Peering Behind the Thick Middle East Curtain
Seemingly without any warning, the world suddenly appears to be going up in flames. Russia, Ukraine, and of course the Middle East. First Hamas in Gaza attacking Israel. Then ISIS in Iraq attacking everyone who doesn’t abide by their beliefs. Even the greatest skeptic or indifferent individual cannot deny that these events happening in the same location on earth are too eerily recurrent to be considered as random coincidence. One need not be a history buff to know that Israel — and the Middle East — has been embroiled in conflict since the beginning of time. From the days of Abraham (3800 years ago) battles raged between the ancestors of today’s players: The children of Ishmael, Isaac, Esau and Jacob. They in turn were the forerunners of emerging nations covering the globe, numbering today over 4 billion people: Jews, Romans/Christians, Muslims. Nations that have been battling each other for centuries. Throw into the equation Babylon (modern day Iraq) and Persia (modern day Iran), with Israel always in the center of things (back then and today) — and you have a full blown battlefield with all the adversaries in place for a colossal clash of civilizations. What is the story behind these battles of biblical proportions? Can we pierce the cloud and see behind the curtain of today’s events? Without minimizing in any way the tragic losses suffered, what lessons do they teach us? By understanding the meaning behind these conflicts can we find ways to resolve them? Why is it important for all of us to address these issues?
The answer can be found in the cosmic and mystical dynamics of the moon, the sun and this period of the calendar, the Seven Weeks of Comfort, when we rise from the ashes of the Temple’s destruction and begin rebuilding Jerusalem and Israel. The battles in Gaza began with the new moon of Tammuz, intensifying during the Three Weeks and especially as the new moon of Av was born leading into the Nine Days and Tisha B’Av, the saddest day of the year when the Temples were actually destroyed. Now we have arrived at the full moon of this month casting its haunting glow over Gaza, Israel and the entire region. What connection, you may ask, is there between the full moon and the Middle East?
Please join Rabbi Jacobson in this extraordinary Middle East/Seven Weeks workshop, and discover the fascinating story behind the story of these events, and what we can do about them. Learn to see the birds’ eye view of today’s conflicts, beyond the day to day ground level. Armed with these insights, perhaps we can finds ways to achieve a true and lasting peace.
