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| Image from CNN |
However, as things stand now, the majority of Jews in this country are either heterodox or secular. In the case of the latter which seems to be growing exponentially, that they were born Jewish is completely irrelevant to them. Other than as some sort of identifier of origin.
There is a lot of collateral damage that results from this sad reality. It is in the form of being highly critical of Israel. Certainly among the completely secular but also among those that do have a heterodox connection to Judaism.
This is not to say that Israel is perfect and unworthy of criticism. There is what to criticize. But among the Jewish masses that are devoid of a significant Jewish education, those criticisms are not sourced in essence of what Judaism is about: the Torah. Without the Torah there is no Judaism It is as simple as that.
Unfortunately a lot of Jews that have not had the benefit of a decent Jewish education have redefined what they think being Jewish means. To some it is about Jewish culture. To some it is about Jewish humor. To some it is Yiddish theater. To some it is the language of Yiddish itself. And to some it is only about Tikun Olam. Which is seen in humanistic terms only instead of both humanistic and Godly terms. To a Jew that has had little to no Jewish education, God hardly enters the picture other than when His name is evoked in the cause of Tikun Olam of secular humanism.
This attitude may very well be sourced in our genetic makeup. Part of which is the innate Jewish trait of Chesed. So that without the benefit of a decent Jewish education, they will see an injustice and fight courageously to see it defeated. I believe this is why back in the 60s so many secular and heterodox Jews were involved in the Civil Rights Movement.
The Civil Rights Movement was certainly a just cause. But it is not the sum and substance of the Torah. It is only a part of it. Serving God does not mean serving only the welfare of humanity.
Without the Torah this can easily translate to seeing the plight of Palestinians as their new “Civil Rights movement. They see what they perceive as an injustice without any biblical or historical context. Which they either either don’t know or think is irrelevant. Human beings are suffering. Israel is at fault. End of discussion.
Now there is a lot more nuance to this attitude. But I believe that the more secular a Jew is, the more this applies. That is why for example a lot f Jews see ‘settlements’ as the primary issue. Or blame the poverty and privation of Palestinians in Gaza on the Israeli occupation. Or see every defensive acts Israel takes to protect its people as unfair oppression of Gaza’s indigenous Palestinian population. They do not value in the slightest the rights to the land granted by God to us in the bible. They instead see the bible as an ancient relic that counters the modern day ethos. And certainly not to be used as a reason for the occupation.
While there is still a lot of support for Israel among secular Jews. There is little doubt that it is decreasing. Most notably among the young, who are even further removed from Judaism than their very secular parents.
I think this might answer the question about why so many Jews support the Democratic party’s narrative about Israel over the the more conservative pro Israel narraitive of Republicans. Their talking pints mimic the Democratic Party talking points. Which are far more critical of Israel than they are of Palestinians.
This is why a lot of Orthodox Jews are switching their allegiance to the Republican Party. This was unthinkable just a couple of decades ago. Then the reverse was true. When Israel was the underdog, the secular humanism that charaxcterizes that party’s thinking favored supporting a county founded on the ashes of the Holocuasts. Republicans on the other hand were more concerned about Arab oil and harbored some latent antisemitism back then. (There were - and still are - exceptions on both sides.)
The two parties have now switched sides. Repubicans are now far more friendly to the Jewish state. Antisemitisms does not seem to exist anymore in this party. (And yes, once again - there are some exceptions). For the most part the opposite seems true. This has not gone unnoticed by Orthodox Jews, whose values are guided by the very definition of Judaism: The Torah.
In other word, the more knowledgeable one is about their Judaism - the more they will support the party that shows greater support for Israel. The less knowledgeable they are, the more they will support the party that is critical of Israel.
This does not mean that knowledgeable Jews do not have ay cirtiicam at all of the Jewish state. All one has to do is look at the Charedi attitude about the current government. But that is based on their religious values. Not on seeing Israel as the oppressive occupiers of the helpless indigenous of Palestinian population. That criticism is reserved for the less knowledgeable among our people
This is why Trump got the majority of the Orthodox vote in the last election. His polices on Israel reflected their religious perspective. Which includes our biblical rights to the land. This is not to say that we don’t share criticism of the more right wing (politically) governments. Like my own view of not inciting Palestinians living on the West Bank by establishing trailer park settlements there. But the overall approach is not to see Israel as purely the aggressor as the does the polttical left which is increasingly gaining influence in the Democratic party.
As someone that was Jewishly educated, I have found myself supporting Republicans a candidates a lot more these days. Not that I am in lockstep with all their views. I am am not, But because in a majority of cases their values reflect my own which are based on the Torah. As opposed to Democrats whose values are shifting leftward in more secular humanist ways.
I stop short, however, in supporting former President Doanld Trump - as I have recently indicated. He does not share my values - even though his administration’s policies with respect to Israel were the friendliest of any previous administration.
This is where many of my Jewishy knowledgeable co-religionists go wrong. You cannot have a leader as self serving, immoral, vindictive, and unpredictable as this man. His recent comments about former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu demonstrates that quite well.
I will therefore restate what I said in an earlier post. It is my sincere hope that he does not run again. And that if he does (as seems likely at this point) that Orthodox Jews come to their senses and realize who and what they are voting for. Even though I quite understand why they do. Which is what this post is all about.