Eikev, On Consequences

Posted on August 15, 2025 by First.One.Through

Parshat Eikev is about consequences. Love God and cherish the land, and there will be abundance. Turn away from them, and the blessings will vanish. It’s not just poetic scripture—it’s a binding principle embedded in Jewish destiny.

In 2005, Israel withdrew from Gaza, handing the Strip to the Palestinian Authority. The move was framed as a step toward peace, but Palestinians internalized a different lesson from the Second Intifada: violence works. Within two years, Hamas was elected to a majority of the Palestinian parliament, seized power in Gaza, and rockets became Gaza’s chief export.

The same pattern played out decades earlier. In 1967, Israel reclaimed eastern Jerusalem from Jordan in a defensive war and reunified the city. Yet, instead of asserting Jewish sovereignty on the Temple Mount—the holiest site in Judaism—Israel handed day-to-day control to the Islamic Waqf which banned Jewish prayer there. The Muslim world absorbed the message: Jews do not value their holy places as deeply as Muslims do.

These choices raise the uncomfortable question: do Jews truly love the land and God in the way Eikev commands? The Bible is not just a Jewish text. Billions of non-Jews around the globe read it. They know its covenantal clauses and its warnings. They understand—at least in their own terms—the consequences that befall Jews when we turn from God’s love and from the eternal heritage of the land. Some may even see themselves as agents in delivering divine justice.

God knows. The world knows.

It is time for Jews to internalize this truth. The Shema’s first line is often recited aloud with pride. But the second section (starting at Deuteronomy 11:13), with its stark outline of blessings for faithfulness and curses for betrayal, is whispered—if said at all. Perhaps it’s time to say it aloud, not just with our lips, but with our lives: affirming an unbreakable commitment to God and to the holiness of the land.

In Israel, that would be building homes in the area known as “E1,” cementing all of Jerusalem including the Temple Mount as integral to Israel. In the diaspora, it means putting mezuzahs on doorposts and wearing tefillin (11:18-20).

*The Old City of Jerusalem including the Jewish Temple Mount/ Al Aqsa Compound*

Consequences are not an abstraction in the Torah—they are the lived reality of Jewish history. Eikev’s message is as urgent now as it was on the plains of Moab.

From War To Heritage

Posted on July 18, 2025 by First.One.Through

As the Israelites were about to enter their Promised Land, the Bible relays stories of a series of conflicts.

After the spies delivered a bad report on the land in Parshat Shlach, we read the story of Korach who tried to launch a mutiny against Moses and Aaron. Then Chukat describes a war with Amorites, and Balak shares the story of a prophet trying to curse the Jewish people. At the end of Balak (Numbers 25:1-9), we read about Moabite women engaged in profanities with Jewish men. Pinchas, son of Elazar son of Aaron, took a spear and impaled the couple having sex in front of the Ohel Mo’ed, the tent Moses used to communicate with God.

*Illuminated manuscript miniature from the 15th-century Alba Bible*

And that is where Parshat Balak and the story seemingly end. With the murder of the couple and 24,000 others engaged in similar acts.

But it doesn’t really.

Parshat Pinchas continues the story with a pivot. Rather than highlighting the sins and the deaths, Numbers 25:10 begins with God appreciating the defense of holiness and His blessing Pinchas and his descendants. While the story may appear as a single episode, the Torah divides the parshas – and the narrative – between the violent and the holy, even when the violence was in the name of the holy.

The theme of separation can similarly be seen immediately after this in chapter 26, where God calls for another census of the tribes. Here, God counts the tribes and their families to allocate land for their inheritance. This is in contrast to the census of Numbers chapter 1 in which God wanted to account for how people would assemble in their journey and combat enemy forces. In the case of the journey and battle-readiness, there was a single head of each tribe; when they entered the land, each tribe’s family was specified.

It is a metaphor for how Jews assemble and coordinate today: there are wars that are fought in Israel and the diaspora against those who want to harm Jews and the Jewish State. Global Jewry understands the us-versus-them dynamic and the role for every Jew in the battle. It is related yet distinct from the interaction amongst Jews regarding our common heritage. We each have a part to play living together as a community.

Individuals fight with a common purpose. Families live under a societal umbrella.

We have tribes and borders and homes. We coexist with each other while understanding our peaceful lines. The separations today may be between synagogues or religious denominations. Between schools and political affiliations. Each aspiring for peace and holiness.

Those lines are very different than the battle lines between us and “them,” those who mean to harm us physically, morally and spiritually.

Upon entry into the Jewish holy land, Jews migrated from an army with legions to a people with property. While there were still wars to be fought inside the Jewish Promised Land, the muscle memory of understanding who is within the holy communal tent and those outside forces, was taught over the trials in the desert.

It is a lesson for our time as well: to clearly identify our allies and foes, and wage war and peace accordingly.

The Blessing of Jewish Distinctiveness (July 2025)

The Zone Of Jew Hatred Interest (March 2024)

Judaism Is Uniquely Tied To The Land Of Israel (December 2023)

Unity – not Unanimity – in the Pro-Israel Tent (November 2017)

Recite Psalms Of Victory

Posted on July 6, 2025 by First.One.Through

Since the horrific attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, Jews around the world have recited Tehillim, Psalms. These were composed by King David as prayers to God which continue to be read by people around the world. People have recited them in WhatsApp groups on behalf of injured soldiers and civilians. They have said them in synagogues on behalf of the hostages.

*King David Playing the Harp, ca. 1616 by Peter Paul Rubens*

The WhatsApp groups tend to say all of the 150 psalms, with people volunteering to say one or a couple of chapters before another person steps in to read the next ones.

In synagogues, the congregations typically recite Psalm 121 and Psalm 130 which pray for salvation and redemption.

With the recent victories over Hezbollah in Lebanon, in Iran and soon over Hamas in Gaza, it is time for synagogues to recite songs of celebration during or at the end of services. Consider:

Psalm 129

שִׁ֗יר הַֽמַּ֫עֲל֥וֹת רַ֭בַּת צְרָר֣וּנִי מִנְּעוּרַ֑י יֹאמַר־נָ֝֗א יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

A song of ascents. Since my youth they have often assailed me, let Israel now declare,

רַ֭בַּת צְרָר֣וּנִי מִנְּעוּרָ֑י גַּ֝֗ם לֹא־יָ֥כְלוּ לִֽי׃

since my youth they have often assailed me, but they have never overcome me.

עַל־גַּ֭בִּי חָרְשׁ֣וּ חֹרְשִׁ֑ים הֶ֝אֱרִ֗יכוּ (למענותם) [לְמַעֲנִיתָֽם]׃

Plowmen plowed across my back; they made long furrows.

יְהֹוָ֥ה צַדִּ֑יק קִ֝צֵּ֗ץ עֲב֣וֹת רְשָׁעִֽים׃

The LORD, the righteous one, has snapped the cords of the wicked.

יֵ֭בֹשׁוּ וְיִסֹּ֣גוּ אָח֑וֹר כֹּ֝֗ל שֹׂנְאֵ֥י צִיּֽוֹן׃

Let all who hate Zion fall back in disgrace.

יִ֭הְיוּ כַּחֲצִ֣יר גַּגּ֑וֹת שֶׁקַּדְמַ֖ת שָׁלַ֣ף יָבֵֽשׁ׃

Let them be like grass on roofs that fades before it can be pulled up,

שֶׁלֹּ֤א מִלֵּ֖א כַפּ֥וֹ קוֹצֵ֗ר וְחִצְנ֥וֹ מְעַמֵּֽר׃

that affords no handful for the reaper, no armful for the gatherer of sheaves,

וְלֹ֤א אָמְר֨וּ ׀ הָעֹבְרִ֗ים בִּרְכַּֽת־יְהֹוָ֥ה אֲלֵיכֶ֑ם בֵּרַ֥כְנוּ אֶ֝תְכֶ֗ם בְּשֵׁ֣ם יְהֹוָֽה׃ {פ}

no exchange with passersby: “The blessing of the LORD be upon you.”
“We bless you by the name of the LORD.”

And then recite sections of Psalm 118: 5-21, which are well known as they feature prominently during Jewish festivals in Hallel and the Passover Haggadah:

מִֽן־הַ֭מֵּצַר קָרָ֣אתִי יָּ֑הּ עָנָ֖נִי בַמֶּרְחָ֣ב יָֽהּ׃

In distress I called on the LORD; the Lord answered me and brought me relief.

יְהֹוָ֣ה לִ֭י לֹ֣א אִירָ֑א מַה־יַּעֲשֶׂ֖ה לִ֣י אָדָֽם׃

The LORD is on my side, I have no fear; what can man do to me?

יְהֹוָ֣ה לִ֭י בְּעֹזְרָ֑י וַ֝אֲנִ֗י אֶרְאֶ֥ה בְשֹׂנְאָֽי׃

With the LORD on my side as my helper, I will see the downfall of my foes.

ט֗וֹב לַחֲס֥וֹת בַּיהֹוָ֑ה מִ֝בְּטֹ֗חַ בָּאָדָֽם׃

It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in mortals;

ט֗וֹב לַחֲס֥וֹת בַּיהֹוָ֑ה מִ֝בְּטֹ֗חַ בִּנְדִיבִֽים׃

it is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in the great.

כׇּל־גּוֹיִ֥ם סְבָב֑וּנִי בְּשֵׁ֥ם יְ֝הֹוָ֗ה כִּ֣י אֲמִילַֽם׃

All nations have beset me; by the name of the LORD I will surely cut them down.

סַבּ֥וּנִי גַם־סְבָב֑וּנִי בְּשֵׁ֥ם יְ֝הֹוָ֗ה כִּ֣י אֲמִילַֽם׃

They beset me, they surround me; by the name of the LORD I will surely cut them down.

סַבּ֤וּנִי כִדְבוֹרִ֗ים דֹּ֭עֲכוּ כְּאֵ֣שׁ קוֹצִ֑ים בְּשֵׁ֥ם יְ֝הֹוָ֗ה כִּ֣י אֲמִילַֽם׃

They have beset me like bees; they shall be extinguished like burning thorns;
by the name of the LORD I will surely cut them down.

דַּחֹ֣ה דְחִיתַ֣נִי לִנְפֹּ֑ל וַ֖יהֹוָ֣ה עֲזָרָֽנִי׃

You pressed me hard, I nearly fell; but the LORD helped me.

עׇזִּ֣י וְזִמְרָ֣ת יָ֑הּ וַֽיְהִי־לִ֝֗י לִישׁוּעָֽה׃

The LORD is my strength and might; He has become my deliverance.

ק֤וֹל ׀ רִנָּ֬ה וִישׁוּעָ֗ה בְּאׇהֳלֵ֥י צַדִּיקִ֑ים יְמִ֥ין יְ֝הֹוָ֗ה עֹ֣שָׂה חָֽיִל׃

The tents of the victorious resound with joyous shouts of deliverance,
“The right hand of the LORD is triumphant!

יְמִ֣ין יְ֭הֹוָה רוֹמֵמָ֑ה יְמִ֥ין יְ֝הֹוָ֗ה עֹ֣שָׂה חָֽיִל׃

The right hand of the LORD is exalted! The right hand of the LORD is triumphant!”

לֹא־אָמ֥וּת כִּֽי־אֶחְיֶ֑ה וַ֝אֲסַפֵּ֗ר מַעֲשֵׂ֥י יָֽהּ׃

I shall not die but live and proclaim the works of the LORD.

יַסֹּ֣ר יִסְּרַ֣נִּי יָּ֑הּ וְ֝לַמָּ֗וֶת לֹ֣א נְתָנָֽנִי׃

The LORD punished me severely, but did not hand me over to death.

פִּתְחוּ־לִ֥י שַׁעֲרֵי־צֶ֑דֶק אָבֹא־בָ֝֗ם אוֹדֶ֥ה יָֽהּ׃

Open the gates of victory for me that I may enter them and praise the LORD.

זֶה־הַשַּׁ֥עַר לַיהֹוָ֑ה צַ֝דִּיקִ֗ים יָבֹ֥אוּ בֽוֹ׃

This is the gateway to the LORD— the victorious shall enter through it.

א֭וֹדְךָ כִּ֣י עֲנִיתָ֑נִי וַתְּהִי־לִ֝֗י לִישׁוּעָֽה׃

I praise You, for You have answered me, and have become my deliverance.

The Jewish people are securing great victories over genocidal antisemitic foes. The world should include Psalms of thanks alongside prayers for the hostages and injured.

“Frightening” Jerusalem Passover Visits For Radical Muslims: 1 Evangelical and 180 Jews

Posted on April 18, 2025 by First.One.Through

Mike Huckabee, the new U.S. Ambassador to Israel, landed in the holy land to assume his new role and immediately went to the Western Wall of the Jewish Temple Mount. It is the holiest site where Jews can pray today, so he used the opportunity to address Jews in a call for peace.

Huckabee carried a small paper note from U.S. President Donald Trump praying for peace, which Huckabee inserted into a small crack in the ancient wall. He told those gathered that he and the president prayed that all the hostages violently taken by Gazans would be released to their families soon.

Mike Huckabee speaking at Western Wall about the “Judeo-Christian understanding that every life has worth and value.”

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said that Huckabee’s appointment as ambassador to Israel will “undermine the rights and safety of Muslim and Christian Palestinians, including American citizens living in or traveling to the region.” Somehow, a man devoted to peace for everyone – including Jews – and freedom for everyone – including hostages – is a threat to radical Muslim groups like CAIR and the Islamic Waqf.

*US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, wearing a hostage support yellow ribbon pin, places a note into the Western Wall of the Jewish Temple Mount, during Passover 2025*

On the same day, Israel increased the number of Jewish visitors onto the Temple Mount to 180 at a time to accommodate demand. These were the largest sized groups according to the Islamic Waqf coming to “al Aqsa Mosque.” Aouni Bazbaz, head of international affairs for the waqf told Middle East Eye that the scene was “frightening” and portended Jews seeking to divide the holy compound into Jewish and Muslim sections like the Cave of the Jewish Matriarchs and Patriarchs in Hebron.

To put the 180-person Jewish group in context, during Ramadan last month, Israel banned Jews visiting the site while 90,000 Muslims visited for prayers without putting anyone into a “group” for security. No one in Israel called the massive number of Muslim visitors “frightening.”

To add insult to the waqf’s smear, Bazbaz said Israel’s allowing both Jews and Muslims to pray in Hebron was “apartheid” and likely to happen in Jerusalem.

Islamic extremists want a purely Muslim holy land in the Jewish homeland, without basic human rights like prayer for non-Muslims. Dignity for other faiths is labeled “apartheid” in slurs likely to be adopted by the United Nations and “human rights” groups.

More Muslims Visit The Jewish Temple Mount / Al Aqsa Mosque On Single Day Than All Jews Over The Past Year (March 2025)

Palestinians Use Jewish Temple Mount To Incite Riot On International Al Quds Day (April 2024)

While Over A Million Muslims Visit Al Aqsa Mosque Over Ramadan, Hamas Claims Palestinians Banned And Calls For Global Jihad (May 2023)

Replacing the Jordanian Waqf on The Temple Mount (July 2020)

The Waqf and the Temple Mount (April 2015)

At The Story Of Chanukah, There Was No Temple Mount…

Posted on December 22, 2024 by First.One.Through

The story of Chanukah happened in 164 BCE. The Seleucid king Antiochus IV Epiphanes had defiled the Second Jewish Temple in Jerusalem and enacted several laws against Judaism, including banning circumcision, celebrating Shabbat and Jewish holidays, forcing Jews to eat pork, and making it a capital offense to have a torah scroll. The Jews of the holy land revolted against the Syrian-Greek king and got rid of all the anti-Judaism decrees and rededicated the Temple.

This was a war of pagans against the Jewish religion, before Herod built the expanded Temple Mount plaza and before Christianity.

Over the following centuries, King Herod (72 BCE – 4 BCE) built the expanded Temple Mount and Jesus was crucified in Jerusalem by the Romans. Jewish revolts against the Romans in 66CE-70CE and 132-135CE led to the destruction of Jerusalem and expulsion of Jews from the area, renaming the city to “Aelia Capitolina” and the region to “Palestina.”

This was a war of pagans against Jews and Christians, before the birth of Mohammed and creation of Islam.

Mohammed’s quest to bring Islam from the Arabian Peninsula to the world brought a Muslim invasion into the Jewish holy land in the 7th and 8th centuries. Muslims built their third holiest site on top of Herod’s Temple Mount, the Al Aqsa Mosque. Christians and Muslims waged several wars over the holy land between 1095 and 1291.

Those battles between Christian crusaders and Muslims, were over the Jewish holy land and Judaism’s holiest location.

In 1948, Muslim Arab armies invaded and tried to destroy the newly declared State of Israel. The Jordanian army ethnically cleansed all of the Jews on the western bank of the Jordan River all the way through the Old City of Jerusalem. In 1954, it granted citizenship to all Arabs, as long as they were not Jewish.

This was a war of Arab Muslims countries against the physical presence of Jews in the Jewish holy land.

From the Chanukah story to the creation of Israel in 1948, many groups laid siege to Jerusalem, often attacking Jews through anti-religious actions, or lumped in with other religious groups. Since 1948, the war has been about the physical presence of Jews in Jerusalem, a place where Jews have been the majority since the 1860s.

At the story of Chanukah, there was no Temple Mount, no Christianity and no Islam. It was a battle of pagans against a small local tribe’s religion, who lived at the intersection of Africa, Asia, and Europe.

Chanukah marks the beginning of Jews in the holy land being attacked for their religion. The successful battles proved to be short-lived, as most Jews were forced into the diaspora over the following centuries, until the recent past. Celebrating the holiday today amidst a multi-front defensive war and global antisemitic chants that Jews are “European settler colonialists” is a chance to reassert Eight Attestations On Jerusalem:

Jews have an Inalienable right to pray on the Jewish Temple Mount
Banning Jews from living and praying in their holiest city is blatant anti-Semitism, as is denying Jewish history
There is no “Judaizing” Jerusalem, as Jews have been the majority in Jerusalem since the 1860s, and have devoted themselves to the city since 1000BCE
The security of Israel demands that its capital sit well within its borders
Divided capitals are a function of war, not peace. The place known as “East Jerusalem” only existed for a few years, 1949-1967
No part of Jerusalem was ever contemplated to be part of Palestine. Not only is “East Jerusalem” not an actual city, but there is no basis to call it “Occupied Palestinian Territory”
Jerusalem Arabs have been and are continued to be offered Israeli citizenship
There is no ethnic cleansing of Arabs. The Arab population in Jerusalem has grown faster than Jews since Israel reunited city

On Chanukah, diaspora Jews should pay particular attention to the direction of their prayer, the Jewish Temple Mount in Jerusalem, Israel, as Jews have done for thousands of years.

*Happy Chanukah signs on the walls of Jerusalem, 2021*

It’s Jerusalem Stupid. Duping The Christian World To Join The Jihad Against The Jews (November 2024)

The UN Talks About Jews Building In Jerusalem On Chanukah (December 2022)

For Chanukah, Arab League Shines Light On Why It Should Be Condemned (November 2021)

The Jews of Jerusalem In Situ (April 2019)

Today’s Inverted Chanukah: The Holiday of Rights in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria (December 2015)

Jacob – And Esau’s – Ladder

Posted on December 16, 2024 by First.One.Through

One of the most famous stories in the Book of Genesis is about Jacob’s ladder with angels ascending and descending. The famous biblical commentator Rashi (1040-1105) said that the angels going up were tied to the holy land and had to leave Jacob as he journeyed to live with his uncle Laban outside of the land. The angels coming down were new angels who would accompany Jacob while he lived outside of the holy land.

*Jacob’s Ladder by Frans Francken II the Younger (1581-1642)*

I would like to share an alternative interpretation: the angels on the ladder represent Jacob’s relationship with Esau.

There is no tool that connects hands and feet like a ladder. Both are required to go up as well as to come down. If several people are on a ladder at one time, hands and feet would likely be touching.

That is a reference to Jacob. His name literally came from his act of holding onto the heel of his brother Esau at their births. “Jacob” stems from the Hebrew word for heel, “akeb” (Genesis 25:26):

וְאַֽחֲרֵי־כֵ֞ן יָצָ֣א אָחִ֗יו וְיָד֤וֹ אֹחֶ֙זֶת֙ בַּעֲקֵ֣ב עֵשָׂ֔ו וַיִּקְרָ֥א שְׁמ֖וֹ יַעֲקֹ֑ב וְיִצְחָ֛ק בֶּן־שִׁשִּׁ֥ים שָׁנָ֖ה בְּלֶ֥דֶת אֹתָֽם׃

The clutching of the heel in the world’s first recorded twins set the primogeniture battle for the ages.

Birthright

There are two stories of Jacob angling to take the birthright from Esau. First, Jacob operates on his own and trades food with a hungry Esau for the birthright (Genesis 25:29-34). Years later, as their father Isaac wasn’t likely to abide by the earlier exchange between the brothers, Jacob acts at the urging of his mother Rebekah to trick Isaac into giving the special blessing intended for Esau to himself. Esau was so distraught by this action, that he swore he would kill Jacob, forcing Jacob to flee to live with Laban. (Genesis 27:1-21).

Jacob had the dream of angels on the ladder while he was fleeing from Esau. Jacob was not sure whether he had the advantage of the blessing or was a hunted man. On the ladder, the person higher up is only ahead while ascending; the elevated person actually trails the person below him when they are all descending.

The story of Jacob clutching Esau’s leg finally comes to a close when Jacob returns to the holy land. In Genesis 32:25-33, Jacob wrestles a man/angel who dislocates Jacob’s hip. As the angel breaks free he blesses Jacob by changing his name to Yisrael:

וַיֹּ֗אמֶר לֹ֤א יַעֲקֹב֙ יֵאָמֵ֥ר עוֹד֙ שִׁמְךָ֔ כִּ֖י אִם־יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל כִּֽי־שָׂרִ֧יתָ עִם־אֱלֹהִ֛ים וְעִם־אֲנָשִׁ֖ים וַתּוּכָֽל׃

“Said he, ‘Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with beings divine and human, and have prevailed.'”

Jacob/Israel, together with his wives and children, are then able to meet with Esau with his 400-person army, no longer carrying the weight of the contest. After they meet, Jacob gets affirmation from Gd about moving beyond the Jacob-Esau heel connection in Genesis 35:9-13.

וַיֹּֽאמֶר־ל֥וֹ אֱלֹהִ֖ים שִׁמְךָ֣ יַעֲקֹ֑ב לֹֽא־יִקָּרֵא֩ שִׁמְךָ֨ ע֜וֹד יַעֲקֹ֗ב כִּ֤י אִם־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ יִהְיֶ֣ה שְׁמֶ֔ךָ וַיִּקְרָ֥א אֶת־שְׁמ֖וֹ יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

Gd saying to him, “You whose name is Jacob, You shall be called Jacob no more,
But Israel shall be your name.” Thus he was named Israel.

וַיֹּ֩אמֶר֩ ל֨וֹ אֱלֹהִ֜ים אֲנִ֨י אֵ֤ל שַׁדַּי֙ פְּרֵ֣ה וּרְבֵ֔ה גּ֛וֹי וּקְהַ֥ל גּוֹיִ֖ם יִהְיֶ֣ה מִמֶּ֑ךָּ וּמְלָכִ֖ים מֵחֲלָצֶ֥יךָ יֵצֵֽאוּ׃

And God said to him, “I am El Shaddai. Be fertile and increase; A nation, yea an assembly of nations, Shall descend from you. Kings shall issue from your loins.

וְאֶת־הָאָ֗רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָתַ֛תִּי לְאַבְרָהָ֥ם וּלְיִצְחָ֖ק לְךָ֣ אֶתְּנֶ֑נָּה וּֽלְזַרְעֲךָ֥ אַחֲרֶ֖יךָ אֶתֵּ֥ן אֶת־הָאָֽרֶץ׃

The land that I assigned to Abraham and Isaac I assign to you;
And to your offspring to come Will I assign the land.”

Jacob’s view of himself was tied to his name which conveyed a pursuit of his brother and his blessing. Once he broke free of that pursuit – together with a limp and a new name – Israel was able to accept that he was the heir to the blessings Gd bestowed upon his forefathers.

The angels on the ladder in Jacob’s dream were not geofenced protectors of Jacob but a reflection of his link with Esau, together with confusion of his actions. Esau would always be older and above him on the ladder, but descending and on the ground in the holy land, Jacob/Israel was entitled to the blessings and inheritance.

Jacob’s Many Angels and Vayetze Jews (December 2023)

The First Dreamer Foreshadowed The Life Of Joseph (December 2022)

For The Sins of 5784…

Posted on October 11, 2024 by First.One.Through

For the sin of donating to my antisemitic alma mater;

For the sin of laughing hysterically at the Hezbollah pagers explosions;

For the sin of not doing enough to get rid of antisemitic members of Congress;

For the sin of not doing all I could to get rid of an antisemitic “charity” in my backyard;

For the sin of not lobbying my government to label Hamas a terrorist group;

For the sin of not lobbying my government to defund the United Nations;

For the sin of failing to educate children that the oppressor/oppressed narrative does not excuse people to act immorally;

For the sin of allowing myself to get pulled by the empathy swamp regarding Gaza to condemn Israel’s defensive war;

For the sin of not clearly calling out ‘woke’ profound antisemitism;

For the sin of not signing petitions to defund and abolish UNRWA;

For the sin of allowing ‘Intifada’ to be normalized;

For the sin of not calling out the antisemitic genocidal intent of Gazans;

For the sin of rewriting history;

For the sin of not demanding the firing of United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres;

For the sin of watching Israel slowly get demonized and isolated without doing anything;

For the sin of not reporting antisemitic incidents;

For the sin of not believing people’s comments about Jews;

For the sin of pretending that Palestinian leadership does not want the destruction of Israel;

For the sin of excusing chants against Jews in ways I would never excuse similar chants against other groups;

For the sin of believing the whataboutery and red herrings of allies and preferred media;

For the sin of believing in the decency of my neighbors too much; for believing in them too little;

For the sin of seeking too few allies; for seeking too many allies;

For the sin of pardoning my government for not fighting enough for the Jewish people;

For the sin of talking about Israel at work too little; for talking about it too much;

For these things related to the Jewish world, please pardon us

For the sin of waiting for someone else to say Psalm 119 in Tehillim chat groups;

For the sin of doubling up my recitation of the same Tehillim chapter on different WhatsApp groups;

For the sin of taking two handfuls of mints at restaurants;

For the sin of not mentoring enough young people;

For the sin of not putting ‘AsAJew’ people who put Jews directly in harms way in herem;

For the sin of not defending AIPAC from ridiculous slander;

For the sin of claiming anti-Zionism is not antisemitism;

For the sin of dressing up extremist and divisive positions as merely “progressive”;

For the sin of believing that the Biden-Harris administration has been effective at controlling the nation’s borders;

For the sin of believing in Kamala Harris the moment she became the presidential nominee when I had believed her utterly incompetent for three and one-half years;

For the sin of not believing that Donald Trump is a megalomaniac;

For the sin of wasting time debating Trump-Harris for hours, when I live in a deeply blue or red state;

For the sin of not speaking to as many Holocaust survivors as possible;

For the sin of thinking about Israel too much; for thinking about it too little;

For the sin of not volunteering for community security service;

For the sin of not fighting to neuter harmful “Jewish” charities;

For the sin of obsessing about peace in a time of war;

For the sin of not thinking about the hostages in Gaza every day;

For these sins related to community, please pardon us

For the sin of giving away the Wordle answer to someone who hasn’t completed it;

For the sin of watching Instagram videos of dogs while in bed instead of paying attention to my spouse;

For the sin of using ChatGPT to make R-rated content;

For the sin of not writing to the media when they print something full of antisemitic lies;

For the sin of believing The New York Times;

For the sin of reading The New York Times and not writing to them about every article related to Israel;

For the sin of not contacting Marvel to ensure that antisemitism and anti-Israel narratives don’t flood the screen;

For these sins related to media and social media, please pardon us

For the sin of playing the lottery weekly without my spouse’s knowledge;

For the sin of letting dishes soak when it’s my turn to clean up;

For the sin of “borrowing” a Netflix account;

For the sin of believing in my children too little; for believing in them too much;

For the sin of not visiting parents enough;

For these sins related to family, please pardon us

For the sin of blogging instead of exercising;

For the sin of reading emails while driving;

For the sin of sneaking desserts at 5AM;

For these sins related to health, please pardon us

For the sin of not subscribing to blogs I enjoy;

For all these things, please pardon us

For The Sins Of 5783…

For The Sins Of 5782…

For the Sins of 5780…

For the Sins of 5777 of…

Al Aqsa Mosque As A Safe Room?

Posted on October 7, 2024 by First.One.Through

After Iran fired over 180 missiles at Israel, Israel considered how to handle synagogue attendance during the Rosh Hashanah holiday. Synagogue attendance typically swells on the holy days, with even more secular Jews attending services. But most synagogues only have small mamads (safe rooms) to protect people during a shelling attack, so hundreds could be left unprotected during an attack.

The situation is even more dire at one of the largest synagogues in the world – the Western Wall Plaza at the Kotel – where thousands of Jews gather in the Old City of Jerusalem. The large outdoor location has few easily accessible places to hide from missiles.

Perhaps the grey-domed al Aqsa Mosque can be used by thousands of Jews as a safe room from jihadi missiles. The jihadists would presumably try to spare their religious building, making the mosque a potential haven for Jews.

*Al Aqsa Mosque from outside Jerusalem’s Old City walls (photo: First One Through)*

Hamas termed their barbaric slaughter of Israelis the “al Aqsa Flood.” Perhaps it didn’t imagine that the term would become a prophecy inverted, drawing masses of Jews onto the Temple Mount.

CAIR Thinks Protecting Synagogues Is A Political Stunt And Waste Of Taxpayers Money (September 2024)

Protecting Synagogues Like Abortion Clinics (July 2024)

Palestinian Poll About October 7 Massacre (November 2023)

United Nations Urges ‘Utmost Restraint’ By Israel In Defending Synagogues On High Holidays (September 2023)

Every Picture Tells a Story: Israel Is Scared of Female Iranian Shoppers (February 2021)

Considering Nazis and Radical Islam on the 75th Anniversary of D-Day (June 2019)

The Disproportionate Defenses of Israel and the Palestinian Authority (July 2015)

Jews At The Center But Not The Focus

Posted on July 10, 2024 by First.One.Through

Praying At The Jerusalem Great Synagogue

The Jerusalem Great Synagogue is one of the grandest synagogues in the world. On holidays and sabbaths, it typically has a magnificent choir which enhances prayer services. In July 2024, when Rosh Hodesh, the new month of Tamuz fell on Shabbat, the synagogue decided to have a special choir with prayers full of songs by a 50-person choir consisting of many young boys.

*The Jerusalem Great Synagogue, July 2024*

Shabbat Rosh Hodesh involves reading from two torah scrolls, rather than a single torah on a regular Sabbath. On this special sabbath, two men raised the torahs at the conclusion of the particular readings and sat holding the holy scrolls as Moshe Lion, the mayor of Jerusalem read the haftorah before a packed synagogue.

Before the torahs were returned to their places in the ark, the large choir came down from their podium and encircled the bima, the center of prayers in the heart of the synagogue. The two men holding the torahs rose, and the entire congregation with them, as the cantor and choir sang two special blessings, one for the government of Israel and one for the Israeli Defense Forces.

With the backdrop of the ongoing war, the choir used a variety of melodies in singing the two blessings, including Hatikvah, the Israeli national anthem, and Lu Yehi, a contemporary song of longing to arrive at the end of all wars.

For twenty minutes the choir sang the songs with the congregation’s participation. Many cried as both old and young thought about many family members who were serving in the armed forces to combat enemies in Gaza and Lebanon. Hundreds of people gathered in the centers of Israel, of Jerusalem, and of the Great Synagogue but hearts and minds were elsewhere.

A Wedding In The Jerusalem Forest

The next day a wedding was held in the Jerusalem forest. The sun was setting as the bride and groom took their places under the chuppah, the wedding canopy. Family and close friends gathered before them, watching the young couple sanctify their union.

The Jewish ritual of presenting a ring, reading the ketubah and reciting seven blessings were complete, but the happy couple was not ready to celebrate. First a friend took the microphone to recite a chapter of Psalms for the soldiers and families impacted in the current war. Everyone recited the lines responsively, and then all sang Im Eshkachech Yerushalyim, If I forget thee, Jerusalem.

The groom then crushed a glass beneath his feet, symbolizing the still unbuilt holy city of Jerusalem, before turning to hug his bride.

*Groom ready to crush glass symbolizing the ongoing incompleteness of Jerusalem*

Two men in a synagogue and a bride and groom under a canopy, stood at the center of attention, yet their focus was elsewhere. Thinking of young soldiers at the battlefront, hostages held in captivity and the unbuilt Temple, Jews turn their consciousness outward to the larger community beyond those present.

The focus of the Jewish gaze ultimately extends beyond line of sight.

Singing of Joy and Jerusalem on Foreign Land (December 2021)

Humble Faith (October 2021)

“Jews, Will Not Replace Us” By Radical Jihadists, The Alt-Left and Alt-Right

Posted on May 3, 2024 by First.One.Through

The United States was alarmed and appalled at the “Unite the Right” mob march in Charlottesville, VA in August 2017. As right-wing marchers descended on a university holding torches, wearing Nazi symbols and yelling “Jews will not replace us,” the country watched a scene of racism and antisemitism unfold into a crime scene. PBS called it a “watershed moment for the white supremacist movement.”

The real life play is being revealed once again in real time, with a new set of actors and fashion brandished by radical jihadists and the alt-left, once again yelling “Jews will not replace us.”

Radical Jihadists

Radical jihadists are typically located in Muslim-majority countries in the Middle and Far East including Iran, Qatar, Pakistan, Indonesia and Somalia. They believe that Islam should dominate the world, especially in any location which was once dominated by Islamists such as the land of Israel.

The jihadi extremists began to slowly migrate into Europe and the United States starting in the 1960s but accelerated their movement in 2015/16 as the “Arab Spring” and Syrian Civil War decimated their homelands. They came to Europe (2015) and the United States (in 2016) and brought much of their instilled antisemitism.

The United States also encouraged foreign students to attend American universities. In 2003, as the American War on Terror raged in mostly Muslim countries, the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study Program was launched. The goal was to bring “High school students from countries with significant Muslim populations [to] live and study in the United States for an academic year through the U.S.” In the 2015/6 academic year, 61,000 students from Saudi Arabia were at U.S. universities. That high figure represents 0.2% of the entire population of Saudi Arabia to a single country. By way of comparison, the ENTIRE American students abroad cohort all over the world is around 162,000, or 0.05% of the U.S. population.

The U.S. continues to push for foreign Muslim students at American schools. On September 12, 2023, the U.S. embassy in Israel posted an advertisement that the U.S. State Department “is seeking a group of Arab citizens of Israel secondary school students to participate in a Study- in-the-USA initiative for high school students during the 2024-2025 school year.” (bold in original). No Jewish students from Israel were invited to be part of the program.

And what do radical jihadists, faces covered in kaffiyehs, preach abroad and in the United States?

Jews have no history in the holy land
The Jewish Temples never existed in Jerusalem
Jews stole Arab land, as “European colonial invaders“
Jews are trying to “Judaize” Palestine and Jerusalem
Zionism is racism, an attempt to ethnically cleanse non-Jews from Palestine
Jews eye a “Greater Israel” to encompass land from the Euphrates to the Nile
They consider the entire State of Israel to be an illegal project that must be terminated
Palestinian Arabs demand a “right of return” to towns where grandparents used to live along with an expulsion of Jews who refuse to live as second class “dhimmis.”

In short, radical jihadists are chanting that “Jews will not replace us!” in Palestine, as they seek to “Free Palestine” from the clutches of the Jews.

Alt-Left

The far-left cohort in America is seeking to end capitalism and pursue a broad redistribution of wealth and power. They have advanced the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) into schools and corporations that demand the minorities of preference (Blacks, Hispanics, LGBT) be given priority in admission, compensation, title and power before Whites or somehow “privileged” minorities such as Asians and Jews.

The alt-left considers Jews to be part of the uber elite class, occupying too many CEO, Supreme Court and political positions. They attribute Jewish success as a matter of Jews only looking out for themselves, and cheating or stealing from the labor of the working class, in classic antisemitic tropes.

When Black Israelites shot up a kosher supermarket in Jersey City, NJ in December 2019, several leaders of the Black community were clear that they felt the killers were only REacting as a form of self defense: “Black homeowners were threatened, intimidated, and harassed by I WANT TO BUY YOUR HOUSE brutes of the jewish community.”

Jews do not belong. In the housing or their jobs.

“Jews will not replace us!” rained down in a hail of bullets in Jersey City and in federal and state mandated DEI programs.

Alt-Right

The alt-right coined the phrase “Jews will not replace us!” but far from monopolized the theme.

The alt-right version of the phrase in many ways is the most preposterous. White supremacists believe that Jews are so powerful that they are advancing a program of importing millions of non-White and non-Christian foreigners to dilute the White Christian backbone of the country. How and why that would have any remote advantages for Jews is never explained.

Muslim extremists, woke progressives and White nationalists have very different philosophies but congregate around a belief that Jews are cheats and thieves who are robbing the rightful owners of land, money, jobs and prestige. And they are coming for this beleaguered minority-minority “by any means they deem necessary,” much as antisemites have done for centuries.

We are at a “watershed moment for the jihadi and alt-left movements” in the United States to destroy Judeo-Christian values, capitalism and the West. How the government’s leaders and population respond will set the tone for our future.