Page 22 - big friday
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Dr. Chaim Weizmann writes to Ben-Gurion
f rom New York, on the day of the establishment of the state
On the eve of the establishment of the state, Dr. Chaim Weizmann, the
renowned Zionist leader who, at that point, held no official position,
was in the US. He was aiding the political struggle as best he could,
persuading the American administration to support the establishment
of the state. Despite his moderate image, he harbored no doubts as to
the necessity of declaring the state immediately upon the conclusion
of the British Mandate, as attested to in his letter to Ben-Gurion.
M y heartfelt congratulations to you and your colleagues at this great hour.
May God give you strength to fulfill the task you are entrusted with and to
overcome the obstacles along the way. Please be so kind as to announce the
following to the Yishuv [the Jewish population of the land], on my behalf:
"On this day, to be remembered for generations, upon the establishment of
the Jewish state after two thousand years, I express love and esteem for all parts
of the Yishuv, and my best wishes to its government, which at this moment
is assuming a heavy yet uplifting responsibility. I am firmly confident that all
citizens of the Jewish state, in the present and in the future, will do their best
to be worthy of the new opportunity that history has afforded them. May it
be our destiny to establish institutions and values of a free community, in the
spirit of our great tradition which has contributed so much to the intellectual
and spiritual life of human kind. At this moment I think with gratitude and
affection of our fighters and workers who bore the yoke of building a Jewish
Land of Israel and are now bearing the burden and sacrifice of its defense. It
is not easy for me to think of peaceful farmers in Nahalal and Ein Harod, or
the youth of our Jewish cities, serving as soldiers on active duty. During the
period of Ezra, our forefathers would engage in their work with one hand
while the other holding a weapon. Today, we are required to act in the same
spirit. Our people's profound aspiration is to establish relations of peace and
mutual respect with the Arab citizens, with the neighboring Arab countries,
and with all other members of the family of nations. With the conclusion of
20 The Friday That Changed Destiny
f rom New York, on the day of the establishment of the state
On the eve of the establishment of the state, Dr. Chaim Weizmann, the
renowned Zionist leader who, at that point, held no official position,
was in the US. He was aiding the political struggle as best he could,
persuading the American administration to support the establishment
of the state. Despite his moderate image, he harbored no doubts as to
the necessity of declaring the state immediately upon the conclusion
of the British Mandate, as attested to in his letter to Ben-Gurion.
M y heartfelt congratulations to you and your colleagues at this great hour.
May God give you strength to fulfill the task you are entrusted with and to
overcome the obstacles along the way. Please be so kind as to announce the
following to the Yishuv [the Jewish population of the land], on my behalf:
"On this day, to be remembered for generations, upon the establishment of
the Jewish state after two thousand years, I express love and esteem for all parts
of the Yishuv, and my best wishes to its government, which at this moment
is assuming a heavy yet uplifting responsibility. I am firmly confident that all
citizens of the Jewish state, in the present and in the future, will do their best
to be worthy of the new opportunity that history has afforded them. May it
be our destiny to establish institutions and values of a free community, in the
spirit of our great tradition which has contributed so much to the intellectual
and spiritual life of human kind. At this moment I think with gratitude and
affection of our fighters and workers who bore the yoke of building a Jewish
Land of Israel and are now bearing the burden and sacrifice of its defense. It
is not easy for me to think of peaceful farmers in Nahalal and Ein Harod, or
the youth of our Jewish cities, serving as soldiers on active duty. During the
period of Ezra, our forefathers would engage in their work with one hand
while the other holding a weapon. Today, we are required to act in the same
spirit. Our people's profound aspiration is to establish relations of peace and
mutual respect with the Arab citizens, with the neighboring Arab countries,
and with all other members of the family of nations. With the conclusion of
20 The Friday That Changed Destiny
