When first light showed in the barred window, Elie closed his eyes and said, “I think God wanted us to meet. It is written: In a place where there are no men, be a man! You and I must be men. We must bring down the Zionists and renew our people’s faith in God!”
“We? How could we-”
“A man of faith can decide to smash the idols, just like Abraham the patriarch did.” Elie leaned closer and whispered, “I have made that decision. And so can you.”
“ Me? ”
“Why do you think God put us in the same cell? It’s His design!”
Redhead Dan nodded slowly.
“God wants us to stop the Zionists, to prevent the killing of Jewish babies.” Elie glanced at the door and spoke into the young man’s ear. “I can’t do it alone. I need two more men of strength and faith in the Master of the Universe.”
“But how?”
“You feel powerless?”
“Yes!”
Elie showed him a fist. “God created explosives for a reason! To give us power!”
The guards’ voices came through the steel door.
“Thursday at midnight, at the gate on Shivtay Israel Street. Be there, in God’s name!”
Chapter 19
On Wednesday morning, as the men had their tea and bread in the forecourt of the synagogue, Lemmy saw Redhead Dan limping up the alley from the gate. Many of the younger men hurried to welcome him, singing, “ Connive and scheme-it shall not work! Conspire and curse-it shall not stand! For God is with us! God is with us! ”
They accompanied him into the synagogue and over to his seat next to Yoram. The forced smile on Redhead Dan’s face contrasted with the bruises and the black eye. After a few moments, everyone returned to their open Talmud volumes, puffing on cigarettes.
At the conclusion of a morning of study, they recited the noon prayers and went outside to eat lunch and discuss the coming vote in the Knesset. Later that day, the proposed abortion law was scheduled to be presented to the assembly for a second call which, if passed, would allow the committee to submit it for a third and final call, when a majority vote would turn the proposal into law.
The religious parties in the Knesset had announced that they would abstain. Opposition leader Menachem Begin had yet to tell his caucus how to vote, but Prime Minister Levi Eshkol announced that the Labor party and its coalition partners would vote in favor of the proposed law. However, some in Neturay Karta speculated that many Knesset members would defy their party leaders and refuse to support the legalization of infanticide.
Lemmy stood with Benjamin, chewing on a piece of bread and listening to the discussions, which quieted down when Rabbi Gerster came out of the synagogue. He searched the crowd, saw Lemmy, and summoned him with a curled finger.
A half hour later, they arrived at the police compound at the Russian Yard on Jaffa Street. A policeman showed them into Major Buskilah’s office.
“I want to know,” Rabbi Gerster demanded, “why did you beat my disciple?”
“For the same reason I let your son go.” The major pointed at his belt, which rested on the desk with the holstered gun and truncheon. “Violence will be met with violence, peaceful protest will be met with peaceful measures.” He gestured at two metal chairs. “Please.”
Rabbi Gerster sat down, but Lemmy remained standing.
“I hope the lesson was clear enough for the other Talmudic scholars.”
“That violence must be met with violence?” The rabbi pointed at the truncheon. “This type of reasoning could go both ways, back and forth, worse and worse, until we lose control and spill blood.”
“There won’t be any violence on our side if your guys stop throwing rocks at people every time you disagree with something. We’re not Neanderthals any longer, you know?”
Lemmy stepped forward, but his father raised a hand, stopping him, and said, “Hurtling insults is a common prelude to hurtling rocks. I’m here to make sure we don’t have either.”
Major Buskilah nodded. “I’m listening.”
“If a Knesset majority supports the proposed abortion law, Neturay Karta will have to march in protest, bring out the word of God. But we will remain peaceful and hurt no one as long as we are not attacked by others.”
“I will communicate the request to those who make such decisions.”
“We seek Shalom,” the rabbi said, using the Hebrew word for peace, “but Torah requires us to denounce sinners. We’ll need safe passage and an opportunity to be heard without harassment.” He stood and turned to leave, but when his eyes met Lemmy’s, something in his expression communicated an implied license to act.
Without haste, Lemmy pulled the major’s truncheon out of its holster, grasped it with both hands, lifted it high, and with all his strength landed it across the back of the metal chair. The wooden truncheon broke in half.
Lemmy put the handle on the desk, picked up the other part, and placed it next to the handle. “Good day,” he said and followed his father.
They left the police compound and went through the market on Jaffa Street, with its clutter of shoppers and vendors under a whirl of dust. The noise jarred Lemmy’s ears, and the dense air burned his tired eyes. He followed his father’s wide back through the chaos.
The narrow passageway welcomed them with the familiar foul smell. The beggar in a hooded cloak was sitting by the door on crossed legs, his back to the wall, reciting from Psalms. Rabbi Gerster placed the sacred book in the beggar’s lap and went inside. Lemmy followed.
They washed their hands, stepped outside, and recited the appropriate prayer. Rabbi Gerster took the book from the beggar’s lap and dropped a coin in his cup. The beggar did not look up.
D uring the evening, news filtered into the synagogue that the abortion vote was delayed, as the Knesset was engaged in a heated debate over military issues. Earlier in the day, the Syrian defense minister, Hafez al-Assad, had accused Israel of planning an attack on Syria on behalf of the United States in order to topple the Syrian Ba’ath regime. He declared: “The Syrian army would destroy the Jews!” Egyptian president Nasser followed with a promise to “Recover the stolen Arab land and throw the Jews into the sea.” Meanwhile, retired general Moshe Dayan opined from the Knesset podium that the government’s sheepish response to Arab threats amounted to an invitation for attack: “The current leadership is putting our collective neck on the executioner’s block,” Dayan said.
The debate in the Knesset continued into the night, and many Neturay Karta men remained in the synagogue, praying and studying.
Shortly after four on Thursday morning, the Voice of Israel reported on the radio that, after a brief presentation and without much debate, a majority of the Knesset approved the proposed abortion law, which was sent back to the committee for fine-tuning before its submission for a final vote.
From the time the news came until sunrise, the synagogue bustled with anger over the new Zionist atrocity. A large group clustered around Redhead Dan, who explained that this law was not another instance of the Zionists committing personal sins, such as driving on Sabbath or digging up sacred graves. Rather, the Zionists had reached a new low, combining two of the greatest sins: Shedding the blood of another Jew and defiance of God’s first mitzvah to procreate and fill the land with their seed.
After morning prayers, the men lined up before Rabbi Gerster to receive the white envelopes containing bundles of Israeli liras, which they took outside and handed to their wives to shop for the Sabbath. Rabbi Gerster did not come out to bless the families of Neturay Karta, but told the men to go home and change into their best clothes.
O n hearing the news of the abortion vote, Elie Weiss drove to the Knesset building. The note inside Abraham’s book yesterday had made it clear that a showdown was only a matter of time:
If the legislation passes second call in the Knesset, I’ll have to lead the protests. Neturay Karta will be joined by many others. Buskilah must control his policemen. No shooting-we don’t need martyrs. p.s. Did you reach Tanya?