Somewhere in Israel today, there will be a small group sitting together, chatting. It could be at the pool, in a restaurant or on someone’s patio. They will be friends who sometimes talk about the news. If there’s alcohol, which tends to loosen the tongue, news stories about ‘settlers’ might be mentioned. Then, somewhere in that conversation, the word, ‘trouble’, may occur; and then, after perhaps another sip of alcohol, you might hear the words, ‘damn settlers’.
Nobody will flinch. No one will ask, ‘what do you mean’? Everyone will understand—no explanations needed. According to Israel’s dominant media, these friends at the pool are authentic Israelis. They understand what it means to be ‘Israeli’. Those living in Judea-Samaria, however, are alien. They don’t understand what Israel is all about. They hurt Israel. They make hard-working seculars ashamed to be called, ‘Israeli.’ They’re selfish. They think only about their damn land.
Is this the looking glass through which secular Israelis see the world? Our media might think so. The elite seem to believe we are a wonder-machine-- a capitalist and science power-house. Media leaders apparently believe we should be the apple of the world’s eye—successful, daring, brilliant. But that’s not what’s happening. The elite say Israel has become garbage. Every country they care about hates us. The nations they admire most express nothing but contempt for us.
That contempt hurts. Media people want to be loved. So they’ve made a plan: get rid of ‘settlers’ -- and religion. Then, nobody will hate us.
Perhaps you have read such ideas. Perhaps you have heard such conversations. Perhaps you should wonder: is this the Israel we have created—a materialistic, anti-religious culture where people reject both their Heritage and the very land they inhabit?
Ask Moshe Feiglin that question.
Here’s a hint: don’t be so quick to answer ‘yes’. If you rely on our elite media for your answer, you’ll make a mistake because most of their anti-settler and anti-religious pronouncements might be more Leftist dreaming than reality. For example, the Haredi aren’t as anti-work as you have been told —nor as anti-IDF; and the secular, no matter what the elite suggests, may not be so aggressively anti-Heritage or anti-Judea-Samaria.
Ask Moshe Feiglin about that. Seculars are not as homogeneous as the Left wants you to believe. In fact, secular Jews may be more conflicted over land and Jewish families being evicted from Judea or Samaria homes than the Left media dares to admit. Remember, the anti-Israel Left not only has an agenda, it also dominates our media. The Left dreams of a religion-free culture and a Jewish-free state—and it uses the extraordinary power its media dominance provides to try to make that dream a reality. Its behaviour is no different than Abbas’: tell ‘stories’ often enough, and the world will believe them. Think about it: does the Left benefit from reporting about an increasingly religious population where—our surveys constantly remind us—even those calling themselves ‘secular’ are more likely to fast on Yom Kippur than not? The Left rejects all things religious. It wants to erase Judaism; and if it cannot do that, it can certainly erase most positive references to religion in its media.
Ask Moshe Feiglin. He could write a book about how the Left media treats religion and Jewish values.
If you have heard about conversations similar to the one quoted above, be careful. Don’t draw the easy conclusion. You might be wrong. Just as Haredi do not promote abuse of women, seculars do not universally hate Judea-Samaria. Some might even support a religious-nationalist like Moshe Feiglin. Why? Because he believes in Jewish values--and that strikes a chord with some seculars: even seculars who profess ‘no religion’ can be sensitive to religion and values, especially when those are presented honestly, openly and intelligently.
Ask Moshe Feiglin about that. Seculars, contrary to media representations, do not always hate G-d—or Israel.
Jewish values and belief in G-d turn out to be important in Israel because secular Jews who live where the media promotes an anti-G-d fantasy often become weary. They can become disenchanted. At some point, they may long for truth; but because Israel is a politically peculiar place, when seculars discover a kind of honesty they can believe—and a truth they know is real-- they may not vote for it the first few times. That’s Israel. But in the end, they come to respect it; and in Israel, that is where power and influence lie—being respected.
So when you talk to a ‘secular’, be careful. He may not be what you think. Listen to him. You might discover he is a potential supporter for honesty, truth, Jewish Leadership and Jewish values.
Ask Moshe Feiglin. He knows because this is how his influence is increasingly taking root in the seculars, in the Hareidi, and soon, coming to a sector near you.
No comments:
Post a Comment