Since the founding of the state there hasn't been an existential threat that could unite all Israeli society. Thus far, most emergency situations had to do with defense challenges, most of which were the direct result of the 100-year-old conflict.
The Jews knew what side they were on, and the Arabs – or at least most of them – knew what side they were on, too. In every war, whether Israel was dragged into it or initiated it, the Jewish consensus supported it while the Arabs opposed it. Each side had its reasons, and each side had a narrative on which it was raised.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
Luckily, and even though Israel is in danger from several directions, we haven't experienced a threat that does not distinguish between us or divide us.
The coronavirus is a new kind of enemy, one that in addition to causing great damage can also bring all sectors of society together.
Despite the panic and fear it is causing, it might have an upside. It is uniting all the citizens and strengthening our commitment to each other. This might be the first time that we're saying "We'll get through this together," and meaning it. All of us.
This week, I visited the Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa and could see what the medical staff there was experiencing – Jews and Arabs, nurses, doctors, and support staff, all of whom are working in stressful and dangerous conditions for the sake of everyone in the country.
Who asks about ethnicity when arriving for medical treatment in Israel? Rambam isn't the only place this is happening. It's the same at clinics, hospitals, and emergency centers nationwide. Everyone is working together, as professionals, as human beings, as citizens – helping and supporting each other to save lives and keep others safe. This is what is great about a society that prefers to see the good in everything.
Incidentally, we did have a "preview" of all this in the form of a winter deluge that flooded the streets of Nahariya. Residents of nearby Arab villages drove their tractors out to help their Jewish neighbors and saved them from drowning.
In any other emergency – a terrorist attack, a war – and especially in the age of social media, when each of us has a "media outlet" in his or her hands, medical teams are forced to the front, both in terms of providing treatments and sometimes facing criticism or even physical attacks.
But now, as we unite in the face of a grave danger, they are the combatants, and they know that before they win, they will have to sacrifice.
Israeli society as a whole is being tested. We will get through this difficult, dangerous time together. And immediately after it's over, we should put up something honoring medical staff for their devotion at every medical center in the country. They are teaching Israel an important lesson.
