Love of the Land: Yosef Trumpeldor

Yosef Trumpeldor

Zionist Freedom Alliance
11 Adar

On the morning of the eleventh of Adar 5680 (March 1st 1920), a mob of several hundred Arab raiders made their first attack on Tel Chai.

"What is a pioneer? Is he a worker only? No! The definition includes much more. The pioneers should be workers but that is not all. We shall need people who will be “everything” – everything that Eretz Yisrael needs. A worker has his labor interests, a soldier his “esprit de corps”, a doctor and an engineer, their special inclinations. A generation of iron-men; iron from which you can forge everything the national machinery needs. You need a wheel? Here I am. A nail, a screw, a block? – here take me. You need a man to till the soil? – I’m ready. A soldier? I am here. Policeman, doctor, lawyer, artist, teacher, water carrier? Here I am. I have no form. I have no psychology. I have no personal feeling, no name. I am a servant of Zion. Ready to do everything, not bound to do anything. I have only one aim – creation."
- Yosef Trumpeldor

Throughout Israel’s history, from the time of Avraham until today, there has been one single phrase that has consistently expressed the willingness to accept responsibility and work towards the collective good. Hineini – “here I am” – has forever been the watchword of readiness to answer a call. Rabbi Avraham Yitzhak HaKohen Kook writes in Musar Avicha that the words hineini use the language of modesty and hastened enthusiasm. It is an expression that connotes total readiness to carry out the will of the caller. A person who says hineini is not only prepared to complete a task, he approaches it with a zealous enthusiasm. Whether in response to a prophetic calling from G-D or to one deep in a man’s own conscience, hineini forever symbolizes selfless and heroic dedication on behalf of Israel’s collective destiny.

Not every person can truly say hineini. The statement alone is a great sacrifice because it automatically opens one up to a higher calling. A person who feels hineini is one who, deep in his soul, is idealistically charged to complete an essential task. For most it is impractical as it takes people away from their personal aspirations. In today’s cynical world, people often calculate interests rather than answer Divine calls. But there was one man – a symbol of courage – in Israel’s recent history that made hineini his trademark and lived up to its connotation. He always heard the call of Israel’s needs and valiantly rose to the challenge of easing the national burden.

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Love of the Land: Yosef Trumpeldor