IDENTIFYING THE BIBLICAL CITY OF MITZPE - מצפה

 

There are a couple of touring groups that I have joined in the past few years. They are led by knowledgeable guides, who tour throughout the cooler winter months, and I learn about the research into sites described in the Tanach (the Bible). By visiting these sites physically, one gains a better appreciation for the topography and vegetation. This exercise often adds to the understanding of the Biblical text and can be often quite illuminating.

On one such tour, the group tour was designed to circumscribe the borders of the territory of the tribe of Benjamin. We started off the day on a mountain (albeit a small mountain) generally referred to as Nebi Samuel. At the top of the mountain or hill there is a large plateau, excavated remains from the Greek period (Bayit Sheni)and also there are remains of a very large crusader castle. The addition of a minaret and a mosque to the castle structure occurred centuries later, and there is a grave marker that is attributed to Shmuel the prophet (Likely not authentic), a flowing spring, and a glorious view of the entire area to the northwest of Jerusalem. Truly, on a clear day you can see forever.  

According to some researchers, this site was the location of a place mentioned several times in the Bible. They identify this site with the place called Mitzpe (מצפה), where many very significant things happened. For Instance, this is the site where all the tribes of Israel gathered to bring to justice the criminal elements of the tribe of Binyamin in the tragic story of Pilegesh Begivah (the concubine of Givah). It is also the site where that same prophet Samuel gather the tribes of Israel in order to convince them to repent from idol worship and where they defeated their Philistines overlords in battle. In the 9^th century BCE, the King of Judah, Assa, rebuilt and fortified the city. After the destruction of the First Temple and the exile of thousands east to Babylon, Mitzpe was the location of the Jewish Governor appointed by the Babylonians, Gedaliah Ben Ahikam, to administer the Babylonian province of Judea. It was also here that he was assassinated by a rival, whereupon the Jews that had remained in Judea fled in fear of a cruel retribution from the Babylonians who controlled Judea at the time. It was also the site where many years later, Judah the Maccabee gathered his troops in order to organize a preemptive strike on the Greek Syrian army that was gathering in the Lowlands west of Jerusalem. The site is truly steeped in Jewish History. Its identification with the city of Mitzpe comes from its location north west of Yerushalayim, and the glorious view which is an appropriate attribute for a city called Mitzpe (the lookout). One of the drawbacks of this identification is the lack of remains from the First Temple period. Supporters of this view argue that these were removed before the construction during the Second Temple Period. 

Interestingly, the tour guide, a Rabbi by the name of Rav Yoel Bin Nun, cited and promoted an archaeological study from the 1930’s published by The Department of Religious Studies in Berkely, California, that identified the town of Mitzpe not with Nebe Samuel, but rather with a site by the name of Tel a-Nasba about 5 km to the north east of Nebe Samuel in the middle of the Arab city of Ramallah (An aerial photo appears below). 

Why did Rabbi Bin Nun not take us to the site that in his opinion was the true location of Mitzpe. The answer should be obvious. Israelis are not permitted to enter Ramallah and visit the site of the Tel for obvious reasons. Instead, Rabbi Bin Nun chose to take us the nearest alternate possibility and talk to us there about the reasons for his opinion that the biblical town of Mitzpe, with all of its history, was actually located at Tel A-Nasba. This is what Tel A-Nasba looks like today. It is a large flat topped classic Tel which contains plentiful remains from the appropriate time period, The First Temple Period. Unfortunately Rav Bin Nun did not explain his preference for the second site. Both alternatives fit the various texts and he did say that it is difficult to determine which is correct. However, after some subsequent reading, I did find a detail that might tilt the argument in favour of Tel a-Nasba

However before I get to that detail, please bear with me while I take you on a bit of a tangent. When I was actively guiding families in Israel, often families with children, one of my favorite excursions was to the City of David and the archaeological site termed Area G. This area contained the ruins of buildings destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE, approximately 2,600 years ago. In the dirt and rubble of the floor of one of the rooms, the excavations uncovered Bulae, clay seals that had been placed on the strings that were wrapped around all kinds of documents from the period of the Babylonian destruction 586 BCE. The documents themselves and the string wrapped around them had long since deteriorated and turned to dust.

However, in the fires that engulfed the building during the destruction of Jerusalem, these clay seals were actually hardened into a state that allowed them to remain intact virtually unchanged until the present day. It is fascinating that these personal seals were also Imprinted with the names of scribes or officers in the court of one of the Kings of Yehuda. 40 or so of these Bulae were discovered. The names were written in the ancient Hebrew script and not using the Hebrew letters that we are familiar with today. For instance, one of these Bulae contained the name of a man named  גמריהו בן שפן, transliterated, Gmaryahu Ben Shafan. I would hand out an enlarged printed copy of the seal with the letters highlighted for clarity. Then I would hand out a sheet with the modern Hebrew letters matched up against the ancient Hebrew letters and ask them to decipher the name into modern Hebrew letters and to try to read the name.

This exercise was manageable even for young children. Once they were done, I would pull out the Book of Yirmiyahu (Jerimiah) and read to them the passage where it describes the scene of a man named Gemaryahu Ben Shafan listening to the terrifying prophecy of Yirmiyahu in the years before the destruction. Gemaryahu panicked. Gemaryahu advised Yirmiyahu to go into hiding before the King heard about the prophecy and throws them in jail or perhaps something worse. He is a supporter of Yirmiyahu, a good guy, but clearly they were surrounded by enemies who would love an excuse to do away with Yirmiyahu. Then I would ask them to imagine the feelings of the scientist who one day came into the laboratory carefully cleaned off the dust from the surface of the Bullae, and then transcribed the name into modern Hebrew letters just as they had done few minutes before, only to realize that this seal was set into the clay by a person whose name appears in the Tanach.  It represents the life of a real person who worked as an official in the court of the King of Yehudah almost 2,600 years ago. In fact, several bullae were found that contained names from the Tanach. I would take great pleasure in this little exercise and invariably it brought forth smiles of recognition as they internalized the message that I was trying to convey.

Now we have come around to the point that I would like to make about the correct location of the biblical city of Mitzpe.  The excavation took place from 1926 to 1936, almost 100 years ago, long before the Bullae were found in the city of David. However, something similar was found during the excavations that to my mind have a great impact on the discussion about the correct location of Mitzpe. The Bulae were made by seals pressed into clay and they survived because they were hardened in fire. At the excavation at Tel a-Nasba, one of the archaeological finds was an actual seal carved into onyx stone of the type that made the bullae that we described earlier.

When this stone seal was translated in a fashion similar to what we have described above, the inscription reads:

"יאזניהו עבד המלך" – transliterated to English – Yaazanyahu servant of the King. If we then turn to the text at the end of the Book of Kings, Kings 2, Chapter 25:23 we read as follows.

וַיִּשְׁמְעוּ֩ כׇל־שָׂרֵ֨י הַחֲיָלִ֜ים הֵ֣מָּה וְהָאֲנָשִׁ֗ים כִּֽי־הִפְקִ֤יד מֶֽלֶךְ־בָּבֶל֙ אֶת־גְּדַלְיָ֔הוּ וַיָּבֹ֥אוּ אֶל־גְּדַלְיָ֖הוּ הַמִּצְפָּ֑ה וְיִשְׁמָעֵ֣אל בֶּן־נְתַנְיָ֡ה וְיוֹחָנָ֣ן בֶּן־קָ֠רֵ֠חַ וּשְׂרָיָ֨ה בֶן־תַּנְחֻ֜מֶת הַנְּטֹפָתִ֗י וְיַאֲזַנְיָ֙הוּ֙ בֶּן־הַמַּ֣עֲכָתִ֔י הֵ֖מָּה וְאַנְשֵׁיהֶֽם׃

And all the army officers and their men heard the the King of Bavel had appointed Gedalyahu son of Ahikam (as governor), and they gathered around Gedalyahu at the city of Mitzpe. These included Yishmael ben Netanya, Yohanan ben Koreiach,  Seraya ben Tanhumet from Ntofah, and Yaazanyahu ben Hamaachati, them and all their men.

The text provides a list of the officers who joined Gedaliah ben Ahikam after the destruction of Jerusalem at the new administrative capital located at Mitzpe. The last name mentioned is none other than Yaazanhu son of the Maachati. 

What are the chances that the official seal that was found at Tel a-Nasba belongs to this same Yaazanyahu in the text of the book of Kings, and if it is the same man this indicates that the chances a very high that this is the true location of the city of Mitzpe. I have no idea why this seal was not brought up during the tour. I discovered it later while trying to read a bit more on the subject.  To my mind the chances are very high that it is the same man. I feel just as I did when I was guiding those children years ago.  For me personally that is enough to allow me to say that I agree with Rav Bin Nun. Mitzpe is Tel a Nasba.

Postscript: The name   יאזניהו  or   יאזניה  appears 3 other times in Tanach. All are different people based on their father’s names, and all appear in the same general time period at the end of the First Temple, so it can be argued that this was a common name and that the seal belonged to some other Yaazanyahu. I prefer to believe that they are the same man. See Jerimiah 35:3, Ezekiel 8:11, and Ezekiel 11:1.

TWO BATTLES, TWO KINGS, TWO YEARS, AND ONE CHAPTER - KINGS 1 CH:20

 

A few weeks ago, on a visit to the Jordan Valley near the remains of the bridge called Gesher Damiya, the bridge at Adam, I listened to Binyamin Tropper explain a novel interpretation of the first half of this chapter in the Book of Kings. It made quite a lot of sense to me, and I would like to try and explain why it made such an impression on me. The interpretation was attributed to the soldier, politician, and archaeologist, Yigal Yadin, who passed away in 1984. He was also an astute student of Tanach (the Bible). I encourage you to read Chapter 20 word by word to familiarize yourself with it. That exercise will allow you to follow the following monograph more easily.

As you will notice on the right side of the contour map above, we see the relatively flat beige expanse we refer to as the Jordan valley. The Jordan river itself is depicted as a dashed black line winding its way from north to south. On the east side to the valley, you will notice a Jordanian town called Dayr Allah and most researchers agree that this is the location of the Biblical town of Sukkot. Sukkot sits at the mouth of a riverbed canyon called Nahal Yabok that stretches east into modern day Jordan so that the water spills out into the Jordan river right at the bottom edge of the map where the ancient city of Adam was located. This area of the Jordan river tends to be quite shallow, and this area has historically been an easy place to cross and travel from Syria and Aram into the mountains of the Shomron.

We recognize this route because it is exactly the route followed by our forefather Yaakov hundreds of years before these wars between Yisrael and Aram, after he left Lavan on the mountains of the Gilead to the north and crossed the Yabok to its southern shore. It is there that he met with Eisav and from there he went to Sukkot and camped there for a period of time at the mouth of the Yabok River.  From there the Torah tells us he travelled to Shechem, likely following the river crossing at Adam, travelling up the riverbed canyon of Tirtsah (where you see the modern road 578), continuing up the river on a gradual incline until a relatively narrow canyon (north of the modern town of Izmut) with tall steep cliffs on either side. There he travelled south through the narrow canyon and arrived at the city of Shechem (Nablus on the map). For Ben Hadad it would have been a short trip on the same route from Shechem, about 12 km up the canyon to the west of Shechem, to Sebastia in the upper left-hand corner of our map.  This is the stage upon which the first half of Chapter 20 takes place. Sebastia is the Roman name for the Capital city of the Shomron, a walled fortress where King Ahav his family and his army were Located.

The text reads as follows:

וּבֶן־הֲדַ֣ד מֶֽלֶךְ־אֲרָ֗ם קָבַץ֙ אֶת־כׇּל־חֵיל֔וֹ וּשְׁלֹשִׁ֨ים וּשְׁנַ֥יִם מֶ֛לֶךְ אִתּ֖וֹ וְס֣וּס וָרָ֑כֶב וַיַּ֗עַל וַיָּ֙צַר֙ עַל־שֹׁ֣מְר֔וֹן וַיִּלָּ֖חֶם בָּֽהּ׃ ..........

וַיְהִ֗י כִּשְׁמֹ֙עַ֙ אֶת־הַדָּבָ֣ר הַזֶּ֔ה וְה֥וּא שֹׁתֶ֛ה ה֥וּא וְהַמְּלָכִ֖ים בַּסֻּכּ֑וֹת וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֶל־עֲבָדָיו֙ שִׂ֔ימוּ וַיָּשִׂ֖ימוּ עַל־הָעִֽיר׃ ........   וַיֵּֽצְא֖וּ בַּֽצׇּהֳרָ֑יִם וּבֶן־הֲדַד֩ שֹׁתֶ֨ה שִׁכּ֜וֹר בַּסֻּכּ֗וֹת ה֧וּא וְהַמְּלָכִ֛ים שְׁלֹשִֽׁים־וּשְׁנַ֥יִם מֶ֖לֶךְ עֹזֵ֥ר אֹתֽוֹ׃   וַיֵּצְא֗וּ נַעֲרֵ֛י שָׂרֵ֥י הַמְּדִינ֖וֹת בָּרִֽאשֹׁנָ֑ה וַיִּשְׁלַ֣ח בֶּן־הֲדַ֗ד וַיַּגִּ֤ידוּ לוֹ֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר אֲנָשִׁ֕ים יָצְא֖וּ מִשֹּׁמְרֽוֹן׃   וַיֹּ֛אמֶר אִם־לְשָׁל֥וֹם יָצָ֖אוּ תִּפְשׂ֣וּם חַיִּ֑ים וְאִ֧ם לְמִלְחָמָ֛ה יָצָ֖אוּ חַיִּ֥ים תִּפְשֽׂוּם׃

וְאֵ֙לֶּה֙ יָצְא֣וּ מִן־הָעִ֔יר נַעֲרֵ֖י שָׂרֵ֣י הַמְּדִינ֑וֹת וְהַחַ֖יִל אֲשֶׁ֥ר אַחֲרֵיהֶֽם׃   וַיַּכּוּ֙ אִ֣ישׁ אִישׁ֔וֹ וַיָּנֻ֣סֽוּ אֲרָ֔ם וַֽיִּרְדְּפֵ֖ם יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וַיִּמָּלֵ֗ט בֶּן־הֲדַד֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ אֲרָ֔ם עַל־ס֖וּס וּפָרָשִֽׁים׃   וַיֵּצֵא֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וַיַּ֥ךְ אֶת־הַסּ֖וּס וְאֶת־הָרָ֑כֶב וְהִכָּ֥ה בַאֲרָ֖ם מַכָּ֥ה גְדוֹלָֽה׃

 

And Ben Hadad, King of Aram assembled his entire army, he and his 32 allies, and all their horses and chariots and they went up to Shomron and he lay siege and made war on the city. ……..

Here, negotiations take place between Hadad and Ahav.

And so it was, when he (Hadad) heard this message, and he was drinking, he and the kings that with him in Sukkot, and he said “Lay siege” and they lay siege on the city.  ……….     

Here, a prophet instructs Ahav that he will win with 232 young officers in training and with himself in the lead. Ahav counted his forces and there was an army of 7,000 plus the 232 young officers.

And they (the 232 officers) went out in the afternoon, and Ben Hadad was drunk in Sukkot, he and the 32 kings that were assisting him. And the young officers went out first and messengers were sent to Ben Hadad saying “Men have gone out of the city” and Ben Hadad drunkenly replied, “If they went out in peace, capture them alive and if they went out to fight, alive capture them.” And they (the 232 officers) went out of the city and the army followed after them. And each man (of the young officers) killed his adversary and the Aramites fled and Yisrael chased after them and Ben Hadad escaped on horses and with his guards. And the king of Israel went out and destroyed the horses and the chariots and delivered to Aram a mighty defeat.

The traditional interpretation of the text is that the words “IN SUKKOT” refer to huts or tents that were built in the battlefield outside the city of Shomron to comfortably house Ben Hadad and his allies while they made themselves comfortable and drunk and waited for the victory. The young officers left the city unexpectedly, and attacked suddenly and routed the guards throwing everyone into a panic that led to a sudden victory. After that the 7,000 soldiers of the regular army followed and continued the rout of Ben Hadad and his army.

However, Yigal Yadin offers a very different interpretation. He claims that the words “IN SUKKOT” mean that Ben Hadad and his allies were comfortably ensconced half a day’s ride to the east in the city of Sukkot that we referred to in the paragraphs above. Ben Hadad had brought his large army, who all needed food and water, and marched them surreptitiously in the depth of Nahal Yabok along the same route that Yaakov had once followed. Ben Hadad had easily taken the city of Sukkot and set up his headquarters there. When he sent messengers, he sent them from the city of Sukkot in the Jordan valley up a half day’s ride by horse across the Jordan river up Nahal Tirtsah and down through the narrow canyon north of Shechem. From Shechem it was an easy ride west through the valley where Shechem is located, and then over to the city of Shomron all the way across the width of the map above. When Ben Hadad gave the order to lay siege his officers led the army up the same route to follow their orders and lay a siege around the city of Shomron, except that when they arrived at the top of the narrow canyon just north of Shechem they found the 232 young officers in training had set up a barrier in the narrow defile of the canyon and tactically removed the advantage of numbers that the army of Ben Hadad enjoyed. In the narrow canyon, only a limited number of soldiers could advance at one time on the 232 (Perhaps Yigal Yadin was inspired by the legend of the Greek battle of Thermopylae against the Persians). Here in the narrow canyon, the army of Ben Hadad was thrown into confusion and began to retreat and that is when the 7,000 regular soldiers of the Israelite army fell on them from the rear as they retreated in Nahal Tirtsah. Thus, King Ahav was able to destroy the heavily laden force of horses and chariots. When Ben Hadad received word of the rout, he was forced to flee from Sukkot with all his entourage and allied kings in fear of what might ensue.

Note how much more neatly this interpretation fits the wording of the text. The word ויצאו, and they went out, in its various grammatical forms appears 7 times in the text. Seven is a typological number whose underlying message here is to emphasize that Ahav followed the prophetic advice and did not hide behind the walls of Shomron but left the city to set a careful trap for Ben Hadad. Three times the word ויצאו is used in the exchange between the drunken Ben Hadad and his soldiers. FOUR times the text uses the word ויצאו and describes how the Israelite soldiers WENT OUT. First it says “And they went out in the afternoon”, to let you know that the 232 waited until the afternoon when commanders of the army and the kings would all be drunk. Then it says, “And the young officers went out first”. This also refers to the first exit of the 232 young officers to set up the roadblock in the canyon a few hours ride away. Then it says, “And they went out of the city and the army followed after them”. This indicates that after the 232 left to take up their positions, Ahav deployed the 7,000 soldiers along the hilltops of Nahal Tirtsah. And then in the final reference it says, “And the King of Israel went out and destroyed ….”. This refers to the ambush set by Ahav to decimate the forces of Ben Hadad as they fled. Once you think about it this interpretation fits the text in an extraordinarily precise fashion. If the story was a simple as the traditional interpretation implies, why does the word ויצאו repeat itself so many times?

In summary, Ahav won this first battle with the help of prophecy and by utilising a daring strategy that took advantage of the topography and used the mountainous terrain to his advantage. He took full advantage of the canyon topography which took the shape of a capital V like this q, with two steep cliffs on either side and a narrow defile below.

In the next half of the chapter, ironically, we find that Ahav was able to use a similar strategy to defeat Ben Hadad. The Aramite army came to the conclusion that Hashem was powerful on the mountains but perhaps he was not so powerful on the plains. Consequently, they attacked using a different route from Damascus, over the Golan heights intending to cross over the Jordan at the southern end of the Kinneret. Again, the prophet advised Ahav that Hashem was with him, but his time he left the strategic planning to Ahav alone. Ahav set up his line of defense near a village named Afek.

Many researchers identify Afek with a spring in the southern Golan Heights called Ein Pik by the local Arabs. Nearby sits the modern village of Afek. Note in the above map that near this spot the topography is again quite unique. Along the lower right-hand portion of the map of the lower Golan Heights, note the dark brown line representing Highway 98 moving from the southwest past Kfar Haruv northeast past Yaar Haruv. Note that between these two sites on the map the contour elevation lines indicate that the road follows a very narrow passage between two very steep ravines. Many researchers argue that Ahav chose this spot for his confrontation with the army of Aram in order to force them once again into a narrow defile where their superiority in numbers was neutralized, and where he could once again claim a decisive victory. However, this time, the victory came as a result of topography in the shape of an inverted capital V, something like this p, with a narrow defile in the middle and two steep ravines on either side of the road.

The chapter ends with a description of how King Ahav foolishly wasted the advantage achieved by these two victories and the miraculous prophecies that he had benefitted from. He strikes a treaty with the captured Ben Hadad and in return receives the prophecy predicting his own violent doom.

TODAY, OUR TURN HAS COME. WE ARE HERE.

!היום תורנו. הננו  The title of this blog is a rough translation of these Hebrew words printed on a sign that has been plastered onto army vehicles and personnel carriers at the front in Gaza. The sign reflects the connection that our soldiers feel to the heroes of the past who held nothing back in the service of their people and their country. It also reflects the determination to continue that tradition and declares "We are here" ready to do what is necessary to secure the defence of this country. Just as our Biblical forefathers responded to the call of history in service of their families with the words "I am here", our soldiers are employing the same unselfishness with the same words and with the same determination to provide security for their country, their children, and their families.

I have been asked a few times what sites to visit in order to get reliable information about the war and listen to factual reports about what is happening at the front. My advice is to avoid most of the American and Canadian and news reports that are so steeped in their commitment to be even-handed to both sides of the conflict, that they have lost all perspective of what is right and what is wrong. I have found the Israeli television stations and the reports that they are producing regularly and publicizing on YouTube.com to be factual and detailed. They are uploaded with Hebrew subtitles, and if you can manage the Hebrew, you will find the reports enlightening and informative. Many will bring you to tears. Even if the Hebrew is too much for you, the scenes in the videos from the front and the self effacing and professional manner of the officers, and also the light-hearted and sometimes serious voices of the soldiers who are daily risking their lives will leave a lasting impression. 

I would like to relate the stories of a few heroes and heroines very briefly with the understanding that they are representative of literally hundreds of similar acts of heroism and self sacrifice. 

Story 1

First you should familiarize yourself with a general map of on of the areas around the Gaza strip.

 

Near the bottom right of the map you will notice 2 communities which a located a few km from the border with Gaza, namely, Beeri, and Shokeda. Kibbutz Beeri has been in the news continuously since October 7th because it was hit very hard by the initial wave of terrorists that overran the Kibbutz. Many of the accounts of atrocities committed by the terrorists took place in the Kibbutz of Beeri. The houses of the community are mostly destroyed. Just east of Beeri there is a stand of trees of the type that passes for a forest in the western Negev. On the other side of that forest is the community of Shokeda. In Shokeda there were few casualties, and the houses of the community are still standing, locked up and waiting for the return of their owners. Why the difference? This past Friday Shauna and I were part of a senior's group in our Yishuv that paid a visit to the residents of Shokeda who are temporally living as refugees in a modest hotel in the town of Neve Ilan just west of Jerusalem not far from Tel Stone. One of the women of the community (most of the men are called up) came out to speak to us and answer our questions.  

During her presentation she spoke about a helicopter that was hit by enemy fire and had to make an emergency landing just west of Shokeda between the town and the forest. The following is a news report from the Times of Israel about the incident: 

 In the picture below, a member of Israeli rescue services searches the remains of an Israeli CH-53 Yasur helicopter on October 15, 2023, which was reportedly hit by Hamas during their attack a week earlier, on the Israeli side of the northern Gaza border. (GIL COHEN-MAGEN / AFP)

A helicopter ferrying troops to southern Israel shortly after Hamas launched its devastating surprise assault from the Gaza Strip last Saturday was struck by an explosive device fired by Palestinian terrorists.

Dozens of troops from the Paratroopers Brigade were aboard the Sikorsky CH-53 Yasur helicopter when it was struck, but none were hurt, according to Hebrew media accounts published Saturday after the military lifted a gag order on reporting details of the incident.  The pilots were able to land the helicopter, allowing the soldiers to safely deboard.

What this article did not report was that there was more than one miracle that took place with the downing of that helicopter. The pilot and the soldiers in that helicopter were unaware that in the forest below them terrorists were making their way towards Shokeda and preparing to invade the town. In the town itself there were a few armed adults, members of the local Kitat Konenut, security committee, who would have stood little chance against the terrorists. The helicopter was hit, and the pilot miraculously landed the helicopter without casualties between the forest and Shokeda. Then, the 50 or so soldiers on the helicopter jumped out of helicopter not fully believing that they had survived, what must have been a harrowing experience. Within seconds these same soldiers found themselves face to face with dozens of terrorists who were attacking them from the forest. Thankfully, our soldiers prevailed and the residents of Shokeda remained secure behind their defensive wall,  saved by the cavalry that had unexpectedly arrived in the eleventh hour in their defence.  A few nights ago, after Shabbat I was walking home with my neighbour and told him this story and he responded that he had heard about it from a cousin of his who was himself one of the soldiers on that helicopter that saved a village.

Story 2

On the morning of Shemini Atzeret October 7th, Lieutenant Colonel Guy Madar was visiting his grandparents in Kiryat Gat in order to celebrate the holiday with them. Upon hearing about the events around the Gaza Strip he grabbed his pistol and ran to his car and drove the 80 or so km to the area of the battle. Guy had left his uniform and machine gane back at the base so all he had with him was his pistol and his civilian clothes. He drove down highway 232 past Alumim and about 7 km past Beeri before he saw anything unusual. He saw the terrorists and engaged them with his pistol killing a number of the enemy. At one point he was wounded  and was forced to stop the car and rolled out of the drivers seat into a ditch where he lay unable to move bleeding from his wounds. After a couple of hours he heard soldiers speaking Hebrew and tried to call out to them but his voice was so weak he could not be heard. As the soldiers approached and saw him in the ditch in civilian clothes still holding his gun one of them was about to shoot him thinking he was a terrorist. Then another soldier cried out "Don't shoot! Don't shoot! I see Tzitzit! I see Tzitzit!"  At which point they bandaged him as best they could and called for him to be removed to the hospital. 

Story 3

On the morning of October 7th, 3 soldiers were standing a post on the southwestern tip of the Gaza Strip just outside Kibbutz Kerem Shalom, near the border with Gaza and with Egypt. The three were fast friends, devoted to each other, and well trained.

 

Two of them were born in Israel, Omer Batito dark skinned, slim, and wiry, with a narrow face and skimpy dark beard. The other, Yaron Shai, was tall with a strikingly handsome face, light brown hair and a carefully trimmed beard.  The third, Levinson, who was also the senior officer, was born in North America, with blond hair, a lone soldier, with a noticeably slighter build than the other two. 

As one of them was preparing some coffee and breakfast they a loud explosion nearby. It was  6:30 in the morning and a cloud of mortars began to rain down on their position exploding all around them. Grabbing their rifles they jumped into their vehicle and drove around the Kibbutz on the perimeter road until they saw the terrorists on a rise overlooking the kibbutz where an Israeli tank was stationed, They soon noticed more terrorists at the foot of the rise in front of the fence of the kibbutz. There were at least 50 of them.  The terrorists were breaking trough the fence and preparing to invade Kerem Shalom. Omer Batito, the driver, ran over a couple of terrorists and then there was a deafening explosion as the back of their vehicle was hit by and RPG rocket. They veered right off the road crashing into the chain link fence. Using the car as cover the 3 of them began firing at the terrorists out the windows. Most of the terrorists were behind them and Yaron opened the vehicle door to have a clearer shot at them even though it exposed him to direct fire. For 45 minutes the three of them held off the terrorists but at one point Levinson saw that Batito was hit badly in the arm and the leg and he dragged him away from the window and onto the other side of the vehicle. Then Levinson noticed that Yaron had stopped firing and when he looked behind him he could see that Yaron was also badly wounded.  Levinson grabbed whatever ammunition he could find and began shooting like a mad man in all directions. He could sense that he himself was also bleeding from somewhere in his head and that he was also bleeding from a bullet wound in his neck.  Levinson desperately tried again to call for help and this time he succeeded in reaching a fellow officer, named Matan, inside Kerem Shalom. Matan promptly gathered his troop and they jumped into their vehicles and came to Levinson's position. For another hour they fought off the terrorists in a pitch battle. By this time the Kibbutz was awake and prepared to help fend off the attack. If not for the initial 45 minutes when the terrorists were held off by the three soldiers, the Kibbutz may well have been overrun and the results would have been tragic indeed. 

This completed the first part of the battle. Accompanied by Tomer and his troop, Levinson drove with the wounded Omer Batito and the body of Yaron Shai to the army base in order to receive medical care and call for an ambulance, only to find that  their base was overrun with terrorists. A battle of several hours ensued during which they managed to clear out the base take control and wait for additional reinforcements.  When Levinson was interviewed weeks after the battle he was asked by the reporter if during the battle he and his two friends realized that they were saving the lives of the residents of the Kibbutz. She asked if it was difficult for him to be called a hero. He paused gave a meek smile and then with great humility he said, "Yes, it is not comfortable for me, because in the end all I did was get up in the morning, put on my uniform and my vest, contacted my command post for orders, and stood my post. I did what I was trained to do."

Story 4

At the same time as the battle at Kerem Hashalom was taking place, two tanks manned by female soldiers of the Caracal brigade were making history. They drove their tanks on paved highways from Nitzana at breakneck speeds for tanks in order to join the battle raging with the terrorists around the Gaza border that had crossed the border. By all accounts they acquitted them selves bravely and efficiently. You can read about it here at this link. 

https://www.timesofisrael.com/female-idf-tank-crews-ran-down-dozens-of-hamas-terrorists-on-october-7/

Friends and family, please remember that this is not a quick military operation that is over in a day or two. This is war. Don't listen to the "Even handed at all costs", "Morally bankrupt", portions of the world media and, yes, even many of our fellow Jews as well. This is war, and Israel must do what it must do in order to defeat Hamas and end the cycle of murder and hostage taking once and for all.

 

יחד, יחד, יחד, יחד - Yahad, Yahad, Yahad, Yahad

The Hebrew word "Yahad", means "Together". There is a popular Hebrew song that takes this word Yahad, which appears in the Musaf prayer service of Shabbat morning, and converts it into a refrain that is repeated over and over again in the song. It is is one of those tunes that once it get into your head you cannot seem to stop singing it to yourself, at least I cannot.

Thinking back to the atmosphere in Israel this past summer and to the High Holy days that followed it, the word yahad would be the very last word that would come to mind. The relatively new Israeli government coalition had introduced judicial reforms in the Knesset and it seemed as though the entire Jewish world was split on one side of the debate or the other. The rhetoric and vitriol was extreme. The debate lowered itself to utilize and emphasize the worst types of stereotypes in Israeli society. The demonstrations were loud and sometimes violent. The feelings of hatred and fear and resentment were palatable. In many corners of the country, the repeated calls for reasonableness and compromise went unheeded. Stores closed their doors, unions declared slow downs or strikes, army officers threatened to refuse to report for duty, and Israeli society never felt more divided and splintered.

Six weeks have passed and our entire world has been turned on its head. Divisiveness and internal hatred has been replaced by a people united and determined to support each other through a terrible crisis. The horrors of October 7th  remain as a recurring shock wave on the consciousness of our people. We seem to have woken up to the fact that we are all in this enterprise together and we have responded in ways that were unimaginable a mere 6 weeks ago. From the soldiers flying home to join their reserve units at the front, to the myriads of professionals worrying about the mental stability of our children, to the families and hotels and organizations that have opened theirs hearts and their doors to thousands of Jewish refugees, to the grandmothers cooking food for their neighbours, the outpouring of caring and unity and yes the Yahad has been overwhelming. An entire people is biting their nails and hoping and praying for some scraps of good news indicating the return of the hostages to their homes.  An entire nation mourns lives that were so cruelly taken from us on October 7th, and the precious lives of the fallen soldiers that have been stolen from us in the battles that have taken place since then. We are once again truly Am Ehad - one nation - Im Lev Ehad - with one heart. I hope we never lose that feeling of commitment again.

Apparently, this is far from the first time that our people has transformed itself overnight from a splintered group of narrow minded individuals into a magnificent united nation moving together towards the accomplishment of one goal with one purpose and one motivation. In a lecture given over the internet by Rav Yaakov Medan, one of the heads of the Yeshiva of Har Etzion a few nights ago he spoke of the feat of unity managed by King Shaul, King Saul, 3,000 years ago. (This is the same Rav Medan whose son was badly injured a few days ago in Gaza. We pray for his recovery daily.) 

In the early days of King Shaul's monarchy Israel had no organized standing army. In fact, during the period of Philistine oppression the Israelites did not posses any sword or shields or spears or metal of any kind. They fought with farm tools and their bare hands. Even after this oppression was lifted, Israel had few options when it came to national defense. In Shmuel Alef, Chapter 11, the text recounts the story of Nahash (meaning snake in Hebrew) the king of Amon (roughly the area around Aman Jordan today) laying siege to the Jewish city of Yavesh Gilad, a small Jewish enclave about 16 km due east of the modern kibbutz of Tirat Tzvi, on the east side of the Jordan River in the mountains of modern day Jordan. Apparently, King Shaul had family ties to the people of Yavesh Gilad. Nahash threatened this isolated enclave with annihilation if they did not surrender to him and submit to various forms of disfigurement and mutilation to signify their subservience. The people of Yavesh send word to their kinsman Kiמg Shaul asking for help, and he responded in dramatic fashion and managed to raise an enormous army of over 300,000 men.  (Shmuel 11:8-9)

(ח) וַֽיִּפְקְדֵ֖ם בְּבָ֑זֶק וַיִּהְי֤וּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ שְׁלֹ֣שׁ מֵא֣וֹת אֶ֔לֶף וְאִ֥ישׁ יְהוּדָ֖ה שְׁלֹשִׁ֥ים אָֽלֶף׃ (ט) וַיֹּאמְר֞וּ לַמַּלְאָכִ֣ים הַבָּאִ֗ים כֹּ֤ה תֹֽאמְרוּן֙ לְאִישׁ֙ יָבֵ֣ישׁ גִּלְעָ֔ד מָחָ֛ר תִּֽהְיֶֽה־לָכֶ֥ם תְּשׁוּעָ֖ה כְּחֹ֣ם הַשָּׁ֑מֶשׁ וַיָּבֹ֣אוּ הַמַּלְאָכִ֗ים וַיַּגִּ֛ידוּ לְאַנְשֵׁ֥י יָבֵ֖ישׁ וַיִּשְׂמָֽחוּ׃

And he gathered them at Bazek, and the Israelites numbered 300,000 and the men of Yehuda numbered 30,000. And they asked the messengers to tell the people of Yavesh Gilad, your salvation will arrive tomorrow at midday. When the messengers arrived they delivered the news and the town rejoiced.

Rav Medan asked a simple question. Why did Shaul need to raise such an enormous army? The kingdom of Amon was by all accounts a relatively small one and the attack could have been dealt with using a much smaller force.  In order to clarify this point Rav Medan referred to an innocuous passage from the book of Divrei Hayamim (Chronicles Alef 5: 10,  20-22) describing the families of the tribes of Reuven and Gad on the east side of the Jordan River.

(י) וּבִימֵ֣י שָׁא֗וּל עָשׂ֤וּ מִלְחָמָה֙ עִם־הַֽהַגְרִאִ֔ים וַֽיִּפְּל֖וּ בְּיָדָ֑ם וַיֵּֽשְׁבוּ֙ בְּאׇ֣הֳלֵיהֶ֔ם עַֽל־כׇּל־פְּנֵ֖י מִזְרָ֥ח לַגִּלְעָֽד׃   ...........................

(כ) וַיֵּעָזְר֣וּ עֲלֵיהֶ֔ם וַיִּנָּתְנ֤וּ בְיָדָם֙ הַהַגְרִיאִ֔ים וְכֹ֖ל שֶׁ֣עִמָּהֶ֑ם כִּ֠י לֵאלֹהִ֤ים זָעֲקוּ֙ בַּמִּלְחָמָ֔ה וְנַעְתּ֥וֹר לָהֶ֖ם כִּי־בָ֥טְחוּ בֽוֹ׃ ..........   (כב) ............  וַיֵּשְׁב֥וּ תַחְתֵּיהֶ֖ם עַד־הַגֹּלָֽה׃

Roughly translated:  And in the days of Shaul they warred with the Hagri and conquered them and dwelled in their tents in all the land east of the Gilad. .......

They battled the Hagri and all their allies and defeated them because they had prayed to G-od and He answered them because of their faith in Him.     ........

And they supplanted them all the way to the exile (possibly Eastern Mesopotamia)

Rav Medan contends that Shaul was faced with more than a small localized incident. This was an invasion that was spearheaded by the Kingdom of Amon but also included a coalition of other kingdoms allied with Amon and ready to invade Israel. Divrei Hayamim refers to the coalition as the Hagri. This was an unexpected threat that overshadowed the enmity with the Philistines, and required immediate dramatic action. Indeed, King Shaul earned his place in the annuls a Jewish history, because he managed to unite all the 12 tribes for the first time under one banner and unite them in order to deflect the threat from coalition of Kings from the east. His success in this war ended up extending the influence of the Kingdom of Israel far into east and established Israel as a political presence in the middle east for many generations thereafter. That was why King Saul needed an army of 300,000 men.

Thus, it required the external threat of a cruel step by step invasion combined with the charisma and determination of the first King of Israel to finally unite and organize the 12 tribes into establishing an effective fighting force. Those two factors saved the Jewish people 1000 year before the common era, over 3,000 years ago. Apparently, it also took a indescribably vicious and cruel invasion of Israel in modern times to unite us once again in order to face this equally dangerous threat from the east. Hamas is also the spearhead of an formidable coalition of enemies that are arraigned against us and even more dangerous. In order to deal with this threat, we will need to remain united for many years to come.

Those who do not learn from our historical past run the risk of repeating our mistakes again and again.

 

A CELEBRATION OF LIFE AND STUDY

SIYUM OF THE BABYLONIAN TALMUD

For better or worse, during the past few years I have neglected this Blog and focused on other interests. One of the most time consuming activities has been the regular daily study of a page (front and back) of the Babylonian Talmud. In 1923, in Poland, Rav Meir Shapiro introduced the idea of encouraging as many people as he could to study a page of Talmud each day, and during the course of the ensuing 7 years or so they would finish the entire set of one of the basic texts of Jewish law. That was 100 years ago, and this movement, this exclusive club of Talmud enthusiasts has been remarkably successful. Since I was a teenager in Yeshiva in Toronto I have wanted to join the tens of thousands that study  the Talmud daily but somehow it never happened. I never felt I had the time to make the serious commitment that would be required. 

In June of 2016 right around the time of my 65th birthday I finally decided to take  the plunge. As it happened, the Daf Yomi was at that point beginning the tractate of Baba Kama dealing with civil law and the routine began. I had previously studied parts of Baba Kama so that helped me ease into the daily task of keeping up with the daily study routine. What best fit my personality was to study when my personal schedule permitted and so I studied alone when I could make the time. I used an English translation of the Talmud to help cover the difficult parts of the texts. This edition of the Talmud also offered a running explanation of the different approaches to understanding the text and a review of the halachic principles that evolved from the discussion of the text.  The English translation was especially useful when we covered the Aggadic section of the discussions where the Aramaic tends to be more difficult and the concepts focus on the culture of the times and the wisdom statements of the rabbinic literature of the times.

About a year, ago I checked the calendar to get some idea of when I would be completing the 7 year (and 4 months) cycle, to my surprise it was to end on November 2, 2023. It dawned on me that my mother's 30th yartzeit would fall on the 25th of October just 8 days earlier. I thought that if I could finish my course of study in time for my mother's yartzeit that would be an appropriate way to commemorate the day of her passing and I could gather family and friends in order to celebrate both events at the same time.

And so, on Tuesday night of this past week, on October 24th, I was sitting in my living room with a small selection of family and friends to my left and my laptop computer connecting me virtually to other family and friends on my right. We ceremoniously completed the tractate of Kiddushin, we read the required prayers and said the long text of the Kaddish as tradition would dictate. Then I shared a general thought that I had had about the general topic of Jewish marriage which is the predominant subject of the tractate of Kiddushin. It went something like this:

The central ceremony that usually consummates the marriage of a man and a woman in Jewish tradition occurs when the man places a gift of some significant value (nowadays usually a ring) into the hand of the woman and says the words "May you be consecrated to me with this ring according to the rules of Moses and the People of Israel". This takes place before two eligible witnesses and then it is completed by the signing of a financial commitment (Ketuba) signed by the groom where he promises to support and sustain his wife in good faith and guarantees a monetary payment in the event of his death or in the event of a divorce. As lovely as this ceremony is it tends to leave a sour taste in the mouth many people especially in the mouth of the "Modern Woman".  It leaves one with the impression that the man is buying the woman and that she is selling herself to him for the price of a beautiful gold wedding band. Somehow this understanding of the ceremony lacks something in the way of romance

I would like to suggest that what is actually happening is quite different and actually quite a bit more romantic. In Judaism, the married couple and the family unit form the basis of a healthy and stable society. There have always been individuals who do not fit this restrictive modal but the family unit predominates and set the atmosphere as an entity of love and caring between the man and woman and the children which may be born into the family unit. Judaism denounces trends in society that encourage promiscuity where the mothers and children are not sure of the identity of their fathers and where there is often a single parent burdened with all the responsibility for nurturing and caring for the family. Pages and pages of the Talmud are devoted to discussions about choosing a spouse from a family with good lineage that distinguishes itself with a known respectable past and hope for a viable present and a future. 

Here we come face to face however with a practical problem that mother nature has inflicted upon all of us. It is fairly easy to to set procedures in place that will ensure the identity of the mother of almost every child that is born into this world. However, until modern times there has never been a foolproof way of making sure we know the identity of the father. The biological father's contribution takes place at conception and in a case where the woman accepts multiple partners it may not be possible for even the mother to identify which is the father. Thus, in a promiscuous society there is a lack of motivation for the man to be committed to remaining in the family unit. The woman has the strong upper hand in this matter. The mother has the advantage over the man and generally remains naturally motivated to care for her children. Nature dictates that the woman has a power and a connection to the children that the man does not have.

When the groom gives the woman a ring he is eliciting from the bride a
contractual agreement to limit her sexual activity to him and to him alone. This means that he is reasonably sure that any children that are forthcoming in the marriage are his children. Thus, he feels no reluctance to commit himself entirely to creating a family unit in which the children can grow up feeling protected and provided for, with both parents sharing the burden. The Ketuba allows the man to commit himself financially to his wife where he promises to provide for the family unit in the manner that is traditional for a Jewish man and a Jewish husband. He does this in the knowledge that his wife will be faithful and the children will be his.

To me this is an expression of the love that the bride and groom feel towards each other and of the commitment between them to care for one another and protect the viability of the family unit come what may. Perhaps this interpretation can be seen as quite a bit more romantic and plays out much easier with everyone's sensibilities.

THE LIFE AND TIMES OF ROSE TEPPERMAN

At this point, in the evening's proceedings, I changed the focus of the evening into a commemoration of the life of my mother Rose Tepperman. She has been gone 30 years but I still think about her almost every day. I relayed the following anecdotes to those present and listening in order to give them some insight into what a unique and generous person she was, May her memory remain with us for a blessing.

VACCUMING HER APARTMENT AT MIDNIGHT

On the evening of December 17, 1977, just before midnight, Shauna and I entered the 14th floor apartment In Toronto where I lived with my mother Rosy. We came to have some tea and cake and get in out of the cold. Shauna and I had been dating fairly regularly since the middle of October and we were expecting to find the living room dark and quiet and for Rose to be asleep in her bedroom. As we opened the door, we were greeted instead by my mother dressed in a tattered housecoat, vacuuming the living room carpet and smoking like a chimney.  I said something like "Hello Mum! What are you doing up at this hour? Why are you vacuuming?" Rose turned off the vacuum cleaner, took the cigarette out of her mouth and said "Harvey and Susan called. They are on the way to the hospital. She's in labour." I paused to think for a moment and then said, "Well, I guess we should head down to the hospital so we can be there for the birth. I can drop Shauna off on the way. Do you want to come?" At this point,

Rose snuffed out the cigarette, and pulled open the clasps of her housecoat. Underneath, she was fully dressed in her finest skirt and blouse. With a mischievous smile on her face she said "OK! I'm ready."

ROSY'S TWO DEATH THREATS

In June of 1955, I was turning all of 4 years old, and my parents made a family birthday party for me in their house at 333 Clinton Street in Toronto. The party was just about over and the children, myself included, piled out of the small living room into the even smaller front yard. I had 2 older cousins, Linda who was then about 8 years old and Gerry who was about 6. The tiny front yard was too small to hold our exuberance and we were playing some sort of tag and starting to get a bit wild. On the spur of the moment, Linda ran across Clinton Street with Gerry following closely behind. Impulsively, I ran after them on my 4 year old legs. What else would you expect me to do. As chance would have it, I tripped and fell in the middle of the street just as a dark sedan was making its way towards me. The car screeched to a stop just inches before running me over, and my mother screamed as she turned and saw what was happening. My mother Rosy ran out onto the street yelling at me "Are you OK? Are you OK?" When I answered timidly, "Ya, I'm OK", she promptly raise her right hand and swatted me as hard as she could 2 or 3 times on the rear end, saying, "If you ever do anything like that again I'm going to KILL  you."

Twenty three years after the first death threat, and a few months after the "vacuuming at midnight" story, Rose and I were sitting and having supper together in her apartment and Rosy turned to me and said "What's happening between you and Shauna?" I replied that we really liked each other but that things were still a bit up in the air between us. Rosy said "So nu, what's taking so long?" Where upon I replied that Shauna needed some more time to sort out her feelings. Now you have to realize that I was 27 years old, working as a middle school math teacher, and still living in my mother's apartment. My mother said to me "Jerry, this one is a keeper. I Like her. If you let her get away, I'm going to KILL you!!" Luckily, a few weeks later, Shauna proposed to me and saved my life..

ROSE GOLDWASSER THE OLD MAID

In approximately 1933, the great depression was in effect, household budgets were very tight and if you had a job you certainly did not give it up if you could help it. Coincidentally, my mother Rosy was turning 21 and her father Kalman made arrangements for her to travel to New York to meet a young man who was a distant cousin but purportedly a very engaging prospect. As you can imagine, the intention of the young man and woman meeting each other on this trip was for them to get acquainted and agree to get engaged. Rosy made the trip to New York, she met the young man and she also was introduced to other members of the extended family. Low and behold, Rosy was not at all attracted to the young man she was intended for, but she did fall for another cousin whom she met at some of the family gatherings. The resulting arguments and disagreements evolved into a rift between Rosy and her father Kalman. Rosy had very strong ideas about who she was willing to marry and they did not coincide with her father's. 

I remember that my Aunt Toby was in the habit of telling me that she grew up fascinated by her older sister Rosy (12 years older). She thought Rosy was beautiful and she was very lively and popular with the young men. The problem was that most of these young men were not strictly observant. Kalman would not likely have approved of any of them, and as I mentioned above Rosy was very particular about who she was willing to marry. On the other hand, despite their differences, Rosy adored her father and idolized him. I am guessing that she was unwilling to go against her father's wishes and marry someone that he did not approve of.

And so, by 1947, Rosy was 35 and unmarried. Kalman made the acquaintance of a man named Gavriel Tepperman who was a lantsman (from the same home town in Poland). This Gavriel mentioned that he had a nephew who had just arrived from the holocaust in Europe where his entire family had been killed. Kalman spoke about his 35 year old single daughter and they decided to try an introduction. The shiduch (match) worked and the couple fell in love. My father was an interesting blend. He was old country and very well educated, perhaps even learned, but after the holocaust he was for the most part non-practicing and he worked on the Sabbath. The good news was that he fit the bill and that is why I am here to tell the tale.

4 siblings - Joe, Toby, Rose, and Abe

DU KISHT UN SHLOGT, KISHT UN SHLOGT

In my home on Dell Park Ave. during the 1950's and 60's when I was growing up, there was a nightly battle between my mother and I about the TV and about homework. I would procrastinate doing my homework almost every night and then when the call came for bed time I was conniving to stay up a little later and watch the end of the program that was currently on the TV. The TV was playing almost ever night. You see, my father worked as a sowing machine operator 8 - 10 hours a day. He left the house before 7:00 am and didn't arrive home until about 7 pm. My mother had his supper on the table as soon as he got home and after supper all he wanted to do was relax in front of the TV. He had no interest in disciplining children or chasing after us to get us to finish our homework. Not surprisingly my mother inherited the job. She was the disciplinarian about bedtime and homework and about most other things in our upbringing. To be honest, you could not blame my father. He worked hard all day and if not for the couple of hours in front of the TV each evening he would not have interacted with his children at all. 

My sister and I would sit in the living room with our parents and watch one program or another until 8:00 or 8:30 and then the negotiations would start. "One more program"! It's not over yet, just let me see the end"! "Fifteen more minutes"! Occasionally, my mother would lose her temper and swat me on the behind until I finally listened to her. Then I would end up crying, running into my bedroom and wailing as if the world had come to an end. My mother could not stand to listen to me cry so what choice did she have? She came into my bedroom and plastered me with hugs, and kissed me until I calmed down and could try to get to sleep. 

I remember distinctly my father coming to the door of my bedroom. He would stand there shaking his head at the sudden change in my mother's attitude and the mixed messages she was sending about acceptable and appropriate behavior. He would say in Yiddish,"Ruchale Ruchale, Vost tidst du. Du kisht unshlogt, kisht unshlogt". Roughly, translated  - "Rosy Rosy, what do you think you are doing? All you do is kiss him and hit him, kiss him and hit him."  That was my mother Rosy, she loved us with all her being, she even loved us enough to hit us when she felt it was important.