Rav Kook, Teshuvat HaPrat, Teshuvat HaKlal and Shoftim

The Hebrew month of Elul has begun, and teshuva, return, repentance, is in the air. Elul is the penitential month in the Jewish calendar, before Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur. The third of Elul, was the Yahrtzeit of Rav Avraham Yitzhak HaKohen Kook, Chief Rabbi of Mandatory Palestine and the visionary High Priest of Israel’s Redemption. He returned his soul to his creator in 1935. Yet, his immortal words about teshuva and redemption ring on...

“Teshuva comes from the longing of the entire universe to become better and more pure, stronger and more elevated than its current state. At the core of this drive is a life-force that triumphs over the limited, weak character of natural existence. The repentance of an individual, and certainly of the nation, draws its strength from this life-force, which flows unceasingly, at full strength,” (Orot HaTeshuva – Lights of Return, 6:1).

Rav Kook expanded the concept of Teshuva well beyond the individual, encompassing the national and universal dimensions as well. Intertwined, throughout Rav Kook’s thought, are the concepts of teshuva, and the redemption of the nation of Israel.

Rav Kook in Orot HaTeshuva (15:10), talks of return to one’s self, “When we forget the essence of our own soul…everything becomes confused and in doubt. The primary teshuva, that which immediately lights the darkness, is when a person returns to himself, to the root of his soul. Then he will immediately return to God, to the soul of all souls...This happens within the individual Jew, the nation of Israel, all humanity and all of existence, which is regularly damaged, through the forgetting of its basic essence.”

According to Rav Kook, teshuva is returning to our true selves, individually and collectively as a nation, and thus to God.

In Orot HaTehiya – Lights of Revival 9, Rav Kook says, “An individual can sever himself from the source of life, but not so, the entire Jewish nation. The national assets, which are beloved to the nation….are all invested with the spirit of God: her land, language, history, and customs...the spirit of the Lord and the [national] spirit of Israel are one.”

During these early days of Elul, we find the intersection of teshuva, Rav Kook, his redemptive vision, and the ideal national structure of the Jewish people in their homeland, the Land of Israel, described in this week’s Torah reading, Parshat Shoftim. We find both Teshuvat HaPrat (individual teshuva) and Teshuvat HaKlal (national teshuva, i.e. the return of the Nation of Israel to its land, and to its soulful essence).

The Torah shows the Jewish People, the institutions needed, to build a holy society in Eretz Yisrael (the Land of Israel), that will then become a shining example for the nations, on how to express Tzidkut (righteousness) on the national level.

“Tzedek, Tzedek Tirdof...Justice and Righteousness shall you pursue, so that you may live and possess the land the Lord your God is giving you,” (Deuteronomy 16:20).

In Shoftim, we encounter the Mitzvot to appoint a king, and the laws of war (Deut. 17:14-20, 20:1-20); to establish a Torah-based Legal System (Deut. 16:18) and recognize G-d’s prophets (Deut. 18:15); and issues dealing with the Priests and Levites (Deut. 18:1).

Parshat Shoftim describes policies that Jews should be striving to implement today: Malchut/Kingdom, Sanhedrin/Torah, Nevuah/Prophecy, and Kehunah/Holy Temple. It provides the blueprint to building the Tzadik State of Israel, in the time of Redemption.

What is a Tzadik State?

Just like the Torah sets out the structure, of how an individual Jew can best relate to his Creator (through the Mitzvot), and express his/or her personal example of Kedushah (holiness) in the world, it also does it for the Jewish People on the national level. This national structure sets up the framework for individual Jews and the nation as a whole, to reach their full potential. The purpose of their “chosenness.”

“You shall be for Me a kingdom of priests [teachers] and a holy nation,” (Exodus 19:6).

In our generation, HaShem (the God of Israel), is redeeming the Jewish people before our eyes. Besides prayers, longings and individual teshuva, it’s possible to do actual physical acts, for example making Aliyah (move to Israel), settling and building up the Land, serving in the army, etc., all aspects of national teshuva.

And, what can be done, like working to re-establish the Sanhedrin, and preparing all the materials, to rebuild the Beit Hamikdash (Holy Temple), should be done.

Rav Kook wrote presciently, one hundred years ago, “The world order that is now toppling, due to the awesome storms of a sword covered with blood, demands the re-construction of the Jewish nation [in its land].”

“The building of the nation and the discovery of its spirit are one concept, linked to the building of the world, which is disintegrating and longing for a force filled with unity and loftiness...the spirit of God pervades her [Israel]...The voice of God calls loudly, and from the interior of our soul and life’s movements we distinguish it.”

“Israel must uncover the source of its life, to stand apprise of its spiritual character...World civilization totters, man’s spirit weakens, darkness covers all the peoples...But the hour has arrived, the light of the world, the light of the true God, the light of the God of Israel, revealed by his people...must be revealed in consciousness, and the consciousness must be internalized within the nation, to recognize the unity of her talents….When she will recognize that there is a God within her, she will understand how to tap the wellspring of her life, and how to orient her redemptive vision to her essential source.”

“All the world’s civilizations will be renewed through the renewal of our spirit...The blessing of Abraham to all the nations of the earth will commence...with our rebuilding in the Land of Israel. The present destruction, is the preparation of a profound renascence [of Israel and the world].” (Orot MeOfel – Lights from Darkness, 9).

“...To be a light unto the nations, that My salvation may come to the ends of the earth,” (Isaiah 49:6).

Ariel Natan Pasko, an independent analyst and consultant, has a Master's Degree specializing in International Relations, Political Economy & Policy Analysis. His articles appear regularly on numerous news/views and think-tank websites and in newspapers. His latest articles can also be read on his archive: The Think Tank by Ariel Natan Pasko.

(c) 2021/5781 Pasko

 

Consolation: Ben and Jerry’s or the Return of the Jews to Israel?

This week’s Shabbat, is known as Shabbat Nachamu, based on the week’s Haftarah reading from the prophet Isaiah. The Haftarah follows the weekly Torah reading Va’etchanan in synagogues around the world. It begins seven weeks of prophetic readings of consolation (Sheva D’Nechamata); starting after Tisha B’Av (the Jewish people’s national day of mourning over the destruction of Jerusalem, the Beit HaMikdash on the Temple Mount, their murder, and exile from the land), till Rosh HaShanah (the Hebrew calendar New Year).

This same week, Ben and Jerry’s announced their boycott (more on that later).

The prophet Isaiah opens with, “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her time [of exile] has ended...” (Isaiah 40:1-2).

Va’etchanan itself, follows last week’s Torah reading Devarim/Deuteronomy, where Moses began his five week long sermon to the Jewish people, before his death. In it, he summarized the forty year desert experience, reminding the younger generation about to enter the Land of Israel, of the failed mission of the spies. And why, God punished their parent’s generation (for lack of faith in Him and His promise to give them Israel), (Deuteronomy 1:19-46).

In this week’s reading, Va’etchanan, we find nineteen references to the Land of Israel. They include entering, inheriting (a euphemism for conquering), possessing and living in the Promised Israel, or as the Torah calls it several times, HaAretz HaTova (the good land).

Proving the centrality of the Land of Israel to Judaism, and probably the most references to the land, of any parsha in the Torah.

Moses begs God, “let me go over, and see the good land that is on the other side of the Jordan, that goodly mountain (the Temple Mount in Jerusalem – Rashi), and the Lebanon (the Holy Temple – Rashi), (Deuteronomy 3:25).

But God answers no, “...you shall command Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him, for he will lead this people across and will cause them to inherit the land...” (Deuteronomy 3:28).

Then Moses tells Israel, “...hear the decrees and laws I am about to teach you. Follow them so that you may live and may go in and take possession of the land, the Lord, the God of your forefathers, is giving you,” (Deuteronomy 4:1).

Moses continues, “See, I have taught you decrees and laws as the Lord my God commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering to take possession, (Deuteronomy 4:5).

“...the decrees and laws that you shall perform in the land that you are crossing [the Jordan] to inherit,” (Deuteronomy 4:14).

Then Moses returns to why he won’t lead them, “The Lord was angry with me because of you, and he solemnly swore that I would not cross the Jordan and enter the good land, the Lord your God is giving you as your inheritance. I will die in this land; I will not cross the Jordan; but you are about to cross over and take possession of that good land,” (Deuteronomy 4:21-22).

Moses then warns against sinning and its consequences, “...and have lived long in the land, if you then become corrupt and make any kind of idol...that you will quickly perish from the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess.” (Deuteronomy 4:25-26).

Then Moses tells the Jews, “Because He loved your forefathers and chose their descendants [you] after them, he brought you out of Egypt… [He will] drive out before you nations greater and stronger than you, and bring you into their land to give it to you for your inheritance...” (Deuteronomy 4:37-38).

He again warns, “Keep His decrees and commandments, which I am giving you today...that you may live long in the land that the Lord your God gives to you for all time,” (Deuteronomy 4:40).

God then tells Moses, “...all the commands, decrees and laws that you shall teach them to do in the land I am giving them to possess.”

And Moses tells Israel, “Be careful to do what the Lord your God has commanded you; do not turn aside to the right or to the left...so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess,” (Deuteronomy 5:28-30).

Moses reminds them again, “These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God as long as you live...”

“Listen Israel, and be careful to perform [the commandments], so that it may go well with you, and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your forefathers, promised you…When the Lord your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you...” (Deuteronomy 6:1-10).

Moses then tells them, “Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so that it will be good for you, and you may go in and take over the good land the Lord promised to your forefathers, driving out all your enemies before you, as the Lord said...”

“And in the future, when your son asks you, What is the meaning of the testimonies, decrees and laws the Lord our God has commanded you? Tell him, We were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand. Before our eyes the Lord sent signs and wonders – great and terrible – on Egypt and Pharaoh and his whole household. He brought us out from there, to bring us in and give us the land he promised on to our ancestors,” (Deuteronomy 6:18-23).

Moses concludes, “When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess and drives out before you many nations, the Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, seven nations larger and stronger than you, and when the Lord your God has delivered them over to you, and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally.”

“Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy,” (Deuteronomy 7:1-2).

Earlier God had told Moses to warn Israel, “But if you [Israel] do not drive out the inhabitants of the land, those you allow to remain will become barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides. They will give you trouble in the land where you will live,” (Numbers 33:55).

Sounds a lot like today; think, recent riots across Israel.

So, thirty nine years earlier, the spies destroyed the Jewish people’s enthusiasm to enter the Land of Israel. Then, Moses describes God’s promise to bring them into the land, the conditions to successfully live there, i.e. keep His Torah and Mitzvot; conquer the land and drive out the evil inhabitants. Moses then warns that sinning will bring exile, and finally the prophet Isaiah promises consolation will come. He descibes the time the exile will end and the Jewish people’s return to the land will begin.

We today, are living those prophecies of return to Israel… that’s the real consolation to the Jewish people, not whether we eat ice cream or not!

So recently, when Ben & Jerry’s announced that it planed to boycott “the Occupied Palestinian Territories,” it should have caused Jews around the world to laugh with joy…

It seems, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield’s ice cream, like themselves, will not be sharing in the consolation any longer. Their loss!

“The Occupied Palestinian Territories,” it was assumed, meant Jewish towns and villages in Judea and Samaria, (West Bank settlements), and Jewish neighborhoods of eastern Jerusalem. Anuradha Mittal, chairwoman of Ben & Jerry’s Independent Board of Directors, later clarified, “The statement released by Ben & Jerry’s regarding its operation in Israel and the Occupied Palestine Territory, does not reflect the position of the Independent Board, nor was it approved by the Independent Board.”

Truth be told, the Ben & Jerry’s Board, wanted to boycott Israel entirely, but was stopped from doing so by Unilever, the parent company. Pity, just after Tisha B’Av, the spies’ sin has been repeated again, and just after we read about it last week in the Torah, how interesting.

Avi Zinger, CEO of Ben & Jerry’s Israel, the franchise owner in Israel, said he was unwilling to boycott Israeli citizens in Judea and Samaria, and was legally prevented from doing so. As a result, Ben & Jerry’s plans to cancel the franchise in 2022.

Ben & Jerry’s decision might cause them problems in the US though. Thirty four states in the US have “anti-boycott of Israel” laws, that mandate their state governments to stop doing business with companies that boycott Israel, and 21 of those, explicitly include in their boycott definition, towns in Judea and Samaria.

Officials in five states, Florida, Texas, New York, New Jersey and Illinois are already checking into whether the move, will require divestment from Ben & Jerry’s parent company Unilever, under their various state laws.

So whether we eat this or that ice cream, the unfolding Redemption of the Jewish people continues unabated. Jewish national life has returned to the Land of Israel, and will continue long past the extinction of Ben & Jerry’s, and their founders.

Now that’s real consolation!

Ariel Natan Pasko, an independent analyst and consultant, has a Master's Degree specializing in International Relations, Political Economy & Policy Analysis. His articles appear regularly on numerous news/views and think-tank websites and in newspapers. His latest articles can also be read on his archive: The Think Tank by Ariel Natan Pasko.

(c) 2021/5781 Pasko

Rambam and Aliyah to the Temple Mount

Earlier in the week, the 20^th of Tevet, marked the Yom Hillula (day of festivity) or Yahrtzeit, of the Rambam (Maimonides). He died in 1204. So, I thought it would be interesting to look at a major event in his life, that might have been missed by some, back at the end of October.

The Torah reading was Parshat Noah, the Hebrew date was the 6th of Cheshvan. It marked 855 years since the Rambam, made Aliyah (went up), to Har HaBayit (the Temple Mount), in the Old City of Jerusalem, and prayed...

Something the Israeli government officially forbids Jews to do today!

Jews that go up to the Temple Mount today, are warned by Israeli police, not to pray, yet they are still regularly harassed by Arabs and Wakf officials. The Wakf people commonly make a commotion and then get the Israeli police involved, who then often remove the Jews from the mount. For example, last month, a Jew youth was detained in a humiliating manner (Chillul HaShem – showing weakness in the eyes of the enemy – the Wakf), and removed from the Temple Mount, after he was found with tefillin in his pocket, according to Temple Mount activist Arnon Segal.

It’s not only the Wakf officials on the Temple Mount, but the Palestinian Authority’s Ministry of Waqf and Religious Affairs, who regularly work against Jewish rights on the mount. In a report issued by them, they alleged that there were more than 24 cases of “desecration of the al-Aqsa Mosque by Occupation forces and settlers,” during the month of December, 2020. They also claimed that Israeli security forces prevented the Muezzin (call for prayer) from being sounded in the Ibrahimi Mosque (Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron) from being heard 46 times.

But the Palestinians don’t just harass Jews... 

Recently, Abdul Rahman al-Lahim, a Saudi lawyer with a quarter of a million Twitter followers, called “to free the Al-Aqsa Mosque from the Palestinian brats,” in a post on his Twitter account. He Tweeted, after Palestinian Arabs cursed other Arab visitors to the Temple Mount from Arab states, which had recently signed normalization agreements with Israel. “It is very important that the Emirates, Bahrain and Israel seek, after the peace agreements, to find a tool to liberate the Al-Aqsa Mosque from the Palestinian brats, in a way that will ensure that visitors to Al-Aqsa are protected from Palestinian bullying,” he wrote. He called the PA control of the Temple Mount, “the rape of Al Aqsa.”

On the 6th of Cheshvan, in the Hebrew year 4926, 1165 CE, the Rambam made Aliyat HaRegal (pilgrimage) to Har HaBayit, visiting other areas around Jerusalem and Hebron as well.

The event was so special to the Rambam, that he vowed to make it a personal holiday and commemorate it annually.

Jews still commemorate it till today… Ascending the Temple Mount on Rambam Day, 5780

The Rambam, wasn’t just another radical, right-wing political rabbi. But one of the greatest rabbis of all time, both in Halacha (Jewish law), and Jewish thought. His most well known work, is the 14 volume Mishneh Torah, (literally, The Repetition of the Torah), which was the first comprehensive, systematic codification of the entire Halacha, including, Hilchot Beit HaBechira (the Laws of the Temple – the Rambam assumed Jews would rebuild it). His work became the basis for later codifications, most notably, the Shulchan Aruch, written by Rabbi Yosef Karo in the 16th century. Yet, the Shulchan Aruch didn’t even cover all the areas of Jewish law that the Mishneh Torah did.

The Rambam in describing his pilgrimage to Israel said:

“We left Akko (the port city of Acre), for Jerusalem under perilous conditions. I entered into ‘the great and holy house’ and prayed there on the sixth day of the month of Cheshvan. And on the first day of the week, the ninth day of the month of Cheshvan, I left Jerusalem for Hebron to kiss the graves of my forefathers in the Cave of Machpela. And on that very day, I stood in the Cave and I prayed, praised be God for everything. And these two days, the sixth [when he prayed on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem] and the ninth of Cheshvan, I vowed to make as a special holiday, in which, I will rejoice with prayer, food and drink. May the Lord help me to keep my vows....” (translation, courtesy of the Temple Institute).

What was this “Great and Holy House” the Rambam talks about?

Many believe that this place was the synagogue that existed on the Temple Mount, a house of worship that had remained empty and deserted ever since the Crusaders occupied the mountain sixty-six years earlier. Others suggest that he didn’t pray in the synagogue on the Temple Mount, because it had been destroyed by the Crusaders, instead, he prayed on the Temple Mount at a place that was near where the Holy Temple once stood.

Either way, it’s clear he prayed on the Temple Mount and at the Cave of Machpela; something that Jews are still struggling with, to do, today.

Ariel Natan Pasko, an independent analyst and consultant, has a Master's Degree specializing in International Relations, Political Economy & Policy Analysis. His articles appear regularly on numerous news/views and think-tank websites and in newspapers. His latest articles can also be read on his archive: The Think Tank by Ariel Natan Pasko.

(c) 2021/5781 Pasko

 

Jonathan Pollard for President of Israel

 About a month ago, five years to the day, after Jonathan Pollard was paroled (with severe restrictions) from the federal penitentiary, the US Parole Commission issued a certificate terminating parole and removing the restrictions that were imposed on him. He had served an excessive thirty years, of his injust life sentence, for transmitting classified information to Israel (convicted of Espionage, not Treason), in helping a friendly state.

Now he and his wife Esther, have come to Israel.

Minister of Diaspora Affairs, Omer Yankelevich, tweeted Tuesday night: “Jonathan, how good it is that you’ve come home.”

It’s been claimed that Pollard only turned over to the Israelis, intelligence information that the Americans were obligated to pass on to Israel, under their security and defense cooperation agreements, but were holding back. Therefore, embarrassing the Americans.

Details of his case, and the campaign to free Pollard, can be found at Justice for Johnathan Pollard.

But even with his release, the Americans and Israelis still have some Teshuva (repentance) to do, more on that later...

Many public officials and personalities expressed gratitude, the day parole termination had finally come. Some had even raised the issue of the cruel treatment, by the Americans, and betrayal by Israeli officials in the past.

The Women in Green movement, which struggled for Pollard’s release for years, welcomed the American decision not to extend Pollard’s restrictions.

Movement leaders, Yehudit Katsover and Nadia Matar, emphasized that the decision marks long years of injustice imposed on Pollard by the American legal system. “Every day that Pollard was imprisoned or confined was a day of grave injustice...The day Pollard comes to Israel will be a holiday for the entire Jewish people.”

“The entire State of Israel owes him a lot and it is doubtful whether it will be able to return to him a little of what it received from him, but it is its duty to do everything to give him all the best it has, they stated.”

That’s why I propose nominating Pollard for President of Israel. Elections by the Knesset members will be held in July 2021. What better way to celebrate his homecoming.

Katsover and Matar also said, “The State of Israel accepts Jonathan with great love...this slightly reduces the moral flaw, that clung to it, when it abandoned him and closed its gates to him.”

Former Defense Minister and Yamina Party Chairman Naftali Bennett welcomed the removal of restrictions on Jonathan Pollard at the time saying, “V’Shavu Banim L’gvulam, ‘and the sons return to their borders.’ The State of Israel owes a deep debt to Jonathan Pollard who gave us over 30 years of his life, and we are waiting to welcome him and embrace him here, in the land of Israel which is his home, as soon as possible.”

So, now that pollard has landed in Israel, I assume that Bennett would back a movement to draft Pollard for President of Israel.

Yamina Knesset Faction Chairwoman MK Ayelet Shaked also spoke out when Pollard’s parole was terminated, “In the 19th Knesset, I served as Chairwoman of the lobby for the return of Pollard and as Justice Minister, I continued my activities until his release and thereafter. I sincerely hope that in the near future he and Esther will establish their home in Israel.”

Petach Tikva’s mayor, Rami Greenberg, quickly promised last month, to name a square in the city center, “Jonathan Pollard Square.” Greenberg also expressed gratitude to the Trump administration, for terminating the limitations of Pollard’s parole.

Safed Chief Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, who visited Jonathan Pollard in prison in the United States over the years, told Kan Moreshet last month, “I think that American Jewry should perhaps ask him for forgiveness. In an attempt to be considered kosher Americans, they simply ignored him. They forget that we are each other’s guardians and it’s not possible that they would turn their backs on someone who gave so much of himself for the people of Israel, what a waste.”

It’s true, organized American Jewry, fearful of the duel-loyalty accusation, pretty much hid their heads in the sand, while Pollard rotted in prison.

Rabbi Eliyahu then added, “If it were not for the people in Israel who sold him to the Americans, he would not have sat in prison. All the evidence that indicted him and put him in prison for so many years, was given by people in Israel. I heard these things directly from him when I was with him...There are people who were ministers in the government, two of them, who committed this crime, which is why Pollard was in prison. He did everything he did for the people of Israel, for the State of Israel. We should have lain on the fence for him but people preferred to save their skin and sell him out, which is a very serious matter...I did not name names, we are now in a happy time, but there were two people who could have saved him and they did not,” he added.

I’m sure that Shaked and Rabbi Eliyahu would support a movement to make Jonathan Pollard, President of Israel. That would be the real Teshuva, the State of Israel could do for him.

Asher Mivzari, an activist prominent in the movement to free Jonathan Pollard, also blamed the Americans, “On the one hand, there is great joy and we are thankful to God that he survived all these thirty difficult years in prison, and another five years under restrictions. On the other hand, it’s late, because he should have been released long ago, even in terms of simple justice. For what he did in the US, you usually get five years in prison, but here there was such a severe punishment, that was out of all proportion. Even American officials [including those involved with his case] have stated that he should have been released long ago in terms of American justice,” Mivzari pointed out.

That’s why I say America still has a day of reckoning to come...

Mivzari also noted, the frequent visits of the late Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu to Pollard, “The rabbi visited Pollard ten times and this is something that gave him a lot of strength to hold on and survive throughout all those years. All these years he also did not think only of himself, he was very concerned for the people of Israel, for the State of Israel, for people who were hurt, injured in terrorist attacks and other things. His thoughts were not only about himself. He knew the problems and failures that had happened, but mostly his thoughts were on how to help the people of Israel and the State of Israel and his dream was to come and join the people of Israel and contribute all he can with the rest of his strength and do everything he can.”

What a fine concerned and selfless example to young Israelis, Pollard would be, as President of Israel. But not everyone is even happy that Pollard was finally released from all restrictions.

Former PM Ehud Olmert blasted the US government’s decision to nullify Jonathan Pollard’s parole restrictions. He argued, “With all due respect, I would prefer that he not move to Israel. We don’t owe him anything. He was a spy who worked for a lot of money. He was not a Zionist volunteer who came and sacrificed his life.”

Olmert is one to talk about taking money, the jailbird.

He continued, Pollard “was an American who loved Israel and worked for a lot of money, spying for Israel. His spying was beneficial [to Israel], but when taking a full account, the damage caused to Israel’s interests, as a result of revealing his involvement, was the harshest in the history of US-Israel relations.”

“The danger of increasing this damage has not ended. If the prime minister will act like he does and have a festive welcoming ceremony for Pollard, we will pay a heavy price when there will soon be a new administration in America, worried Olmert.”

This is a non sequitur, because an incoming Biden administration already is planning a tough time for Israel. Just take a peak at the likely appointments Biden’s going to make, many of them Clinton operatives. A moderate-Left Democrat administration, will return Israel to the tone of the Obama years, with new problems. For example, the Trump Plan’s vision of a Palestinian state was encapsulated in policy for the first time, and for the first time, was formally agreed to, by the current Israeli government.

Yisrael Beitenu leader, Avigdor Liberman, has also criticized Pollard, in an interview with KAN Radio. He said that Israel should not have drafted Pollard as a spy, and that his moving to Israel should not be celebrated.

What has Lieberman ever done to promote Israeli security?

How far Lieberman has fallen, from his Hebrew University student days, as a campus activist for Rabbi Meir Kahane’s far-right pro-Jewish Kach Movement.

And, idiot, pardon my English accent, Yedioth Ahronoth columnist, Nahum Barnea, who seems to have learned nothing since the Oslo War (Second Intifada), even with losing a son in the war; wrote, “Pollard does not have the heroism of the Nili organization, not even that of Eli Cohen. Have some proportion.” He, also opposes making Pollard a “national hero.”

Well, I don’t agree with Olmert, Lieberman, and Barnea, so much so, that I believe Pollard should be elected President of Israel.

Recently in an interview with 103 Radio FM, former PM Ehud Barak commented on the possibility of Netanyahu trying to get elected as the country’s president, to avoid facing criminal charges, calling it a “black day in Israel’s democracy.” This idea has been bandied about for awhile already. Barak also accused Netanyahu of tending to his personal affairs, while the country found itself mired in the “worst crisis in its history.”

I can agree with Barak, that Netanyahu should step aside from the race. Netanyahu’s often been accused of being Machiavellian, and politically very self-serving, this is his chance to go beyond that. I suggest to Netanyahu, since he’s claimed for years, that he’s done all he could to free Jonathan Pollard, he take the bold and courageous step, to throw his weight behind Pollard for President of Israel.

The position is largely ceremonial, as head of state, Pollard would represent Israel at conferences, state festivities, etc. The most significant action the president can take, is to grant pardons to prisoners, similar to the American president. Its the perfect “non-partisan” position for him, within the Israeli political constellation.

Who could best empathize with the pain of prisoners and their families, to give them a fair shake, and possibly overturn an injustice, than someone who sat in prison unjustly for thirty years, for the security of the Jewish people, and State of Israel?

Jonathan Pollard for President of Israel!

Ariel Natan Pasko, an independent analyst and consultant, has a Master's Degree specializing in International Relations, Political Economy & Policy Analysis. His articles appear regularly on numerous news/views and think-tank websites and in newspapers. His latest articles can also be read on his archive: The Think Tank by Ariel Natan Pasko.

(c) 2020/5781 Pasko

Born Free, Die Free, L’Hiyot Am Chofshi

“Give me liberty, or give me death!” This emotional outburst by Patrick Henry, from a speech he made to the Second Virginia Convention in 1775, swung the vote, convincing the convention, to pass a resolution to send Virginian troops, for the American Revolutionary War effort.

It seems the early Americans learned something from the ancient Jews, the value of freedom.

So much so, that the bell that has became known as the Liberty Bell, originally placed in the steeple of the Pennsylvania State House (now called Independence Hall), was inscribed with the verse, “Proclaim LIBERTY Throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants Thereof,” from the Book of Leviticus (25:10).

A copy of the bell, now graces Liberty Bell Park in Jerusalem.

Similarly, modern Israel’s national anthem, HaTikvah, proclaims “L’Hiyot Am Chofshi B’Artzeinu,” to be free people in our land.

Themes of Dror/Liberty and Cherut/Freedom swirl around in my head, as I write this, while the Iron Curtain of Israel’s third “Seger,” CoronaVirus closure/lockdown descends on Israel.

But try what they may, the powers that be in Israel, won’t break us.

Jews have already learned from Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi (Sotah38b), that “Afilu mechitzah shel barzel einah mafseket bein Yisrael L’Avihem shebashamayim, even an iron curtain, can’t separate the people of Israel and their heavenly Father.”

We learned it again, in the late 1980s, when the Berlin Wall fell, and again in 1991, with the fall of the Soviet Union, and the massive waves of Aliyah, Jewish immigration to Israel, that came here, yearning to be free.

But, sad to say, Israel’s political class, it seems, has been working overtime to figure out how to better control people.

And, it’s not just happening in Israel. Throughout the democratic west, shades of Chinese-style societal control are emerging, just as I warned of back in June 2020. Politicians have been making power-grabs everywhere in the name of the “crisis.”

Many in Israel, have speculated that Netanyahu has used the CoronaCrisis, to distract from his corruption cases.

Yamina party leader MK Naftali Bennett recently said, “Things didn’t have to be this way. Millions of Israeli citizens are now going into a political lockdown, simply because the Netanyahu government placed political considerations above all else.”

So, we enter another deprivation period, of our basic human rights and civil liberties, in spite of the fact that over 130 doctors complained already back in July, that the government’s policy had no chance of succeeding, and actually caused an increase in morbidity and death rates.

Even the Knesset’s Coronavirus Committee pushed back at the time, on some of the government’s restrictions, but recently, committee chairwoman Yifat Shasha-Biton (formerly of Likud), has left the ruling junta, and joined Gideon Sa’ar’s new political party, New Hope.

Who will fight against Lockdowns and other frivolous policies, from within the belly of the beast (Likud-led government) now?

Will “New Hope” take up the call? After checking out their website, there is no sign of hope, no CoronaVirus Policy is discussed.

Back in July, thousands took to the streets to protest the economic and social damage inflicted to the Israeli body politic.

Will Israelis take to the streets this time?

In September, doctors and scientists in Israel protested the High Holiday Lockdown, and questioned the accuracy of Israel’s CoronaVirus death count.

Also in September, Professor Carl Heneghan, director of the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine at Oxford University, expressed his opposition to a second nationwide lockdown in the United Kingdom. He said a lockdown merely “delays the inevitable,” it would push future cases into the winter, when the danger of comorbidities with influenza and/or pneumonia could make the epidemic far more dangerous.

Is that what this third Lockdown will do to Israel?

Or, will they decide to extend the Lockdown, as some officials have already called for, beyond the two to four weeks, further into February, or beyond? While promising a panacea with vaccinations?

Meanwhile, nearly half of Israelis oppose this third Lockdown.

Then again, about 40% of Israelis say, “I don't want them injecting me with anything.”

And, in response to the news of a Health Ministry recommendation, that a mandatory vaccine law, be enacted to deal with vaccine refusers, former MK Moshe Feiglin wrote on his Facebook page, “You'll have to kill me before you stick a syringe in me with this vaccine.”

About two weeks ago, one hundred doctors signed a petition against closures and restrictions. “We, doctors in Israel,” they wrote, “strongly protest against coercive measures to prevent COVID-19 spread, which include lockdown, curfew, shutting down the education system, surveillance, and traffic restrictions. It is our job to warn of the slippery and dangerous slope of violating rights and taking away liberties that the State of Israel is galloping towards.”

They continued, “As far as CoronaVirus is concerned, coercive measures, especially enforcing movement restrictions of any kind, are destructive and dangerous, and have nothing to do with the medical profession. The basis for taking them is not medical.”

And, just about a week ago, members of the Public Emergency Council for the Coronavirus Crisis, which includes senior Israeli doctors and researchers, warned that a third Lockdown would be a “national disaster.”

During their press conference, they stated, “The Public Emergency Council for the Coronavirus Crisis was established, with no economic or political interests, in order to say no to further lockdowns, and that an immediate change in the manner in dealing with the outbreak is required. It is time for the public to know the scientific truth.”

This all follows an international effort by more than 50,000 medical & public health scientists, and medical practitioners, who have joined a movement called, “the Great Barrington Declaration,” warning that the lockdown approach, is having a devastating impact on physical and mental health as well as on societies, as a whole.

Yet, one Israeli newspaper recently wrote in their editorial, regarding the third Lockdown, “While it is legitimate to take the handling of the CoronaVirus crisis into account when deciding how to vote on election day, it is not legitimate to violate the CoronaVirus regulations because of a particular religious or political belief.”

Say bye bye, to freedom of religion, speech and assembly in Israel. Media supported. Seems eerily similar to the mainstream and social media in America, that worked hard to suppress contrarian views and brought Biden (seemingly) to power.

Then we heard about “GreenPassports,” that vaccinated Israelis will get, waiving lockdown restrictions, allowing them access to cultural events, malls, restaurants,and the like. Creating two classes of citizens in Israel, some with less rights than others.

But in America, there’s been a massive pushback against local and state politicians, over gym, restaurant, small business, and religious services closures. Many breaking the law and remaining open. That’s why the Republicans blasted the Democrats down ballot in the recent elections.

Will Israelis, this time learn from the Americans?

So far, I only see Sheeple, not the proud, free Jews of yesteryear, who declared Israeli independence, fought major wars, and ingathered the exiles.

Will a political party arise, that declares “Diyenu – Enough!”

Enough of these politicians, and their PoliTrix!

Enough of unelected petty bureaucrats wielding so much control over our lives!

Enough of forced closures!

Enough of destroying jobs, businesses, and livelihoods!

Enough of threatening permanent restrictions, if not vaccinated!

“Live Free or Die,” is the official state motto of New Hampshire, in America.

Israelis could use learning that phrase and internalizing it, before they see what civil rights they still have, eroded.

In spite of the dire warnings by politicians, about the CoronaCrisis, Deputy Attorney General Raz Nizri just said that political parties will be able to prepare for the elections under the nationwide CoronaVirus lockdown. “Employees, including volunteers, service providers and candidates on behalf of a party, can leave their homes, under the current legal situation, for the purpose of reaching a party headquarters for their activities,’ Nizri wrote. “Party employees are also allowed to leave their homes in order to work in the public space or anywhere else they are required to work in.”

How serious can the CoronaCrisis be, if the PoliTrix people are still allowed to wander outside, and gather indoors?

New elections are set for March 23, 2021, just days before Pesach (Passover). What an irony, just before the Festival of Freedom.

Back in September, a health communication lecturer at IDC Herzliya International School, Dr. Yaffa Shir Raz, in her Facebook post, predicted that a “commission of inquiry” would eventually be established to investigate the “peddling” of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Will justice ever be meted out to these criminal politicians?

Whether the government’s policies, the vaccines, or just a natural decline of the CoronaVirus through herd immunity will improve the situation, or not, we all should pray, that we be liberated from the political power grabs taking place these days. Elections are coming.

Maybe then we’ll be an “Am Chofshi B’Artzeinu,” free people in our land, as HaTikvah proclaims, just in time for Pesach, the Festival of Freedom.

Ariel Natan Pasko, an independent analyst and consultant, has a Master's Degree specializing in International Relations, Political Economy & Policy Analysis. His articles appear regularly on numerous news/views and think-tank websites and in newspapers. His latest articles can also be read on his archive: The Think Tank by Ariel Natan Pasko.

(c) 2020/5781 Pasko

 

Pollard for President of Israel

Recently, five years to the day, after Jonathon Pollard was paroled (with severe restrictions) from the federal penitentiary, the US Parole Commission issued a certificate terminating parole and removing the restrictions that were imposed on him. He had served an excessive thirty years, of his injust life sentence, for transmitting classified information to Israel (convicted of Espionage, not Treason), in helping a friendly state.

It’s been claimed that Pollard only turned over to the Israelis, intelligence information that the Americans were obligated to pass on to Israel, under their security and defense cooperation agreements, but were holding back.

As such, Jonathon Pollard is now, “free to travel anywhere, including Israel, for temporary or permanent residence, as he wishes,” said his lawyers, Eliot Lauer and Jacques Semmelman.

Details of his case, and the campaign to free Pollard, can be found at Justice for Johnathan Pollard.

But even with his release, the Americans and Israelis still have some Teshuva (repentance) to do, more on that later...

Lauer after the decision, told Israeli Channel 12 TV, that Pollard was “ecstatic” and determined to move to Israel but that it would take some time, because Pollard’s wife is undergoing medical treatment for cancer. Channel 12 TV speculated it could take several weeks.

Many public officials and personalities have expressed gratitude that this day of liberation has finally come. Some have even raised the issue of the cruel treatment, by the Americans, and betrayal by Israeli officials in the past.

The Women in Green movement, which struggled for Pollard’s release for years, welcomed the American decision not to extend Pollard’s restrictions.

Movement leaders, Yehudit Katsover and Nadia Matar, emphasized that the decision marks long years of injustice imposed on Pollard by the American legal system. “Every day that Pollard was imprisoned or confined was a day of grave injustice...The day Pollard comes to Israel will be a holiday for the entire Jewish people.”

“The entire State of Israel owes him a lot and it is doubtful whether it will be able to return to him a little of what it received from him, but it is its duty to do everything to give him all the best it has, they stated.”

That’s why I propose nominating Pollard for President of Israel. Elections by the Knesset members will be held in July 2021.

Katsover and Matar also said, “The State of Israel accepts Jonathan with great love...this slightly reduces the moral flaw, that clung to it, when it abandoned him and closed its gates to him.”

Former Defense Minister and Yamina Party Chairman Naftali Bennett welcomed the removal of restrictions on Jonathan Pollard. Bennett said, “V’Shavu Banim L’gvulam, ‘and the sons return to their borders.’ The State of Israel owes a deep debt to Jonathan Pollard who gave us over 30 years of his life, and we are waiting to welcome him and embrace him here, in the land of Israel which is his home, as soon as possible.”

So, I assume that Bennett would back a movement to draft Pollard for President of Israel.

Yamina Knesset Faction Chairwoman MK Ayelet Shaked also spoke out, “In the 19th Knesset, I served as Chairwoman of the lobby for the return of Pollard and as Justice Minister, I continued my activities until his release and thereafter. I sincerely hope that in the near future he and Esther will establish their home in Israel.”

Petach Tikva’s mayor, Rami Greenberg, quickly promised to name a square in the city center, “Jonathan Pollard Square.” Greenberg also expressed gratitude to the Trump administration, for terminating the limitations of Pollard’s parole.

Safed Chief Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, who visited Jonathan Pollard in prison in the United States over the years, told Kan Moreshet, “I think that American Jewry should perhaps ask him for forgiveness. In an attempt to be considered kosher Americans, they simply ignored him. They forget that we are each other’s guardians and it’s not possible that they would turn their backs on someone who gave so much of himself for the people of Israel, what a waste.”

It’s true, organized American Jewry, fearful of the duel-loyalty accusation, pretty much hid their heads in the sand, while Pollard rotted in prison.

Rabbi Eliyahu then added, “If it were not for the people in Israel who sold him to the Americans, he would not have sat in prison. All the evidence that indicted him and put him in prison for so many years, was given by people in Israel. I heard these things directly from him when I was with him...There are people who were ministers in the government, two of them, who committed this crime, which is why Pollard was in prison. He did everything he did for the people of Israel, for the State of Israel. We should have lain on the fence for him but people preferred to save their skin and sell him out, which is a very serious matter...I did not name names, we are now in a happy time, but there were two people who could have saved him and they did not,” he added.

I’m sure that Shaked and Rabbi Eliyahu would support a movement to make Pollard, President of Israel. That would be the real Teshuva, the State of Israel could do for him.

Asher Mivzari, an activist prominent in the movement to free Jonathan Pollard, also blamed the Americans, “On the one hand, there is great joy and we are thankful to God that he survived all these thirty difficult years in prison, and another five years under restrictions. On the other hand, it’s late, because he should have been released long ago, even in terms of simple justice. For what he did in the US, you usually get five years in prison, but here there was such a severe punishment, that was out of all proportion. Even American officials [including those involved with his case] have stated that he should have been released long ago in terms of American justice,” Mivzari pointed out.

That’s why I say America still has a day of reckoning to come...

Mivzari also noted, the frequent visits of the late Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu to Pollard, “The rabbi visited Pollard ten times and this is something that gave him a lot of strength to hold on and survive throughout all those years. All these years he also did not think only of himself, he was very concerned for the people of Israel, for the State of Israel, for people who were hurt, injured in terrorist attacks and other things. His thoughts were not only about himself. He knew the problems and failures that had happened, but mostly his thoughts were on how to help the people of Israel and the State of Israel and his dream was to come and join the people of Israel and contribute all he can with the rest of his strength and do everything he can.”

What a fine concerned and selfless example to young Israelis, Pollard would be, as President of Israel. But not everyone is even happy that Pollard was finally released from all restrictions.

Former PM Ehud Olmert blasted the US government’s decision to nullify Jonathan Pollard’s parole restrictions. He argued, “With all due respect, I would prefer that he not move to Israel. We don’t owe him anything. He was a spy who worked for a lot of money. He was not a Zionist volunteer who came and sacrificed his life."

Olmert is one to talk about taking money, the jailbird.

He continued, Pollard “was an American who loved Israel and worked for a lot of money, spying for Israel. His spying was beneficial [to Israel], but when taking a full account, the damage caused to Israel’s interests, as a result of revealing his involvement, was the harshest in the history of US-Israel relations.”

“The danger of increasing this damage has not ended. If the prime minister will act like he does and have a festive welcoming ceremony for Pollard, we will pay a heavy price when there will soon be a new administration in America, worried Olmert.”

This is a non sequitur, because an incoming Biden administration already is planning a tough time for Israel. Just take a peak at the likely appointments Biden’s going to make, many of them Clinton operatives. A moderate-Left Democrat administration, will return Israel to the tone of the Obama years, with new problems. For example, the Trump Plan’s vision of a Palestinian state, encapsulated in policy for the first time, and for the first time, formally agreed to, by the current Israeli government.

Yisrael Beitenu leader, Avigdor Liberman, has also criticized Pollard, in an interview with KAN Radio. He said that Israel should not have drafted Pollard as a spy, and that his moving to Israel should not be celebrated.

What has Lieberman ever done to promote Israeli security?

How far Lieberman has fallen, from his Hebrew University student days, as a campus activist for Rabbi Meir Kahane’s far-right pro-Jewish Kach Movement.

And, idiot, pardon my English accent, Yedioth Ahronoth columnist, Nahum Barnea, who seems to have learned nothing since the Oslo War (Second Intifada), even with losing a son in the war; wrote, “Pollard does not have the heroism of the Nili organization, not even that of Eli Cohen. Have some proportion.” He, also opposes making Pollard a “national hero.”

Well, I don’t agree with Olmert, Lieberman, and Barnea, so much so, that I believe Pollard should be elected President of Israel.

Recently in an interview with 103 Radio FM, former PM Ehud Barak commented on the possibility of Netanyahu trying to get elected as the country’s president, to avoid facing criminal charges, calling it a “black day in Israel’s democracy.” This idea has been bandied about for awhile already. Barak also accused Netanyahu of tending to his personal affairs, while the country found itself mired in the “worst crisis in its history.”

I can agree with Barak, that Netanyahu should step aside from the race. Netanyahu’s often been accused of being Machiavellian, and politically very self-serving, this is his chance to go beyond that. I suggest to Netanyahu, since he’s claimed for years, that he’s done all he could to free Jonathan Pollard, he take the bold and courageous step, to throw his weight behind Pollard for President of Israel.

The position is largely ceremonial, as head of state, Pollard would represent Israel at conferences, state festivities, etc. The most significant action the president can take, is to grant pardons to prisoners, similar to the American president. Its the perfect “non-partisan” position for him, within the Israeli political constellation.

Who could best empathize with the pain of prisoners and their families, to give them a fair shake, and possibly overturn an injustice, than someone who sat in prison unjustly for thirty years, for the security of the Jewish people, and State of Israel?

Pollard for President of Israel!

Ariel Natan Pasko, an independent analyst and consultant, has a Master's Degree specializing in International Relations, Political Economy & Policy Analysis. His articles appear regularly on numerous news/views and think-tank websites and in newspapers. His latest articles can also be read on his archive: The Think Tank by Ariel Natan Pasko.

(c) 2020/5781 Pasko

 

Toledot: Jewish Genealogy

“And these are the generations of Isaac, the son of Abraham; Abraham begot Isaac,” (Genesis 25:19).

That’s how this week’s Torah reading, Toledot, starts out. Genealogy is important to Jews. We know who our progenitors are, and we honor them.

Then the Torah goes on to tell about Jacob’s birth, his blessing from Isaac to continue the family traditions, and later, Isaac instructs him not to intermarry with the Canaanites, but to go to uncle Laban’s house and marry a cousin. (Genesis 25:26, 26:28-29).

Before he leaves to find his bride, Isaac blesses Jacob a second time, “And may the Almighty God bless you, and make you fruitful and multiply you, and you shall become a multitude of people. And may He give you the blessing of Abraham [to be a great nation], to you and to your seed with you, that you may inherit the land of your sojournings [the Land of Israel], which God gave to Abraham,” (Genesis 28:1-4).

In contrast, Americans are “rootless cosmopolitans,” (a term I might add, that was frequently used incorrectly by Europeans against Jews in the past). By rootless cosmopolitans, I mean to say that America is made up of people from all over the globe. Most Americans are descended from earlier arrivals to its shores, from more than one country, and many don’t know who their relatives were, beyond a few generations back, or where they come from, in the “old country”.

Remember Elizabeth Warren’s mistaken claim to be part Native American?

Thus, the explanation for the popularity of genetic testing and ancestor searching in America today.

The New York Times, back in 2006, ran an article entitled, “Who’s Your Great-Great-Great-Great-Granddaddy?” about the then, new fad.

Well, mine are the famous Biblical prophets, chosen of the Lord, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Jews, by the way, also know where they come from, Eretz Yisrael (the Land of Israel), the Biblical “Promised Land” (and the rest of the world knows it, too).

So, while Americans are scurrying around to determine if they have some of Genghis Khan’s DNA (probably raped their maternal progenitor), have some connection to Marie Antoinette and her infamous “Let them eat cake” rant, or some other famous historical figure, Jews the world over can pride themselves in their descent from such moral pillars as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (and Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah).

To this day, the world reads about them in the Hebrew Bible, and tries to learn lessons from their lives on how establish a relationship with God, how to organize society and how to live life more fully.

In Judaism, there’s a concept called “Ma’ase Avot, Siman L’Banim,” the deeds of the fathers are guides for the children. Having such illustrious ancestors puts a heavy burden on Jews. Unlike someone who discovers he’s descended from Robert E. Lee (what’s he going to do, start a new slavery movement?), Jews have a responsibility to live up to our past.

Positive that there was a way to understand God’s creation using the language of modern physics, Einstein said, “God doesn’t play dice with the universe,” and went about studying it. Freud tried to “heal the soul” through the modern techniques of psychology. Karl Marx, a descendent of the great 12th century Biblical and Talmudic commentator Rabbi Shlomo Ben Isaac (Rashi), worried about the oppressed worker and the poor.

Whether they’re involved in left-wing movements for social justice, or science, medicine and the arts, many Jews are trying (often unconsciously) to express these eternal Torah values of “fixing the world,” (sometimes properly, other times in mistaken ways), that they’ve inherited from their forefathers.

Spiritually inclined, morally precocious and always inquisitive, Jews established universal public education in Judea for their children about 2,100 years ago. Always literate, besides the Bible and Talmud, the Jewish bookshelf contains a university library of works on morality, philosophy, mystical pursuits, science, medicine, history and law.

There are well over 200 very serious super-commentaries on Rashi’s biblical commentary alone. Jews as translators, were a main transmission link between the classical Greek and Latin scientific and medical texts, and the early Islamic world.

Learning enough Torah to become a rabbi (a moral, legal and spiritual guide), has always had an honored place in Jewish life, a reminder of the days of prophets and kings.

But, it’s not just for rabbis, but for all Jews to learn Torah, their cultural-spiritual inheritance, and to live in Eretz Yisrael (the Land of Israel), to fully participate in Jewish Civilization.

If your last name is Cohen or Kahn, Katz or Kagan, genetic testing has proven what most already knew from tradition: you’re a direct link to Aaron the High Priest. Jews have always guarded their lineage and many kept intricate records. Today, more descendants of King David walk the earth than one might realize, and they often know who they are.

But whether they’re descended from Moses or Aaron or King David, any number of biblical prophets, great rabbis like the Rambam or Rashi, or not, every Jew knows he’s the great-great-great-great-great...grandson or granddaughter of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the chosen of the Lord.

I wish others, all the best in finding out about their beloved ancestors from Africa, Europe, Asia, or from wherever they may be.

By the way, I can go and visit the family burial plot (Ma’arat HaMachpela, the Cave of the Patriarchs) in Hebron, Israel, anytime I want, to say hello to Buby and Zaidy, my forefathers and foremothers, Abraham and Sara, Isaac and Rebecca, Jacob and Leah.

In fact, last week, Parshat Chayei Sarah, Jews worldwide read about Abraham’s purchase of the family burial plot for Sarah. And in pre-CoronaVirus times, tens of thousands would flock to Hebron, for Shabbat Hevron every year.

Is there any other nation, that knows where its illustrious progenitors lived, died, and are buried?

Is their any other nation that has such inspiring role models of behavior? Jacob’s descendants, the Jewish people, are truly blessed. 

Ariel Natan Pasko, an independent analyst and consultant, has a Master's Degree specializing in International Relations, Political Economy & Policy Analysis. His articles appear regularly on numerous news/views and think-tank websites and in newspapers. His latest articles can also be read on his archive: The Think Tank by Ariel Natan Pasko.

(c) 2020/5781 Pasko