Go in Peace
BY MOSHE KATZ 
CEO
ISRAELI KRAV INTERNATIONAL

September 16, 2026, Israel

I have been teaching this lesson for a long time but now it feels like the correct time to write it down. I learned this lesson a long time ago, and yet I have never forgotten it, and I have repeated it over the years many times. This lesson has become part of my life. It has become part of who I am. 

I am 22 years old; I can picture where I am sitting. I am a student at the Chafetz Chaim yeshiva in Jerusalem; it is very strict. The lesson is being taught by Rabbi Chaim Septimus, a relative of a relative, a scholar, and a very fine man. We read the story of Hannah, wife of Elkana as it appears in the book of Samuel, Book 1, Chapter 1. 

1 Now there was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim, of the hill-country of Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2 And he had two wives: the name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other Peninnah; and Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.

3 And this man went up out of his city from year to year to worship and to sacrifice unto the Lord of hosts in Shiloh. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there priests unto the Lord. 4 And it came to pass upon a day, when Elkanah sacrificed, that he gave to Peninnah his wife, and to all her sons and her daughters, portions; 5 but unto Hannah he gave a double portion; for he loved Hannah, but God had shut up her womb. 6 And her rival vexed her sore, to make her fret, because God had shut up her womb. 7 And as he did so year by year, when she went up to the house of God, so she vexed her; therefore she wept, and would not eat. 8 And Elkanah her husband said unto her: 'Hannah, why weepest thou? and why eatest thou not? and why is thy heart grieved? am not I better to thee than ten sons?'

9 So Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, and after they had drunk--now Eli the Cohen/priest sat upon his seat by the door-post of the temple of God; 10 and she was in bitterness of soul--and prayed unto God, and wept sore. 11 And she vowed a vow, and said: 'O God of hosts, if Thou will indeed look on the affliction of your handmaid, and remember me, and not forget your handmaid, but wilt give unto your handmaid a man-child (Zerah Anashim, Hebrew), then I will give him to God all the days of his life, and there shall be no razor come upon his head.'

12 And it came to pass, as she prayed long before God, that Eli watched her mouth. 13 Now Hannah, she spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice could not be heard; therefore, Eli thought she had been drunken. 14 And Eli said unto her: 'How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee.' 15 And Hannah answered and said: 'No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I poured out my soul before God. 16 Count not thy handmaid for a wicked woman: for out of the abundance of my complaint and my vexation have I spoken hitherto.' 17 Then Eli answered and said: 'Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant thy petition that thou hast asked of Him.'

20 And it came to pass, when the time was come about, that Hannah conceived, and bore a son; and she called his name Samuel: 'because I have asked him of God.'

And now Rabbi Septimus begins his unique interpretation of this story, and its profound lesson. You see, for us, if a story survives this long, it has value, it has a reason for survival. It is the holy scriptures, yes, but it is more than just a religious or historical text, it has meaning beyond that. A story does not survive this long unless it is relevant. At the age of 22 I found it fascinating, at the age of 65 I see my life story in it. The story is about people; those whom we consider great, and those whom we dismiss as simple, humble and ordinary, and how those perspectives can change quickly, once we open our eyes to the truth.

Eli the Cohen (Priest) is the high commissioner of the day, the holy man of God, he sits by the doorpost of the Temple, of the sanctuary of God, he is the chief rabbi as it were, the man in charge of all matters religious and spiritual. He is the moral force of the day. And there is in our story also a humble woman, her name is Hannah. She is bitter, the one thing in life that she wanted most, a child, is deprived of her, so she pours out her heart to God, without shame, pure and honest. 

Now the holy man sees her, and he is disgusted. Who is this drunken harlot who comes to the Temple of the Holy God and is drunk! "Eli watched her mouth", Eli the Cohen, the Man of God, assumed she is drunk, shamefully in the Temple of God of all places, And now he must rebuke her. 

She was praying for a son, but not just any sort of son, a "Zerah Anashim", which Rabbi Septimus explained to us meant a certain kind of man, one who could talk with all people, a "seed of mankind", a soul that can connect with all sorts of people, of all ways of life, and get along with them all. For this dear Hannah prayed, But this the great man of God could not see, for he lacked these qualities for which she prayed. 

And it came to pass that Eli publicly rebuked her 'How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee.' He did not ask, my dear child why are you crying, what is the problem. No, he judged without knowing all the facts. 

This is our holy book, a book that does not shy away from pointing out the shortcomings of our leaders! This, my dear father told me, is what makes the old Book so relevant in our own times. It is not whitewashed to get rid of the embarrassing parts, the parts where our own leaders failed in their tasks. 

We continue with our interpretation. Hannah looks up to the holy man of God, the Chief Rabbi so to speak, and she says, Lo Adoni, No Sir. " No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I poured out my soul before God, you have completely misunderstood me. I am not a drunkard, I am not disrespecting the holy temple of God, I am a bitter broken woman who has come to pour out her heart to God. But you, you have misjudged me. 

But Hannah is polite. And Rabbi Septimus continues. Lo, No, Adoni, Sir, No, you are not an Adon, a lord, a high man of God. The words are read with a pause, not "No Sir, but No, you are not a sir. You may consider yourself a great rabbi, a priest, a man of God, but you cannot tell the difference between a true believer and a drunkard. No, you are not a man I can respect. but out of politeness her words are couched in gentle terms. 

And how does the fallen Eli respond? To his credit he realizes immediately that he was wrong, and this simple woman was correct. He says, Go in peace, and the God of Israel shall grant your request.

Let us think about that for a moment. Until now she could not conceive but Eli truly is a man of God, and he has great power, his blessing unlocks her womb, and she conceives and gives birth. And she names her child Shmuel, (Samuel) which is Hebrew for I have asked God for this child. And this boy grows up to be the great prophet of God, the Prophet Samuel!!

And Rabbi Septimus continues his great lesson. You see boys, when there is no communication between people, animosity and misunderstanding develop. Eli thinks, "knows" that the woman is a disrespectful harlot, drunk in the Temple of God, and he publicly rebukes her, Get out Drunkard! and Hannah she feels, Religion?! What is it worth, it is all a sham! If this is religion and this is a "Man of God, a Cohen", I want nothing to do with any of it. It is hypocrisy at its worst! 

Had out story ended there, before the dialuge between Eli and Hannah took place, that is how it would have ended. The "religious" man thinking, who let in all these stupid drunkard women. And Hannah would be thinking, Religion?! hog wash! I want nothing to do with it, But, dear students continued the rabbi, once Communication takes place, the whole picture changes! Communication takes place, each side can explain themselves, misunderstandings can be resolved, and what is the end result of this talking? This communication? It is the birth of the Prophet Samuel! 

When we walk away without talking, hatred and animosity develop quickly. But when we stop and talk, explain and Listen, the result is a great blessing, a man like the Prophet Samuel, and what kind of a man? A man who is the Seed of Men, a man whose greatness lies in his ability to connect, to communicate with all types of people, on all levels of society, a man of the people, a man who listens to the people, a Shmuel!

Saturi! A spark of brilliance, of lightening, I am enlightened. Talk! Communicate, "We can work it out", we can understand each other, if we let down our guard and truly communicate. 

Many years have passed, many seasons have come and gone, and now my friends we face life. We take the lessons that have been handed down to us, and must face life. May we be worthy to communicate. 

Additional Lesson 

In Judaism there is no concept of a perfect person. And there is no person who is seen as infallibile.  As we saw, the great Eli the Cohen totally misjudged the humble Hannah, and he was man enough to realize it and compensate her with a great blessing. But no rabbi, no man of the cloth, no one is above rebuke, no one is above being challenged and questioned. We all have our right to think and to question. No word is final.

With all due respect the great rabbis of Europe, with all their knowledge, did not see the Holocaust coming, and they did not warn their congregations to get out. The secular Zionist Zeev Vladimir Jabotinsky did see the writing on the wall, and warned people, and saved thousands of lives. So Yes, we can question rabbis. They have knowledge, some have great wisdom and some have a Divine Spirit, but none meet with God every Tuesday for coffee to discuss matters. Eli the Cohen misjudged the humble broken woman, Hannah. She "called him out" and he accepted this. This too is a lesson from our Holy Scriptures. 

Moshe Katz, the author, is a well-known Krav Maga instructor hæving taught over 1,100 international seminars during the past 20 years. But he is also a product of the rabbinical academies, having studied over the years in - Bar Ilan Institute of Higher Torah Studies. Beth Midrash Zichron Aryeh, Los Angeles,  Yeshivath Chafetz Chaim, Jerusalem. Yeshivat Mercaz HaRav Kook, Jerusalem, Yeshivath Bet El, Bet El, Yeshivath Ahavath Torah, Jerusalem, Mesivta Tifferes Jerusalem, Manhattan, Yeshivath Chaim Berlin, Brooklyn,  Yeshivath Harayon HaYehudi, Jerusalem.

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Moshe Katz, 8th dan Black Belt, Israeli Krav Maga. Certified by Wingate Institute. Member Black Belt Hall of fame, USA and Europe.

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