The Story of Purim 1980

Happy Purim! I'd like to   share something very unique with you today. A year and a half ago, I received an email  from a very senior member in  Israel's Defense Department,  an official. He wrote to me:  Dear Rabbi Shmotkin, I just came across this letter.  I think you will find it of interest. Sincerely, and his name.  The letter, as you’ll soon see, is so relevant, and so timely for today  – specifically on Purim – I’d like to share it with you today.  The letter is dated “the  day after Purim Jerusalem.”  In Jerusalem, Purim is observed the  day after the rest of us observe.  We call it, “Shushan Purim.” But here the Rebbe calls it “Purim Jerusalem.”  Now, very uncharacteristically,  there’s no year on this letter,  so it took us quite a few days of detective work to understand what’s going on.  I’d love to read through the letter with you, or at least the key points,  and tell you what’s going on behind the scenes so we can really appreciate the uniqueness,  the beauty, of this letter. The Rebbe starts off the letter… First of all it’s from March 4th, 1980; that's what we figured out…  The Rebbe begins: “Thank you for your letter and for the updates you’ve been sending.  I received them. I withheld my reply because,   unfortunately, I’ve been waiting for a miracle: That the Jews finally do what they need to, or for some other Supernatural event  to change the course of things.  The Rebbe is referring here, quite wryly, to the “peace agreements” that were   starting to be implemented between Israel and Egypt.  The Rebbe consistently believed that these  would lead to absolute calamity for Israel –  the giving away of territories that  were vital for Israel's security,  and the oil wells in the Sinai... The Rebbe's saying, there's this hope  that they'll miraculously result  in more security for Israel.  Despite this catastrophic mistake, “Behold! Suddenly a miracle!” Which occurred, as they say in  English with perfect timing”!  You see the Rebbe suddenly switches  to cursive English for these words…  The timing is perfect on this: “Couldn’t have been better timing!”  As you see, the letter is Yiddish/Hebrew but for this the Rebbe switched to English.  “On the day before Purim,” March  1st, “there was a vote in the UN  which categorically put to rest the stubborn claim that 'the Jewish people have achieved unprecedented   breakthroughs in the international arena – most recently with the Camp David Accords.'”  The Rebbe goes on to say  how absurd it is to believe  that the Camp David Accords are going to  result in true peace and security for Israel.  What happened here? On March 1st, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 465, condemning Israel for settlement in the   territories, and especially Jerusalem, calling on States not to provide   any assistance to Israel in connection with the settlements.  The statement came out because Israel was  having discussions about building in Hebron.  We did a short film on that whole  episode, which we can link below.  What was uniquely terrible here, is that the United States, under President Carter,  actually voted for this  resolution condemning Israel,  and it passed unanimously. Back to the letter: “During these days of Purim, and especially  Purim Jerusalem,” meaning the day after Purim,  “in Jerusalem, the Jews made the correct decision, so two even greater Miracles occurred:  Number one, the Jews decided  and announced with one voice,  and more importantly, in a way that  the United States really felt it,  and they saw that we meant  what we’re talking about;”  that we truly mean. – I'll explain more in a minute.  “And second of all,” the second miracle was, “that the immediate natural and logical result of  ‘the Jews assembled and stood  up for their lives,’ occurred.  These are words from the Megillah: “The Jews  assembled and stood up for their lives.”  “The most powerful nation announced  before the eyes of the entire world,  that it had made a mistake  and it retracts its action.  This occurrence,” the Rebbe writes,  “to the best of my knowledge,  has no precedent in the  history of the United States.” What happened here? Rather than flinching, instead of folding,  Israel came out with a sharp, unanimous,  condemnation of the UN action,  and of the US in particular, from  both sides of the Israeli aisle,  Prime Minister Menachem Begin, and  opposition leader Shimon Peres.  And in fact, the plans to create Jewish  settlement in Hebron, were fast tracked.  Now it being an election year, very quickly, Carter came under massive domestic   pressure for having done this, and on March 3rd Carter clarified  that “the US’s position was  not proper nor practical,”  and that “Jerusalem should be undivided, with its status to be determined   in peace negotiations.” He further said that he had approved   the vote only with the understanding that all references to Jerusalem   were to be removed. So what happened here?  Carter essentially took his secretary of state,  Cyrus Vance, and threw him under the bus,  and said it was all his mistake. He did a 180 degree turn.  He said, “We never really meant it, everything’s  fine and dandy, and we support Israel.”  Weeks later, Carter was still giving press  conferences; totally uncharacteristic for him,  statements of support for Israel's  ownership of the territories.  They stood strong, they stood  united, and the result was  that within a couple of days, the United  States did an absolute u-turn on its position,  which was frankly against  Israel’s, only days earlier.  The lessons, the Rebbe says, to be  learned from this episode are twofold:  “First of all, standing up for one’s life succeeds,”  just like it was during the days of  Purim, va’amod al nafsham.  “And on the other hand, one compromise  leads to a second compromise,  followed by a third compromise, etc.” “The second lesson is,  that when the president made a mistake, he had no problem doing an absolute about face,   because he wants to win the elections.” Immediately he announced, I made a mistake.  “How much more so, when we're talking  about the fate of 3 million Jews,”  if we're making a mistake, if we’re going on a wrong path  – at the time the Rebbe was talking  about giving away the oil fields,  and the territory in the Sinai – it's okay to say, “I made a mistake,” and make an about face. The Rebbe goes on with more words about true security for Israel, not  just in words, but also in actions.  And at the end, there’s an additional handwritten  note to the recipient of this letter.  The Rebbe writes, “It is my opinion that in these ‘crazy days,’ you must continue   in your position, as you were until now.” I guess he was he was considering leaving   his position in the Defense Department. “…in order to keep things organized and   to keep things continuing on a on a stable path and with additional strength, and Jewish pride,  as it was by Mordechai, who ‘did not  kneel and did not bow before Haman’,”  followed by the Rebbe’s blessing and signature.  I hope you enjoyed this letter,  and the message that comes with it.  May God grant that the Jews “stand  up to defend their lives,” literally,  as it was in the times of Purim,  and as we need to do in our times.  And may God do His part in showing  us His love for His people.  May the Jews have “Light and joy and  gladness and glory,” immediately, as the Megillah teaches us. L'chaim, and Happy Purim!