Walking with history

It was said of Yitzhak Navon, Israel’s fifth president, that he not only witnessed history, he made it.

In many respects, this is true.

Navon, who died last weekend at age 94, was the first native-born Israeli president.

Moreover, he was both the first Jerusalem-born and the first non-Ashkenazi president. He was what is known in Hebrew as a Samech Tet, standing for Sephardi tahor – a pure Sephardi.

Moreover, he and first wife Ofira were the first presidential couple to live in the official President’s Residence with young children.

On top of all that, he was the first Israeli president to visit Egypt as the guest of president Anwar Sadat, capturing the hearts of former enemies by speaking to them in perfect Arabic.

All the above are historic factors in themselves, but Navon had a far greater impact on Israel’s future than all these things put together.

As an aide and adviser to founding prime minister David Ben-Gurion, Navon did not always see eye to eye with “the old man,” but by refusing to be deterred, he often influenced him.

In eulogizing Navon at his funeral last Sunday, Shimon Peres – Israel’s ninth president and Navon’s close friend and colleague for more than half a century – stated that one of the most important things Navon had done was to persuade Ben-Gurion to ask for more funds in German reparations than he had originally intended.

Ben-Gurion was reluctant, but Navon had primed the translator to ask for a considerably larger sum, and German chancellor Konrad Adenauer agreed.

Although there was considerable opposition within Israel for the acceptance of blood money, without it Israel would not be where it is today.

Few of the players on the world’s stage go through life with minimal criticism.

Navon was one of those unusual figures who found favor in the eyes of nearly all who knew him.

Among the many who paid tribute to him, there was a common thread, not in who they were but in their perceptions of Navon – in whom they saw a man of integrity, wisdom, erudition, liberalism, tradition, nobility and patriotism, among many of his attributes.

He was described almost unanimously as a man of culture, who wanted to close socioeconomic gaps, did much to revive and preserve Ladino culture, promoted unity among the different population sectors, wrote lovingly of Jerusalem, was convinced that peace was attainable and was pained by racism, violence, foul language and extremism.

His life partner for the last 20 years, second wife Miri, found in him a fusion of nobility and folksiness.

Among some 400 people who came to the President’s Residence, where Navon’s body lay in state, to pay their last respects were many who represented different chapters in his life – particularly those of his peer generation who came in wheelchairs, pushing walkers or leaning on canes or crutches.

There was also lawyer Yair Green, a somewhat younger member of the so-called Jerusalem Parliament, which meets on Fridays at the restaurant in Mishkenot Sha’ananim to discuss the Holy City’s issues and propose solutions. This “parliament” comprises representatives of many of the white-collar professions.

Green told reporters that Navon had been the chairman of the group and that because of his traditional background, he had insisted that each meeting close with an interpretation of the weekly Torah portion. It was usually given by Prof. Jonathan Halevy, who in addition to being director of the Shaare Zedek Medical Center – where Navon was being treated on and off for several months – is a gifted Torah reader whose services are in demand by many synagogues.

Many people spoke of Navon’s respect for others, of his modesty and his ability to simply be a man of the people.

These qualities manifested themselves in different ways, especially during his presidency, when he did not simply visit poor neighborhoods for a few hours but actually stayed overnight and longer, to get the feel of the place and understand the population.

A prime example was when he went to the Hatikva Quarter in Tel Aviv and stayed there for three days.

But something that wasn’t mentioned by anyone was the fact that in the days of the printed telephone directory, Navon was listed at his home on Jabotinsky Street, and anyone who called his number and asked the man who answered the phone if they could speak to Yitzhak Navon was surprised to discover that they were already speaking to him. After leaving public office, Navon saw no reason to have an unlisted number.

In a career rich in its variety, Navon was head of the Arabic intelligence unit of the Hagana; he was a diplomat, an adviser to foreign minister Moshe Sharett and later to Ben-Gurion; a teacher, a politician, a playwright and author, a radio and television personality; a president, an education minister, the head of the National Authority for Ladino, and a few other roles as well.

In 2007 he set out on an ancestral roots exploration of Spain, taking with him a crew from the Israel Broadcasting Authority. The result was an eight-part television series – A Journey through Spain. He also broadcast stories in Arabic on Israel’s Arabic TV channel.

In April 2011 Crown Prince Felipe of Spain, who has since become king, visited the Jewish state together with his wife, Letizia, to mark the 25th anniversary of Madrid-Jerusalem diplomatic relations. Then-president Peres hosted a dinner in their honor at the King David Hotel and invited Navon, as he frequently did to other events.

This time it was different, because Peres asked Navon to welcome the royal couple – which he did with aplomb in Spanish, to their great delight.

Though a multigenerational Sabra, Navon grew up with old-world courtesies.

At his funeral, his son, Erez, related that his father had recently apologized to a nurse who was taking his blood pressure – because he was sitting while she was standing.

Remembering Yitzhak Navon, the Jewish state’s fifth president who died last weekend at 94 – one of those unusual figures who found favor in the eyes of nearly all who knew him.