We are now approaching the end of “the three weeks” during which we refrain from joy in remembrance of the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. The mourning reaches its climax on Tisha B’av itself, when we read the book of Eikhah and Kinnot (Elegies) while seated on the ground.
I have been living in Jerusalem for 53 years precisely because the Jewish people mourned for Jerusalem and Eretz Yisrael for 1900 years.
For some forty years, but especially since October 7th, we have heard anti-Semites all over the world claim that we Jews are “settler Colonialists” who came here to uproot the “indigenous people”, the Palestinians.
This is utter nonsense.
We lived in Eretz Yisrael from the days of Abraham until 70CE and then we continued to live here, though our numbers dwindled due to persecution by the Romans, Crusaders, Muslims and Turks. But we mourned for Eretz Yisrael and Jerusalem from 70CE until 1948. We cannot colonize a land which God promised to Abraham 3,800 years ago. We cannot colonize a land in which Jews have lived for four millennia. We cannot colonize a land for which we fasted and wept and chanted kinot for thousands of years.
As the Psalmist declared 2500 years ago (137:5) and as Herzl declared in 1903: “Im eshkakhekh Yerushalayim tishkakh yemini! If I forget thee O Jerusalem, may my right hand forget its cunning!”
For an expanded version of this article, please see https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-862158
