The Masada incident is the story of a group of knifemen who did not hesitate to kill their own people
Masada gang
Let's suppose that one of the suicide terrorists from Hamas would come to "work" with his wife and children, invite some peace-loving Palestinians there under false pretenses, then activate the explosive belt and go to heaven with the whole gang. And suppose for a moment, a Palestinian teacher would drive a school class to the site of the murder and suicide and conduct a ceremony in memory of the terrorist. What would we say? Maybe it reminds us of Masada's story.
Last week, UNESCO recognized Masada as a tourist-historical site of international importance. Amidst the celebrations that followed the announcement, it is appropriate to give some thought to the question of whether we want that ancient affair to be our calling card for the greater world and for our children.
In the first generations of the Zionist revival, when we searched with candles for historical figures of Jewish warriors in whose light a proud Hebrew generation was raised, we also found Eleazar Ben-Yair, a hero in his own right. We taught his stirring speech, as written by the Jewish historian Josephus, aka Josephus Flavius (formerly one of the commanders of the revolt against the Romans, who defected to the enemy's ranks).
Out of bias or lack of knowledge, we didn't usually mention the story of Ben-Yair and his friends. The Jewish public in the land of Israel occupied by the Romans, during the Second Temple period, was divided mainly into fanatics and moderates. The former fought the Romans, the latter feared that their revenge would consume the Jewish people and focused on learning Torah, to keep the embers alive. Ben-Yair's group withdrew from the ranks of the zealots because they were not satisfied with fighting the Romans: as members of their own kind in all nations and in all generations, they saw the "fifth brother-in-law", mainly members of their own people who thought differently from them, the real danger. And when this group saw danger ahead, it stabbed it with a dagger.
Ben-Yair's gang murdered moderate Jews (including those who assimilated), along with their family members, with a knife called in ancient Greek "sikra" and which gave the gang its accepted name in those days: sikriks, meaning - knifemen. The Talmud calls the group "listim" - robbers and thugs.
As told in Flavius's book, Ben-Yair and his squires descended from the Galilee (or ascended) to Jerusalem, continued to the city of Ein Gedi, murdered 700 Jews - including women and children - and ascended to Masada with their families. After fighting the enemy and being defeated, each warrior murdered his wife and children and committed suicide.
What are we educating our children about? About the fact that fighting the enemy purifies the fighter even from the political assassination of Jews and the murder of his own children?
If Flavius is not reliable, then the basic story he wrote must also be doubted. If this story is acceptable to us, then we must also bring the crimes of this gang into moral consideration. What will we answer to those who say that the norms of that time were different from the norms of today? Obviously there were differences, but the rule "Thou shalt not murder" was also established in ancient times, and we cannot educate our children on this rule and on the same "model" on her part.
We must place exemplary figures in front of the youth, including figures of those who fought against foreign occupation. Retired fighters, for example, who were born at that time, fought and committed suicide - but they had no hand in murdering their opponents or their children.
Who can see Ben-Yair as a model? The illegal "so" movement? Yigal Amir? And maybe really Hamas, which advocates murder and suicide (without comparing our rule over our country to the foreign Roman occupation)?
We must ascend to Masada with our students because this site is part of Eretz Yisrael; Because his history is part of the history of the people and the country; And because it is appropriate to present the values and actions of the fanatics and the moderates through a discussion of the dilemmas they raised. But, above all, Masada is a warning sign against turning Israel into Sodom, against turning Rabin's murder into a norm, against the intensification of disputes that lead to fratricidal war.
The writer is the director of the "Herzliya" Hebrew Gymnasium in Tel Aviv
https://www.hayadan.org.il/BuildaGate4/general2/data_card.php?Cat=~~~365307258~~~78&SiteName=hayadan
