G-d, Israel & Shiloh
by David Rubin
Mazo Publishers
Reviewed by Sharon Katz
July, 2007
"G-d, Israel & Shiloh" is an adventure paperback played out in multiple dimensions. It is a personal story of self-discovery and change, first against the backdrop of anti-Semitism in America and then war and finally settlement in Israel. It is alsı a national epic detailing Israel's transformation fram a homeless nation to a people on its land, to an exiled and oppressed minority, and then again a people returned home and struggling to survive.
Author David Rubin's personal story
is interwoven in this tale
of Jewish history. His own place in his nation is solidified just
as he speaks of Israel's rightful place among the nations
- a place of light shining for all mankind.
While the book "G-d, Israel & Shiloh" looks back over the grand panorama of 3000 years of Jewish history, it also includes a zoom lens focused on one family, and a wide-angle on the familiy's community. More than flashbacks or vertical slices of history, it gives us a horizontal view across Shiloh, where G-d and people, history and current events, Torah and politics converge. That's one of the most unique aspects of David Rubin's new book. David can be discussing a historic or a modern day issue, and then in the middle, there's a quote from the Tanach, the gemara, the prayer book or writings of our sages. The references are right on the money, and you find yourself nodding in agreement.
"G-d, Israle & Shiloh" begins with a dedication to the children of Shiloh who were killed in terror attacks, HY"D, and ends with the establishment of the Shiloh Israel Children's Fund to care for all the children of the Shiloh area (may Hashem keep them safe).
Self-Discovery
When David Rubin, an average American 20-something, is suddenly confronted with virulent anti-Semitism, news of missiles falling on a far-away place called the Galilee, and then a defensive war in Lebanon - "Operation Peace for the Galilee"-another part of his identity is awakened. Who are these Jews that spark such animosity while they fight for their lives?
The result of his curiosity was a multi-faceted exploration of Zionism, Jewish history and ultimately Judaism. As David is eventually drawn from his inner-city school in New York to Jerusalem, he begins a new life as a yeshiva bochur at 30-something. Sill searching for his place, he finds an old brochure about a town called Shiloh. There are 65 locations in the US called Shiloh. But this is the real Shiloh - where the Tabernacle stood for 369 years, where Joshua preached to the tribal elders, where Hannah prayed for a son, and where her son Samuel the prophet grew up and served G-d.
David becomes a
pioneer with all the settlement "frills" - a caravan and a view
of the hills of Samaria. Building his life in this town of "natural
beaıty and spiritual significance," David marries, raises a family
and even becomes Mayor of Shiloh. His happy ending Jewish people confronts
the Rubins, and David and his three-year-old are both seriously wounded
in a drive-by shooting on the road home.
Suddenly all his philosophies are put to the test, as he and his son fight to recover physically and emotionally. Not only does David become more resolute in his dedication to the Land, but he decides to devote his efforts to the establishment of a fund to benefit the children of Gush Shiloh who have all suffered through years of Arab terror.
History in Cinemascope
Meanwhile as David's personal story unfolds, he escorts us on a three-millennia jouney through Jewish history from Mt. Sinai to today. Through modern eyes, we look at significant events in the life of our nation. Shiloh plays a pivotal role in the development of the Jewish people. Here Joshua gives the tribes a Zionism 101 class as he assigns each tribe its inheritance. Here national reconciliation is sought at the "oldest Singles gathering" ever, when the daughters of Israel danced in the fields to attract husbands from the tribe of Benjamin. Here is the site of the Tabernacle, and the center of worship of G-d, from whence we learn the power of prayer, as Hannah prayed there for a son.
David's narration continues with the destruction of Shiloh (because its leaders were immoral), and then the reign of Israel's kings, the "Templeship" in Jerusalem, up until the modern day return of our people to Israel, the wars we have fought and the threats still menacing us. Nothing is left out, not Barak's flight from Lebanon, the "Disengagement", the "Reengagement War", nor the rise of Hamas.
He discusses the spiritual-physical bond between the Jewish people and the land of Israel, and their symbiotic relationship. He calls the Biblical heartland ( I love that term, heartland, and he uses it with such facility) Israel's "raison d'etre". David writes, "If we truly wish to bolster our claim to the Land of Israel based on the past, we need to climb its rocky hills and explore its wealth of history, in order to create its future. Only these mountains, with their seemingly endless Biblical stories and prophecies, can justify our right to the 100-year-old modern coastal cities, such as Tel Aviv."
The modern-day Shiloh, David says, is an important part of the redemptive process. Jews from all over the world have made their homes there. Archaeological evidence or our roots in this land and our Jewish heritage has been uncovered there. Its residents have stood strong in the face of terror and tragedy. He explains, "Most of the residents of Samaria, Judea and Gaza developed a renewed spirit of camaraderie, as often happens when an entire segment of a population is under attack. This was a population that believed in the justice of its mission, and its G-d-given right to the Land and wasn't prepared to allow the terrorists and their collaborators to achieve their violent goals."
David writes, "If people would flee under pressure from the terrorists' bullets and bombs, then it would be clear who has won the battle. To surrender to evil is a dangerous precedent that the free world should refuse to allow, and that should never be agreed to."
Ultimately, David's life takes on a greater purpose. His tikkun (correction) for the wrongs being done to Israel, the Jewish people and specifically the faith-filled people of the heartland was his establishment of the Shiloh Israel Children's Project, to support educational, recreational and therapeutic programs for his region's children - www.shilohisraelchildren.org .The charity is a very worthy one, and so is the book.
More info: www.mazopublishers.ctnn .
