Current Events: Israel Shall Rise Again
Monday, December 08, 2008
While Obama is "is "feigning" a centrist position on some issues so he can ultimately push through a radical agenda" the IDF is "drawing up options for a strike on Iranian nuclear facilities that do not include coordination with the United States" according to the Jerusalem Post. In the meantime, Bibi Netanyahu is preparing for the February elections in Israel. Many worry that Bibi will seek to form a more left-leaning coalition, possibly to make his ticket more palatable to Israelis worried about working with an Obama administration. Of course, it is well known that there is no love lost between Netanyahu and the right wing Moshe Feiglin of the Manhigut Yehudit party, who is running for a seat in Likud. Feiglin gave a patriotic interview, detailing his Torah-based outlook regarding Israel and Jewish identity to the Jerusalem Post, in which he said:
The watershed dividing Israeli society today is not territorial. Nor is it a question of Right vs Left, religious vs secular or security vs peace. It is a question of Jewish identity. Do we want to connect to our Jewish identity on a national and cultural level? Do we want it to be fundamental - the national wellspring - or do we want to escape it and treat it as some kind of burden?and,
The point is that we can explain to the world over and over again how Western, modern and enlightened we are, and how we do everything in our power not to hurt women and children, etc., but it makes no difference. Because the other side says, “It’s mine,” and we are unable to say that. And if we’re not able to say that, we will lose it all - not Judea and Samaria, but Tel Aviv, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Sderot. So, we have to educate the younger generation on the source of our right to live here at all. That source has to be based on Judaism. Basing it on the past 100 years is not enough. We have to base it on our history that goes back 4,000 years. We have to base it on the Book of Books from which the entire world derives its moral base. If we don’t do that, we’re lost.Which I totally agree with. However, the Manhigut Yehudit platform advocates extremely strong Rabbinical views, including:
The Jewish leadership that we strive to establish is not the Messiah. But it is an immensely important step in the right direction. It is the forerunner of the Messiah and clears the way for his arrival.and:
In order to address these issues [of Jewish Justice], the Torah directs us to appoint a king. The king institutes and presides over laws to govern his people in the areas not addressed by the Torah. The caveat of this principle is that any law passed by the king must be in strict accordance with Torah law. The Sanhedrin presides over rulings dealing with the laws of the Torah.Which are more Rabbinic than they are Biblical in nature (Torah does not "direct" Israel to appoint a king. In fact, the reality is the complete opposite. Deuteronomy 17:14-15 states: "When you have entered the land Adonai your G-d is giving you, have taken possession of it and are living there, you may say, "I want to have a king over me, like all the other nations around me.' In that event, you must appoint as king the one whom Adonai your G-d will choose."
Later, in Deuteronomy 28:36, this king is referred to as, "your king whom you have put over yourselves".
In fact, the only time Israel is praised for having a king in Torah is in Numbers 23:21 which states, "...Adonai their G-d is with them and acclaimed as King among them...".
So, how is appointing an earthly king a Torah commandment? It isn't. G-d is pretty clear in I Samuel 8:6-9 about what He thinks about Israel's desire for a "king like other nations":
Adonai said to Samuel, "Listen to the people, to everything they say to you; for it is not you they are rejecting; they are rejecting Me; they don't want Me to be king over them. They are doing to you exactly what they have been doing to Me, from the day I brought them out of Egypt until today, by abandoning Me and serving other gods. So do what they say, but give them a sober warning, telling them what kinds of rulings their kings will make.and, let's not forget I Samuel 10:19, "But today you have rejected your G-d, who himself saves you from all your disasters and distress. You have said to Him, 'No! Put a king over us!'"
Feiglin's Jewish Leadership party wants to pave the way for a Jewish monarchy because their Rabbinic-informed vision relies on the belief that Torah commands a King. They believe their actions will pave the way for the Messiah's arrival. How can enthroning a Jewish monarch pave the way for Messiah?
You tell me.
Labels: Feiglin, Iran, Israel, Netanyahu, Obama
posted by Shoshana @ 7:53 PM
