The Phase I hostage deal is a fait accompli, but the emotional absorption of the event is in the hands of each and every one of us. Many people think that the focus only on the joy of the return of the hostages and suppressing the cost is a form of social responsibility.
The Torah portion Mishpatim, read this past Shabbat, teaches us what social responsibility really means. The word responsibility [achrayut in Hebrew] is from the Hebrew acher, other; to see the other; to care about the other.
Mishpatim describes four categories ("avot") of possible damages to others for which one is to be held responsible [and must pay damages]:
"Ox" – an ox that I own that gores others, is an expression of direct damage.
"Pit" – someone who dug a pit in a public space is obligated to take responsibility for the person who fell into the pit, even though they themselves did not directly harm them.
"Tooth" – our animal grazes in others’ fields. Here it would seem naïve to say that in contrast to an ox, which gores abnormally, eating is a natural action; here, too, however, the Torah requires one to take responsibility for those under his care.
"Fire" – someone lit a fire on their own property and could claim that they were allowed to do so, and the fire spread due to an unexpected wind and burned the property of others. Here too, there are no excuses: one is supposed to assume that an unexpected wind might come.
The Torah educates us to see the circles of responsibility in an abstract way, not just the damage of the here and now.
The idea that a state should prefer the life of an individual over the life of the general society is the opposite of morality that sees the other; it is sophisticated egoism. This is the personal emotion that temptingly interprets concern for the "other" as only the individual who is facing me in distress, while the entire society that will be harmed in the near and distant future is a collection of meaningless faces. [in contrast], the abstract mind understands the long-term implications.
A responsible person at this time is of course happy about the return of the hostages, but at the same time is aware of the prices that are to come. They will not let themselves fall into the drunken jubilation of parts of the media, will not spread rumors, will not get depressed and will not stare in an endless loop at the studio commentators. The exact state of mind is sober joy and many prayers that the people of Israel will emerge stronger from the current process.
One of the most common expressions of the past year and a half is "emotional roller coaster", which means that we are in extreme upheaval – victories in war on the one hand, casualties on the other; release of hostages on the one hand, terror attacks on the other. Along with the correctness of the stated, a position of mental instability is being transmitted.
Despite the events that we face anew daily, there is a very stable framework in our lives, which is called belief in God; a belief that reality, with all its turmoil, ultimately leads in a positive direction. The "Coral Storm", which turned out, as always, to be a fake storm, can remind us of the time of the Coronavirus; the attempted rebellion of the anarchists, and yes, also the Iron Swords War that we are still in. We prevail through it all!
In all of these cases, there is a gap between the imagination and media noise and the reality. The stable reality is that the people of Israel are defeating their enemies; our economic and security situation is improving; conservatism in the world is making a comeback, and Jewish demography and culture are growing quietly and surely.
The internalization that we are in fact on an "emotional roller coaster" allows us to prepare mentally for what is to come: the [hostage] deal is about to end, the price will be paid at compound interest – but the fighting will resume in one way or another, and we will win, as always.
