Somber Times

Submitted by John W McGinley (United States), Jan 11, 2009 at 11:08

Your points are well taken. There is seems to be a growing crisis of will and faith among the Israeli Jews themselves. Particularly disturbing is the estimate that, already, three quarters of a million Israeli citizens with dual American and Israeli citizenship are choosing, for the long term, to live in the United States. And the number is growing. Surfacely this can be construed as a kind of exhaustion and disenchantment with the Zionist dream. But but beneath the surface there is -- both in Israel and in the Diaspora -- a queasy and continuing anxiety about the viability of Judaism itself. A people caught between its romancing of the Enlightenment and its confused struggle to be in fidelity with the Covenant. It is not at all the ambience which makes people willing to risk the blood of their children. In defense of just what, exactly?

There was a Holocaust movie with the haunting title "Playing for Time." I abstract from the particular content of that movie. But the title describes Israel's stiuation at the present time. Hold on and do what is possible. This will eventually include the taking out of Iran's nuclear capability knowing full well the IMMENSE cost this will entail in Jewish blood and treasure. Nor will success in this endeavor usher in anything like "victory" or peace for Israel. The situation now and even post-Iran will be deeply ambiguous. But now Israel is "Playing for Time." The time when Israel, the People, the Nation, the Religion will re-discover the true import of the Covenant. If this happens at all such will emerge from the ranks of the Orhtodox, but only after a painful and wrenching "deconstruction," so to speak, of what it even means to be "Orthodox." RETURN!!!, O BACKSLIDING CHILDREN. Jeremiah, 3:14.

John W. McGinley

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".