I haven’t known what to say over the past several days regarding the horrors in Israel. As a Torah Observant Christian, Israel is especially important to me and my family. It’s the land of my King and the Land given by God to His Chosen People. This is true if you believe the Bible is the Word of God, which is not a requirement for Americans, Republican or otherwise, but is certainly true for me personally. I believe that the Land (significantly larger than the borders of current-day Israel) has belonged to the children of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob since God first made the promise to Abraham, though they have obviously not always been in possession of it.

Now, the government in charge of Israel today is manmade, not God-ordained, as is true of every other country on Earth. That is not to say that God doesn’t have a hand in setting up and taking down leaders, and I have personally always had a soft spot for Bibi. Whether Israeli Intelligence ignored Egyptian Intelligence and could have largely prevented these atrocities is far, far above my pay grade. I will continue to pay attention to the information as it becomes available, but it will not change the fact that civilians, including women and children, have been brutalized and murdered by a barbaric group who have no morals and to whom mercy is viewed as weakness. Anyone who has been persuaded to believe that Israel is the aggressor has willfully chosen to ignore the fact that Israelis and Palestinians coexist within Jerusalem and throughout Israel. When Israel sends rockets into the West Bank as retaliation against less sophisticated attacks (peace through strength), they are known to first drop papers warning civilians to leave the targeted areas. Pikuach nefesh is the principle in Jewish law that the preservation of human life overrides virtually every other law.

The IDF, like our American Military, is strong. Both, however, are not what they used to be. Both of our younger generations have been largely spared the horrors of war faced by older generations. Peace is a beautiful thing. Sadly, peace does not produce a strong people but rather a people who would sacrifice much, morally speaking, to maintain the comforts granted by it. I believe that all Americans should have their eyes and prayers focused on Israel right now, but my reason hits much closer to home than simply my love of Israel. While many of the Hamas terrorists paraglided in to carry out their attacks, men who are potentially just as dangerous to our own women and children are walking across our borders and being bussed into our interior daily.

It is not wrong to want peace with all mankind, it is simply naive to believe it is always possible. I spent some time on Instagram today, and I had to shake my head at all of the LGBTQ support for Palestine and hatred for Israel. Some naivete is too stunning to fathom, and it is a virus spreading throughout our youngest generations.

What weakened or distracted Israeli intelligence so badly that this was allowed to happen? What will be the catalyst when it happens here? When I say Make America Great Again, it is not because I believe we’re deserving of something others are not. It’s because I believe that our strength is important to our peace AND to the peace of the rest of the world. This does not mean war, but rather avoiding it as Trump did for his four years in office. We have to put our own oxygen masks (not COVID masks!) on first so that we can be useful to others.

Sarah Valente, RPTC Chairwoman

“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: ‘May those who love you be secure. May there be peace within your walls and security within your citadels.’ For the sake of my brothers and friends, I will say, ‘Peace be within you.’ For the sake of the house of the LORD our God, I will seek your prosperity.” Psalm 122: 7-9