Why I do this and Why You should too

On occasion as I sit in front of a computer opining, I stop and consider the fact that there are friends and even family members who ask themselves, what is David doing?  Shouldn’t he be spending more time working?  Is he just looking for attention?  Does he really believe he is making a difference?

I have answers to all those questions, and I am comfortable with my choices, but I am more than aware that those questions are in the minds of some and need to addressed.  I do so however not so much for my personal satisfaction but to make the point of how getting involved is something we all need to do.

A few days ago I sent an email to the Secretary General of the United Nations concerning the United Nations traditional and existing anti-Israel stance and lack of concern for the well-being of the Jewish people worldwide.  That very sentence could be misinterpreted as delusional self-importance.  However, I did not write the letter with some any degree of expectation.  I would not be surprised if no one reads it, let alone the Secretary General, and if by some miracle someone does, I doubt they will care.  So why did I bother?

I will share with you some comments I received when  I posted the letter on Facebook.  The comments will remain anonymous in this post, but will of course be recognizable to anyone who is in that particular group.

“Good you take what action you can! I hope we all follow your lead and write, email, call, express, encourage, confront, support ourselves and the nation of Israel. Silence is inappropriate our people need us.”

“Bravo David Groen! We Need More People like you, that speak up!”

“Thank you for sharing. Heartfelt and really an important thing we can all do and should.”

People generally like compliments and accolades, and although I am no exception, my motivation is less personally motivated than probably anything I have ever done in my lifetime.  I do what I do for me, but the fact is, and this is what makes this so important, I do not do it only for me.  I do it for the Jewish people.  I am aware that I am merely one drop of water in a huge ocean, but resistance to evil needs to be fought on many fronts and with a cohesive understanding of the ultimate goal.  I am just one small person fighting on one of the fronts.

I am the son of Holocaust survivors.  My father’s parents, younger sister & husband were murdered by the Nazis.  My mother’s father and younger and only brother were also victims of the Holocaust.  Both of them lost numerous friends and relatives during the Nazi occupation of Holland.  My father’s parents, Leendert and Maryan Groen were presented with the opportunity to get baptismal papers in order to provide them with the possibility of being seen as non-Jewish so that they would have some hope of survival.  Leendert refused basically stating that he was born a Jew and would die a Jew, and that in his eyes to pretend otherwise was to forsake his covenant with God.  That was the sacrifice my grandfather made.  He sacrificed his life to declare himself a Jew.

So what is it that I am doing?  Nothing compared to what others did before me.  Giving up time from work? Hardly the ultimate sacrifice.  If I am making less money so that I can somehow give some extra encouragement and strength to others than what sacrifice am I making?  If my work motivates others to speak up and build a resistance against evil then what I do does matter.

The ripple effect matters more than we may realize because in many ways it is what we are actually up against.  The evil forces within Islam, and I said within Islam not of Islam, that want to take over the world and will kill anyone in their way, are attempting a worldwide revolution.  Part of this revolution is through ripple effect.  I support Israel 100% in doing anything that needs to be done to protect the Jewish people, but I also know that the ultimate battle extends far beyond its borders.

As a student of the Holocaust I have come to a very sobering conclusion.  The lessons I have learned from my parents and from others regarding that devastating time not only in Jewish but in World history are lessons that need to be given practical application today.  We are no longer dealing with theory of what if a group once again wants to see our destruction?  We are once again up against an enemy that wants us wiped off the face of the planet.  If any of us who know the history turn a blind eye to what is happening or try to wait it out patiently, we will be making a tragic mistake. I respect those who hold out hope that the world can be a peaceful utopia. I too hope that it can be.  But we are not living in a world leaning in that direction and to allow our hope to overshadow our realism will only hasten our demise.

There is a time to hope and there is a time to fight.  Right now is the time to fight, any way we know how.