Shavuot - An Ode to G-d

This article was written by Tal Gilad in Hebrew and translated into English by Bat-Zion Susskind-Sacks.

Disclaimer: the essay below represents the point of view of the writer only. It is not intended to offend anyone or aimed at entering debates over one’s religious beliefs or scientific point of view. He solely expresses his thoughts. Nothing more. Thank you.

Shavuot, the Holy Day on which the Torah was given to Am Yisrael, is here.

True, every religious belief or faith needs to be respected. I trust, however, that over one issue there is no dispute, Judaism is the source for the other widely practiced faiths – Christianity and Islam. At school they taught us that the uniqueness of Judaism is that it is the first monotheistic faith. They also explained to us the difference between the belief in one god and that in many gods. I feel that this is missing the core of the issue.

It was also said about Akhenaten that he was a monotheist since he believed that the sun is the only god. New studies raise the possibility that he was merely “substituting” the previous sun god without rescinding the others, or that he only diminished their significance. It not that crucial. The bottom line is that it is no big deal to believe in one god instead of a few. OK, one works alone, the other delegates, what difference does it make?

The wisdom and distinctiveness of Judaism, especially its earlier debut is that Judaism is a giant leap in the  perception of G-d, not only is He One and Only, He has no shape, He is all-powerful and infinite and the G-d of all of us. I stress, of ALL. He chose Am Yisrael, but He is also the G-d of all nations, including the enemies of Yisrael. Whether they choose to believe in him or nor, is their preference.

This stems from the understanding that one god cannot be restricted. The moment he is your god only, he becomes something terribly forceful. In other words, if you build a tower which reaches the heavens or if you train at the gym long enough or bring in the air force, you will be stronger than him.

If he has a shape, he is limited. If there is something that preceded him, as was the case with the Greek gods, he is limited.

Hence, one cannot utter His name, since the moment you give Him one, you limit Him to words and letters. He must, therefore, be omnipotent, He is everything, omnipresent and invariably everywhere, our G-d in Heaven and Earth.

Incidentally, it does not matter whether the world has been existing for 13 billion years or six thousand years. Both are numbers that enable us to quantify a concept that we cannot grasp since it is perpetual. Just as one says “god” to introduce a word to something self-explanatory, a notion which cannot be articulated, so one names a number in order to clench on to something. Just as the decree that north is up, and south is down. Why? Just because. I have swerved a bit. That is a different subject altogether, but in fact, still related.

With all due respect and sincerely, I am not belittling or lessening the significance and stature of Christianity and Islam.  On the contrary, they spread the belief in one god and thus contributed their share in raising the whole of mankind to a higher spiritual level. But the basic perceptions about the essence of G-d originate in Judaism. The rest are a product of the original and thy do not deny it. It is not a problem to construct a wagon. The problem is to invent the wheel since it forces one to exit the thinking mode to which they were used. The inventor is also the one who understands their invention and knows all the stages that led  them to that understanding, as opposed to someone who received it ready-made and applies to it all that they know and are familiar with in their world. Jesus was a Jew and probably never considered himself a god. His followers, however, conceived the idea of the holy trinity, partly in order to make their faith more accessible and more concrete. Therefore, observant Jews do not enter a church. In their eyes, the holy trinity is a form of idolatry. After all, how can one divide that which is infinite, formless, and baffling into three? Which three?

One can, of course, find numerous hints and aspects of “accessibility” in our writings starting  the creation of the world where G-d, allegedly, says something or rests on the seventh day since he was tired, through “let us create a man in our image” and more, there was a need for visualization. But the <<basic>> notion in Judaism is that “G-d is One,” stressing the principle that there cannot be more than one that is endless and everything. Nothing could be more than endless and all. This is the central principle in Judaism and if one does not accept it, one does not understand its essence. After all, it is inconceivable that Moshe would come down from Mount Sinai and say, “OK, the golden calf is also a god,” merely to keep everyone happy and quiet.

“We shall do, and we shall hear,” which Am Yisrael took upon itself upon receiving the Torah, is also derived from this sentiment. After all, that “all” cannot give anything bad, impossible. He will not negate the universe and everything He created, just like as in the “know it all” question, “can G-d create a stone that He cannot lift?” Funny. Can the heavyweight lifting world champion raise and hold in the air the chair that he is sitting on? No. The contradiction is not in the answer but in the question.

The Ten Commandments are ten basic principles for living in the company of human beings, that which distinguishes between humans and animals. Their essence is Empathy. The wise Hillel summarized it “do not do unto others that which is hateful to you, the rest is commentary, go and learn.” Empathy is civilization, give and take, karma, flow of energy, call it whatever you wish. Has G-d given them directly to Moshe in a wrathful baritone voice? What difference does it make?

The funny thing is that in the desperate efforts to find a meaning to that which has none, researchers raised the hypothesis that there was no need for the world to be created, it has always existed (even Aristo claims that), which means that they believe that there is something primordial which has no creator, is infinite, has no shape and no size, that everything in it is conducted with a fixed and balanced amount of energy which cannot be subtracted by one tiny bit or else all will be chaotic.

In simple words, it is not G-d, but G-d. I reached the conclusion that just as the various religious leaders, astral physicists reach a certain point where they themselves do not understand their theories and move on to esoteric terms. And if one questions them, they define that person as ignorant and mindless.

So, here is another unique aspect of Judaism. We shall do and we shall hear. We accept our inability to understand. It is always great to learn and widen one’s horizons and it is not a shame to accept that there are issues which are beyond our understanding. This, also, has wisdom and spiritual eminence.

Goodbye New Zealand

“To live in New Zealand” is the name of a song praising and glorifying life in New Zealand, written and performed by a Yisraeli group called “Ethnix.” It is a dream of many, I am told. I guess I am one of the lucky ones who lived to fulfill that dream. It lasted ten years. It had good moments and not so good ones.

What we see New Zealand transforming into these days is, I guess, what I would categorize as the “not so good ones.” Already then (mid 1990’s to mid-2000), I could see the buds of what New Zealand has turned into nowadays. In a way, I am glad I no longer live there.

The red light for me was turned on following the terror attacks on 9/11. In their aftermath, many members of the Muslim faith were attacked, unjustly, I might add, simply because the attacks were carried out by Muslims.

We, members of the Canterbury Hebrew Congregation, immediately enlisted ourselves to a campaign to support New Zealand Muslims. We issued a statement of support and embraced the Christchurch Muslim Community. So did other groups. Among them, were lecturers of the Canterbury University in Christchurch where I was teaching at the time.

Towards that goal, we set up a group on campus, which was entitled, “The Coalition for Justice and Understanding,” a euphemism for an effort to bash America and Yisrael, if you ask me. Some even dared to admit to me, knowing full well that I am a proud American citizen, that America “deserved” 9/11.

Let me interject here that Canterbury University, as I mentioned before, had already been infected with anti Yisrael sentiments spread by some lecturers (https://wingnsonawildflight.blogspot.com/2017/12/time-to-drain-university-swamps.html). I remember the time when Dr. Josef Olmert, a Yisraeli lecturer, visited the campus and partook in a panel where he brilliantly responded to each of their attacks. Following the panel, he asked me, “How can you work with such a hostile faculty staff?”  The fertile ground was already there for the fruition of what we witness today.

During one of our meetings, the aforementioned Coalition decreed to petition to America not to enter Afghanistan for various reasons which I will spare the readers. I objected. I thought that it would have been wiser to turn first to Afghanistan and ask its leaders to extradite Osama bin Laden rather than let the architect and perpetrator of such a crime against innocent people go on free to carry out more. My suggestion was mocked and brushed off as futile and a waste of time. I accused those present of appeasement. “Yes,” I recall retorting at them, “blame the victim and let the criminal get away with murder.”

What upset me most about some of the expressions then, though, was that one lecturer, a Pakistani woman, a very intelligent one, responded to my mention of Auschwitz as one of the lessons that helped shape my life with the following, “The ovens of Auschwitz are cold.” Imagine saying that to a daughter of two Shoah survivors???? Some “justice and understanding,” Eh?

The greatest shock, however, came several months or about a year later when the Christchurch Mosque opened a new wing. The Chairman of its Board, Ibrahim, with whom I had good relations, invited two members of the Canterbury Hebrew Congregation for its house warming. I was one of them.

After we were greeted by the Imam, whom I also knew and with whom I jointly partook in “Interfaith” events, the two of us walked around the mosque. The amount of anti-semitic publications laid out on the tables was shocking. We left with much disgust and a vow to never set foot there again or communicate with any of its Board members.

I could burden you, dear readers, with more examples, all pointing towards one direction. New Zealand was slowly but surely paving its way to its own destruction, to an oblivion that threatens to drown it, its beauty and anyone’s dream to go live “on a green island in a faraway ocean,” as the lyrics of the song by Ethnix submit.

The Hellenists among us

 The term "Hellenism" which literally means, "to speak Greek," or "make Greek," refers to ancient Greek rule and history and covers the period following the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE and the rise of the Roman Empire. It ended in 31 BCE.

 To many, "Hellenism" denotes ancient Greek Culture and is mostly perceived as that period in history where Greek language, Culture, Literature, Art, Architecture, Science, Philosophy and Erudition prevailed. 

The Hellenistic period had deep influence on the Eastern Mediterranean area, which was under Greek rule for a long time. That, unfortunately, also included Eretz Yisrael.

I say, "unfortunately," because in many spheres, this cultural phenomenon had a lasting and devastating impact on Judaism and the thought process of our Jewish People, an impact that is felt until this very day.   In almost every way, Hellenism and Judaism were culturally diametrically opposed in terms of mankind’s place in the world, the role of personal responsibility, man’s relationship with G-d, and the concept of and role of hope.

The effects of Hellenism on the Jewish population were felt as early as the year 200BCE. At that time, there surfaced a group among the Jewish population called Mityavnim, meaning Hellenists. Its members, most of whom were those closest to the Greek rulers and eager to please them, adopted Greek culture and way of life, which was foreign to the Jewish one in almost every way. Their practice of it reached such a degree that, almost unvaryingly, it replaced their Jewish culture and Jewish identity. One example of the extent to which these individuals were willing to go in order to be accepted as Greeks or Hellenizers, relates to one of the most central practices in Judaism, circumcision. 

Ancient Greeks, as we all know, were great believers in practicing the art of nudity. That was demonstrated in sports, which were done in the nude.  Bathhouses in ancient Greece were popular and, likewise, were attended in the nude. Circumcision was not among their practices. Therefore, in order to avoid embarrassment and be accepted as an equal and "Good Greek," Hellenized Jews "underwent painful operations-at a time with minimum anesthetics-to restore their foreskin and appear Greek…" Naturally, those who were ignorant of Jewish life and tradition fell easy prey to Hellenism and some of its positive aspects. "Others, however, became vicious self- haters." Among the latter group, many detested their Jewish brethren and thus became willing collaborators, ones who were ready to help them in their attempts to eradicate Judaism in Eretz Yisrael and replace it with their "more enlightened pagan culture of theirs."  (http://www.jewishhistory.org/the-hell-in-hellenism/).  

Our Sages warned at the time about Hellenism invading Jewish thought, how it would pervert how Jews thought of themselves and of their own beliefs, how Hellenism was like a disease that would leave the Jewish People sick and how difficult it would be to rid ourselves of this sickness.

Now, let us fast forward into the present.

If we replace ancient Greek and Hellenism with The New Israel Fund (NIF) and their agenda of a New Middle East, an agenda that is foreign to Jewish culture and traditions then we reach the unavoidable and unfortunate conclusion that history, in this case, Jewish history, repeats itself. For how else can one describe organizations such as "Breaking  Silence," or "B'Tzelem," both of which are funded and supported by (NIF) and other entities whose sole purpose is to remove the Jewish essence of Eretz Yisrael, but self- hating Jewish collaborators?  For people to so want to appease and conform to the beliefs and interests our their enemies is sick.

How else or what else can we call those who loathe and despise anything Jewish and in their efforts to blend with the "in" crowd are ready and willing to sacrifice their brethren, their Jewish core on the altars of modern day Hellenism?

But there is yet another kind of Hellenism, one that stems not from self- hatred but from misplaced gratitude to the non-Jewish supporters of the Jewish people and political Zionism (the movement established by Herzl at the end of the 19th century). That kind of Hellenism stems from the fear of losing that support of the world that is so void of love for Jews.

We should be happy and thankful for the support others show us.  Nothing is wrong with that.  Everyone wants and needs friends in this world.   But, here’s the interesting question.  “Friendship”, real friendship, means accepting us for what we are, respect for our traditions, our beliefs, our security, our rights.   Those who are really friends will not try to change us, not try to redefine us in ways alien to our traditions and beliefs, nor impose things on us for their own benefit.

There are, sadly, those Jews, however, who have adopted Hellenism, replacing Judaism and the noble concept of honest Jewish gratitude, out of some mistaken fear of losing friendship and needed support, and in the process seem willing to shed some underlying fundamental principles in our few millennia old Jewish tradition and leave them in the hands of those who are, for now, friends. Many of those who claim to be our sincere friends and sincerely love us, are rarely familiar, if at all, with what Judaism is all about, and through really no fault of their own try to define us, our beliefs, our traditions, in terms that are familiar to them and alien, to a degree, to what our tradition teaches us. 

We are not going to accuse people of having evil intent.  We don’t see evil in this.  We see misguided.  We see something akin to Stockholm syndrome.  Two Thousand Years of persecution and deprivation has an effect of making a people vulnerable to being liked, eager to seek approval, but let’s not fool ourselves.  Approval and being liked that comes from giving up what you are and copying those who you fear might not like you, is not acceptance. It is surrender.  

Surrender cannot be allowed to define the Jewish Future. Jews and Am Yisrael are here to stay regardless of what either group does or says.  How difficult our journey will be depends on how well we guard what we are and grow by our own beliefs and traditions as we alone can define them.  Regardless, our fate is known, sealed and proven. We are an eternal nation, no matter what!

Chag Sukkot Sameach to all of you.


Written jointly with Roger Froikin.

Please do not expect me.....

                                                                           

My eyes are blurry as the waves of tears are flooding them. My heart is bleeding and my soul is crying. The deafening shrieks of my Jewish essence refuse to fade.

I watch the falling victims of evil all around me. They are white, black, yellow. They are Christians, Muslims, Hindus. They are gay, they are straight. They are religious and they are atheists. They are young and they are old. Evil sees no color, no creed and no age. It smites anything and anyone who stands in its way towards its own redemption towards the fulfillments of its revolting prophecies.

The four chambers of my Jewish heart, however, have room to mourn and hurt the pain, the loss of only my people. Why? Because, as I repeated time and again, if I don’t, very few others, if any, will.

I am not going to beg you, plead with you, dear world, to join me on the journey of my bereavement. You never did, you never will. If anything, you only helped and continue to help pave the way and remove the roadblocks that hamper the path for those who target us, those who wish to turn us into an extinct specimen in the history of mankind.

Please do not expect me to join you when you mourn and count your dead strewn on the very same trail that you have toiled so hard to devise for us. I cannot, I simply cannot. I am still mourning millions of my people who died in the fires of the altars of history, alters that you and your ancestors sweated so hard to erect in their efforts to purge this world of a plague called “Jews.”

The tears I shed help extinguish those fires. Unfortunately, you never tire to ensure there are more fires than the gashes which my drying eyes could ever yield.

So please, do not expect me to join you in your pain. The scars of my ache reject, much with your unrelenting support, the healing process of my own agony. I have no time, no ability to share yours. You have numbed my sensitivity to your suffering. The bitter taste of the medicine you have been feeding my people has intoxicated us. It has failed you.  We have become indifferent to it. Unfortunately, it has made us like you, oblivious.

Your antics have forced many of us to produce our own medicine. We even have a name for it, “Our Jewish people come first!” We care for Jews first. If our common enemy, the monster you have given birth to, fed and nurtured, leaves our Jewish victims next to yours, we will mourn ours first. We will remember and commemorate ours before we do yours.

Please do not expect us to do otherwise. 

A Tale of Two Museums

 

                                                                           

Once upon a time, there was an evil man, a very evil man. He had a dream. He wanted to erect a museum to commemorate “the extinct race.”

That man was Hitler. His dream was to annihilate European Jewry and turn the Jewish Museum in the city of Prague into a museum that will hold Jewish artifacts aimed at reminding the world of a race that once was.

The Jewish Museum of Prague was founded in 1906. Initially, it was intended for the purpose of preserving artifacts from neighboring synagogues which were liquidated as part of the reconstruction of the Jewish quarter. When the Nazis took over they closed it down and hired Dr. Karel Stein, a historian and one of the founders of the Museum, to catalogue the many various Jewish artifacts that were gathered by the Germans.

As we all know, Hitler’s plans did not exactly go as he intended them to. The “extinct race” simply refused to disappear, refused to vanish. The Museum, invariably, remained “The Jewish Museum” holding the largest and most comprehensive collection of Judaica items. Nowadays, it contains about 40,000 artistic objects. It also holds about 100,000 pieces of written materials. All are a testimony to a thousand-year-old community from a city that the New York Times refers to as “the Paris of the East, the Jerusalem of the West,” a testimony to the cultural wealth of a People that left a big mark in the annals of the history of mankind.

Fast forward several decades, and let me take you to a different region of the world where another museum was recently erected. Unlike the Jewish Museum of Prague that has been a beacon of a civilization that enriched the history of humanity with its gifts and contributions, we are left here with a blank expression as we watch a multi-million dollars’ ghost and ask, what does it commemorate? Shall I venture to call it the “Museum to the race that has not yet been born?” It is a “museum” that holds nothing but a dream of destruction, empty pages waiting to be filled with imaginative narratives, steeped in the fairytales of “A Thousand Nights and One Night,” aimed at rewriting history. Its empty halls will hold an imaginative history that lives and thrives only in the minds of those who have not been born yet, those that toil so hard to ignore facts and create new ones merely to fool a gullible world.

Yes, you guessed right. I am talking about the new “Palestinian Museum,” the one that exhibits bare walls, empty shelves and lonely display cabinets. But fear not, soon, the emperor’s new clothes will be hanging there and its many visitors will marvel at them, write about them and push a blind humanity deeper and deeper into the dark abyss from which only a miracle can save it

Hatikvah – A hope for freedom

                                                                                    

“Liheyot Am Chofshi Beartzeinu, Eretz Tzion V’rushalayim.” (To be a free People in our Land, the Land of Tzion and Yerushalayim). Naftali Hertz Imber , Hatikvah

This week, I visited, along with a group of fellow teachers, our Temple Mount in Yerushalayim. I had been looking forward to that visit. Spiritually, I have always been of the conviction that if Am Yisrael and the Jewish People had a soul, that is the place where it dwelt. The famous call “Har Habayit Beyadeinu,” (The Temple mount is in our hands) which was uttered during the Six Day War echoed against the walls of my Jewish essence. Zion, I realized then, was the center of our Jewish universe.

Politically, however, I had never given much thought or much significance to the place. Of course I knew that Yisrael relinquished any rights to the place and handed it over to the Hashemite Kingdom for keeps while allowing the Jewish People, the rightful owners of the place, visitation rights. Frankly, I had no issue with that decision. It was Moshe Dagan, my co-writer, who has opened my eyes for the need to look at the importance of the Temple Mount also from the governmental and administrative angle. It was these two perspectives that set out to tour the place.

That visit occurred one week before Pesach, the Jewish holiday of Passover, commemorating the Exodus from Egypt, from Slavery into Freedom. Ironically enough what I experienced there taught me a great lesson; a twofold lesson. The first, what it means to be a “slave. A humiliated slave.” The other, I learned to appreciate the great precious and priceless gift of Freedom.

“Remove any religious symbols from yourself before we visit Temple Mount, and cause no provocation,” our tour guide kept warning us, starting the day prior to the visit and resuming a few more times before the visit. That meant I had to remove my treasured Star of David necklace which was given to me by my daughter. My Jewish core rebelled. “Why does one have to hide their Jewish identity and in Eretz Yisrael of all places?” it kept asking me. I was not going to remove mine. “Tucking it inside my shirt,“ I decided, “should suffice.”

“You also need to dress modestly, ladies,” our guide continued to instruct us.  That, however, I could understand. Respect is what I would show any religious site because that is what I was raised to do. I had no intention of disobeying that request. Neither had any of my fellow teachers.

On the scheduled day, we rose early for fear that we might be late and therefore miss the visit. During the security check and, probably more importantly, a check for any hidden religious items, the guards found a little Book of Psalms in my purse. It was nothing more than a good luck charm that I carry along with me wherever I go. The book and I were temporarily separated, to be reunited after the visit. I did not challenge the act and moved on.

Along with all other non- Muslim tourists of many nationalities we ascended the Moograbim Gate, making our way to the Heart of our people, the place where Jews have longed to return for over a few millennia. Many of us were a bit nervous for fear of making any move that might be interpreted as provocative or disrespectful

We finally reached planet Temple Mount.

The Waqf representative who awaited us at the entrance to the site was anything but polite. I seriously felt like I was entering a forced labor camp. “Why don’t you cover your boobs?” He shouted at one of my fellow teachers who was, in my view, dressed very modestly. “Don’t you realize that this is a holy place?” he kept reproofing her. At that point I was sincerely searching for the whip that he might be holding in his hand.

No, it was not a pleasant atmosphere for us.

As we were making our way around the site with our very knowledgeable and careful tour guide, we were constantly followed by a representative of the Waqf listening in to what was said. At one point, the guard went aside to make a telephone call. Our tour guide seemed terrified for fear that he must have said something wrong.

More of that gnawing unfriendly and unwelcome feeling.

That day was an especially hot day. The hot sun was hitting us mercilessly. The only shade in whose comforting shelter we could find temporary respite was the one cast by the Golden dome building. Some of us approached it only to be chastised by the guards who told us that we were not allowed to get close to the place.

At that point I was already looking forward to leaving the place. I no longer felt free in my Home, the Home of my People and the dwelling place of its soul. I was crying for my People’s soul. It was trapped underneath a golden dome unable to free itself, its wings broken, its limbs shackled to a different planet, unable to share the joy of Freedom, of reunification and rededication between a Nation and its Historical, Religious and Political essence. There was no Freedom on the Mount. After all, the words of Hatikvah, above, did not say "Eretz Yisrael". They specifically refer to “The Land of Tzion and Yerushalayim?” To me, Temple Mount has been the embodiment of Eretz Tzion V’irushalayim.

This Pesach has, therefore, added yet another meaning, another significance to my Jewish existence. I have had a brief encounter with Jewish history and its sad chapters. This year, more than before, the words of Hatikvah will continue to resonate with me, as I still harbor the Hope that we will one day be reunited in Freedom and Bliss with what was ours and forever will be.

May we all have a Happy and Meaningful Pesach.

This article was written together with Moshe Dagan.

Little Saint Hugh of Lincoln revisited

                                                                        

Spring is upon us again. For us, Jews and Am Yisrael, this season connotes a spell of rejuvenation, a season of joy, celebration of freedom and our renewed covenant with G-d and His eternal blessing. Unfortunately, this time of year brings to mind other, not so pleasant undertones, historical and current. It is also the time of year when ancient baseless accusations against our people rear their ugly heads again. Yes, I am talking about the rebirth of the old  Blood Libel. It was only a few days ago that I read, in this paper, a chilling interview with the Egyptian politician, Khaled Zaafrani, on al-Hafez TV, a salafist Egyptian station. The interview took place in 2013. There, Zaafrani said that "it is well known that during Passover they make matzos called the "Blood of Zion." They take a Christian child, slit his throat, and slaughter him....they never forgo this rite." More recently, according to the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), an Egyptian journalist, Firnas Hafzi wrote the following in the Egyptian monthly 'Al Kibar,' "The Jews combined the preparations of Mazos and the offering up of sacrifices with their enmity towards non-Jews, especially Christians, and mixed the blood of one of their victims into the matzos dough."

Evidently, "matzah blood libel" is alive and well not only in Egypt but throughout the Arab and muslim world where such narratives find fertile ground. Moreover, such accusations do nothing but serve to further fan the already wild fires of hatred in cultures that are steeped in darkness and obscurantism.

Blood libels are not a modern concept. Jews and Christians were accused of the practice of drinking human blood by pagans who misunderstood the meaning of the doctrine of drinking the blood of Christ and eating the Eucharist. Prior to that, King Antiochus the IV (215-164 BCE), in his anti-Jewish propaganda, claimed that Greek prisoners were held in the Temple in Jerusalem for the purpose of drinking their blood

Scholars believe that modern day blood libel originated in in 1144 in Norwich, England where a twelve-year-old boy, William, disappeared. Jews were accused with kidnapping child and draining his blood. Though it was never proved that the allegations were true, it did not stop the incident from gaining impetus and prevent it from growing.

 According to Rabbi Ken Spiro of Aish Hatorah, “the most famous of all blood libel legends is that of the ritual murder of the child Hugh of Lincoln, England in 1255.” The story was eternalized in a ballad entitled, ”Little Saint Hugh of Lincoln.” Rabbi Spiro adds that this ballad is “so well-known in England and Scotland that it is number 155 in the standard cannon of English and Scottish ballads compiled by Francis James Child in the 19th century.” 

For an unfounded claim that was revived and repeated during the dismal, bleak period called the dark ages and with the help of the Church trickled into every aspect of the daily lives, one would hope that, by now, the world has learned some lessons from history and do all it can to disassociate itself from it. Unfortunately, it does not seem to be the case.

In 1987, I taught Hebrew to mostly Jewish students in one of the top public schools in Texas. One day one of student shared with me that one of the other teachers had jokingly suggested that his Jewish students were preparing for the Christmas holiday by murdering a Christian child in order to use its blood for their Jewish rituals. My student responded to such a suggestion was: ““Actually, we do it only at Passover and we use the blood to bake the matzah, our traditional unleavened bread.”

Naturally, I did not find that a laughing matter. I doubted many of my students even grasped the severity of the comment. It raised the strong urge in me to educate them about the sick rumor called “blood Libel” which had caused the untimely death of many of our fellow Jews throughout history. I insisted that they all read Malamud’s novel “The Fixer,” a novel based on the Beilis case which took place in Russia in the early twentieth century. Additionally, I approached the teacher, discussed the issue with him and and got him to apologize to my students.

An apology is also the least I would expect from anyone, a person, an institution or a public figure who in our time and age dares to slander us, Am Yisrael and the Jewish people with such unfounded allegations This is what I believe Yisrael should insist upon unless, of course,  an apology is reserved only to us, for our refusal to disappear and for our strong wish to continue to survive and live in a world that cannot see right from wrong.

Who put the "ism" in "Islamism?"

                                                                

This article was written jointly with Dr. Mordechai Kedar of Bar-Ilan University

The term “Islamism” which we hear much of nowadays, is not new. Dr. Kedar and I will spare the readers the history of the term except to mention that it first appeared in English as in 1712 and originally denoted the religion of Islam (Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 27 December 2012). After virtually disappearing from the English language, it regained prevalence in the 1970’s. Nowadays the term is widely used. Its contemporary connotations infer “Radical” or “Fundamental” Islam.

As Dr. Kedar rightfully argues, the above distinction is wrong. “There are not two Islams,” he claims, “no moderate one and no radical one, there is just one Qu'ran that includes everything: verses on Jihad and all-out war against unbelievers along with verses that speak of recognizing the "other" and living beside him.”  In other words, everything can be found in the Qu’ran, the good and the bad. Those that choose the tolerant, the benevolent aspects of Islam claim that theirs is the right kind of Islam yet those who adhere to the more violent preaching of Qu’ran assert that theirs is the true Islam.

The claim by many moderate Muslim that their Islam has been hijacked by the “fundamentalists” or “Islamists,” amounts to no more than a struggle born of their wish to enter the mainstream of western societies. This claim, however, moves on a two way street. “Radical” Muslims will, likewise, maintain that the “moderate” ones have hijacked theirs version, interpretation and practice of Islam.

Herein lies the dilemma that many, mostly in the Western world, face. It is a well-known fact that some of Islam’s teachings and practices are not compatible with Western Civilization. With followers numbering more than a billion people, the world needs to reckon with this demographic issue in a manner that will ensure its survival. It knows that most followers of Islam (“radicals” and “moderates” alike) are loyal to their faith. Very few leave Islam to become members of another faith. The Western world is also aware that their numbers are not only growing but that they are also moving in their direction, into their societies, into their universe and their, thus far, protected environment.

This is where language as a tool, a means to achieve the goal of facilitating the compatibility between Islam and the West has become dexterous. Why not just resort to the easy simple solution, add “ism” to Islam in order to distinguish, to separate between “radical “ Muslims and “moderate” ones? The “ism,” many believe, is the panacea that will make Islam “kosher” and harmonious with the West and consequently ready to join its families.



The suffix “Ism,” according to the Cambridge Dictionaries Online, “is a set of beliefs, especially ones that you disapprove of.”  The key word here is “disapprove.” Of course we disapprove of the manner in which “radical” Muslims act. Who, in Western Civilization, would not? Disapproval, however, can be demonstrated in more than one way. It could be passive, it could be voiced more vigorously and when taken to the extreme it can become violent.

The latter is what the West and most Muslims in the West wish to avoid and rightfully so. It is probably what those whom we label as “Islamists” would wish to draw us into. That, of course, leaves us with the former two. Passive resistance through the use of Love as a weapon to overthrow the “ism” in Islam is of course a noble concept. It does not, however, always work.

“Moderate” Muslims need to take a more active role to defend the reputation of the Islam that they choose to practice. They need to publicly speak out, demonstrate, and express outrage and disagreement with the evil among them. Though initially the addition of “ism” to Islam may have somewhat been useful in defending “moderate” Muslims, ultimately it will prove to be falsely reassuring if it fails to push them to act against their “radical” brethren. Hiding behind suffixes, expecting them to save the good name and the positive image of one’s set of beliefs merely boil down to a futile effort initiated and promoted by a world obsessed with PC.

Not until Islam gives rise to its own Martin Luther, its own reformist, will there be redemption for its reputation. Only Muslims can save the reputation of Islam.