From the editor: Speaking the truth

It comforted me after learning of the passing in Jerusalem of a dear friend and colleague, Ralph (Rafi) Dobrin, who would have appreciated the lines about truth. Dobrin, who was born in Johannesburg in 1937 and grew up in Durban, was laid to rest at Har Hamenuhot Cemetery on December 30. A fine human being and writer, he started his own publishing business in 1970 after working at The Jerusalem Post and Israel Magazine.

Describing himself, Dobrin wrote, “I came to Israel in 1957 and my main concern, apart from the wellbeing of my family, is this country’s survival in the face of the ongoing quest of a large part of humanity to obliterate us – using falsehood, half-truths and the self-indulgent obtuseness of the so-called enlightened peoples of the free world. But Israel’s survival is dependent mainly on the character and spirit of its people. Integrity, common decency and a feeling of togetherness must be developed as well as a belief in national destiny.”

By following these rules, Dobrin wrote, we will “make this a better, safer and happier world for everyone.” In his book, How to Avoid Armageddon (2011), he wrote: “How do we resolve the Israel-Arab conflict? And how will we avoid a global doomsday situation? Armageddon! Well, if it is usually falsehood that enables wrongdoing and evil to be done, then the logical answer is... truthfulness, in the sense of being honest about what we’re saying. Actually, this is humanity’s most important and precious value.”

Dobrin sometimes overstated his case, but he made many salient points, which – like him – are worthy and worth remembering.

May his memory truly be a blessing!