For a long time Menachem Begin had been itching to take on one of the most powerful labor unions in the country – the El Al workforce. He wanted to put a stop to the operations of Israel's national airline from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday (the hours of the Jewish Sabbath), as well as on the major Jewish festivals. It was on this topic that Mr. Begin addressed the Knesset in May 1982, from the rostrum rather than from a wheelchair – the first time he had done so since breaking his hip almost six months before. However, since he was still in pain, it was with heavy steps that he mounted the platform, leaning on the arm of an usher and supported by his cane.
For days, the Knesset had been permeated with a rising tension as muscular, stocky men roamed its corridors and canteens, and approached its committees, their numbers rising daily. These were the El Al union bosses, accompanied by their whispering lawyers, intent on scotching Prime Minister Begin's plan to halt the carrier's flights on holy days. Without letup, they pressured, pestered, and petitioned the parliamentarians...
"Mr. Speaker, ladies and gentlemen, members of the Knesset," Begin began, "the government has decided that following a time lapse of three months, the aircraft of our national airline, El Al, will no longer fly on the Jewish Sabbath and festivals."
This announcement resulted in looks of sheer hatred appearing on the faces of the union men, who sat watching the proceedings in the public gallery. The opposition benches erupted into paroxysms of heckling:
"So why don't you shut down the television on Shabbat, too?" screamed one.
“Are you going to stop Israel merchant ships at sea, too?" yelled another.
The derision fazed the premier not one bit. On the contrary, it supplied him with new inspiration. "Shout as much as you want;" he taunted… And then, changing his tone, altering his voice to a muted, sonorous pitch, this man who believed in oratory as the supreme weapon, an artful combination of style, cadence, and the application of formidable intellectual energy, argued,
"Forty years ago I returned from exile to Israel. Engraved in my memory still are the lives of millions of Jews, simple, ordinary folk, eking out a livelihood in that forlorn Diaspora, where the storms of anti-Semitism raged. They were not permitted to work on the Christian day of rest, Sunday, and they refused to work on their day of rest, Saturday, for they lived by the commandment, ‘Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.' So each week they foreswore two whole days of hard-won earnings. This meant destitution for many. But they would not desecrate the Sabbath day."
"So, stop soccer on Shabbat, too?" heckled one legislator, triggering off yet another squall of jeers, hissing and name-calling.
Related Article: Shabbat - Heaven on Earth
One Nation Alone
Adroitly, cutting through the pandemonium, Begin told the tale of Salonika, and as he did so the House listened. "In Greece there is a port city called Salonika, which had an extensive Jewish population before the war. Most of the port workers there were Jewish, and on Shabbat they did not work. Those stevedores would forego their pay rather than desecrate the Shabbat. Non-Jews goyim accepted this as a fact of life, and the port was closed on the Sabbath day. Imagine that!"
“And you want to close down the whole country, turn us back to the Dark Ages," yelled somebody.
Shabbat enshrines a social-ethical principle without peer.
"Ah, the Dark Ages," echoed the prime minister sarcastically, and to the delight of his supporters, he calmly raised his right hand as if to catch a ball, tossed it back toward the heckler, and resumed his rhetorical flow. "The Dark Ages, you say. Well let me tell you something, my dear socialist friend: Shabbat enshrines a social-ethical principle without peer. Shabbat is one of the loftiest values in all of humanity. It originated with us, the Jews. It is all ours.
“No other civilization in history knew a day of rest. Ancient Egypt had a great culture whose treasures are on view to this day, yet the Egypt of antiquity did not know a day of rest. The Greeks of old excelled in philosophy and the arts, yet they did not know a day of rest. Rome established mighty empires and instituted a system of law which is relevant to this day, yet they did not know a day of rest. Neither did the civilizations of Assyria, Babylon, Persia, India, China – not one of them knew a day of rest."
"So, put on a yarmulke," sneered somebody.
"Chutzpah!" boomed Begin, bristling. "I speak of our people's most hallowed values and you dare stoop to mockery. Shame on you!" With arms held high, he thundered, "One nation alone sanctified the Shabbat, a small nation, the nation that heard the voice at Sinai, ‘so that your manservant and your maidservant may rest as well as you.’ Ours is the nation that bequeathed to humanity the imperative of a day of rest to apply to the most humble of beings. Ours is the nation that gave the laborers the dignity equal to that of their employers, that both are equal in the eyes of God. Ours is the nation that bequeathed this gift to other faiths: Christianity – Sunday; Islam – Friday. Ours is the nation that enthroned Shabbat as sovereign Queen.”
A chorus of approval from the government benches went up, muffling every last vestige of dissent. Begin, idol of the common folk, caught up in his enthusiasm and sense of mission, rose to a crescendo. "So are we, in our own reborn Jewish State, to allow our blue and white El Al planes to fly to and fro, as if to broadcast to the world that there is no Shabbat in Israel? Should we, who by faith and tradition heard the commandment at Sinai, now deliver a message to all and sundry through our El Al planes – 'No, do not remember the Sabbath day. Forget the Sabbath day! Desecrate the Sabbath day.' I shudder at the thought that the aircraft of our national carrier have been taking off the world over on the seventh day over these many years, in full view of Jews and Gentiles alike.”
Restoring a Nation’s Soul
The ensuing rumpus was terrific. The Speaker sat, vainly banging his gavel, which thudded as soundlessly as a velvet mallet. So Begin himself raised his palms and then lowered them gently, once, twice, thrice, until the furor quieted. Once it had, he fixed his eyes on the public gallery and cast a solemn stare at its occupants.
There is no assessing the value of Shabbat by financial loss or gain.
"Let me say this to you, the good workers of El Al. The government has been the object of threats from some of you if we go ahead with our decision. We disregard these threats. In a democracy, government decisions are not made under threat. We cannot engage in profit-and-loss calculations when it comes to the eternal heritage of the Jewish people. There is no way of assessing the religious, national, social, historical, and ethical values of the Sabbath day by the yardstick of financial loss or gain. In our revived Jewish State we simply cannot engage in such calculations. If it were not for the Shabbat that restored the souls and revived the spiritual lives, week by week, of our long-suffering nation, our trials and vicissitudes would have pulled us down to the lowest levels of materialism and moral and intellectual decay."
And to hammer his point home, he ended his speech with the celebrated saying, "More than the Jews have kept the Sabbath day, the Sabbath day has kept the Jews."
With that he turned to limp back to his seat, amid cheers and jeers. But hardly had he taken a step when, struck by a sudden additional thought, he hobbled back to the microphone, and declared:
"Mr. Speaker, allow me just one further point. This House should know, it is not necessary to be an observant Jew to appreciate the full historic and sacred aura that enshrines this ‘perfect gift' called Shabbat. Its prohibitions are not arbitrary. They provide insulation against corrosive everydayness, they build fences against invasions by the profane, and they enrich the soul by creating a space for sacred time. In a word, one need not be pious to accept the cherished principle of Shabbat. One merely needs to be a proud Jew."
The Speaker bellowed that he was putting the prime minister's statement to a vote, and instructed the tellers to start counting. The tally was 58 in favor and 54 against, and Menachem Begin exhaled a long sigh of relief as he limped his way out of the hall.
Reprinted from “The Prime Ministers” by Yehuda Avner, with permission from the Toby Press
(18) David Chester, June 19, 2018 3:04 PM
Menachem Begin's Call for Shabbat Observance by El Al
Airplanes fly around the world and in each country Shabbat begins and ends at different times and even has different durations. A rule applicable to Israel needs modification elsewhere and a flight that is destined to arrive on Shabbat would also be penalized. It is not simply due to sensible practice but also due to the complex technique that flights on Shabbat should be permitted, providing the working crews have a full day of rest over a different 25 hours.
(17) Howard Schaveiern, September 16, 2012 12:30 PM
Not how I remember it
I read Yehuda Avner's book which was very moving and I can recommend it. I don't deny Menachem Begin's commitment and dedication to Judaism and the Jewish people but this is pure revisionism of history (if you'll forgive the pun). El AL flights were stopped on Shabbat when Begin's government was at its weakest and he had to concede to this demand from (if I remember correctly)Agudat Israel to keep his coalition together to remain in office. It was a political act forced on him not a religious act made from any form of Jewish conviction, I'm afraid. It never achieved its aim anyway. Flights in the summer take off about 5 minutes after Shabbat goes out which means anyone on those planes, passengers and crew have to break Shabbat to catch them. It's a shame Aish wasn't around at the time. They understand that the observant cannot politically impose observance onto the non observant. It just causes division. From 1948 to 1982 the planes flew on Shabbat, we didn't have to take them if we didn't want to. Chag Sameach
(16) Anvi M. De Guzman, September 8, 2012 11:36 AM
Shabbat for safety and reliability
The plane must rest in check its mechanical condition and other safery maintenance. Pilots must rest on shabbat in order to regain concentration and allertness for reliability and safety for the next flight.
(15) allison, September 2, 2012 10:01 PM
beautiful
What a beautiful speech to read this month of Elul.
(14) Shlomo, June 22, 2012 12:56 PM
Wow
Amazing.
(13) Sharon, June 22, 2012 7:58 AM
An eloquent prime minister with traditional values
We miss him.
(12) Jannette Ben David, June 22, 2012 1:33 AM
Begin was a great man he was loved by many people Jews and none Jews God bless his soul.
(11) Frank Selch, June 22, 2012 12:04 AM
Shabbat shalom
This article should be published in every Newspaper of the world! Kol Hkavod!
(10) ratna marlina, June 21, 2012 12:10 AM
respect
Great, i reads this article twice and i do respect for what PM Begin's plan to stop EL AL stop flying on shabbat it wouldn't make the airline company lost, respected Shabbat means in honor of commandment. As i reads at bible says in exodus 35. Respect the Shabbat and you will get blessing. Shalom
(9) Rachel, June 20, 2012 5:26 PM
Why would the unions object?
Please clarify: Unions are usually trying to get MORE benefits for their employees, including additional holidays, etc. So what was their problem with this idea?
Anonymous, June 22, 2012 3:13 PM
socialist agenda
Unions are a socialist concept and religious observance is proscribed under the socialist agenda. In other words, if there was to be a weekly 'day off' for soccer game attendance, the Unions would be in favor.
Daniela, June 22, 2012 11:51 PM
answer to your question
Pay.
mauricio, August 10, 2012 7:52 PM
The workers used to get overtime. Time and a half.
(8) Chaiah Schwab, June 20, 2012 3:47 PM
I voted for Begin!
This brings back memories--I lived in Israel for 20 years, and voted for Begin because he was the only candidate that ended his speeches saying "with God's help" (b'ezrat Hashem). I look forward to reading your book, Mr. Avner.
Yosef Stein, June 21, 2012 12:24 PM
the book was great
I read Mr. Avner's book. I have to say it was phenomenal.
(7) Eric, June 20, 2012 1:51 PM
Hear hear
I can confirm that the losses stopped , and its not without cause. There is a restaurant chain in the USA, against all economical calculations,the restaurants are closed on the day of rest of the Christians, the turnover per m2 per year is higher in the 312 days in his restaurants than the turnover of the chains as McDonald and the likes. Six days you shall work and do all your labor, but the seventh shall be a day if rest.
(6) Anonymous, June 20, 2012 12:49 AM
i remember ......
i remember that when el al stopped flying on shabbat not only did they not lose money, they started doing very well financially.
(5) Carlos A Sorto, June 19, 2012 7:43 PM
Great
On my way to conversion , we need people like him we are just 1% of Global percentage and divided , lest accept each other and have unity and respect for our laws will observe Shabbat more and more in my life
(4) Anonymous, June 19, 2012 7:42 PM
I remember the IDF flying twice on Shabbat
I lived on Kibbutz from 1972-1974 and in two years remember the IDF flying only twice on Shabbat: after the Munich massacre and at the start of the Yom Kippur War (and, unfortunately, until the war ended). We quickly learned it was never a good sign to hear jets on Shabbat or Yom Tov.
(3) Patty Ann Smith, June 19, 2012 6:12 PM
Honoring the Sabbath
Since Israel became a nationin 1948 they have honored the Sabbath and God has honored them because of it,it is a commandment God has given to them forever. I am so blessed to know that Mr Begin knew that honoring Gods wprd is all He ask from us!!!.
(2) MazalUK, June 19, 2012 5:35 PM
Two great men.....
Menachem Begin and Yehuda Avner. I fully recomend buying Yehuda's book "The Prime Ministers". I have read it twice already - a real gem!
(1) Anonymous, June 19, 2012 1:36 PM
Fantastic!
Great speech!!!