Different and proud
The highest-ranking Israeli officials walked into the Annapolis conference through the back door in order not to offend the Arab participants. These same “leaders” then began to forfeit everything precious to our nation. Now, understandably people around the world are asking, “Are these Israelis really the Jewish people that we read about in the Bible?”
First, one must understand that although these individuals are democratically elected leaders, they do not represent the essence of the Jewish people. There is an immense difference between the “Israeli voice” which is heard at every one of these international conferences and the “Jewish voice” which is stifled and shunned but slowly growing nonetheless in Israel.
Secular Israelis have been around for only a few decades; they have no real history, culture or heritage. Modern Israeli culture is simply a fusion of American, European, and almost every other culture in the world, with a Hebrew twist. On the radio, instead of hearing Jewish music you¹ll hear Hebrew rap, Hebrew reggae, and Hebrew heavy metal, while on TV you’ll see exact replicas of American TV shows, but with Israeli participants. There is a new trend among Israeli parents to give their children names that are easily transferable to English, such as Lilly, Adam and Ron, in the hope that their children will one day move to America or Europe.
To be a people like all other people; does that sound familiar? This “assimilation theology” is rooted in the foundations of the secular state.
David Ben-Gurion, the first prime minster, once said: “We will know we have become a normal country when Jewish thieves and Jewish prostitutes conduct their business in Hebrew.” Today’s secular Israel is a product of the 20th century, and a mockery of our Jewish legacy.
Second, one must realize why the Israeli leadership would choose to abandon everything precious to it just to be accepted by the world. In the past 2,000 years, Jews have been expelled from 94 countries, persecuted and murdered for being different. Against all odds, they rejected the pressure to convert to any of the oppressive religions of those times, staying true to themselves. Many Jews have grown tired of being distinctive, and the secular Israeli government is the voice of that exhaustion. Instead of leading a people destined to radiate light and truth, they strive to lead people into the mists of assimilation.
But although there are those who run away from the greatness of Jewish destiny, the Jewish voice is one that thrives on being separate and extraordinary. Unlike Ben-Gurion, our vision is to create a perfected society built on truth, justice and kindness. Our pride will not be in our criminals but in our justice, and in our example of how a perfect society is run. Our pride will be in a moral government that makes decisions based on truth and justice and not on expedience. Our delight will be to train an army that will act with moral clarity and belief in its cause, and to build an economy that will care for the poor, the widow and the orphan. Our valor will be in the path we pave for all to follow.
As for the secular, those who want to assimilate probably will. Israelis who long to be a part of the nations will eventually disappear into them, and as they fade into oblivion, a new people will emerge. This will happen because, while secular Israelis are moving themselves into exile, religious Jews are returning home and raising big families. In a recent study by the Israel Democracy Institute, most Israeli Jews are fully observant or observe Jewish tradition. Only 27% of Israelis today define themselves as secular the lowest in Israel’s history! Most Jews in the world today live in Israel, and very soon most Israelis will be God-fearing Jews who define themselves as such. Soon people will no longer hear an “Israeli voice” but rather a proud Jewish voice from Zion one that will reverberate throughout the world.
