ed note–as always, lots of ‘must knows’ that every war-weary Gentile with a vested interest in his/her own future survival needs to understand about all of this.
Firsto, ladies and Gentile-men, the notion that Jewish terrorism ‘isn’t Jewish’ is as farcical and detached from reality as saying that water isn’t wet and fire isn’t hot, and it is only a liar or a fool who tries to make that case.
In the case of the essay below, given the fact that the author is a stinking rabbi who knows his Torah-Judah-ism better than Lucifer does, (its original author) and particularly what it says about the application of violence, (and especially against Gentiles) means that he is not a fool at all, but rather a forked-tongue liar, to wit–
‘When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are to possess and drives out the 7 nations larger and stronger than you, and when you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them, show them no mercy, and do not allow anything that breathes to remain alive, for you are a people holy to the Lord your God who has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession…’ Book of Deuteronomy
as well as–
‘Now go and attack Amalek and totally destroy all that belongs to them… Do not spare them, but put to death all the men and women, the children and suckling infants, as well as their cattle, sheep, camels, and donkeys…’ 1 Samuel 15:3
Again, the notion that somehow this ‘learned elder of Zion’ is not aware that these aforelisted verses are as much part of his Judah-ism as teeth are ‘part’ of an alligator is not even worth considering for a micro-second.
He knows…
But he also knows that right now, what’s DESPERATELY needed is a dash of Judaic black magic in anesthetizing the Gentile mind that is ‘waking up’ to the violent ‘protocols’ of Judah-ism, its people, and its state, that right now are the cause of so much instability and turmoil in the world today.
And how do we know this is the case, fellow war-weary Gentiles?
Because the rabbi says so himself, to wit–
‘It (Jewish terrorism against Palestinians) may have an impact on the opinions of those who are not antisemitic per se, but who may be on the fence as to whether they should support the Jewish people and the Jewish state, and a Judaism that seems to glorify power and violence weakens the Jews’ standing in the world. ‘
To which we respond with–
YABBA, DABBA, DOO…
Still, despite all of this, DOUBTLESS there will be that horde of intolerably-stupid Gentiles who will pass this ‘Jewish terrorism isn’t Jewish’ nonsense around in all their social media accounts with some comment reeking of–
‘A beautiful essay written by a true Jew who is telling the truth about his Judah-ism’…
And the stinking rabbi, when he reads those comments, will shake his licey head, smile, and say to himself, ‘mission accomplished’.
Rabbi Yosef Blau for Times of Israel
Wielding violence is antithetical to Judaism, so why don’t religious Zionist leaders censure the Jews who attack their Arab neighbors?
Since the cruelty and brutality of the Hamas massacre on October 7, 2023, Israeli society has hardened. Young people who have been at war for some two and a half years, whether in the army or in the reserves, are clearly affected. The religious Zionist community, which sees military service in profoundly religious terms and which has suffered disproportionate losses in the war, has also reacted to this shift in society. One deeply troubling trend is the reshuffling of Jewish power as a value that supersedes other Jewish principles.
This focus on power is a dramatically different perspective from the high ethical standard that Jews have maintained for centuries of being a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. The Torah presents an expectation that adherents to Judaism will be ethical, and beyond that, Judaism, as it has traditionally been understood, demands a striving for holiness and the refining of each individual’s character.
From the time of the prophets until the present, the Jewish people have striven to epitomize compassion and justice. True, the standard was not and is not maintained by every Jew, but replacing the standard with an interpretation of a Judaism that glorifies power and violence weakens the Jews’ standing in the world.
Antisemites will use anything and nothing as an excuse to turn on the Jews.
That means that the onus for antisemitic sentiment and actions is on the antisemites themselves, and those who would blame the Jews for their own conduct as a cause of antisemitism can safely be ignored.
But Jewish behavior is nonetheless significant.
For starters, it may have an impact on the opinions of those who are not antisemitic per se, but who may be on the fence as to whether they should support the Jewish people and the Jewish state. Moreover, how we Jews treat ourselves and others certainly has bearing on how we perceive ourselves.
In Israeli media, competing visions of Israel are borne out in contemporary internal conflicts. That is, the debate that takes center stage is whether Israel is a liberal democracy or a theocratic state.
But the question of what is authentically Jewish in this contemporary Jewish state that wields actual power has not yet been considered seriously. But this question – what does Judaism say about wielding power in a sovereign Jewish country – is essential. Authentic, fundamental Jewish values have not changed, and their implications for the state warrant thoughtful deliberation and application.
Recently, the head of the IDF Central Command, Major General Avi Bluth, spoke at a conference in Alon Shevut about violence at the hands of Jews in the territory under his jurisdiction. After deliberately naming it, ‘Jewish terrorism,’ he described the potential catastrophic consequences and concluded by saying (in Hebrew), ‘It isn’t Jewish.’
Major General Bluth is an Orthodox Jew. He is the product of Israel’s religious Zionist education. He cannot be accused of any deficiency in his commitment to Israel’s security. He wears both his basic religious sensibility and his upholding of the IDF’s ethical code on his sleeve. And his rejection of violence against Palestinians was instinctive – to the extent that he denied any connection between those actions and Judaism itself.
To be clear, the people whose actions he addressed – those Jews bringing violence to his jurisdiction – regard themselves as very seriously committed Jews. Their supporters do too. Indeed, the silence of many religious Zionist rabbis and Jewish educators seems to reflect not only respect for these people’s religious commitment, but also sympathy for the zeal and motivation behind their violence, if not full support of the attacks.
The fact that Major General Bluth’s instinctive rejection of this Jewish terrorism stands out and is not the automatic response of the leadership of this sector of Israel’s religious population raises serious questions about the values of the community.