Counting our blessings amidst the elections 

I was intending to write about the upcoming elections, but didn’t really have a unique angle to share. However I have recently been reading from 1st and 2nd Kings in the Tanakh, and there one gains a breadth of perspective spanning centuries of Jewish political intrigue. The King’s delicate grip on the reins of power was vulnerable to both foreign threat and internal dissent. Periodic raids from surrounding nations were at times the norm. And the main recurrent theme is that ”the King did evil in the eyes of the Lord” (engaging in idolatry) so the Israelites or Judeans are subjected to their enemies’ wrath in punishment.

I don’t want to ‘over egg the pudding’ with a historical analogy between idolatry and a lack of commitment to Zionism. But the impact of worshipping foreign gods can in part be viewed as a dilution of nativist ideology. The Sages teach that this unmatched evil inclination propensity for idolatry was removed from Israel (along with prophecy) at the close of the first Temple period. So at least we don’t have to grapple with that, and Yiddishkeit reigns supreme in the Land. We also don’t have a divided Kingdom in any sense near that of the First Jewish Commonwealth. Interestingly this initially occurred due to the scourge of extortionate taxation. However, the split between Judah and Israel was institutionalized by the establishment of rival altars in Bethel and Dan as opposed to the Temple in Jerusalem.

In Kings, Israel was lodged between Empires immersed in a power struggle for conquest and regional influence. Thankfully now our neighborhood is more hospitable and regional adversaries are weaker. Rather than beseeching assistance from a treacherous King of Egypt out of desperation, we have a largely steadfast Superpower ally in Washington to help us.

Indeed, by comparison our contemporary travails seem rather more manageable. You don’t have to worry about slaying Yitzik down the road for crafting an Asherah pole. Famine is a non-issue, although we could do with Waitrose and Marks and Spencer. Our cities aren’t being ransacked and besieged. We’re living the good life. Every man living under his 21st century Vine tree of indoor plumbing, wireless internet and health insurance. Yes we’ve endured a tough crack of the whip over these three long years. But compared to the events recorded on your average page in Kings we fare far better in every conceivable way.

Bringing it back to the election, we now enjoy a degree of political stability which was only remotely realized during the reign of David. The political divisions in modern Israel have actually narrowed. The preponderance of party alignment is center – center Right. The peacenik cohort of Labor and Meretz (Democrats) is comparatively tiny to what it once was. It’s the ten seat bloc of Arab parties that substantially holds the Left. Whether you like that or not it is indicative of some level of national cohesion.

Some readers are probably dismissive of my thesis, which contextualizes current affairs in light of Israel’s Biblical history. I can hear a Mr. Stickler in some corner of the internet thinking it’s like comparing apples and oranges. That Iron Age agricultural pre-nation state ancient Israel is so far removed from our own reality, that no meaningful insight can be gained. And Mr. Stickler is partly correct. However, we build on the shoulders of our ancestors and turn to their history for inspiration, hope and guidance. A little Biblical perspective wouldn’t go amiss amidst the usual political mudslinging. We’re living in a democratic Jewish State, our cities aren’t being besieged by the Assyrians, and we can dispense with an unpopular Prime Minister without putting him to the sword. Not a bad deal by the standards of Kings.