Take a Head Count

 

In Bamidbar 2:2 we read: “Take a head count of the entire
congregation of B’nai Yisrael according to their families to the house of their
fathers counting the names of all males individually.”

 

The English name for Sefer Bamidbar is Numbers since there
is a lot of counting that takes place.

 

The best way to show that we care about a cause is if we are
counted.

 

Less than a month ago, we celebrated Yom HaAtzmaut, Israel Independence Day. The State of Israel was established in 1948. What would have
happened if everyone who fought for the state went back to the countries that
they came from? In order to hold on to the State of Israel, we need a critical
mass of Jewish people to be living here today.

 

In 1948 there were a total of 806,000 residents in Israel.

 

Today, there are 6,042,000 Jews is Israel (75% of
the population), 1,658,000 Arabs (20.7% of the population) and 318,000 others.

 

If more Jews move to Israel
and less Israelis leave Israel
then the numbers will continue to go up.

 

This past week, we celebrated Yom Yerushalayim, Jerusalem
Day. Jerusalem was reunited in 1967 and we once
again had access to Har HaBayit (the Temple Mount) and the Kotel (the
Western Wall). If we go to these places and show that they are important to us,
then they will remain ours. If we don’t visit these holy sites, then it will
look like we don’t care.

 

As of now, Israelis are not allowed to pray on the Temple Mount.
If an Israeli is caught moving their lips, they can be arrested. Recently,
there has been talk of changing that law so that people of every faith and
religion including the Jews would be free to pray on the Temple Mount.
If enough people take initiative, then there is a possibility that a difference
can be made.

 

The same is true for the Kotel. Those who pray there on a
regular basis are going to feel that they have “ownership” of the site and
rightfully so. Masses speak in numbers. At the end of the day, those who truly
care need to stand up and be counted.