Young Israel — Giving their lives, Longing for hope

Deep Dive into a Divisive Debate in Israel 

with Special Guest Eitan Shishkoff 
of Fields of Wheat in northern Israel

A large billboard near our home displays the intense young face of an IDF soldier. What catches my attention is the year of his birth and death next to him: 2004-2023.

He died fighting for Israel. Defending us. As a nineteen year old. A promising soccer player from Kiryat Ata, close to where Connie and I live. And as with so many of his generation, Yaron Zohar’s life is both an excruciating loss and a tribute to his generation. 

The billboard announces that he is a “hero of Israel,” who fell in battle against terrorists on October 7, 2023. Added are the initials “z”l, May his memory be for a blessing,” and an additional aphorism: Difficulty is temporary; pride is forever. 

Yaron’s mother, Lihi, described him as a wonderful boy, a modest boy, introverted, gentle, and pleasant. “He was the glue of his family, the glue of his friends, one of the best soldiers.”

From the day Yaron died, more than 1522 of his fellow soldiers have given their lives. This is a small country. Everyone knows someone who has been killed in battle, or on the killing fields of the kibbutzim and towns near the Gaza border or in the Hamas torture tunnels. Everyone in Israel has attended in person or watched a military funeral on tv.

I want to share this experience with you, to bring you into the Israel that you love. I want to write about the existential challenge Israel’s young adults are facing. This is the generation we work with as counselors in our teen camps. These are dedicated believers from 19-30, who sometimes take precious leave time from their army duty to volunteer at our Katzir (harvest) camps. They and their contemporaries are the primary fighting force of our military. These are the future of Israel in whom we want to invest ourselves, to encourage, disciple them and prepare them to bring Yeshua into every sphere of Israeli society.

Not all Israelis serve in the IDF—a deep schism

Yet not all of their contemporaries participate. An estimated 75,000 ultra-Orthodox draft age men are refusing to serve in the defense of Israel. Their claim is that Torah study is a vital part of the nation’s defense. And therefore they are exempt from army service. Yet this week’s Torah portion contains a list of 603,550 men of Israel, ready to go to war (Numbers 1:46).  

This travesty only compounds the stress of a nation continually at war on multiple fronts for 951 days. And it is creating a cavernous division in our society. Refreshingly, there are radically religious young Orthodox Jews who are serving with distinction in the IDF. But so far they are outliers — a small minority.

What is the condition of young Israel? How are 20-somethings responding to the non-stop nature of our existence being threatened? 

Young Israelis Respond to our Current Reality

I was fascinated by a Times of Israel article by Sue Surkes.  Here are some of their comments:

“Jewish Israelis are keeping their distance from Arab Israelis since the October 7 massacre. I think about leaving the country all the time.” a 27 year old Arab Israeli woman from Ma’alot Tarshiha, a mixed Jewish-Arab city in the Western Galilee

“30 months of war has changed Israeli society. Those who previously believed in peace with the Palestinians are aware of their folly.” A Jewish 19 year old man from a national religious community 

“I’m a very optimistic person, but I'm also realistic. I want to believe it will be good here (in Israel). But if we continue like this, in another five years I won’t be the only one going overseas.” Avishag, a 22 year old woman who left her ultra-Orthodox family to serve in the IDF.

Updating his own 5/15 article, Eitan sent me this article released 5/28 on AllIsraelNews.com 

Ultra-Orthodox military enlistment rises 24% as specialized service tracks expand. The article notes that the IDF has been developing specialized units to accommodate Haredi recruits in their mandatory enlistment. But since the beginnings of the State of Israel, ultra-Orthodox non-participation in military service has been a hot debate in the Israeli public.

As AllIsrael notes, "The issue has contributed to the collapse of multiple Knesset coalitions over the decades and continues to be a point of political tension in the current Knesset."

Haredi parties Shas and United Torah Judaism (UTJ) were among those who supported a proposal to dissolve the Knesset and move to early elections in May. They cited as a factor the lack of agreement on legislation that would formalize draft deferments for Haredi young men to allow them to focus on yeshiva studies, a commitment that had been discussed during coalition negotiations (with Netanyahu) in late 2022.

The IDF wants to resolve the issue by dedicated military installations for the ultra-Orthodox to serve in. They say they have infrastructure in place to form three more exclusively Haredim companies. If more voluntary ultra-Orthodox recruits continues to increase, the IDF will develop more command teams and infrastructure for them.

Something is going to have to give in this situation. Please pray for God's will to prevail.

A Personal, Hopeful Experience in Tel Aviv’s music scene

Eitan sent this short video on Vimeo of the Blues in Tel Aviv

Far from the battlefield is the throbbing city of Tel Aviv. For the 40 days of missile bombardment from Iran Tel Avivim made frequent trips to the bomb shelters (February 28-April 8). Online news sources showed Israelis sleeping overnight in underground parking lots to wait out the attacks.

Last week, however, “the city that never stops” had returned to full activity. On a Wednesday evening, I found myself in the city, invited to a “blues night” at a cafe run by believers as a bridge to the city’s active music/night club scene. With my harmonica (left, below), I accompanied a dear friend, Baruch, who sang gospel related lyrics to blues melodies. Most of those attending were not yet followers of Yeshua. Yet their response to our music was warmly welcoming and enthusiastic. Amidst the grief and grinding reality of war and violent international anti-Semitism, there is hope.

People here, especially the younger generation, are searching. We know that the Hope of Israel is Yeshua, our Messiah. Now is the time to work together to make Him known. Now is the time to cooperate as different ministries in Israel, and to be joined in heart with you, our dedicated friends.

Believing in the divine origin of our serving Yeshua together,

Eitan Shishkoff

Please PRAY with our Fields of Wheat local team:

§ Joel, Teresa, and their boys. As Joel is back in the reserves for another vital season of service in the defense of this nation that is precious in the sight of God.

§ Ruby. As he continues to build a team of young adult Arab Evangelical leaders to initiate teen camps for the Arab Israeli youth.

§ Eitan (myself). As I will spend the month of June in the States, connecting with our supporters and with family. Here’s my itinerary.

    Friday-Sunday, June 5-June 7: Beulaville, NC (Grace Covenant Church) & Jacksonville, NC (River of Life).

    Monday-Tuesday, June 8-9: Columbus, OH (Ministry Meeting)

    Wednesday, June 10: Phoenix, AZ (Jewish Voice)

    Thursday-Sunday, June 11-14: Abilene, TX (Beltway Church, New Hope Church)

    Monday-Tuesday, June 15-16, Dallas, TX (Upper Room, Baruch haShem, Convergence)

    Wednesday-Sunday, June 17-21, Ellicott City, MD (Tikkun America)