lived in galut. They
are busy "fiddling on the roof". What a sad and bitter twist to the Shalom
Aleichem story!
The irony is that out of the necessity to survive in the face of repeated
Arab military attacks, the Jews have built one of the most effective
military forces in the world. Yet, inexplicably, because of their desire to
win over world public opinion, Israel's response to brutal Arab killing of
Jews is to attack empty Arab buidings. We tie our hands behind our backs,
showing "Christian" restraint, that no Christian nation has ever practiced.
All this in the face of the world and its media, which immorally sympathizes
with the Arabs despite their killing Jewish civilian women and children.
Where will it end? Will we take up a fiddle once again and beg forgiveness
for desiring to live? Or will we take the necessary forceful measures to
strip the false facade of the Palestinian Authority? The Arafat and PLO
creation is nothing more than another coy device by the Arabs. "Land for
peace" never existed in actuality. Oslo is dead. The "peace" gimmick which
has been used cleverly by the Arabs to wring concessions from the Jews has
been exposed by Arafat and Durban for what it is. It is but another Arab
ploy to destroy the Jewish State. Jews, put away your fiddle and take up
arms to defend yourselves. The Holocaust has taught us: No one else will !
Ruth and Nadia Matar
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Jerusalem, September 10, 2001
The Oslo Catastrophe
Or
How the Jewish People Were Duped!
Eight years ago, Arafat deceptively tricked Rabin and Peres. Under the
guise of a promise to bring peace to the Jewish People, the Arabs
accomplished what they had not been able to achieve by several wars against
Israel - to create a real threat to the survival of the Jewish State.
But even more tragic was the giving of guns to the Arabs by Peres and Co.
Today murders of Jews by Arabs, by means of these guns, are occurring daily
throughout Israel. It makes for dramatic headlines. The world media seems
to delight in reporting this new massacre of Jews, virtually equating the
victim with the murderer. Women in Green, however, refuse to remain silent.
We demand that the Sharon government abandon its failed policy of
restraint.
Tomorrow, Tuesday, September 11, 2001, at 10:00 AM, outside the office of
the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, Women in Green will convey this message,
along with other demands of the People of Israel.
We will demand that the office of the Attorney General prosecute Shimon
Peres, the present Foreign Minister, along with Beilin and those others who
were responsible for Oslo. They used undemocratic means, illegality, and
trickery, to foist the Oslo catastrophe upon us.
Ruth and Nadia Matar
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Jerusalem, September 13, 2001
The Extraordinary Deceiver
Yasser Arafat is contemptuous of the Americans. He views their intelligence
with great disdain. After the horrific destruction of the World Trade
Center and a part of the Pentagon by suicide bombers, with the expected huge
toll of American lives, Arafat realized what he had to do. The stalwart
friend of Saddam Hussein, and Bin Laden, condemned (no doubt about it, with
tongue in cheek) the terrorist acts as CRIMINAL. Such a condemnation by
arch-terrorist Arafat is absolutely hilarious. However, Arafat knows where
his bread is buttered. His tactical consideration was to avoid the
anticipated anger of the Americans towards him. He, the personification of
terrorism, had to avoid at all costs being identified with his bosom friends
and fellow criminals, Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein.
To help disassociate himself from his terrorist companions, and to win
American sympathy, Arafat arranged to have himself photographed while giving
his blood for Americans injured in the terrorist blast. But, who of the
victims of these blasts would want the blood of this murderer and
arch-terrorist in their veins? The concept is abhorrent. Arafat is "the
epitome of evil." He has shed innocent blood, over the years, through his
continuous acts of terrorism. Here he is donating blood for Americans
injured through acts of terrorism, which are identical with what Arafat has
been consistently doing now, and in the past.
How is it possible for Arafat to think that his past track record of close
association with fellow terrorists Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein would be
overlooked by America? Arafat's past terrorism included his direct
involvement with the murder of a U.S. Ambassador in Sudan, and the terrorist
act of blowing up over 256 U.S. Marines. Such terrorism has been indelibly
imprinted on the minds of Americans. Apparently, Arafat who has been
continuously forgiven for his foul deeds in the past, believes that such
forgiveness will surely continue.
Will those responsible leaders in America pierce Arafat's latest veil of
deceit? President Bush's stance in refusing to meet Arafat heretofore, is a
hopeful sign. However, what is not encouraging is that U.S. Secretary of
State Colin Powell is still talking about the need for the resumption of
negotiations with Arafat and Israel, in accordance with the no longer
feasible Mitchell Plan. It is as if the horrendous events of terrorism in
the United States in the past week, has not jarred Colin Powell and the U.S.
State Department from former inappropriate United States positions
concerning the Middle East.
What occurred at the Pentagon and the World Trade Center should make the
United States and the nations of Europe face up to the terrorism that has
been occurring in this region, which inevitably spread to the United States.
If President Bush meant what he said, that not only the terrorists
themselves, but those who harbor them, would be subject to attack, then not
only Afghanistan and Iraq, but Syria and Iran would be necessary targets.
If the world is to be free of terrorism, the U.S. and Europe must pierce the
Arafat veil of deceit. They should act decisively and comprehensively
against all those who have brought terrorism to the shores of the United
States. They should take the required steps to stamp out the terrorism that
Arafat has been perpetrating in Israel, as well as those terrorist acts of
Bin Laden, Saddam Hussein, Syria, Iran, and the Hizballah!
Nadia and Ruth
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Jerusalem, September 14, 2001
Letter to Prime Minister Sharon
Below is the fax/email that I sent to the Prime Minister.
It is urgent that each of you send a similar message to the Prime
Minister, so that the scheduled meeting on Sunday, September 16, 2001
does not take place.
Sharon's Email address is:
webmaster@pmo.gov.il
His fax numbers are: 02-566-4838 and 670-5475
If faxing from abroad -- 011-972-2-566-4838 or 670-5475
-----------------------
Dear Prime Minister Sharon:
Today's Jerusalem Post editorial says it all. It is obscene for
Israel to allow Shimon Peres to meet Arafat. Colin Powell and the U.S.
State Department may approve, but the American People will have utter
contempt for us if we have such a meeting.
I join in such sentiments. I am an American citizen with dual
citizenship. I maintain close contacts with many Christian and Jewish
Americans who reside in the U.S. and I can tell you that the overwhelming
voice I hear from the States is not to go ahead with such a meeting. Our
many Chapters in the States report identical views.
You, who have shown good judgment in the past, should listen to
the majority voice of those who have been your supporters. Arafat is
considered in league with the terrorists, and for most of us,
indistinguishable
from the people who have caused this recent tragedy.
Ruth Matar
Co-chair Women In Green
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Jerusalem, September 14, 2001
Fax Sharon Now!
Women in Green call upon all to bombard Ariel Sharon's offfice with
faxes and phone calls, demanding that he should not permit
Shimon Peres to meet with the murderer Arafat this Sunday,
September 16.
A meeting like that would put the seal of approval on the murderer
Arafat. It would be like spitting in the face of all victims of Arab
terror, in Israel and in the United States.
Arafat is no different than Bin Laden and should be dealt with in the
same fashion.
Ariel Shaton's office:
tel: 972-2-670-55-55 or 972-2-670-71-14
fax: 972-2-670-54-75 or 972-2-566-48-38
Please pass this message on to relatives and friends.
The more pressure on Sharon's office, the more chance we have to
succeed in stopping Peres.
Shabbat Shalom,
Ruth and Nadia Matar
*******************************************************
Jerusalem, September 17, 2001
A Message For The New Year
To all our many friends and supporters,
We are an Ancient People, who have survived even the disastrous
Holocaust. Taken in perspective, Arafat and his followers are not a
formidable threat. Our problem is within ourselves. The ingathering is
not yet complete and rampant assimilation has taken its toll. We are our
own worst enemy. Not only are we not united in the face of a foe who
wishes to
destroy us, but we have those among us who would willingly assist them in
such destruction.
Under such circumstances, what can we wish Am Yisrael for the coming
year? Possibly that HaShem creates for us a new understanding of how
special and unique the Jewish People are. A realization of the vital
importance of the Torah He has given us. It has kept us united throughout
the ages, no matter the adversities and hardships we faced living outside of
our homeland. Now that we are once again back in our Land, may the New Year
bring with it the blessings of a People who are proud of their ancient and
formidable Heritage.
May it be His Will that we return to His Ways, and drink from the
fountain of His Redemption. May we deserve once again the appellation of
being a special and chosen People - a virtual Light Unto the Nations. May
all of us be dedicated to a meaningful and purposeful life. And may we all
recognize that to Him and Him alone, homage and piety are due. A blessed
New Year to each and every member of Am Yisrael!
Ruth and Nadia Matar
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Jerusalem, September 19, 2001
A Letter to President Bush
Dear President Bush,
You say that we have a struggle between "good and evil." For a very
long time, the evil of terrorism has been rampant in the land which God
promised to the Jewish People.
The world did not object nor care about this evil. Maybe this
encouraged those who carried out the despicable acts of terror against our
beloved country, the United States.
Evil remains evil no matter where it is practised. Terror is
terror, whether against little Israel, or against the most powerful nation
in the world. May God grant you the wisdom to protect the moral and
spiritual values which the Bible has given to Western Civilization. May you
act in the spirit of the Lord to protect our United States and God's chosen
Land of Israel.
Respectfully,
Ruth Matar
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Jerusalem, September 21, 2001
Sharon's Government Spits In The Face of The Nation!
Women In Green are shocked by the Government's decision not to react to
yesterday's murder of a young Jewish mother.
Sarit Amrani, mother of 3 from Nokdim, was murdered by Arab
terrorists and her husband Shai, was seriously wounded in a drive-
by shooting at the Tekoa intersection in Gush Etzion Thursday
morning, during a so-called cease-fire. The 3 children, ages 4, 2
and 3 months, who were in the car at the time of the
murderous attack, were miraculously unhurt.
This decision continues the policy and moral bankruptcy of the Oslo
criminals. It desecrates Jewish life and cheapens Jewish blood. It helps to
destroy Jewish pride in our nation, and our own self worth. What is equally
important, it is an attempted death blow to the Jewish People's Biblical
moral values.
At a time when the whole world recognizes the need to react
strongly to terror, only the Government of Israel decides not to
react and thus capitulates to terror.
Ariel Sharon's Government disgraces Jewish honor, and spits in the face of
the victims of Arab terror, and the whole Nation.
We call upon the Prime Minister not to negotiate under fire. It is the
obligation of any government to defend its citizens. You have utterly
failed in this regard, Prime Minister Sharon!
Ruth and Nadia Matar
----------------------
Please bombard Sharon's office with phonecalls and faxes demanding
that his government react strongly to all the latest terror attacks.
Arafat is no different than Bin Laden and thus should be dealt with
accordingly. Peace in the Middle East will only be possible when
Arafat, Yassin and other leaders of murderous terror organizations
will be completely destroyed together with their terror infrastructure.
Ariel Sharon's tel. #: (It is important to call and explain your position)
972-2-670-5555
Ariel sharon's fax:
972-2-670-5475
The fax is often disconnected. Call them and demand that they
connect their fax.
*******************************************************
Jeruslaem, September 26, 2001
Peres, the Attacker of Jewish Values
Shimon Peres purports to be a clever man. He is pitting himself once again
against the will of the Jewish People while bowing to what he insists is an
international demand. Peres has agreed to meet arch-terrorist Arafat today
while shooting continues in Hebron, and Israeli soldiers are injured in
still another bomb blast elsewhere. By meeting Arafat, Peres is giving the
impression that Israel is sanctioning Arab terror against Jews. He
thereby also abets Arafat's fraud in joining the international consortium
against terror, with the apparent Unitied States approval of such an Arafat
deception.
But the problem goes much deeper. Peres manipulates holding the meeting on
the eve of Yom Kippur to avoid any demonstrations against such a move. Jews
are preoccupied with Yom Kippur as their "Judgment Day." Therefore Peres
knows that there would not be time to raise a hue and cry, and to muster a
mass protest to such a grotesque meeting with Arafat.
Peres, because he is no believer, has failed to take into account that this
is not only an affront to the Will of the Jewish People, but is an attack on
the God of Israel Himself, It is a frontal assault on the values inherent
in Judaism which the God of Israel has given to the Jewish People through
their Bible, their Prophets, and their entire Torah. The sanctity of life,
a dedication to justice, and a pursuit of happiness during our life span
through moral guidelines, are severely compromised by Peres holding this
meeting. The long and continuous fight against evil, which Jews have led
throughout the ages, is abandoned by agreeing to meet with Arafat, the
personification of evil.
But that is not the end of the matter. The implication of holding such a
meeting is the underlying assumption that something can be worked out with
this evil man; that an agreement can be reached with this Arab leader,
which would be binding on Arafat, Hamas, the Palestinian Authority, and
other Islamic Jihad organizations. That the concept of "Land for Peace" is
still relevant; that Oslo is still on the table; that a Palestinian state is
still possible. The consequences of holding this meeting, makes a mockery of
all that the United States has been profusely pronouncing about declaring a
"War of Good against Evil."
We are reverting back to the days before the tragedy which occurred on
September 11. Nothing has apparently been learned from this catastrophe.
Once again "make believe" and a refusal to "face up to the realities" is
the path of the Colin Powells, and the U.S. State Department. The latter
have found a willing collaborator in Shimon Peres. His reputation for being
insensitive to the loss of Jewish lives, is only exceeded by his vainness to
continue to pursue his failed policies of Oslo. His need for the limelight
exposes the Jewish People to grave danger. It is irresponsible of him to
shake the bloody hands of murderous Arafat. What is even more grievous, is
Sharon's permission to allow such a meeting to take place!
Ruth and Nadia Matar
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