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-The Ari

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by Raymond Madsen

During Chanukah, there is often a major Jewish heroine that is overlooked, Judith (Yehudit). In the Old Testament, Holofernes, the Assyrian general, was attempting to capture Bethulia in Judea. In order to hurry the process, Holofernes cut off supplies to the Jews, including water which was most valuable in the desert. Judith, a widow of Bethulia, vowed to gain freedom for her city. In an act of martyrdom, Judith ventured into the camp where Holofernes was staying in order to mislead the Assyrians by claiming surrender.

Holofernes was so enticed by her beauty, he asked her to return to his tent with him at night. She continued to pretend to seduce the general while feeding him wine and cheese. Due to a copious amount of alcohol and rich food, Holofernes fell asleep, allowing Judith to swiftly and stealthily decapitate the general. She then scooped up the head and returned to Bethulia; her victory encourages a rejuvenation of the Jews. They then rise up to defeat the disillusioned Assyrians who had recently found the headless body of their fearless leader.

This story is so important to the Chanukah tradition because of what Judith represents. She is indestructible and a source of inspiration for Jews in Diaspora. This is a spiritual link to the candles we light on Chanukah because they also serve as spiritual elevation.

The story also continues the theme of self help. When left with only one day of oil for eight, the Jews resorted to splitting up the oil for all of the days. With a combination of resourcefulness and God's help, the Jewish people can always persevere. God helps those who help themselves. For Judith, actively pursuing victory enabled God to save the people of Bethulia.

In both Chanukah and the story of Judith, the Jews did not turn their back on God and did not, in last hope, turn to the un-kosher. In both situations, they had access to un-kosher oil/food. However, in order to uphold the laws they did not turn against their beliefs in a dire situation.

Judith can be an inspiration to the Jewish community during Chanukah and it is because of her feast with Holofernes that cheese is such an integral part of Chanukah celebrations for many.

by Raymond Madsen

With the recent Arab-Israeli peace talks in Annapolis concluded, people may be wondering if any significant progress has been made in a permanent peaceful solution between Israel and Palestine. The answer to this question is that unfortunately, little new progress has been made.

The results of the conference are positive, but not groundbreaking. Both Palestine and Israel are now expected to adhere to the 200r "road map" peace plan, which means that Israel is required to stop building settlements in the West Bank and Palestine is supposed to prevent militants from attacking Israel. The United States has pledged to monitor both sides and make sure that they are following the terms of the agreement.

While any progress towards peace is something to be happy about, the specifics of any permanent solution still haven’t been worked out. No significant progress was made over important issues such as what borders a Palestinian state would be granted, how Jerusalem would be divided, how water and other resources would be shared, etc.

Despite the fact that the peace conference did not offer a definitive solution, the leaders of both Israel and Palestine – Prime Minister Olmert and President Abbas – seem committed to finding a legitimate, enduring compromise. They have stated that they hope to have a final-status deal worked out within a year. While each leader’s commitment to the peace process is encouraging, there are still extremist factions in each state that will make reaching a final compromise anything but certain.

The final encouraging thing to be taken from the peace conference in Annapolis is not what agreements were worked out between Israel and Palestine, but who willingly attended the summit. There were over 40 states represented at the conference, including some states that do not currently have diplomatic relations with Israel – even Saudi Arabia sent its foreign minister to the conference. The inclusion of so many Arab states into the peace process is definitely a positive thing – the involvement of everyone in the region should help with assuring an enduring peace.

While the Annapolis peace conference did not break any ground, it is still important that steps are being taken to pursue a permanent plan for peace between Israel and Palestine. With the overall positive tone of the conference, hopefully it will be the first step in an enduring peace between Israel and Palestine.