For a political junkie, there are few things more exciting than being informed that you have been selected to represent the entire American Yeshiva community at Shimon Peres’s Israeli Presidential Conference, Facing Tomorrow. The international convocation was designed to bring recognized leaders from all over the world together to analyze and discuss the global tomorrow as well as the Jewish and Israeli tomorrow.

The conference took place over three days, with each day lasting from seven in the morning until ten at night. Each day contained back-to-back panels led by leaders in a variety of fields: heads of state and former heads of state from England and America to Mongolia and Uganda; Nobel laureates such as Elie Wiesel, Roger Marson, and Martin Lewis Pearl; journalists, authors, lawyers, political activists, military experts, and even leaders in the technological age such as the creators of Google and Yahoo.

During the breaks, I found myself walking around with the most influential men and women of the last few decades. I found it strange at first that so many important people were just mingling with everyone else until I realized that I was the odd one out, as there were very few people my age at the conference. To be able to meet people like Mikhail Gorbachev, Shimon Peres, Dr. Henry Kissinger, Elie Wiesel, Benjamin Netanyahu, and then to have meaningful conversations with people such as Alan Dershowitz, Vaclev Havel, and Dennis Ross was an honor indeed.

The panels themselves included a broad range of topics from The Challenge of Arab-Jewish co-existence in Israel, Foreign Policy: Strategic Dilemmas and Moral Considerations, The Revolution of the Internet and New Media, and Historic Decisions in Israel — A Matter for Israelis or for Jews at Large.

However, within almost every single one of these panels was one recurring theme, the Iranian threat. While there were many different opinions on how and to what extent actions should be taken against Iran, almost all agreed that if the threat of a nuclear Iran becomes realized, there will not be a tomorrow for Israel or the world to face. One Arab-Israeli woman talked about the fear the Arabs have of Iran, and yet the even greater fear of speaking out against radical Islam. It is therefore Israel that must confront the threat. I heard this same concern voiced by Alan Dershowitz, Ephraim HaLevi, Bernard Henry-Levi, Elie Wiesel, President George W. Bush and countless other speakers.

While I am concerned that the current Israeli government has not proven itself able to adequately deter its enemies, I was reassured by one thing. Israel has the undying support (however quiet and concealed) of dozens of countries and factions. Why these leaders feel the need to come out against Israel in public while silently applauding them I do not understand. But it is clear from the tremendous turn out at this conference that the nations of the world look up to Israel to be on the frontlines against injustice of all types, whether it is in Darfur, Ethiopia, Iran or even within its own borders.

I feel that often times Israel shrinks away from this responsibility in order to be publicly accepted. If there is any lesson we can take away from our history as a nation (over 3,060 years) it is that when we most try to become like everyone else that we become most vulnerable as a people. We cannot rely on anyone else to do our bidding for us. As Elie Wiesel said “We have learned to take the threats of our enemies more seriously than the promises from some of our friends. ” After such a successful conference I truly hope that words will be translated into action. President Peres talked about the biblical prophets that have been heard, repeated, and often unheeded. He spoke of their guidance in envisioning a better tomorrow and a peaceful future. I truly hope that this conference will go beyond what the prophets preached. I hope that we can do a better job of bringing our people and the people of the world together to act on the principles that guide us. I hope we can translate words to action. The consequences of inaction could be disastrous for our nation and our world.

Eli Fredman is a graduate of Clayton High School and is currently studying in Israel at Yeshivat Lev HaTorah.