Zohran Mamdani: The Anti-Abraham: Lech Lecha
Abraham embodied kindness, Zohran Mamdani, a fellow descendant of our shared patriarch, does not. His vile intolerance likely has Abraham turning over in his grave. The mayoral candidate, who is likely to be the next mayor of the city with the world’s largest Jewish population outside of Israel, refuses to unequivocally condemn the slogan “globalize the intifada,” which is an incitement to violence. In an attempt to localize his hate for Israel, he even attempted to blame the Israel Defense Force for police brutality, claiming that, “when the boot of the NYPD is on your neck, it’s been laced by the IDF.” Furthermore, he resists naming Hamas a terrorist organization, denies the legitimacy of the Jewish state while besmirching it with blood libels. One who claimed that the Italians, Egyptians or Japanese have no right to self-determination in their own homeland would be readily named a bigot, so too must Mamdani for his denial of the Jewish people’s right to self-determination in their ancestral homeland.
Rabbi Eliot Cosgrove of the Park Avenue Synagogue cautions us not to be fooled by Mamdani’s protestation, “I’m also not looking to create a city hall or a city in my image. I’m going to have people in my administration who are Zionists – whether liberal Zionists, or wherever they may be on that spectrum.” The very fact that the candidate felt it necessary, tells us all we need to know and should send up a bright red flag.
By slandering Israel on one hand and claiming that he will have Zionists in his administration, the frontrunner is, in essence, asking Jews to check their Jewish identity at the door, for Jewish identity is inseparable from the Land of Israel, just as it is inseparable from God and Torah. God’s relationship with Abraham begins with his call to the patriarch to continue on to the Promised Land. The promise of the land has been central to every generation of Jews ever since. That is to say, the Jewish people are not simply a collection of co-religionists but rather a people who were granted a national homeland by God.
The not insignificant number of Jews who support Mamdani’s candidacy should also keep in mind the story of Lot, Abraham’s nephew. Lot, as explained by Nachmanides, chose to forgo his uncle’s nomadic lifestyle for a settled one in Sodom due to the economic benefits. Sodom & Gemorrah are described through Lot’s eyes, as a lush “garden of God…like the land of Egypt.” Qualifying that the cities are like Egypt is significant. The cities were fertile like Egypt, but it also betrays the fact that Lot understood that they were centers of depravity like Egypt. Egypt’s depravity was demonstrated by the abduction of Sarah in Egypt. In other words, Lot knowingly moved to the “sin city” of Sodom for economic benefit. Based on the fact that Lot was found “sitting at the city gate of Sodom,” Genesis Rabbah 50:3 remarks that Lot held the position of a judge, for court was held at the city gate. Yet, this did not dissuade the mob from attempting to break into his home and assaulting his guests. The point being made is that Lot’s lofty status failed to protect him from the native inhabitants of the city, who still considered him to be an outsider who could be tormented. This episode is juxtaposed to the hospitality Abraham displayed towards the three passersby, in order to draw a contrast between Abraham’s kindness and Sodom’s cruelty. Eventually Lot was forced to flee and again adopt his uncle’s nomadic lifestyle.
Mamdani’s popularity is a stark reminder to us that we should not take our acceptance and security for granted, rather we must be vigilant in opposing anti-Semitism through political activism. When Abraham introduced himself to the locals in Hebron in hopes of purchasing a burial ground for his wife, Sarah, he introduced himself as a ger v’toshav (a resident & alien). Rabbi Soloveitchik explains that the term ger indicates Abraham was an alien, sojourning through Canaan, being that he had yet taken possession of his inheritance. Toshav on the other hand, denoted a permanent residency, for Abraham’s descendants would inherit the land as a permanent inheritance. We American Jews, like Abraham, are gerim v’toshavim. We are gerim (sojourners) in that we have a distinct religious identity tied to the land of Israel. We are toshavim (residents) in that we are integral to the American fabric.
Abraham and his descendants have faced many challenges in attempting to establish themselves in the Promised Land. Despite these travails, in the end they have also prevailed over their enemies. The Zohran Mamdani’s world would be wise to keep that in mind. Instead of attempting to gaslight the public and accuse those who call him out for his overt antisemitism of being guilty of Islamophobia, Mamdani should desist in his hate filled rhetoric which emulates the cruelty of Sodom and Gomorrah. While you may think that I am being overdramatic, in comparing Mamdani’s rhetoric to the actions of the residents of these two wicked biblical cities, we have already repeatedly seen antisemitic language lead to attacks on Jews in New York. Instead, Mamdani would be wise to walk in the footsteps of Abraham and practice kindness and tolerance. The wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah are but a bad memory. Abraham’s legacy created three monotheistic faiths and continues to bring out the best in humanity.
