Rabbi Michael Lerner, at Huffpo, on how Passover became problematic this year:
As several congregants put it to me, "We Jews have become Pharaoh to
the Palestinian people — so we would be hypocrites to sit around our
Passover table celebrating our own freedom, rejoicing at the way the
Egyptians were stricken with plague and their first born killed, while
ignoring what Israel is doing today in the name of the Jewish people."
the Palestinian people — so we would be hypocrites to sit around our
Passover table celebrating our own freedom, rejoicing at the way the
Egyptians were stricken with plague and their first born killed, while
ignoring what Israel is doing today in the name of the Jewish people."
This is precisely the kind of discussion that is appropriate for the
Seder table this year. But what I fear is that increasing numbers of
younger Jews are voting with their feet by distancing themselves from
this, one of the most beautiful rituals of the Jewish year.
At our "new age" seder last night, we didn't speak about Israel/Palestine at all. It only came up once during the discussion, and Gaza was not mentioned.
We did talk at length about whether we lived in freedom or in slavery. Most talked about inner questions of whether we lived by manipulation (intentional or unconscious), by zero-sum, by habit.
We talked about what slavery was and what freedom was. Both confusing questions.
Funny you should mention the Egyptians. They have hurled themselves with great gusto into the complicated and vicious game of framing their own political enemies for elaborate plots the supposed nature of which will curry favour with the 'Great Powers.' They claim that Hizbollah (a Shi'ite organisation, exclusively devoted to the national liberation of Lebanon) has recruited innumerable agents in Egypt, whom they are busy 'rounding up' and 'interrogating." It would of course be pointless to ask the readers of MondoWeiss to put down their assorted musical instruments and aid the unfortunate framees (presumably mostly 'Bedouin') in any practical way, since this would require concrete political skillz.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1077695.html
Egyptian paper: Nasrallah is an Iranian agent and a Dracula
By Haaretz Service
An Egyptian newspaper editor-in-chief on Friday dubbed Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah an "Iranian agent, funeral profiteer, and even Dracula," Army Radio reported.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1077422.html
'Iran behind Hezbollah bid to strike Egypt targets'
By Haaretz Service and News Agencies
Tags: Terrorism, Israel News
Iran was behind the planning of terror attacks against targets in Egypt by Hezbollah operatives, the Egyptian daily Al-Ahram quoted a senior official in Cairo as saying Thursday.
Two employees of an Iranian satellite TV channel planned the attacks, the paper said, which were meant to be carried out simultaneously at a number of locations across the country.
According to Al-Ahram, the code-name for the attacks was mentioned in the last speech delivered by Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
Egypt is not happy that Hezbollah was discovered to have plotted to bomb sites in Taaba and other Sinai tourist spots.
They actually regard their sovereignty as important, and cavalierly violated in the name of "resistance".
It's wrong to compare the Israelis to Pharoah. God (in the guise of the US) is still on their side, giving them miraculous weapons to smite the local inhabitants without being smitten.
The (smallish) difference now is that the Israelis are on top this time around, at least for the present. The joy felt over seeing others' blood shed has never left. How many Egyptian lives does each drop of wine represent ? Nobody cares – it's all made up anyway.
Can anyone say that Judaism has in any sense always held life to be sacred ? Was Isaac's life not sacred ? And because it *wasn't* without a miracle, then what status have the lives of other non-chosen people who get in the way ?
I left Judaism right away when I heard of what happened in Jenin – not the massacre, but the refusal to let the UN investigate. There is a CLEAR, DIRECT line from that event to the atrocities taking place in Lebanon Gaza and the West Bank.
Not that I really expected any other Jews to do something similar. The whole religion is based on submission to a covenant made by somebody thousands of years ago with a hundred generations bound just as Isaac was. Jews must be genetically programmed not to question the central orthodoxy of a bloodline and cultural line that must *not* be imperilled to the slightest degree. And if is imperilled, by even so much as a mis-translated phrase, destruction of many cities could well be seen as a reasonable and even unavoidable response.
So good luck to Phillip with his project to create a new, sunnier, ethical offshoot of Judaism. He's starting from a difficult place.
@ Witty,
What's wrong with you, seriously? Do you even pay attention to what you write? Freedom and slavery are confusing questions?
Saleema,
If what constitutes freedom from slavery is not a difficult question for you, then I wonder about the extent that you self-inquire.
Lets get to brass tacks. Are you free?
Any King or President would tell you he is not free. I imagine some serfs would think they were free…
OK, so all is relative–relatively confusing? As an exercise, let's compare the average life of an Israeli with that of the average Palestinian. In who's shoes would you rather be?
Now, how about comparing the average life of one of Pharaoh's foot soldiers with that of the average Hebrew back in those times.
Now, let's compare Witty's life with that of the average GI.
Was ML King confused by what freedom and slavery was?
Let's get down to brass tacks, Richard, are you free?
Yes and no. (I don't have enough money or a fulfilling enough job for my life to be stress-free. I have habits that I'd like to be free of. I'm in my mid-50's so have periodic health problems. I live in a country that does not have sufficient public assets or support. Some of my friends have great troubles.)
Free from need? I get by
Free from suffering? I'm quite healthy
Free from anxiety? Mostly
Free from political harrassment? Mostly, only from the politically correct left/right, and mostly on issues around Israel
Skilled (free to live well)? Very much so professionally, less so at hand skills
How about you?
Sort of the same.
I also have habits I'd like to be free of.
I'm also of an age where I have to worry about health problems, but so far so good. Not much thanks to me.
Also mostly free from anxiety.
Also free from political harrassment except if I speak up and criticize certain Israeli policies and the USA government's enabling of same.
This has also affected my literary writing hobby. I've had stuff accepted then turned down for explicitly political reasons.
I am also a professional; my advanced and undergraduate degrees I've earned all on my own. I live well enough, then again, I have minimal wants. I am also not a natural at hand skills (except painting arts).
Hey, I get to answer that first since it was directed at me. I have lots of concerns. I think I'm a slave
to my mother. Like a bird in a gilded cage. Once I actually met a guy who left home for good at 18. I'm 40, I still live at home. I masturbate a lot. To the world, I am a man of means, a mensch.
I don't like what I do for a living, but it pays well. I did get a nice place on my own for awhile, but
it seemed cold there alone and the ladies seemed either over-bearing (second Mom's) or flaky.
I never really have had to do anything I didn't want to do, just to pay rent etc. So I guess in that way I am free–surely more so that guy I met who left home at 18. I don't smoke or drink, but I do shovel in lots of junk food. I could use a new face. A girl friend I once had told me I look like
Bernd das Brot–he'a German cartoon character, a wart-covered breadloaf.
"Once I actually met a guy who left home for good at 18."
Sclomo, you have stretched human relations to their furthest limits, haven't you.
"I think I'm a slave
to my mother."
Does she know you masturbate a lot? SHE DOES NOW!
But seriously, Schlomo, you need to meet a nice GUY, a nice Jewish guy, a guy your mother would like, too. I really think that will help you, why, it'll be the making of you. It'll be like stepping out of a musty, dusty closet and intop the bright sun and clean air, and you won't have to masturbate as much, or maybe you will masturbate more. It's quite possible. But at least you'll have someone to share it with, well, besides your Mom that is.
And please let me know if I can give you more advice. We'll lick that one-handed demon yet, Schlomo.
But Mooser, I am the nice guy my mother wants me to meet, and any Jewish girl who cares about her own peeps. I guess ideally I would just continue to jack off like that goy from Hogan's Heroes,
and she would lavishly use her latest translucent dong, complete with anal tickler as advertised by the girls next door types on the cable channel.
Quit trying to take over my turf, Citizen–I am Schlomo, not you. I don't think you are funny. I doubt your mother is anything like mine. Did you write Portnoy's Complaint? You probably look
like any typical aryan stereotype. Let us jews talked amongst ourselves here–Phil's a jew, remember? He's not, and neither am I, the Cruise character in Risky Business (somebody mentioned this film recently on this blog)–we are the other guy, the considerably less handsome high IQ nerd who enticed the Cruise character to take a chance in the first time–after all, it was not at his expense.
"Egypt is not happy that Hezbollah was discovered to have plotted to bomb sites in Taaba and other Sinai tourist spots."
Funny, but when I did a google search to find more information on this the first and only relevant hit I got was to your comment on this page, and when I tried a different set of words, the first and only relevant hit was something from the always reliable (NOT) Debkafile that it was a "an Iranian-Hizballah-al Qaeda" joint operation – yeah, right! Iran and Hezballah working with the virulently anti-Shi`a Al Qa`eda. Does ANYONE believe this s***? I'm not even convinced that you believe it.