Attacking Israel: Then and Now
"They have said, ' Come, let us cut them off from being a nation, and the name of Israel shall be rembembred no more.'"
Psalm 83:5
"Death to Israel!"
Chant in the streets of Baghdad
"The more things change, the more they remain the same"
French adage
This past Thursday, August 3, Jews all over the world observed Tisha B'Av, the anniversary of the destructions of both Temples (Batei Mikdosh) and the end of Jewish sovreignty in the Land of Israel for two millenia. On this day, as on every other day for the past month, Hezbollah rockets fell on northern Israel.
The nations mentioned in the Psalm cited above (Moab, Amon, Yishmael, Philistia, Tzor, Assyria, etc) are long gone. Yet it is uncanny that the attitude of the nations bordering modern Israel are so similar to that quoted above, written nearly three thousand years ago.
The Muslim Arabs of today are far more similar religiously to the Jews than they are to the idol-worshipping Cannanite tribes that lost their land to the Israelites between the times of Joshua and David. Yet whenever they say that this Land has always been Arab, they are implying that Arabs are in some sense the descendants or successors of these ancient nations.
Just as Purim reminds us that Jews are not safe in exile, Tisha B'Av reminds us that Jews are also not safe in the Land of Israel. The two attempts to establish Jewish rule in the Land both ended in disaster. The rabbis attribute both disasters to the Jews' own failings: idol-worship (First Temple) and baseless hatred (Second Temple). Secular historians would argue that the Jews were not militarily strong enough to withstand the power of the great nations of those times: Babylonia and Rome, respectively. Arabs would argue that the Jews weren't even there .
The Prophets say that someday Moshiach ( the Messiah) will come and bring all Jews back to the Land of Israel, where the Third Temple will be built and peace will descend upon the whole earth. The Chief Rabbinate of the State of Israel composed a prayer which describes the State as "the beginning of the sowing of our Redemption." ( This view is opposed by the Satmar Chassidim, so this prayer was replaced around 1980 at Congregation Beth Jehudah with a Mi Shebarach for "residents of the Land of Israel and Jerusalem" that does not mention the State at all.)
The original hostility to the State of Israel on the part of Arab countries was based on Arab nationalism: the Arabs wanted the same land for an Arab state. However, over a period of about thirty years the main enemies holding this view (Egypt and Jordan) ultimately accepted the existence of Israel and made peace with it. Syria and Iraq, both under the rule of branches of the fanatically nationalistic Baath Party, never accepted Israel and maintained their hostility .
President Bush hoped that after the Baath regime in Iraq was deposed by an American-led force in 2003, a democratic Iraq would become a force for peace and stability in the Middle East. No such luck. Although most Iraqis still hate Israel , the country is so messed-up that it is no longer a threat to any other nation, at least for now.
At the very time that Arab nationalism was fading, Islamic zealotry was fueled by the revolution in Iran. Both Hamas and Hezbollah lust to destroy Israel today, not because of a political or territorial dispute, but because they consider the very existence of a Jewish state (whatever its size or borders) on the Arabian Penninsula to be an affront to Islam. ( Muhammad turned against the Jews of his time when they did not accept his prophecies, and the Quran contains many verses condemning them.) Unlike disputes over land and political power, those grounded in religion are not susceptible to solutions by concessions and compromise.
For this reason, most world leaders, whose policies are not based upon religious convictions (1), fail to grasp the intractable nature of the present Middle East conflict. Secular Israelis, too, are baffled by the unremitting hostility of Islamic fanatics; devoutly religious people, both Christian and Jewish, are better prepared to understand this type of motivation. (2)
Although Hezbollah cannot defeat Israel militarily, the war it started (with both arms and advice from Iran) has already been a success for the terrorist group. Hezbollah rockets have killed and maimed Jews, hurt Israel economically, provoked a response that turned much of the world against Israel, and won over huge masses of the Arab peoples to its side. Since Hezbollah is imbued with the spirit of martyrdom, nothing Israel can do to its warriors could offset the enormous gains for the group noted above.
Since there is no way to convert, appease, or deter Muslim fanatics such as members of Hezbollah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, all Israel can do is kill them and destroy their weapons. There will be no Nobel Peace Prizes awarded for doing this. The only reward Israelis can hope for in this conflict is survival.
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(1) George W Bush is apparently an exception to this rule, which is why some of his attitudes and policies puzzle both foreign leaders and some of his own subordinates. His resolute support for Israel, for instance, springs from his Christian faith.
(2) When Christianity was the age Islam is now (about 1,400 years), Christians were every bit as intolerant and violent toward Jews, Muslims, and even other Christians with differing views as the jihadists are now. Think Crusades.
Psalm 83:5
"Death to Israel!"
Chant in the streets of Baghdad
"The more things change, the more they remain the same"
French adage
This past Thursday, August 3, Jews all over the world observed Tisha B'Av, the anniversary of the destructions of both Temples (Batei Mikdosh) and the end of Jewish sovreignty in the Land of Israel for two millenia. On this day, as on every other day for the past month, Hezbollah rockets fell on northern Israel.
The nations mentioned in the Psalm cited above (Moab, Amon, Yishmael, Philistia, Tzor, Assyria, etc) are long gone. Yet it is uncanny that the attitude of the nations bordering modern Israel are so similar to that quoted above, written nearly three thousand years ago.
The Muslim Arabs of today are far more similar religiously to the Jews than they are to the idol-worshipping Cannanite tribes that lost their land to the Israelites between the times of Joshua and David. Yet whenever they say that this Land has always been Arab, they are implying that Arabs are in some sense the descendants or successors of these ancient nations.
Just as Purim reminds us that Jews are not safe in exile, Tisha B'Av reminds us that Jews are also not safe in the Land of Israel. The two attempts to establish Jewish rule in the Land both ended in disaster. The rabbis attribute both disasters to the Jews' own failings: idol-worship (First Temple) and baseless hatred (Second Temple). Secular historians would argue that the Jews were not militarily strong enough to withstand the power of the great nations of those times: Babylonia and Rome, respectively. Arabs would argue that the Jews weren't even there .
The Prophets say that someday Moshiach ( the Messiah) will come and bring all Jews back to the Land of Israel, where the Third Temple will be built and peace will descend upon the whole earth. The Chief Rabbinate of the State of Israel composed a prayer which describes the State as "the beginning of the sowing of our Redemption." ( This view is opposed by the Satmar Chassidim, so this prayer was replaced around 1980 at Congregation Beth Jehudah with a Mi Shebarach for "residents of the Land of Israel and Jerusalem" that does not mention the State at all.)
The original hostility to the State of Israel on the part of Arab countries was based on Arab nationalism: the Arabs wanted the same land for an Arab state. However, over a period of about thirty years the main enemies holding this view (Egypt and Jordan) ultimately accepted the existence of Israel and made peace with it. Syria and Iraq, both under the rule of branches of the fanatically nationalistic Baath Party, never accepted Israel and maintained their hostility .
President Bush hoped that after the Baath regime in Iraq was deposed by an American-led force in 2003, a democratic Iraq would become a force for peace and stability in the Middle East. No such luck. Although most Iraqis still hate Israel , the country is so messed-up that it is no longer a threat to any other nation, at least for now.
At the very time that Arab nationalism was fading, Islamic zealotry was fueled by the revolution in Iran. Both Hamas and Hezbollah lust to destroy Israel today, not because of a political or territorial dispute, but because they consider the very existence of a Jewish state (whatever its size or borders) on the Arabian Penninsula to be an affront to Islam. ( Muhammad turned against the Jews of his time when they did not accept his prophecies, and the Quran contains many verses condemning them.) Unlike disputes over land and political power, those grounded in religion are not susceptible to solutions by concessions and compromise.
For this reason, most world leaders, whose policies are not based upon religious convictions (1), fail to grasp the intractable nature of the present Middle East conflict. Secular Israelis, too, are baffled by the unremitting hostility of Islamic fanatics; devoutly religious people, both Christian and Jewish, are better prepared to understand this type of motivation. (2)
Although Hezbollah cannot defeat Israel militarily, the war it started (with both arms and advice from Iran) has already been a success for the terrorist group. Hezbollah rockets have killed and maimed Jews, hurt Israel economically, provoked a response that turned much of the world against Israel, and won over huge masses of the Arab peoples to its side. Since Hezbollah is imbued with the spirit of martyrdom, nothing Israel can do to its warriors could offset the enormous gains for the group noted above.
Since there is no way to convert, appease, or deter Muslim fanatics such as members of Hezbollah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, all Israel can do is kill them and destroy their weapons. There will be no Nobel Peace Prizes awarded for doing this. The only reward Israelis can hope for in this conflict is survival.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(1) George W Bush is apparently an exception to this rule, which is why some of his attitudes and policies puzzle both foreign leaders and some of his own subordinates. His resolute support for Israel, for instance, springs from his Christian faith.
(2) When Christianity was the age Islam is now (about 1,400 years), Christians were every bit as intolerant and violent toward Jews, Muslims, and even other Christians with differing views as the jihadists are now. Think Crusades.
posted by Gerald S Glazer at 1:36 PM
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