Why Celebrate?
Jerusalem, May 4, 2001

The following is the translation of the Hebrew text of the Yom
Ha-Atzmaut (Independence Day) program by Nadia Matar, chairperson 
of Women for Israel's Tomorrow (Women in  Green), on Arutz 7.

Shalom to all our listeners!
Yom Ha-Atzmaut Sameah!

This is Nadia Matar speaking -

Today, in honor of Yom Ha-Atzmaut, we will have a short  program, 
and God willing, next week we will return to the  regular hour.

Let us be honest with ourselves. This year we - presumably - do not 
any real reason to celebrate and be happy on Yom Ha-Atzmaut. Every 
day there is terror, every day terrorist  attacks, casualties, 
murder victims, funerals, and the end is not in  sight. 
It transpires that the new political leadership that promised to 
eliminate terrorism is not much different from the previous government. 

Some people correctly ask themselves, Why, really, should we 
celebrate? What are we celebrating? This feeling of depression is 
intensified if we listen to State media.

The phrase that best describes the State media is "crybabyish
defeatism." The song that was heard all day on  Memorial Day was 
one that the children of the Yom Kippur War presumably sing: 
they tearfully address the adults and say, "You  promised peace, 
but it didn't come," or something to that effect. Kinderlich, 
no one promised you peace. I don't know where this idea came from.

And so, my listeners, in order to leave behind the atmosphere of
depression and the defeatism that the left tries to impose on us, 
we must adopt what Dr. Samizdat wrote in an Internet article, in 
which he calls upon us to once again see what is happening here 
in the correct perspective. "Israelis have lost their sense of 
Jewish perspective"..."Israelis are incapable of viewing their 
problems and that of the State within the perspective of Jewish 
history"....All sense of  proportion has been lost. In ALL of
Israel's wars, something like 19,000 soldiers died (counting 
civilians killed by terrorists and counting those killed before 
Israel was declared).
This is a bit more than the number of Jews  murdered every two days 
at Aushwitz at the height of its 'efficiency.' In other words, had 
Aushwitz operated for only  two days longer that it did, the loss 
of Jewish life would  have been the same as all of Israel's military 
losses. And the soldiers killed in Israel died in valor, defending 
their people and country."

Dr. Samizdat continues that it is the Oslo accords that have caused 
us to lose all historical perspective. "In Orwellian Israel, 
defeatism is the greatest form of triumphalism, cowardice is the 
highest form of courage, and McCarthyism  is the greatest expression 
of democracy."

Ever since the Oslo accords, every time that a Jew is murdered, the 
left calls to give up additional parts of Eretz Israel. What is this?

My listeners, this Yom Ha-Atzmaut, our task is to return to the 
correct Jewish historical perspective, and to understand that the 
danger facing us today is not caused by the external  situation 
around us, the threat rather is from our attitude.

The difference today is not the fact that our enemies murder us. 
This happened during the Inquisition, during the Middle Ages, and 
during the Holocaust - in every period.

The difference is in the manner in which we contend with the 
situation. Every time the enemy hits us, we cannot indulge in 
a kind of depression. On the contrary -- we cry for every Jew 
who is murdered, but we go on from strength to strength. 
We go on -- to settle our Land and tell the enemy clearly: 
nothing will make us leave our Land. 
	
We must return to the days of Jewish redemption. We must explain 
to our youth what we are doing here, and why it is worthwhile to 
live here, and, yes, also to die for a Jewish state in Eretz Israel. 
We must remind ourselves and tell our youth that this Land was 
given to us, the Jewish people, by G-d and that it is a privilege 
to be part of the Jewish People and fight for our country.

We must look at ourselves in the mirror - not through the eyes of 
the media, or the eyes of the Americans, but rather a  direct look. 
And then we will see and remember that we have a wonderful Land, 
a beautiful Land. We have a beautiful people that loves its Land, 
loves its homeland, and loves its heritage. I believe that the 
people of Israel is strong. Only the corrupt political leadership 
is weak. Once upon a time, the leadership led the people. Today, 
nebech, it is the task of the people to lead the leadership.

We can begin to return to the mood of Jewish leadership in small
things. For example, if we cease to sing defeatist songs and 
return to the songs of the past, songs that filled every Jewish  
heart with pride and love of the people of Israel, Eretz Israel, 
and the Torah of Israel.

Such a song for instance is Im Hupalnu (If We Are Cast Down] that 
was written by Yaakov Orland, a song about the ships of the 
Ma'apilim [so-called "illegal" immigrants to Eretz  Israel] who 
strived to come to Eretz Israel, but were not always successful; 
as is well-known, the British were responsible for their sinking. 
The blows that the Yishuv [Jewish community in  pre-State Eretz 
Israel] suffered in the episodes of the Patria and Struma ships 
did not break its spirit, as we can hear in the song:

Im Hupalnu
words: Yaakov Orland
music: Menashe Beharav

If we are cast down -
We are not frightened!
For every Patria and Struma
We will rise again.
If we are deported -
We have not despaired!
We will return again!

For this is the land, this, there is none other,
And in it we will live and not cease, my brethren,
And in it we will open, not close, our eyes,
For it lives, it still lives,
The people of Israel still lives.
(Am Yisrael Chai!)

If we are surrounded,
We have not been torn apart!
The barbed wire we will yet cut,
We will pass it!
If we are beaten -
We will smite our foes!
We will not retreat backwards!

For this is the land, this, there is none other, ...

Yes, my listeners, Am Yisrael Chai! (the people of Israel is alive 
and well), and we must remember that the people of Israel lives, 
not by the grace of America, and not by the grace of some 
politician or other, but rather by the grace of Hashem (G-d) -  
and therefore in the Prayer for the State, we ask G-d to bless the 
State of Israel and protect it:

The Prayer for the State
Our Father in Heaven, the Almighty of Israel and its Redeemer, 
bless the State of Israel, the first flourishing of our redemption. 
Protect it under the wings of Your mercy, and spread the shelter of 
peace over it. Send Your light and Your truth to its leaders, its 
ministers, and its  counselors, and impart them with good counsel 
from You.

Strengthen the hand of the defenders of our holy land, and may our 
God endow them with salvation, and crown them with the crown of 
victory. May You grant peace in the land, and everlasting joy to 
its inhabitants.

Happy Yom Ha-Atzmaut!