We’ve all heard and read that Israel is the Middle East’s beacon of tolerance for the non-heterosexual non-cis-gender. (Never mind that one tolerates a nuisance, not human beings.) Gay life here is better than anywhere else in the Muslim world – and at least as good as in the Western world. Which is true. Also a vast majority of Israeli’s is for gay marriage – though there isn’t. Let’s stop obscuring the homophobia that is going on in Israel that is often worse than anywhere else.
The gay-hatred that emerges from some Israelis is not so great percentage-wise. But its viciousness still mentally oppresses and kills many a non-normal, both because in some circles it is worse than in the West and a number of the bigots are high-profile people who don’t mind crippling or ending the lives of so many.
In honor of Pride Month, let’s start with Israel’s obsession with normalcy. It probably comes from when the Holocaust survivors came to the young Jewish State and were unwelcome. Who wants to hear such stories – no one – and who needs people not ready to help defend our lives and build the country? Act normal or go to a mental institution. “You are not normal” is still one of the worst accusations possible here. There is not even awareness that this is oppressive thinking.
Let’s move on – there is so much more. True, non-straights are 25% of the Tel Aviv population and the city is most gay-friendly. But that should not be seen as the norm for all of Israel. For starters, there are so many gays in Tel Aviv because in other parts of Israel, life is almost impossible for the non-straight. Not all of the US is San Francisco and not all of Israel is Tel Aviv.
And not all of the Tel Aviv area is what it should be either. An example is reported here, but it could be fake news. (It’s from a two-word publication and both words are a lie.) And certainly not fake is the vitriol that is published under this article. Pride Month is the sign for the gay-haters to crawl from under their rocks and spout a true hatred as if they are hardcore Nazis. And just like fascists, these self-proclaimed followers of Jesus consider themselves superior to the subjects of their rage. No love and no other cheek. Where are the Christians condemning them?!
Which brings us to fundamentalist-Jewish areas of the country. There it seems that gays are more hated than anyone else. Whole sections of the country but also whole cities but also whole neighborhoods but also who communities but also whole families are living hells for non-normal youths growing up in them. The thought of suicide is never far away from their minds. The option of moving to other parts of the country does not help if one is too scared to think and if one got indoctrinated that one actually is, or one’s intimacy and sexuality are, hated by G^d Himself. Every act of bullying, every anti-gay comment by peers or by teachers may lead to young gays taking their lives, and no one gives a hoot. It’s not even illegal to call gays names.
Israel has the most progressive laws against sexual harassment in the world. If someone feels intimidated, s/he can already go to the police and file a complaint. But the situation against homophobia is nowhere near that. Politicians and faith leaders feel free and are not embarrassed to fulminate against gays and lesbians as if they are vermin. They think that Judaism is under attack and see themselves as the victims – and as the moral champions on this issue. Their supremacist gut reactions are ventilated without restraint or shame.
Many Israelis feel disgusted at the thought of same-sex intimacy. And they assume that that is a sign from up-high that their revulsion is not just natural but also just. They don’t know any gay people, have no gay friends and the gays in their family are in hiding, so they don’t know that many gays and lesbians are revolted at the thought of other-sex intimacy – showing that this disgust has nothing to do with homosexuality being wrong or inferior.
Forget about mainly the religious Jews being gay-haters. Some of the most vicious ones are completely secular. They do everything forbidden in the Torah but the only way to be intimate is their way – and the others are a pest. In two ways they are worse than religious bigots because: one would expect better from the secular, and they don’t accept any rules for their own moral behavior and speech.
In my not too humble opinion though, worst is the attitude of the Orthodox rabbis. And I’m not even talking about the clergy that I discussed above who brand “these people” (they can’t even say the adjective) inferior (the Nazis called that “unworthy of life”). No, I’m talking here about the sweet average Orthodox rabbi who will not speak out against branding GLBTQ as inferior. For years, I assumed they were afraid to speak out. Not so. If they have such – understandable – fears, they are merely a symptom of a greater moral flaw: they don’t care.
They don’t care that young gays commit suicide, even in their own circles, that half a million Jews are changed (can’t get married) because of their bigotry – and half a billion Gentiles with them. They don’t care. You can say to them whatever you want, it’s a waste of time because they don’t want to care.
And that should be the focus of the new attitude of Jewish gay liberation: frontal attacks on the rabbis. The kit gloves off and calling a spade a spade. Call them murderers, because they are – all of them collectively have blood on their hands – including the ones who promote tolerance for the sinners, which means: we will leave you a place under the sun if you see yourself as flawed, not created in G^d’s image. I don’t envy their position for the Heavenly Throne. O, and that’s not an extreme position by me; that’s a mild position against an extreme position by them. When they start caring, then we can treat them with respect again. But no sooner.
Meanwhile, don’t forget: It does get better. Do as G^d wants: choose life. He loves you and wants you to have a good life. Run from death and falsehood. Don’t wait for the rabbis. Happy Pride Month!
MM is a prolific and creative writer and thinker, previously a daily blog contributor to the TOI. He often makes his readers laugh, mad, or assume he's nuts—close to perfect blogging. He's proud that his analytical short comments are removed both from left-wing and right-wing news sites. None of his content is generated by the new bore on the block, AI. *
As a frontier thinker, he sees things many don't yet. He's half a prophet. Half. Let's not exaggerate. Or not at all because he doesn't claim G^d talks to him. He gives him good ideas—that's all. MM doesn't believe that people observe and think in a vacuum. He, therefore, wanted a broad bio that readers interested can track a bit what (lack of) backgrounds, experiences, and educations contribute to his visions. *
This year, he will prioritize getting his unpublished books published rather than just blog posts. Of the 15 (!) books he has in mind, the next two are about homosexuality in Judaism and new rabbinics. Next year, he hopes to focus on activism against human extinction. To find less-recent posts on a subject XXX among his over 2600 archived ones, go to the right-top corner of a Times of Israel page, click on the search icon and search "zuiden, XXX". One can find a second, wilder blog that also may contain updates to Times of Israel posts, to which one may subscribe, here: https://mmvanzuiden.wordpress.com/ or by clicking on the globe icon next to his picture on top. *
He's getting ready to publicize books on: "Free Will, "Judaism and Homosexuality, "His parents in the Holocaust, "Judaism, "A New Torah Translation and "A New Hebrew Grammar, "Co-Counseling, "Vegan Facts, "Immortality, and more. *
Like most of his readers, he believes in being friendly, respectful, and loyal. However, if you think those are his absolute top priorities, you might end up disappointed. His first loyalty is to the truth. He agrees that in a post-truth world, that's irrelevant, but then this is for the record. He will try to stay within the limits of democratic and Jewish law, but he won't lie to support opinions or people when don't deserve that. (Yet, we all make honest mistakes, which is just fine and does not justify losing support.) He admits that he sometimes exaggerates to make a point, which could have him come across as nasty, while in actuality, he's quite a lovely person to interact with. He holds - how Dutch - that a strong opinion doesn't imply intolerance of other views. *
Sometimes he's misunderstood because his wide and diverse field of vision seldomly fits any specialist's box. But that's exactly what some love about him. He has written a lot about Psychology (including Sexuality and Abuse), Medicine (including physical immortality), Science (including basic statistics), Politics (Israel, the US, and the Netherlands, Activism - more than leftwing or rightwing, he hopes to highlight reality), Oppression and Liberation (intersectionally, for young people, the elderly, non-Whites, women, workers, Jews, LGBTQIA+, foreigners and anyone else who's dehumanized or exploited), Integrity, Philosophy, Jews (Judaism, Zionism, Holocaust and Jewish Liberation), the Climate Crisis, Ecology and Veganism, Affairs from the news, or the Torah Portion of the Week, or new insights that suddenly befell him. *
Chronologically, his most influential teachers are his parents, Nico (natan) van Zuiden and Betty (beisye) Nieweg, Wim Kan, Mozart, Harvey Jackins, Marshal Rosenberg, Reb Shlomo Carlebach, and, lehavdil bein chayim lechayim, Rabbi Dr. Natan Lopes Cardozo, Rav Zev Leff, and Rav Meir Lubin. This short list doesn't mean to disrespect others who taught him a lot or a little. One of his rabbis calls him Mr. Innovation [Ish haChidushim]. Yet, his originalities seem to root deeply in traditional Judaism, though they may grow in unexpected directions. In fact, he claims he's modernizing nothing. Rather, mainly basing himself on the basic Hebrew Torah text, he tries to rediscover classical Jewish thought almost lost in thousands of years of stifling Gentile domination and Jewish assimilation. (He pleads for a close reading of the Torah instead of going by rough assumptions of what it would probably mean and before fleeing to Commentaries.) This, in all aspects of life, but prominently in the areas of Free Will, Activism, Homosexuality for men, and Redemption. *
He hopes that his words will inspire and inform, and disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed. He aims to bring a fresh perspective rather than harp on the obvious and familiar. When he can, he loves to write encyclopedic overviews. He doesn't expect his readers to agree. Rather, original minds should be disputed. In short, his main political positions are among others: anti-Trumpism, for Zionism, Intersectionality, non-violence, anti those who abuse democratic liberties, anti the fake ME peace process, for original-Orthodoxy, pro-Science, pro-Free Will, anti-blaming-the-victim, and for down-to-earth, classical optimism, and happiness. Read his blog on how he attempts to bridge any tensions between those ideas or fields. *
He is a fetal survivor of the pharmaceutical industry (https://diethylstilbestrol.co.uk/studies/des-and-psychological-health/), born in 1953 to his parents who were Dutch-Jewish Holocaust survivors who met in the largest concentration camp in the Netherlands, Westerbork. He grew up a humble listener. It took him decades to become a speaker too, and decades more to admit to being a genius. But his humility was his to keep. And so was his honesty. Bullies and con artists almost instantaneously envy and hate him. He hopes to bring new things and not just preach to the choir. *
He holds a BA in medicine (University of Amsterdam) – is half a doctor. He practices Re-evaluation Co-counseling since 1977, is not an official teacher anymore, and became a friendly, powerful therapist. He became a social activist, became religious, made Aliyah, and raised three wonderful kids. Previously, for decades, he was known to the Jerusalem Post readers as a frequent letter writer. For a couple of years, he was active in hasbara to the Dutch-speaking public. He wrote an unpublished tome about Jewish Free Will. He's a strict vegan since 2008. He's an Orthodox Jew but not a rabbi. *
His writing has been made possible by an allowance for second-generation Holocaust survivors from the Netherlands. It has been his dream since he was 38 to try to make a difference by teaching through writing. He had three times 9-out-of-10 for Dutch at his high school finals but is spending his days communicating in English and Hebrew - how ironic. G-d must have a fine sense of humor. In case you wonder - yes, he is a bit dyslectic. If you're a native English speaker and wonder why you should read from people whose English is only their second language, consider the advantage of having an original peek outside of your cultural bubble. His posts are spell, grammar, and style polished by AI, but all written by himself. *
To send any personal reaction to him, scroll to the top of the blog post and click Contact Me. *
His newest books you may find here: https://www.amazon.com/s?i=stripbooks&rh=p_27%3AMoshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&s=relevancerank&text=Moshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1
