Please read the following quotes and comments and do the activity outlined below.

The Jewish people has expressed its desire for peace in its prayers and Biblical and Rabbinic sources:

• In the words of the prophets (Isaiah 2:4 and Micah 4:3):
  And they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.
• In the Amidah:
  Grant peace, welfare, blessing, grace, lovingkindness, and mercy unto us and unto all Israel, your people.
• In the Midrash:
  Great is peace since all other blessings are included in it. (Vayikrah Rabbah 9) The only reason that the Holy One, blessed be He, created the world was so that there would be peace among humankind. (Bamidbar Rabbah 12A)
• In Israel’s Declaration of Independence:
  We extend our hand to all neighboring states and their people in an offer of peace and good neighborliness, and appeal to them to establish bonds of cooperation ... with the sovereign Jewish people settled in its own land. The State of Israel is prepared to do its share in common effort for the advancement of the entire Middle East.
• And in the prayer for the State of Israel:
  Bless the land with peace and its inhabitants with everlasting joy.

This yearning for peace can also be found in some contemporary Israeli songs, such as Uzi Hitman’s Noladiti L’Shalom (I Was Born for Peace), composed to celebrate Egyptian President Anwar Sadat’s visit to Jerusalem in 1979:
I was born for peace, it only should arrive
I was born for peace, it only should come
I was born for peace, it only should appear
I want to, I want to have it already.

In the last 20 years, peace agreements have been signed between Israel and several neighboring Arab states. The peace treaty with Egypt was signed in 1979, the first agreement with the Palestinians was signed in 1993, and an agreement with with Jordan was signed in 1994. Today, efforts are continuing to reach lasting agreements with all of Israel’s neighbors.

As we strive to strengthen peace between Israel and her neighbors, we also continue to develop Israel as a democracy founded on freedom, mutual respect, equality, and social justice.

We must continue to work towards these goals so that the vision of the prophets for Israel can be realized and there truly will be “lasting joy for all her inhabitants.”

This article was adapted from the Haggadah for Yom Ha’atzmaut, published by Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael (Jewish National Fund), Ve’Shinantam Le’Vanecha (The Frankel Center for Jewish Family Education) and the World Zionist Organization.