In God We Trust? Says Who?

When is an Israeli leader going to speak for ALL Israelis, irrespective of creed, skin color, shirt size, and exilic origins? And when is a leader of Israel going to say something serious, up front and in public, about his own personal Jewish faith?

I’m talking about more than just another passing reference, a trite sound bite that reveals more ignorance than serious theological understanding. We’ve seen too many elected public figures in Israel toss a bone at the media, just to make it look as if they too, like any American president worth his salt, can sound God-fearing when necessary.

Yes. When forced to by circumstances, our duly elected leaders on both the left and the right have been known to actually make explicit mention of the word ‘God’, no matter how bitter it tastes in their mouths. But do not be confused by appearances. After all – intelligent, modern, educated and enlightened Jews don’t really take seriously that superstitious Judaism stuff, do we? (Growing up in America, I was under the impression that really BELIEVING this kind of primitive nonsense was strictly the realm of our neighbors, the goyyim.)

The last time we had a leader who may have actually talked about the  the Holy One, Blessed Be He, in his public speeches and private conversations, was probably either Yehudah Macabee of Hanukkah fame, or the man named Shimon ben-Kosiba, depending on which version of history you hold by. Either way – it’s been almost 2,000 years.

It’s about time, no?