Nothing New, All is Well
I'm here in Israel and like the title says, "Nothing New, All is Well" is the truth. I've been running around and seeing friends. I rented a new car with 10 kilometers and I'm somewhere in the 700 kilometer range right now. I keep meaning to get to the Central Bus Station to check email, but have no time.
I'm having a philosophical discussion regarding the Land of Israel versus the State of Israel. I may or may not share the details at some point, but at the moment I will only give a few thoughts.
Basically what it comes down to is that I love the Land of Israel. For those of you who do not separate the two - the Land and the State - is that the State is a construct. It is an area where a bunch of Jews have congregated and called this area the State of Israel. It is an area with a lot of Jews in it. It is not a "Jewish State". That is why the early Zionists initially were okay with taking Uganda, it was only the Russian Jews who cared that it was located in ancient Israel, not the Europeans.
It was established as a secular, anti-religious, Socialist state. Those running it actively destroyed and attempted to destroy any sense of religion or tradition. I've been learning about the Moroccans (this is the spark that set me off) and what happened to them when they were settled in Israel. They were destroyed. So were the Yemenites. So were the religious Jews in Europe during WWII (see Perfidy). So was the Altalena. So were the Gush Katif "settlers" two years ago. So too are the Hesder yeshiva boys today being deligitimized by the government. Nothing has changed.
Yes, we have a state of Jews. It is necessary to have one. It is necessary to serve in the army - to a point. It is necessary to support the existance of the State of Israel and fight against those who believe in destroying us. With all this being said, this is not a Jewish state, but a state of Jews.
Things are supposedly getting better. I've spoken to a few people who believe that it really is. I have to believe them. This has been a frustrating trip outside that I love visiting my friends and being in Jerusalem with the beautiful mountains and valleys.
I spoke to one person who personally witnessed part of the destruction of the Moroccans and Yemenites and I asked him why he lived here. He said, "It's still Eretz Yisroel" [the Land of Israel]. I almost cried.
Love you all and I am very sorry I have not been sending personal emails.