The Special Misdar

This morning we woke up at 4:35 for the extra-long Erev Rosh Hashana Slichot. The base was buzzing with excited soldiers, getting ready to spend the holiday with their families. People were running back and forth through the quad moving stuff into the storage areas to prepare the base for our 3-day weekend, and they were working faster than ever. The officers kept shouting, the faster you finish your work the faster you go home. A few officers even joined us in our work, because after all they wanted to get home soon to be with their families too.

We finished the worked and were called to a Misdar (line-up.) But this was not a normal Misdar. Normal Misdarim are with your unit, and important Misdarim are with your division. This Misdar was with our entire platoon. That was not the only strange detail. As we stood in formation facing the Israeli Flag and the edge of the quad, the officers came out with plates of sliced apples and jars of honey. There were a few giggles which were promptly silenced by the officers who reminded us that like every other Misdar, we must stand still and silent.

As the Platoon commander arrived we gave him  a salute, and followed his instructions. Each soldier took a slice of apple and dipped it in honey. We stood still as statues as he spoke to us about the meaning of Rosh Hashana. At the end he gave the order and each soldier ate his honey-dipped apple.

Herein is the greatest difference between the Israeli army and most other westernized armies. In Israel, the church and state and one in the same. Judaism is our culture, and our culture is Judaism. We are fighting for a united cause, and a cause in which we all believe in., a peaceful Jewish state in our biblical homeland. Israeli soldiers go to sleep dreaming of peace in the State of Israel. American soldiers don't go to bed dreaming of a free Afghanistan. The fact that we value the cause which we are fighting for more than our own lives is what makes us the greatest army in the world. That's why we can stand up to countries who are seemingly much stronger than us and defeat them in 6 days. May the coming year be a year of peace! Shana Tova!