Today marks some 2500 years (depending on what account and date you use) since the army of the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar encircled Jerusalem, capital of the Kingdom of Judah. In the Jewish tradition, this day, the 10th day of Tevet, is marked by fasting, and it precedes the fasting observances of 17 Tammuz and 9 Av, marking the breaching of Jerusalem’s walls and the destruction of our first holy Temple several months later.

Looking back at the seeds of destruction, one may recall that a siege didn’t inevitably have to lead to breach and defeat. At the time of the earlier Assyrian siege of Jerusalem in 701 BCE, disease, division and discontent drove the Assyrians away from the walls of Jerusalem.

There’s a lesson here for us, I think. (History always has lessons for us, if only we look for them).

When the Assyrians under King Sennacherib attacked, the pious King Hezekiah had been working hard to bring the people together - in defense, in piety and prayer. He also prepared in practical ways - commissioning the building of the famed water tunnel we can now see for ourselves to the south of Jerusalem’s Old CIty.

When we feel besieged - when we ARE besieged - we CAN ensure our survival and fend off attacks. King Hezekiah showed us the way, while the feckless kings at the time of the Babylonian conquest - Yechoniah and then Zedekiah - neither united the people, honestly sought help from the Almighty, nor strengthened the kingdom.

We always have work to do. We can strengthen our walls and confront antisemitism - as your Federation does every day. We can do our best to bring our people together, strengthening ourselves, our families, and our community. We can take practical steps, like securing our institutions, as Federation has been doing with our Rockland Community Security Initiative. We can find strength as well in prayer and good deeds, through our synagogues, programs, and schools.

And keep one more thing in mind: Without strong walls, and people to stand guard upon them, our adversaries don’t need to bother with a siege.

As a people, whether in Spring Valley or Sderot, Nyack or Netiv HaAsara, we don’t have a right to render ourselves defenseless, dispersed, or despairing. We have a responsibility to our children and theirs that demands our resilience.

Shabbat Shalom