The Yardstick for the Jew

It used to be that Jews were trained to adopt a philosophy regarding any election, that the candidate who is “good for the Jews”, gets the Jewish vote. Unfortunately, things have gotten very confused in the Jewish world and this confusion is so great that Jews are no longer certain what is really Jewish and what is not.

Dennis Prager recently wrote an article blasting a Conservative rabbi for advocating a fast day on the day Donald Trump was sworn in. Others felt the “Jewish” thing to do was to sit Shiva after the election results came in. Prager contends that to the Liberal Left, their philosophy represents true Judaism and anything else is not Jewish.

It is absolutely necessary to restate the impact that the State of Israel has on worldwide Jewry. The image of the Jew has changed dramatically since we have Israel. Jews are viewed with much more respect and dignity because of Israel and the Israel Defence Forces. Jews are safer all over the world because Israel is protecting them.

In short, the treatment of Israel reflects an attitude towards all of the Jewish people. If someone speaks out against Israel, he is belittling the entire Jewish nation. Zionism and Judaism are one and the same. One cannot hate Zionists and love Jews.

Today, political correctness has taken priority over much more important issues. Because of the tremendous influence of the media, being polite and outwardly accepting, gives a politician great leeway in covering up dangerous views. And to the contrary, if one has ideas that will benefit the world, but he cannot express them in a politically correct manner, they will be discarded.

The Torah acquaints us with our first politically correct villain. Lavan, whose name means white. He always seemed to say the right things. He found a rationale for switching Rachel and Leah, and for cheating Jacob in every way possible. At our Passover Seder, we mention that Lavan wished to utterly destroy us. Our prophets warn us to “Beware of the smoothed tongue.”

Former President Obama is constantly praised for his grace, charisma, and gentlemanly manner in how he conducted himself during his presidency. People are fooled into thinking that he is a friend to Israel. Ironically, he is our modern day Lavan.

Obama’s inability to say the words, “radical Islamic terror,” and at the same time, relentlessly blaming Jewish settlements for all the problems in the Middle East, is very Lavan-like. His promoting a deal with Iran, a nation that sponsors terrorism, is an obvious affront to Israel and the Jewish people.

Obama’s abstention during his last month in office at the United Nations was despicable and showed how he really felt about the Jews. If someone is bad for Israel and the Jews, he is not our friend. Every Jew who voted for him, should feel ashamed. All is not in vain, if a lesson is learned from this.

Assimilation is the greatest tragedy in our times. Not only is intermarriage  a plague, but so is the assimilation of truly Jewish ideas. When all is said and done we have the G-d of Israel and our own people to rely on. History has taught us this lesson through a long and painful exile

The Rabbis repeatedly speak of truth and peace, Emet and Shalom, going together. When we recognize the truth, as difficult as it may be, we have peace of mind. Let us hope we learn from this very tumultuous election, to be wiser and support only those who truly support Israel, the Jewish nation, and show respect for the G-d of Israel.