Give MK Boaz Toporovsky (Yesh Atid) A Break!

ערב שבת קודש פר' חקת תשע"ג

YNET: New MK falls asleep in office, wakes up online
MK Toporovsky, young new MK from Yesh Atid, causes stir after uploading suggestive picture of himself online where he's seen shirtless in his office, after plenum deliberation continues into early hours

June 12, 2013

MK Boaz Toporovsky (Yesh Atid) caused a stir both online and offline after he posted what some have called an intimate and suggestive picture of himself sleeping shirtless in his office at the end of long plenum session.

The incident joins a long line of "unparliamentary" activities and has irked Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein who called on MKs to protect the Knesset's honor.

MK Toporovsky: "From now on, I'll sleep in a suit."

---(snip)---

In it, he can be seen lying on what appears to be the couch in his office, giving the camera a "flirtatious" stare and using his shirt as a blanket.

"4:51 am, going to sleep in my office in the Knesset," he wrote alongside the picture. "This is the first time I am sleeping in my office; luckily there is a shower in the office."

Within a number of hours the picture had gone viral, inspiring a slew of internet memes poking fun at Toporovsky, the picture, and specifically his stare.

"I don’t always take semi-nude pictures of myself while I'm in the Knesset" one of the memes read, "but when I do, I make sure my eyes are deep and dreamy."

Esser Agaroth (2¢):

For Goodness Sakes! Give MK Boaz Toporovsky A Break!

K'nesseth Speaker Yuli Edelstein "called on MKs to protect the Knesset's honor." and yet, last Sukkoth, K'nesseth Speaker Yuli Edelstein spoke at a conference of Christian missionaries in the Jerusalem, even after being warned by former Jerusalem City Councilmember Mina Fenton (NRP). How is that protecting the K'nesseth's honor? In fact, it sounds pretty "unparliamentary" to me. Don't you think?

It was reported that MK Toporovsky later added, "From now on, I'll sleep in a suit."

I am certain that if I were to take a look at a list of MK Toporovsky's stances, I would take issue with most of them. In fact, I am pretty disgusted by most all of his colleagues in his Yesh Atid Party, Dov Lipman, Ruth Calderon, and Yair Lapid himself.

In contrast to those folks, MK Toporovsky is an asset. Goverment representatives of the people are supposed be just that, government representatives of the people. And MK Toporovsky represents the people.

He is real. He takes his shirt off to go to sleep on his couch, just like all other, hard-working Israelis do.

AND like most other hard-working Israeli's, he has a sense of humor. Thank The Almighty, we at least have one Member of K'nesseth, who may take his issues seriously, as evidenced by his all night K'nesseth session debate, but does not feel compelled to take himself so seriously.

I can think of at think 100 other Members of K'nesseth you could take a less from this.

OK. So, maybe not every hard-working Israeli posts about it on his or her facebook page. Nonetheless, the way I see it is that, for better or worse, he keeps in touch with his constituents, and he reminds them (us) that he is not above us, nor any better or worse than any of us.

He IS just one of us.

MK Toporovsky, I want to thank you, for being real, and for not forgetting that you're just like any other Israeli.

You're just one of us.

*********

I posted the following on MK Toporovsky's Facebook Page, in addition to this post, more or less a summary in Hebrew of the above:

ח"כ טופורובבסקי,

אני לא מסכים איתך רוב הזמין, אבל אחרי פרשת "שינה בספה" אני יודע שאתה ישראלי אמיתי שעובד קשה מאוד בשבילינו! אתה הראת לכל העולם שאתה לא נמצא ברמה יותר גבוה מישראלים אחרים. אלא אתה ממש אחד ממנו! אתה האח האמיתי שלנו (אפילו כשלא מסכימים.) :-)

Will the Real Naftali Bennet Please Stand Up!

ה' לחודש הרביעי תשע"ג

The Life In Israel's quote of the day:

"I meet a lot with diplomats and Foreign Ministers and other international leaders and there is just about no meeting that does not conclude with a sort of request to advance the peace process. The failure is by us, as by us, for many years, have stopped saying the simple statement that Eretz Yisrael is ours, and in the discussion between justice and security, justice always wins. He who bases the justness of our existence here as severance for the horrors of the Holocaust, at some point it will be over! The foundation for our existence here is not this or that horror or tragedy, but the simple statement that this is ours...We need to stop being ashamed to say - Judea and Samaria are ours not because it protects Gush Dan, but because Avraham Avinu walked there.."

-- Minister of Commerce Naftali Bennet, at the first session of the Eretz Yisrael Lobby of the knesset

I'm confused.

"Eretz Yisrael is ours."

 OR

"We will annex only part of Judea and Samaria, and grant Arabs a form of autonomy in the rest."

Bennett's Plan vs. Arafat's Plan
I don't see much of a difference. Do you?

Commerce (and Religious Affairs) Minister Bennett,

Either you believe that ALL of Eretz Yisra'el is ours...

Eretz Yisra'el

 OR

...you believe that it isn't.

 

PA "President" Mahmud Abbas (Abu Mazen) believes that ALL of Eretz Yisra'el belongs to the Arabs.

Will the real Naftali Bennett please stand up.

A Real Jewish Heroine

ד' לחודש הרביעי תשע"ג

Arutz 7: 70-Year-Old Jewish Woman Stands Up to Arab Attackers 
70-year-old Jewish woman stands up to Arab men who harass her in her home. ‘They attack like animals, but I’m not afraid.’

Maayana Miskin, May31, 2013

“She wants to eat me alive,” 70-year-old Yona told Arutz Sheva, referring to her next door neighbor – an Arab woman from the Shuafat neighborhood of Jerusalem. “She wants to devour me. Just look at her face.”

Yona’s story begins more than 40 years ago, when she and her newlywed husband made a bold move, buying a home in the majority-Arab neighborhood of Shuafat in northern Jerusalem. Few Jews lived in the area then, although more came in wake of the couple’s decision.

The couple remained in their home in Shuafat for the next several decades, even as the neighborhood became notorious for hostility to Israel. Then, ten months ago, her husband passed away.

A short time later, Arabs living nearby declared that the couple’s apartment had, in fact, always belonged to them. Since then, a gang of Arab men has made Yona’s life a nightmare.

The men have decided that the best way to get Yona out of her house is to simply break in and remove her. She pointed out parts of her home that had been damaged in various attempted break-ins.

On Thursday afternoon the men came again, and began working together to break the lock on her front door. Police came, and told the Arab men that they need to resolve the issue in court.

Yona’s son Gavriel Marzel, who grew up in the home, told Arutz Sheva that he hopes the Arab gang will listen.

“I grew up in this home, even before the Six Day War,” he said. “It was fun. My father was the first who lived here, and he brought more Jews.”

“Last Monday the court held a session on ownership of the property, and today Arabs suddenly came and broke the door,” he said. The court had ruled that Yona must be allowed to remain until a final decision is made regarding the property, he added.

Yona, for her part, says she will remain in her home despite the attempts to use violence to force her out. “They come here and attack me like animals, but I’m still not afraid to sleep here alone,” she told Arutz Sheva. “There needs to be a presence here.”

Esser Agaroth :
This is a true Bath-Yisra'el (Daughter of Israel)! Unlike other women, who are concerned about their own "rights," Yona is defending her home and land by herself, in the face of Arab terror!

Not only that, but she is a widow. Where are all the feminists, and women's rights advocates, to defend their sister, who is literally putting her life on the line for the sake of Eretz Yisra'el??!!

I'll tell you where they are. They are down by the Kothel (Western Wall) preventing other women from praying there, so that they can assert their "democratic" rights to do whatever the heck they want. And, if it hurts anyone else, or the majority of the public, why should they care? Their "progressive" feminist minority overrules any majority. Anyone can see that.

Yona is like Devorah, the Prophetess and warrior who proclaimed truth and risked her life to defend Am Yisra'el and Eretz Yisra'el (Judges Ch. 4-5).

What the Women of the Wall are Really About

ד' לחודש תשע"ג

Many have told me that it is none of my business whether the so-called “Women Of The Wall” observe their obligatory misswoth, including tzni’uth (modesty), one of the most important misswah a women has. Of course, that does not just mean “covering everything up.” However, they clearly have no clue about this crucial misswah, one way or another.

They are concerned only with doing whatever the heck they want, irregardless of whomever else gets harmed in the process.

Many have told me that it is none of my business what the intentions of these women are, whether they believe that putting a talith and tefillin on in public help their kewanna (intent) in prayer (yeah, right!) or if they are simply trying to make a political statement about their "democratic freedoms."

I suppose that also does not matter that these women’s democratic rights were held up over those of other women,…Haredi women. Everyone wants scream and yell about how “oppressed” Haredi women are. And, then when they want to assert their rights, their voices are silenced and their place in society is marginalized, to borrow from some good, lefty feminist, pseudo-Jewish phrases.

One of five five screenshots of the Israeli Police State in action

Headlines across the board read, “Haredi Protesters Tried to Prevent the Women of the Wall from Praying.”

There was never any mention of the final outcome, which was that these so-called “Women of the Wall” actually ended up preventing thousands of Haredi women from praying at the Kothel.

In all fairness, David Abitbol from Jewlicious, informed me that he was at the Kothel at the time, and believed that the screenshots I had obtained from the JPost YouTube Channel were misleading. He said that the [so-called] “Women Of The Wall” really did not take up very much space at all.

Those screenshots can be seen here, in the photo essay Religious Jews Fenced In: the shape of things to come?

I was surprised, as the JPost has always been traditionally anti-Haredi and pro-"religious pluralism," in my opinion.

Nevertheless, I believe that David completely misses the point.

As I have already written previously, the so-called “Women of the Wall”are not the problem, not in the least.

Whether they know it or not, and whether they even care or not, they are just pawns.

There are “rabbis” have actually come out in support of these women, and there are rabbis who have backed down from their hardline positions against them. The last time rabbis backed down, it was a few years ago, when they called their students to refrain from protesting the so-called “Gay Pride” Parade.

My understanding is that officials from a “certain government agency” approached these rabbis, and suggested that…

They would not want any of their students getting injured, would they?

So much for ones “democratic” right to express ones opinion.

This communication from the gub’mint to these rabbis resulted in their sudden 180° turn away from their previous position.

The government’s agenda is further emphasized by the double standards recently exposed in Minister Livni’s “committee” racism hot line. It only deals with "specific kinds" of discrimination, which is, of course, code for "Haredim and 'Settlers' can go to hell."

But, the main point is that democracy has absolutely nothing to do with Torah, and thus Judaism. It is a mental artifact from Western galuth, and is being perpetuated by the Erev Rav-controlled, anti-Torah, Isaraeli government, and their pawns, those mamlakhti (undying state loyalist) who call for “patience and tolerance,” and the cost of expressing the truth (Torah), as well as those Haredi rabbis who stand idly by, refusing to dirty their hands in the process, and bring forth the truth about how Jewish government is run. Let Mashi’ah come, and he will take care of everything.

I call that a cop out on both counts, a total cave-into government pressure, or in other words a complete lack of emunah (faith).

Both sets of “rabbis” are just as comfortable in their galuth (exile) mentality of denial, as most North American Jews have become comfortable in its physical galuth.

And for those of you who constantly accuse me of being misogynist, I will tell you that one of the few Jews in Israel with a voice of reason,…is a woman.

Arutz 7: Rabbanit Tzviya Eliyahu: Women of the Wall are 'Crazy'

Gil Ronen, June 6, 2013

..."They have gone completely mad,” she said. “They want to enter through the back door, but it won't happen. They cannot come with tallit and tefillin, it's as simple as that. We will not let them do it; they will not defile the place. It is very bad that the police and courts are defending them. The public does not agree to this. It is not democracy, it is democtatorship.”

"If they are Jewish women and not an erev rav of all stripes and colors, then let them come and pray like everyone, but without tallit and tefillin,” she said. The expression 'erev rav' refers to Egyptians and other non-Jews who, according to tradition, joined the Israelites' exodus from Egypt, and later exerted a negative influence on the nation.

Rabbanit Eliyahu does not accept the claims that the Women of the Wall are not Reform Jews. “Today they have one foot here and tomorrow they have the other foot there. If they come with tallit and tefillin and this kind of nonsense, it is just a provocation. We do not accept this. The Kotel is a holy place and there is no room in it for Reformism or Reformists....”

"Rabbi" Barbie
with hair and arms exposed

Many women like to throw around the fact that Rashis Daughters put on tefillin. The fact that they did it properly, with proper kewanna, and in private (and not for the sole sake of pushing a political agenda) always seems to be conspicuously absent from their argument. How dare they compare themselves to Rashi’s daughters! They are far being Rashi’s daughters.

"These women are no Rashi's daughters. Rashi’s daughters were the mothers of [great Hakhamim] Ba’alei Tosafot."

-The Kalashnokover Rebbe

Who are these women of the wall the mothers of?

Oh, I know, I know, one of them is bound to be the odd one out and have a normal thinking child. Well, all I have to say to that is...

וּבְתוּאֵל, יָלַד אֶת-רִבְקָה... (בראשית כב,כג)

And Bethuel begot Rebekah...(Genesis 22:23)

מי שמבין מבין.

Mrs. Eliyahu, on the other hand, is the mother of the Rav of Tzfath, and just any “rabbi,” but a rav who is unafraid of criticizing the government when appropriate, clearly recognizing that there ARE conflicts between Israeli Law and Torah Law, and having the courage to declare this fact publicly (whoever thought one would need courage to point this out to a supposedly “Jewish” government?), even in the face of being convicted of “crime” in secular courts.

So, I know which woman is worth listening to, the one to taught her son to worship The Almighty, and not the State, like some others seem to do.

I certainly do not suggest that it is forbidden for women to wear talith and tefillin. It is not.

The Women of the Wall: Is there a problem?

 (ללחוץ בלינק הזה להגיע לסרטון בעברית.)

Of course, Rabbi David Bar-Hayim is correct. However, I cannot help express that I would personally like to see a more assertive approaching in dealing with them and their agenda. I know that he himslef, has other fish to fry. His focus is elsewhere, working on other important issues.

We are here on this earth to fulfill The Almighty's Will, not our own.  belief in the acceptability that we can do whatever we want in this world, without any concern for what The Almighty wants, or worse, allowing everything to believe that doing whatever they want IS what The Almighty wants.

Hannah Katzman, one of the most prominent bloggers in English, wrote the piece My Lesson In Tolerance at the Times Of Israel.

In theory, I agree with several of the points she makes. However, “Tolerance” is a very important middah (attribute), and, in my humble opinion, we could do for an increase of it within Am Yisrael. However, “Tolerance” for the sake of tolerance, is nothing more than a euphemism for "There is no right and wrong" and "Whateva'! I do what I want!"

As Jews, we are not here on this earth to do whatever we want. We are here to do what The Almighty wants. Granted there is debate on the nuances of what that is or is not. Nonetheless, even if we "dialogue" with those with whom we disagree, which I happen to support, I believe very strongly that we always need to keep in the forefront of our kewanna (intent) the striving toward what The Almighty wants over what I want, or what others simply feel like doing, and bringing my fellow Jews back to this path as well.

And He does not want the Erev Rav to chip away at His Torah, nor at His Land, with or without the  so-called “Women of the Wall” as their pawns.

Women praying with talithoth at the Great Wall of China

As far as the the so-called “Women of the Wall” are concerned, it they want to pray at a wall, then they can pray at another ancient and famous wall, besides the Kothel, in a country much more “democratic” than Israel.

Dov Lipman Is A Spy!

ד' לחודש הרביעי תשע"ג

Arutz 7: Yesh Atid’s Lipman: Giving Up Settlements Will Hurt 

MK says love of the land of Israel can go hand-in-hand with support for Israeli withdrawals, PA state. 

Maayana Miskin, June 11, 2013 

Love for the entire land of Israel can go hand-in-hand with support for Israeli withdrawals and the creation of an Arab state in Judea and Samaria, says MK Dov Lipman of the Yesh Atid party. 

MK Lipman spoke Tuesday at the first meeting in this Knesset session of the Land of Israel Lobby. 

“I came to the Land of Israel Lobby meeting today because it’s very important for Members of Knesset who support the ‘two states for two peoples’ plan to say in a loud, clear voice that we love the entire land of Israel,” he declared. 

“Of course we need to build and support the settlement blocs, of course Jerusalem is the eternal capital of the Jewish nation, and of course any concession of even the smallest piece of the land of Israel will pain me greatly,” he continued. 

Lipman recalled a visit he made to Hevron last week as part of a tour organized by MK Orit Struk (Bayit Yehudi). “There, under the stones of the Tomb of the Patriarchs my love of Israel grew even stronger,” he said. 

“So did [my recognition of] the reality there, which we cannot ignore,” he added. (cont.) 

(Tip Credit: Jews News)

Esser Agaroth (2¢):
Never, have I heard such a great example of double talk,...except from maybe from Shimon Peres,...or Ariel Sharon.

Clearly, MK Dov "Rabbi" Dov Lipman is a spy. No, not the kind who acquires secrets and hands them over to enemies, at least not that I am aware of.

Rather he is this kind of spy...

במדבר יג

כה  וַיָּשֻׁבוּ, מִתּוּר הָאָרֶץ, מִקֵּץ, אַרְבָּעִים יוֹם. כו  וַיֵּלְכוּ וַיָּבֹאוּ אֶל-מֹשֶׁה וְאֶל-אַהֲרֹן וְאֶל-כָּל-עֲדַת בְּנֵי-יִשְׂרָאֵל, אֶל-מִדְבַּר פָּארָן--קָדֵשָׁה; וַיָּשִׁיבוּ אֹתָם דָּבָר וְאֶת-כָּל-הָעֵדָה, וַיַּרְאוּם אֶת-פְּרִי הָאָרֶץ. כז  וַיְסַפְּרוּ-לוֹ, וַיֹּאמְרוּ, בָּאנוּ, אֶל-הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר שְׁלַחְתָּנוּ; וְגַם זָבַת חָלָב וּדְבַשׁ, הִוא--וְזֶה-פִּרְיָהּ. כח  אֶפֶס כִּי-עַז הָעָם, הַיֹּשֵׁב בָּאָרֶץ; וְהֶעָרִים, בְּצֻרוֹת גְּדֹלֹת מְאֹד, וְגַם-יְלִדֵי הָעֲנָק, רָאִינוּ שָׁם. כט  עֲמָלֵק יוֹשֵׁב, בְּאֶרֶץ הַנֶּגֶב; וְהַחִתִּי וְהַיְבוּסִי וְהָאֱמֹרִי, יוֹשֵׁב בָּהָר, וְהַכְּנַעֲנִי יוֹשֵׁב עַל-הַיָּם, וְעַל יַד הַיַּרְדֵּן.ל  וַיַּהַס כָּלֵב אֶת-הָעָם, אֶל-מֹשֶׁה; וַיֹּאמֶר, עָלֹה נַעֲלֶה וְיָרַשְׁנוּ אֹתָהּ--כִּי-יָכוֹל נוּכַל, לָהּ.לא  וְהָאֲנָשִׁים אֲשֶׁר-עָלוּ עִמּוֹ, אָמְרוּ, לֹא נוּכַל, לַעֲלוֹת אֶל-הָעָם:  כִּי-חָזָק הוּא, מִמֶּנּוּ.לב  וַיֹּצִיאוּ דִּבַּת הָאָרֶץ, אֲשֶׁר תָּרוּ אֹתָהּ, אֶל-בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, לֵאמֹר:  הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר עָבַרְנוּ בָהּ לָתוּר אֹתָהּ, אֶרֶץ אֹכֶלֶת יוֹשְׁבֶיהָ הִוא, וְכָל-הָעָם אֲשֶׁר-רָאִינוּ בְתוֹכָהּ, אַנְשֵׁי מִדּוֹת.לג  וְשָׁם רָאִינוּ, אֶת-הַנְּפִילִים בְּנֵי עֲנָק--מִן-הַנְּפִלִים; וַנְּהִי בְעֵינֵינוּ כַּחֲגָבִים, וְכֵן הָיִינוּ בְּעֵינֵיהֶם.

Numbers 13
25 And they returned from spying out the land at the end of forty days.  26 And they went and came to Moses, and to Aaron, and to all the congregation of the children of Israel, unto the wilderness of Paran, to Kadesh; and brought back word unto them, and unto all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 And they told him, and said: 'We came unto the land whither thou sent us, and surely it flows with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it. 28 Howbeit the people that dwell in the land are fierce, and the cities are fortified, and very great; and moreover we saw the children of Anak there. 29 Amalek dwelleth in the land of the South; and the Hittite, and the Jebusite, and the Amorite, dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanite dwelleth by the sea, and along by the side of the Jordan.' 30 And Caleb stilled the people toward Moses, and said: 'We should go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it.' 31 But the men that went up with him said: 'We are not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we.' 32 And they spread an evil report of the land which they had spied out unto the children of Israel, saying: 'The land, through which we have passed to spy it out, is a land that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of great stature. 33 And there we saw the Nephilim, the sons of Anak, who come of the Nephilim; and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.'

Of course, he is NOT of the Joshua nor Caleb variety. Rather, he is like one of the 10 spies, who although learned in Torah, and witnessed the miracles The Almighty did for them, they had a complete lack of emunah (faith) in Him.

Like those spies, MK Lipman believes that we should look at the "reality" of our situation, which is, or course, code for "I'm afraid of the big, bad Arabs!" (Yishma'el) or "I'm afraid of what the 'international community' (goyim) will think!" (Esau).

Pathetic.

MK Dov Lipman lounging in his K'nesseth office

He must be like one of the spies. The Almighty promised us this Land, handed it back to us in 1948, gave us even more back in 1967, and then topped it off with lands from promises for the future, right before our very eyes.

And, Dov Lipman wants to carve it up, just like Shimon Peres, Yossi Beilin, and Zahava Gal-On! Only, Dov Lipman is worse. We already know what Peres, Beilin, and Gal-On want to do. But, Lipman?

Like the spies, he is supposedly learned in Torah, and thus should hold dear the precious gifts The Almighty has given us, rather than spit in His Face, by rejecting the Holy Land granted only to us.

And what exactly does "Rabbi" Lipman intend to do about all of those Torah observant Jews living on those lands, to be handed over??? Has he thought of that yet? Difficult concessions, huh? To our enemies, huh?

"Fearless Leader" Yair Lapid with Dov Lipman, one of his token, kippah-wearing minions

Why don't we hand over Ramath Beth Shemesh over to the Yishma'elim? What would you think of that? Difficult concessions are necessary, right? Besides, it will go nicely with Shiekh Munes, the "stolen" village upon which the neighborhood of Ramat Aviv was built. Fortunately, former MK Michael Ben-Ari would run to defend Ramath Beth Shemesh just as much as he would Hevron, and Ramat Aviv resident and former MK Michael Kleiner would never hear of such a thing regarding his neighborhood.

In contrast to MK Lipman, they are like Joshua and Caleb.

I guess MK Lipman was just thinking of Hevron, where are righteous forbears are buried, Shiloh, where the Mishkan stood for 400 plus years, and Beth El.

If he believes that we just sit around and wait for Mashi'ah to do everything, then why on earth is he jumping the gun by sitting in a prematurely established government?

You cannot have your cake and eat it, too.

MK Lipman, you should resign. And, if you are still wondering why I do not include the title "Rabbi" next to your name, then you really have some self-reflection to do.

Religious Jews Fenced In: The shape of things to come? (Photo Essay)

ד' לחודש הרביעי תשע"ג

Welcome to the Israeli Police State....

Modestly dressed, Jewish women come to pray at the Kothel (Western Wall).

However, only certain people are allowed in, with the excuse that others must protected. T-Shirts and blue jeans, with or without a kippah (male head covering) are acceptable.

Sleeveless blouses and short skirts are acceptable. These are in line with the Erev Rav controlled, Israeli government's designs to assimilate Jews into the West, its values and sensibilities, its clothing, its people's names, its Tower Of Babel languages.

Un-Jewish police officers lock arms to prevent young women from entering the Kothel area. The supposedly "brainwashed" and "oppressed" young, religious women, are here to assert their rights. Yet, those rights are cast aside, for the sake of those who fit the bill of the Erev Rav's proper, "progressive" citizens, citizens who are loyal to it.

Showing deference to the Torah, when Israeli Law clashes with it is unacceptable. Settler teenagers, who hold the authority of The Almighty and His Torah above the Israeli government, are already being rounded up for "RE-Education," by an Education Ministry, headed by a man wearing a kippah, no less.

The photos certainly appear to be a rounding up of their own.

Only one question remains. Are religious Jews being fenced in, or fenced out?

********* 

Photos are all screen shots, obtained from the JPost YouTube Channel.

More Sneaky Christian Missionary Activity (The Yellow Booklet)

ג' לחודש הרביעי תשע"ג

A friend of mine came across this yellow booklet, pictured below. It is in Hebrew and Russian. His Hebrew isn't so great, and his Russian nil, but even he was suspicious.I started to flip through the pages, finding only verses from Tana"kh, until I came to לוקוס, then shortly after that מתתיהו, יוחנן, העברים (Luke, John, Matthew, and Hebrews, respectively). I stopped paying close attention at that point.

There are only verses, with only a titles above them, indicating what they want to convince you what the verses mean.

"The Messiah Of Israel"
Followed by verse from the Tana"kh
Isaiah 61:1

"The Society for Deceptive Hebrew Scriptures"

A "Registered Charity," huh? I suggest that all British citizens coll the Charity Registry to complain about their deceptiveness.

So, be warned. If you see this yellow booklet floating around your neighborhood, you will be able to recognize it.

It should then be disposed of properly.

רמב"ם הל' עבודה זרה פרק ז 
א מצות עשה היא לאבד עבודה זרה, ומשמשיה, וכל הנעשה בשבילה--שנאמר "אבד תאבדון את כל המקומות . . ." (דברים יב,ב), ונאמר "כי אם כה תעשו, להם--מזבחותיהם תיתוצו . . ." (דברים ז,ה).

ב ובארץ ישראל, מצוה לרדוף אחריה עד שנאבד אותה מכל ארצנו; אבל בחוצה לארץ, אין אנו מצווין לרדוף אחריה, אלא כל מקום שנכבוש אותו, נאבד כל עבודה זרה שבו: שנאמר "ואיבדתם את שמם, מן המקום ההוא" (דברים יב,ג)--בארץ ישראל, אתה מצווה לרדוף אחריהם, ואין אתה מצווה לרדוף אחריהם, בחוצה לארץ.

Ramba"m, Laws of Avodah Zarah, Ch. 7
1 It is a positive commandment to destroy avodah zarah, and its accessories, as it is said, "You should surely destroy all the places, wherein the nations that you are to expel served their gods,..." (Deut. 12:2), and it is said, "But thus shall ye deal with them: ye shall break down their altars..." (Deut. 7:5)

2 And in the Land of Israel, it is a commandment to chase after it, until it is destroyed from all of our land; but outside the Land, we are not commanded to chase after it, rather each place we [Israel] capture, we would destroy all avodah zarah within it, as it is said, "...and you destroy their name out of that place." (Deut. 12:3)--In the Land of Israel, you are commanded to chase after it, but you are not commanded to chase after it outside the Land.

Here is one example, from former MK Dr. Micha'el Ben-Ari.

Micha'el Ben-Ari rips a Christian text known as the "New Testament."

...and another from Uzi Aharon, Vice-Mayor of Or Yehudah.

Uzi Aharon prefers to burn the Christian texts distributed throughout his city.

Both are acceptable according to halakhah (Jewish Law).

I'll let you guess how I helped my friend get rid of his...

Haredim Are Next!

ג' לחודש הרביעי תשע"ג

 JPost: Ministers Approve Upping Punishments for Terror

Lahav Harkov, June 9, 2013

Meretz, ACRI say bill is anti-democratic, violates human rights; MK Gal-On accuses Knesset of waylaying human rights to fight terror.

The punishments for involvement in terror organizations and for anyone who supports, identifies or sympathizes with terror will be increased, according to a bill approved by the Ministerial Committee for Legislation Sunday.

The Justice Ministry worked on the bill for four years, and its passage was disrupted by the last election.

The bill increases sentences for terror attacks from 30 to 40 years and, in some cases, allows suspects to be jailed for up to 30 days without seeing a lawyer. In addition, the state will be able to seize property belonging to terror organizations and limit their members from leaving the country even if there is no warrant for their arrest.

The bill will also apply to “price tag” vandalism, which Justice Minister Tzipi Livni considers terror.

The legislation is meant to replace the national state of emergency in matters of terror.

The national emergency has been extant since the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948, and includes hundreds of orders covering security issues as well as civil and economic ones.

Meretz leader Zehava Gal-On accused the government of trampling on human rights in the name of fighting terror.

“This bill is invalid and unconstitutional, as it gives the government draconian authority to arrest people and limit freedom of movement, and turns law-abiding people and organizations into ‘terrorists,’” Gal-On said.

Gal-On said that the government fights terror with “one hand tied behind its back,” paraphrasing former Supreme Court president Aharon Barak.

“The state of emergency, which was applied here since the British Mandate, cannot be replaced with anti-democratic legislation that will be anchored in our modern lawbooks,” she added. “Even in a democracy, not everything is allowed.”

The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) panned the bill, saying it allows the government to take serious steps against people and organizations without a trial and without minimum guarantees that their rights will be defended. “The bill seeks to perpetuate and even worsen the anti-democratic arrangements in the state of national emergency,” the organization said. “Therefore, it will cause serious and irreversible damage to the state of human rights in Israel.”

Esser Agaroth (2¢):

Sure, this bill has been in the works for four years. But, anyone who does not think that the government is grabbing the opportunity to harass those "settlers" not supremely loyal to the government is naive, at best, and a collaborator with them at worst.

I do not believe for a minute that Meretz Leader Zahava Gal-On gives a hoot about "settlers" rights. However, some years ago, she did allude to her discomfort with Administrative Detention, a hold-over from the British Mandate period, even when it concerned Hevron Hills resident Noam Federman. It is my belief that she knows that if Administrative Detention can be used against a settler, unfavorable by the government, then it can be applied to anyone, including left-wing, so-called "social justice" demonstrators and anarchist, security fence protestors. (For the record, I, too am against that "security fence.")

Administrative Detention can result in a court summary judgment that any particular is a threat to public safety, based on evidence gathered, which might not even be shared with defense counsel. The accused can then be "detained" without indictment or trial, and having only limited contact with counsel before the hearing, if that.

She does make a good point, though, even if she is thinking about Arabs, when she says it:

“This bill is invalid and unconstitutional, as it gives the government draconian authority to arrest people and limit freedom of movement, and turns law-abiding people and organizations into ‘terrorists,’” Gal-On said.

Please tell me when MK's finally stop talking about what is or is not "constitutional." Israel doesn't have a Constitution, so how could anything be constitutional or unconstitutional??

Nevertheless, when applied to Jews who hold The Amighty and His Torah on a higher level of authority than the Israeli Government and its laws, this fits the bill of the Erev Rav's anti-Torah policies  perfectly.

So, where do the Haredim come in? Like it or not, their priorities are like those of the ideologically based "settlers:"

חוקי התורה קודמין לחוקי האדם.

The Laws of the Torah take precedence over the laws of man.

Soon, the lighting trashcans on fire will be declared a terrorist act by Minister Livni. And, your sons being dragged off to be conscripted into the IDF will be the least of your worries.

You'll be sitting in "detention" with "Settlers."

Hopefully, though, it won't take you that long to realize, that in many ways we are all on the same side, the side of The Almighty and His Torah.

Should Private Beaches Be Allowed In Israel?

ערב שבת קודש פר' קרח תשע"ג

From a Life In Israel Quote Of The Day:

"It cannot be that the beaches will be only for the rich. The vacations are for everybody. We need to do everything possible so that in July and August people will be able to go to the sea without having to spend a lot of money. We need to give people options to tour and enjoy at reasonable prices."

 -- MK Miri Regev (Likud)

*at a discussion in the Knesset about the state of the beaches around Israel and the possibility of entrance fees

Esser Agaroth (2¢):

OK, so MK Miri Regev earns some points here. It is not the first time she has earned kudos from Esser Agaroth. That was when she showed public support for Jewish Prayer on the Temple Mount.

Her concern with fairness across the board, regardless of financial status is admirable. Quite frankly all government officials should operate this way. Everyone should be able to enjoy the beach. The beach belongs to everyone. 

The Snack Bar at the Religious Beach in Tel-Aviv
תשס"ט/2009

I, myself, have always wondered how some of these structures have been able to pop up suddenly on the beach, blocking off large sections of it, in order to charge for admission. I was unaware that anyone was actually allowed to own land in Israel, unless one was fortunate enough to have purchased it during Turkish (or British? rule. I always seemed a bit shady to me.

However, to my embarrassment, I must say that many beaches in Israel are filthy. It is not even because of irresponsible beach-goers per se. I usually go to some very isolated beaches, and they are filled will trash, coughed up by the Mediterranean. Whether from Israel's industry and residents, from other irresponsible countries, from cruise ships, or from all of the above, I cannot tell. But, whoever is responsible, beach-goers and volunteers alone do not seem to be able to keep up with it.

Clean up costs money. Cities provide some of that service. However, I have seen plenty of areas in Israel, incorporated and not, in total neglect. Someone has to clean it sometime, either the government, volunteers, or private companies.

As a Californian, liberals and conservatives alike are aware that taking care of our environment benefits everyone. Whether you believe it affects our health, whether you believe it is an investment returned several times over in tourist spending boosts to local economies, or whether you believe we need to take care of the environment, just because we need to, it benefits everyone.

And so, compliments to MK Regev, but I hope she does not just REACT, like so many MK's seem to do (on the so-called right and the left), putting band-aids on everything, avoiding the often necessary surgery.

So far in MK Regev's tenure in the K'nesseth, she seems to have been fairly thorough. (Did I miss anything?) So I expect that she will remember that uncovering the shadiness of "private" beaches.

But, someone is going to have to pay if we want our beaches to remain clean, both for us, and for the tourists with big wallets. And those someones are Israeli taxpayers.

Parashath Korah: Time For A Real Chief Rabbinate

ערב שבת קודש פר' קרח תשע"ג

Rabbi David Lau, Rabbi Ya'akov Ariel, Rabbi David Stav
Chief Rabbi "Candidates"

The elections for Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi of Israel are imminent.

Elections? In other words, whoever garners the mote votes will be the new Chief Rabbi for the next 10 years.

Will this individual be the rabbi who knows the most Torah? An halakhic (Jewish legal) expert in contract disputes? Kashruth? How to deal with enemy combatants or Shabbath desecraters?

Perhaps. Or perhaps popularity, charisma, and political savvy will be the attributes which get him elected.

Rabbi David Stav is campaigning hard for the position...hard. Or, now it seems that Rabbi David Stav was campaigning hard for the position?

I have not been keeping track of the latest Chief Rabbi election news, so I do not have a clue what this means about how he was campaigning. And now he's not?

Rabbi Ya'akov Ariel then entered the frey, needing a legal change to the maximum age a Chief Rabbi can be.

Doesn't that sound like the Vatican's restriction of voting rights on elderly cardinals? (להבדיל)

I am not sure what the point is anyway. ten years ago, Rabbi Ya'akov Ariel was the favored candidate. Then some outside force (who will remain nameless) stepped in, and decided that Rabbi Yonah Metzgar would be the Chief Rabbi, and that was that.

So much for democracy.

And now, I hear that the leading candidate is Rabbi David Lau. Who's that? I have no clue. Although when I searched for his image, a photo of his milu'im (IDF reserve duty) card came up. So, even though he wears traditional Lithuanian (ie. non-Jewish) clothing, he's a tzi'eini??? How 'bout that? He is even an officer. But, would Rabbi David Lau encourage the full implementation of the halakhoth related to running a truly Jewish military, as well as the halakhoth related to fighting a war?

Yep! Such things exist, but were you ever know it, if you depended solely on the Jewish education of Israeli government schools?

I think not.

Anyway, I'm confused.

What does a popular vote have anything to do with being leading dayan and poseq, even an election by rabbis who were appointed by a self-perpetuating committee??

Absolutely nothing.

Rafi at Life In Israel stated this quite well in his piece The Desecration of the Chief Rabbinate, criticizing the wheeling and dealing, as it were, and suggesting that the rabbi most deserving of the position would be the one who does not participate in the dirty and ruthless process.

It is said that Korah was a hakham, very learned in Torah. But, that unlike Moshe Rabbeinu, who learned Torah lishmah, for the sake of learning Torah, for the sake of the misswah, and for the sake of understanding HaShem's Will, Korah learned Torah in order to receive kavod (honor).

I will assume that the above pictured candidates all have only the best of intentions for Am Yisra'el and Eretz Yisra'el, and the utmost respect for Torath Yisra'el, and are not in the least bit interested in the honor which comes with the position.

But, how will the winner be able to function at his utmost, if he will be stopped at every possible politically-incorrect corner by the Israeli government? In particular, the Israeli Supreme Court has already overruled the Chief Rabbinate's decisions on the kashruth certification of a Christian bakery in Ashdod and a meat company.

It also intervened in the dispute between Rabbis Sherman and Rabbi Drukman over the proper approach to conversions. Why was this dispute not resolved by the Rabbinical Courts by Rabbinical judges knowledgeable in these halakhoth? And, why did Rabbi Drukman accept the Court's ruling. Because it ruled in his favor? Or because he's a Mamlakhti?

Why is the Israeli Supreme Court sticking its nose. Soon, it will undoubtedly do the same regarding marriage and divorce, resulting in countless mamzerim running around, not to mention the increased violation of halakhoth related to gilu'i arawoth.

Then not much later, look for it to declare brith milah (ritual circumcision) "sexual mutilation."

So, what it the point of a Chief Rabbinate anyway, if the Israeli Supreme Court has the final say on everything, anyway??

Israel's Real Chief Rabbinate?

And even when the Israeli Court system was not so outspoken on religious matters, where were the Chief Rabbis? Where were the Chief Rabbis when women began entering male combat units, and the amount of promiscuity in the IDF sharply started to rise? Where were the Chief Rabbis when the safety of IDF soldiers has been compromised for the sake of "innocent civilians," ie. human shields for terrorists? And where were the Chief Rabbis whenalmost 10,000 Jews were thrown out of their homes and off of their lands in Azza (Gaza) in תשס"ה/2005, and the land handed over to hostile Yishma'elim (Arabs)?

One hakham, who brought these issues into the forefront, Rabbi Elitzur HaLewi Sege"l was recently "convicted" of making "anti-disengagement" statements, disengagement being the preferred euphemism for expulsion. In other word, Rabbi Sege"l was convicted of exercising his freedom of speech," which demonstrates that such a concept does not actually exist in Israel, unless, of course, the Erev Rav-controlled government approves, or can at least tolerate your statements.

Gee. Do you think that the fact that their salaries came from the government instead of from some secured, independent fund, may have influenced them?

דברים טז,יט לֹא-תַטֶּה מִשְׁפָּט, לֹא תַכִּיר פָּנִים; וְלֹא-תִקַּח שֹׁחַד--כִּי הַשֹּׁחַד יְעַוֵּר עֵינֵי חֲכָמִים, וִיסַלֵּף דִּבְרֵי צַדִּיקִם. 

Deuteronomy 16:19 You will not wrest judgment; you will not respect persons [over others]; nor should you take a gift; for should a gift blinds the eyes of the wise, and perverts the words of the righteous. 

Democratic process touching the selection of rabbis sounds too much like the supposedly Jewish "civil religion" of the supposedly Jewish movement of "Reconstructionism." "The past has a vote, not a veto," is one of its dicta, and the "voting process" carries a heavy roll in congregational life,...sometimes even to the dismay of the congregation's spiritual leader, to whom they refer as "rabbi".

MK Moshe Feiglin's unifying idea of having only one Chief Rabbi, serving all Jews, regardless their ethic backgrounds, seems to have fallen on deaf ears.

Although I certainly like the idea of unity, what good is one, two, or twelve Chief Rabbis, if they're just going to be puppets?

One friend suggested that this would eliminate some bureaucracy. Maybe. But the Israeli government, whether Left-wing or Right of center has always been proud to display its expertise in increasing bureaucracy, so I would hold my breath. 

A real Chief Rabbinate is chosen through the consensus of hakhamim on a single hakham, who becomes the first samukh, and semikha who then grants [real]  to then next Jews who are also hakhamim. Or at least that is an oversimplification of the process brought down by the Ramba"m. Not everyone is qualified to sit on this court, not women, nor anyone else pasul for eiduth.

A real Chief Rabbinate is not chosen through democratic (קל וחומר pseudo-democratic) selection committees, with women OR men.

What we need is a truly Jewish, Chief Rabbinate, for the sake of Jewish Unity, for the sake of returning to the path of living authentically Jewish lives, and for the sake of the misswah.

What we need is the return of the court begun by Moshe Rabbeinu, the leadership which stood up to the challenge of Korah, Korah, who at the will of the The Almighty was then swallowed up by the mouth of the earth.

We do not need any harmful Korahs, whether they be in the forefront, sitting as Chief Rabbi, or behind the scenes in the backrooms of the K'nesseth and Israeli Supreme Court, pulling the strings. 

What we need is a Sanhedrin.