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4 HASHALOM December
2016 / January 2017
December
2016 / January 2017
HASHALOM
5
It’s OK to say
“I don’t know”
MISHNA IMPOSSIBLE 7
Tractate Berachot 3b
In Psalms, King David wrote about arising “at midnight”. It follows then
that he must have known that it was in fact midnight when he arose. So
how come, ask our Sages, did Moses not know when midnight was?
This question is based on Exodus 11:4, where Moses told Pharoah that “at
about midnight” Hashem would go out and kill every firstborn.
The Rabbonim express doubt that Moses was unsure about the time – after
all, Hashem had told him that he would go forth at midnight, so there was
no need for Moses to temporise. The Rabbis say that there was no way that
Hashem would have said “about midnight” so why then did Moses choose
those words when talking to Pharoah.
One Gemara says that King David had a sign of when it was midnight (his
harp) whereas Moses did not.
However, the consensus is something different – Moses did in fact know
when it was midnight, and that Hashem would do his thing at that time.
Notwithstanding this, Moses was concerned that Pharoah’s astrologers
would err in their calculations of when midnight was, and if “their”
midnight passed with no plague occurring, they would claim then that
Moses had spoken falsely.
Rather than be accused of this, Moses said “about midnight”.
The Gemara applauds this caution, referring to Rashi who says that
it is better to profess ignorance than to give information that might be
considered false, and lead to a loss of one’s credibility
(Teach your tongue
to say “I do not know” – lest you be caught in a falsehood.”)
One only has to switch on the TV to see myriad examples of those who
care nothing for their credibility, whether as leaders or lovers or parents.
For whom “walking it back” is a way of life and what is said today can
just be denied or withdrawn tomorrow. This is the poverty of leadership
and honesty that afflicts our world. It also afflicts our relationships – it is
so easy to blame what we say on the Internet or what we heard instead of
staying silent, considering what we actually know or actually saw and then
being judicious about what we say.
There is nothing wrong with saying “I don’t know” – it is a sign of courage
and more importantly, humility. After all there is only One who knows
everything, so why do we need to pretend that we do? If it was good
enough for Moses, surely it should be good enough for us?
By Warren Shapiro
www.djc.co.za
Troy Schonken
ISRAEL
Today marks the start of the year-long celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration, when the UK and Israel will unite
to commemorate one of the most defining moments in our shared history.
Over the past century the world has witnessed a country rise out of the desert and flourish, against all odds, to become the ‘Start-Up
Nation’ – a world leader in technological innovation, cyber security, academia, and medicine.
The Balfour Declaration was instrumental in the creation of the State of Israel, adding the official British voice to the chorus that wanted
to give “a land without a people to a people without a land”.
The document served, in effect, as a legal birth certificate, in the form of a letter from Conservative Foreign Secretary Arthur J Balfour to
Lord Rothschild dated 2nd November 1917. It conveyed Lord Balfour’s support of His Majesty’s Government for Zionist aspirations for
Jewish self-determination in Israel, the land of the Hebrew Old Testament, following centuries of persecution.
Lord Balfour wrote, “His Majesty’s Government view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people”.
The Declaration also emphasised that it should be “clearly understood” that “nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and
religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country” – a
privilege not historically given to Jews in Europe or the Middle East.
The Balfour Declaration was ratified by all 51 countries of the League of Nations when the Mandate for Palestine was approved in July
1922. The Mandate recognised “the historical connection of the Jewish people with Palestine” and “the grounds for reconstituting their
national home in that country”.
By 1917, the infrastructure of a Jewish state was already being established, with the widespread foundation of kibbutzim (communal
settlements), later followed by moshavim (smallholder cooperatives). The affirmation of the British Government served to validate this
process, rather than initiate it.
After the Holocaust and the expulsion of hundreds and thousands of Jews from the Middle East, many of the persecuted sought and
found refuge in the Jewish and democratic state.
Israel has lived up to the highest ambitions of the Balfour Declaration, as a democratic, prosperous and self-reliant state. The UK must
encourage the Palestinians to respond to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s call for the immediate resumption of peace talks which is the
only way to achieve a lasting two-state solution.
Sadly, despite Israel’s success and its positive contribution to the world, all too many continue to deny the Jewish State’s right to exist,
and a vocal minority attempt to delegitimise it.
Last week, a ‘Balfour apology campaign’ was now infamously launched in the House of Lords by the Palestinian Return Centre. As we all
now know, during the event, a number of offensive and anti-Semitic remarks were made. It confirmed long-held concerns by many that
some of these individuals harbour unacceptable views.
Sadly, they were accepted by the panel and many were met with applause, including the notion that the Jews provoked the Holocaust.
Shockingly, at no point did Baroness Tonge, who chaired the meeting, challenge the remarks as inappropriate.
I, for one, along with colleagues across the Conservative Party, will continue to stand up in the House of Commons to support Israel
against the attacks it faces – whether from Hamas, Iran, or the far left, and look forward to celebrating this hugely important milestone.
J
ohn Howell: Celebrating
one hundred years of the
Balfour Declaration
John Howell is MP for Henley and Vice-Chairman of Conservative Friends of Israel.
By John Howell MP