As I indicated in a post last week, I have taken a new job that necessitates an end to my blogging on this site. Although I am very excited about this new job, this aspect of it leaves me with a heavy heart. I am forever grateful to Andrew for providing me with this space for the past 8 months (and supporting me in every way possible, from technical to psychological, as I used it). Andrew is an inspiration — I have learned much from him in this time, and I know I will continue to learn from him as a reader. I am also eternally grateful to those who took the time to read, consider, even comment on, what I wrote. Finally, let me just say that I hope Andrew, too, can stop blogging in the near future (or at least have it just be posting the weekly parahsot), because the Israeli/Palestinian issues covered on this site simply are not issues anymore.
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Time for this week’s Torah portion. As regular visitors here know, we post the portion in its entirety every Friday. Since antiquity, this text has been interpreted and commented from every conceivable perspective. That’s what makes it a living document. We hope readers will engage this tradition, using the comments section below to offer their own thoughts on the passage. This happens to be one of the most dramatic passages in the whole Torah - Abraham pleads with God to spare the cities of the plain but finally is able to save only Lot and his daughters; Lot’s wife becomes a pillar of salt when she turns to stare at the burning cities; Abraham marches his only son up a mountain to sacrifice him before God…
To print, use the "printer-friendly" link at the bottom of the passage. For prior portions, see here. To subscribe to the Torah portions via rss, the link is here. Thanks to the Sacred Texts Archive for the JPS Translation.
18:1 And the Lord appeared unto him by the terebinths of Mamre, as he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day;
18:2 and he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood over against him; and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed down to the earth,
18:3 and said: ‘My lord, if now I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant.
18:4 Let now a little water be fetched, and wash your feet, and recline yourselves under the tree.
18:5 And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and stay ye your heart; after that ye shall pass on; forasmuch as ye are come to your servant.’ And they said: ‘So do, as thou hast said.’
18:6 And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said: ‘Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes.’
18:7 And Abraham ran unto the herd, and fetched a calf tender and good, and gave it unto the servant; and he hastened to dress it.
18:8 And he took curd, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree, and they did eat.
18:9 And they said unto him: ‘Where is Sarah thy wife?’ And he said: ‘Behold, in the tent.’
18:10 And He said: ‘I will certainly return unto thee when the season cometh round; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son.’ And Sarah heard in the tent door, which was behind him.–
18:11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old, and well stricken in age; it had ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women.–
18:12 And Sarah laughed within herself, saying: ‘After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?’
18:13 And the Lord said unto Abraham: ‘Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying: Shall I of a surety bear a child, who am old?
18:14 Is any thing too hard for the Lord. At the set time I will return unto thee, when the season cometh round, and Sarah shall have a son.’
18:15 Then Sarah denied, saying: ‘I laughed not’; for she was afraid. And He said: ‘Nay; but thou didst laugh.’
18:16 And the men rose up from thence, and looked out toward Sodom; and Abraham went with them to bring them on the way.
18:17 And the Lord said: ‘Shall I hide from Abraham that which I am doing;
18:18 seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?
18:19 For I have known him, to the end that he may command his children and his household after him, that they may keep the way of the Lord, to do righteousness and justice; to the end that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which He hath spoken of him.’
18:20 And the Lord said: ‘Verily, the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and, verily, their sin is exceeding grievous.
18:21 I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto Me; and if not, I will know.’
18:22 And the men turned from thence, and went toward Sodom; but Abraham stood yet before the Lord.
18:23 And Abraham drew near, and said: ‘Wilt Thou indeed sweep away the righteous with the wicked?
18:24 Peradventure there are fifty righteous within the city; wilt Thou indeed sweep away and not forgive the place for the fifty righteous that are therein?
18:25 That be far from Thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked, that so the righteous should be as the wicked; that be far from Thee; shall not the judge of all the earth do justly?’
18:26 And the Lord said: ‘If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will forgive all the place for their sake.’
18:27 And Abraham answered and said: ‘Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord, who am but dust and ashes.
18:28 Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous; wilt Thou destroy all the city for lack of five?’ And He said: ‘I will not destroy it, if I find there forty and five.’
18:29 And he spoke unto Him yet again, and said: ‘Peradventure there shall be forty found there.’ And He said: ‘I will not do it for the forty’s sake.’
18:30 And he said: ‘Oh, let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak. Peradventure there shall thirty be found there.’ And He said: ‘I will not do it, if I find thirty there.’
18:31 And he said: ‘Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord. Peradventure there shall be twenty found there.’ And He said: ‘I will not destroy it for the twenty’s sake.’
18:32 And he said: ‘Oh, let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this once. Peradventure ten shall be found there.’ And He said: ‘I will not destroy it for the ten’s sake.’
18:33 And the Lord went His way, as soon as He had left off speaking to Abraham; and Abraham returned unto his place.
19:1 And the two angels came to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom; and Lot saw them, and rose up to meet them; and he fell down on his face to the earth;
19:2 and he said: ‘Behold now, my lords, turn aside, I pray you, into your servant’s house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your way.’ And they said: ‘Nay; but we will abide in the broad place all night.’
19:3 And he urged them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his house; and he made them a feast, and did bake unleavened bread, and they did eat.
19:4 But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both young and old, all the people from every quarter.
19:5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him: ‘Where are the men that came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them.’
19:6 And Lot went out unto them to the door, and shut the door after him.
19:7 And he said: ‘I pray you, my brethren, do not so wickedly.
19:8 Behold now, I have two daughters that have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes; only unto these men do nothing; forasmuch as they are come under the shadow of my roof.’
19:9 And they said: ‘Stand back.’ And they said: ‘This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs play the judge; now will we deal worse with thee, than with them.’ And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and drew near to break the door.
19:10 But the men put forth their hand, and brought Lot into the house to them, and the door they shut.
19:11 And they smote the men that were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great; so that they wearied themselves to find the door.
19:12 And the men said unto Lot: ‘Hast thou here any besides? son-in-law, and thy sons, and thy daughters, and whomsoever thou hast in the city; bring them out of the place;
19:13 for we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxed great before the Lord; and the Lord hath sent us to destroy it.’
19:14 And Lot went out, and spoke unto his sons-in-law, who married his daughters, and said: ‘Up, get you out of this place; for the Lord will destroy the city.’ But he seemed unto his sons-in-law as one that jested.
19:15 And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying: ‘Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters that are here; lest thou be swept away in the iniquity of the city.’
19:16 But he lingered; and the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the Lord being merciful unto him. And they brought him forth, and set him without the city.
19:17 And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said: ‘Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the Plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be swept away.’
19:18 And Lot said unto them: ‘Oh, not so, my lord;
19:19 behold now, thy servant hath found grace in thy sight, and thou hast magnified thy mercy, which thou hast shown unto me in saving my life; and I cannot escape to the mountain, lest the evil overtake me, and I die.
19:20 Behold now, this city is near to flee unto, and it is a little one; oh, let me escape thither–is it not a little one? –and my soul shall live.’
19:21 And he said unto him: ‘See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow the city of which thou hast spoken.
19:22 Hasten thou, escape thither; for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither.’ –Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar.–
19:23 The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot came unto Zoar.
19:24 Then the Lord caused to rain upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven;
19:25 and He overthrow those cities, and all the Plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.
19:26 But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.
19:27 And Abraham got up early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the Lord.
19:28 And he looked out toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the Plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the land went up as the smoke of a furnace.
19:29 And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the Plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot dwelt.
19:30 And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar; and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters.
19:31 And the first-born said unto the younger: ‘Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth.
19:32 Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.’
19:33 And they made their father drink wine that night. And the first-born went in, and lay with her father; and he knew not when she lay down, nor when she arose.
19:34 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the first-born said unto the younger: ‘Behold, I lay yesternight with my father. Let us make him drink wine this night also; and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.’
19:35 And they made their father drink wine that night also. And the younger arose, and lay with him; and he knew not when she lay down, nor when she arose.
19:36 Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father.
19:37 And the first-born bore a son, and called his name Moab–the same is the father of the Moabites unto this day.
19:38 And the younger, she also bore a son, and called his name Ben-ammi–the same is the father of the children of Ammon unto this day.
20:1 And Abraham journeyed from thence toward the land of the South, and dwelt between Kadesh and Shur; and he sojourned in Gerar.
20:2 And Abraham said of Sarah his wife: ‘She is my sister.’ And Abimelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah.
20:3 But God came to Abimelech in a dream of the night, and said to him: ‘Behold, thou shalt die, because of the woman whom thou hast taken; for she is a man’s wife.’
20:4 Now Abimelech had not come near her; and he said: ‘Lord, wilt Thou slay even a righteous nation?
20:5 Said he not himself unto me: She is my sister? and she, even she herself said: He is my brother. In the simplicity of my heart and the innocency of my hands have I done this.’
20:6 And God said unto him in the dream: ‘Yea, I know that in the simplicity of thy heart thou hast done this, and I also withheld thee from sinning against Me. Therefore suffered I thee not to touch her.
20:7 Now therefore restore the man’s wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live; and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.’
20:8 And Abimelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their ears; and the men were sore afraid.
20:9 Then Abimelech called Abraham, and said unto him: ‘What hast thou done unto us? and wherein have I sinned against thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds unto me that ought not to be done.’
20:10 And Abimelech said unto Abraham: ‘What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing?’
20:11 And Abraham said: ‘Because I thought: Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife’s sake.
20:12 And moreover she is indeed my sister, the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and so she became my wife.
20:13 And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said unto her: This is thy kindness which thou shalt show unto me; at every place whither we shall come, say of me: He is my brother.’
20:14 And Abimelech took sheep and oxen, and men-servants and women-servants, and gave them unto Abraham, and restored him Sarah his wife.
20:15 And Abimelech said: ‘Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleaseth thee.’
20:16 And unto Sarah he said: ‘Behold, I have given thy brother a thousand pieces of silver; behold, it is for thee a covering of the eyes to all that are with thee; and before all men thou art righted.’
20:17 And Abraham prayed unto God; and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maid-servants; and they bore children.
20:18 For the Lord had fast closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah Abraham’s wife.
21:1 And the Lord remembered Sarah as He had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as He had spoken.
21:2 And Sarah conceived, and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.
21:3 And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac.
21:4 And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him.
21:5 And Abraham was a hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him.
21:6 And Sarah said: ‘God hath made laughter for me; every one that heareth will laugh on account of me.’
21:7 And she said: ‘Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should give children suck? for I have borne him a son in his old age.’
21:8 And the child grew, and was weaned. And Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned.
21:9 And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne unto Abraham, making sport.
21:10 Wherefore she said unto Abraham: ‘Cast out this bondwoman and her son; for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac.’
21:11 And the thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight on account of his son.
21:12 And God said unto Abraham: ‘Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah saith unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall seed be called to thee.
21:13 And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed.’
21:14 And Abraham arose up early in the morning, and took bread and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away; and she departed, and strayed in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.
21:15 And the water in the bottle was spent, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs.
21:16 And she went, and sat her down over against him a good way off, as it were a bow-shot; for she said: ‘Let me not look upon the death of the child.’ And she sat over against him, and lifted up her voice, and wept.
21:17 And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her: ‘What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is.
21:18 Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him fast by thy hand; for I will make him a great nation.’
21:19 And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.
21:20 And God was with the lad, and he grew; and he dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.
21:21 And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran; and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt.
21:22 And it came to pass at that time, that Abimelech and Phicol the captain of his host spoke unto Abraham, saying: ‘God is with thee in all that thou doest.
21:23 Now therefore swear unto me here by God that thou wilt not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son’s son; but according to the kindness that I have done unto thee, thou shalt do unto me, and to the land wherein thou hast sojourned.’
21:24 And Abraham said: ‘I will swear.’
21:25 And Abraham reproved Abimelech because of the well of water, which Abimelech’s servants had violently taken away.
21:26 And Abimelech said: ‘I know not who hath done this thing; neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, but to-day.’
21:27 And Abraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them unto Abimelech; and they two made a covenant.
21:28 And Abraham set seven ewe-lambs of the flock by themselves.
21:29 And Abimelech said unto Abraham: ‘What mean these seven ewe-lambs which thou hast set by themselves?’
21:30 And he said: ‘Verily, these seven ewe-lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that it may be a witness unto me, that I have digged this well.’
21:31 Wherefore that place was called Beer-sheba; because there they swore both of them.
21:32 So they made a covenant at Beer-sheba; and Abimelech rose up, and Phicol the captain of his host, and they returned into the land of the Philistines.
21:33 And Abraham planted a tamarisk-tree in Beer-sheba, and called there on the name of the Lord, the Everlasting God.
21:34 And Abraham sojourned in the land of the Philistines many days.
22:1 And it came to pass after these things, that God did prove Abraham, and said unto him: ‘Abraham’; and he said: ‘Here am I.’
22:2 And He said: ‘Take now thy son, thine only son, whom thou lovest, even Isaac, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt-offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.’
22:3 And Abraham rose early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he cleaved the wood for the burnt-offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.
22:4 On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.
22:5 And Abraham said unto his young men: ‘Abide ye here with the ass, and I and the lad will go yonder; and we will worship, and come back to you.’
22:6 And Abraham took the wood of the burnt-offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took in his hand the fire and the knife; and they went both of them together.
22:7 And Isaac spoke unto Abraham his father, and said: ‘My father.’ And he said: ‘Here am I, my son.’ And he said: ‘Behold the fire and the wood; but where is the lamb for a burnt-offering?’
22:8 And Abraham said: ‘God will provide Himself the lamb for a burnt-offering, my son.’ So they went both of them together.
22:9 And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built the altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar, upon the wood.
22:10 And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.
22:11 And the angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said: ‘Abraham, Abraham.’ And he said: ‘Here am I.’
22:12 And he said: ‘Lay not thy hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him; for now I know that thou art a God-fearing man, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son, from Me.’
22:13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in the thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt-offering in the stead of his son.
22:14 And Abraham called the name of that place Adonai-jireh; as it is said to this day: ‘In the mount where the Lord is seen.’
22:15 And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham a second time out of heaven,
22:16 and said: ‘By Myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son,
22:17 that in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the seashore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;
22:18 and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast hearkened to My voice.’
22:19 So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beer-sheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beer-sheba.
22:20 And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Abraham, saying: ‘Behold, Milcah, she also hath borne children unto thy brother Nahor:
22:21 Uz his first-born, and Buz his brother, and Kemuel the father of Aram;
22:22 and Chesed, and Hazo, and Pildash, and Jidlaph, and Bethuel.’
22:23 And Bethuel begot Rebekah; these eight did Milcah bear to Nahor, Abraham’s brother.
22:24 And his concubine, whose name was Reumah, she also bore Tebah, and Gaham, and Tahash, and Maacah.
I’ve been awfully busy for the past week, and I’m only now getting to catch up on the news. My mom messaged me, all excited when Amir Peretz won the labor primary. "Um… who is that?" I asked. Here’s the buzz on Peretz and I must say, it is pretty positive. He’s a good old-fashioned socialist, a breed everyone thought had died out in Israel decades ago. He wants to raise the minimum wage and re-build Israel’s social welfare system, which has eroded steadily under Likud leadership. He wants to move quickly to final status talks with the Palestinians. And, with a solid political base in the working-class demographic that has been the backbone of the Likud, he might give Sharon a run for his money…
Peretz is Sephardic, or Mizrahi. The Mizrahi Jews, nationalized to Israel from Arab states, tend to have lower incomes and educational levels than the Ashkenazi. Their economic interests lie with Labor, but (not unlike blue-collar swing voters in the U.S.), they have voted consistently with Likud and the religious party Shas, who appeal to them on the basis of religion and values. Peretz could change this dynamic. From Isracast:
It is the first time an ‘authentic’ Spheradi leader, an immigrant from Morocco, has really taken control of one of Israel’s two major parties. Not only that, but of left wing Labor… Peretz is now riding the wave of pent-up resentment among many low income or unemployed Spheradi Israelis who traditionally vote Likud. This has naturally sent shock waves through the ruling party.
Robert Rosenberg reported last week on Ariga that, after Peretz’s victory in the primary, Labor’s standing rose significantly in the polls. Forty percent of Israelis believe he could beat Sharon in a general election.
A Peretz government would definitely be a shot in the arm for the peace process. More from Robert:
While much has been made in the last 24 hours about Peretz’s social(ist) agenda and how it is already making inroads into the traditional Likud and Shas electorate, it is Peretz’s dovish positions that could end up being the starkest difference between him and Sharon, who is already showing signs of adopting Peretz’s social agenda.
Peretz was one of the first members of Peace Now, helped found B’Tselem, the Israeli human rights group, is a signatory to the Geneva Accord, which is a draft peace treaty signed by non-official Israeli and Palestinian public figures, and most of all, he openly favors entering final status negotiations with the Palestinian Authority.
Ariga is the blog to watch for political analysis from Israel. Richard Silverstein also had some good information at Tikun Olam.
One thing I like about Peretz already, in addition to his social democratic politics, is his understanding of the power of image and symbol. In that sense, he may have a little of Bill Clinton’s instictive awareness of the dramatic moment.
Richard quotes Peretz reaching out to his rival in the primaries, Shimon Peres:
‘unlike others in the past when I say it, I mean it, I really need you, I really want you by my side, I want your advice. If not for me, for the party, and if not for the party, do it for the state, for our children.’
One of the most interesting endorsements in the blogosphere came from Gilad Atzmon. Atzmon, an Israeli jazz saxophonist, is somewhat of an enfant terrible in the Jewish world for his vehement anti-Zionism and his full-throttle attacks on our various sacred cows. In view of Atzmon’s scathing moral criticism of Israel’s politicians, it’s striking that he sees in Peretz a new kind of leader.
It is a man like Peretz, himself an Arab, who can treat his neighbours with respect. Rather than Shimon Peres’s global dream of ‘new Middle East’ in which Israel delivers wealth to the ‘inferior’ Arabs, Amir Peretz’s message to the Israeli people is rather simple and far less pompous: once we address our social problems we will be ready to talk peace with our neighbours. This message is actually deeper than any other Israeli political manifesto I can think of. To start with, it is genuine. For the first time an Israeli politician considers peace as a meaningful signifier rather than an empty slogan.
On peacepalestine, Mary generated a vigorous discussion with her post supporting Peretz:
We have heard for many years that Israel had “No one to talk to” (meaning Arafat). What seems to be the more realistic situation is that the Palestinians had no one to talk to, including those Palestinians who hold an Israeli passport. Perhaps for the first time in the history of Israel, Arabs have the chance of finding “Someone to talk to”. Peretz does not represent any of the supremacist aspects that have been the trademark of the domination of Israel by the Ashkenazis, culturally, politically and socially. It might be a chance, hopefully not the last, for common terrain, some kind of REAL dialogue, with mutual respect.
As of this posting, she has 39 comments. The question is whether there can be any peace between Zionists and Arab nationalists. Mary bravely holds her ground against attacks from the left, the right and the lunatic fringe.
Labor Zionism, embraced by many in its early days as an expression of socialist ideals, has been largely discredited on the left because of Labor’s failure to deal justly with the Palestinians. It’s not a matter of who’s leading the party, the critique goes: Zionism is inherently imperialistic, and an obstacle to peace.
I’m old enough to remember at least the tail end of the hopes that American Jewish leftists placed in Israel. It would embody, we assumed naively, all of the egalitarian, communitarian values for which we fought as activists here. Now - just when we had given up our pipe dream - along comes Peretz.
I don’t know if I’m ready to jump on the bandwagon quite yet - but I’ll be watching him with great interest. If he really is what he seems, he deserves American Jewish support. Maybe there is even a role for the blogosphere in the campaign. Heck, it helped Howard Dean.
Here’s this week’s Torah portion. It’s another very important one, since it contains God’s covenant with Abraham. If ever there were proof that the bible has political relevance today, this passage is it. Religious Zionists take the Abrahamic convenant as God’s promise to the Jews of a homeland in Canaan - and thus a divine charter for the modern state of Israel. Many Chrisitians, I believe, interpret the story of Sodom and Gomorrah as a punishment for homosexuality. Need we accept these meanings? Are there other ways to read the text? That, of course, is what the comments are for. To print the portion, use the "printer-friendly" link at the bottom. To subscribe to the weekly Torah portions in your newsreader, the xml link is here…
12:1 Now the Lord said unto Abram: ‘Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto the land that I will show thee.
12:2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and be thou a blessing.
12:3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and him that curseth thee will I curse; and in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed.’
12:4 So Abram went, as the Lord had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him; and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran.
12:5 And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.
12:6 And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Shechem, unto the terebinth of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land.
12:7 And the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said: ‘Unto thy seed will I give this land’; and he builded there an altar unto the Lord, who appeared unto him.
12:8 And he removed from thence unto the mountain on the east of Beth-el, and pitched his tent, having Beth-el on the west, and Ai on the east; and he builded there an altar unto the Lord, and called upon the name of the Lord.
12:9 And Abram journeyed, going on still toward the South.
12:10 And there was a famine in the land; and Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was sore in the land.
12:11 And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter into Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife: ‘Behold now, I know that thou art a fair woman to look upon.
12:12 And it will come to pass, when the Egyptians shall see thee, that they will say: This is his wife; and they will kill me, but thee they will keep alive.
12:13 Say, I pray thee, thou art my sister; that it may be well with me for thy sake, and that my soul may live because of thee.’
12:14 And it came to pass, that, when Abram was come into Egypt, the Egyptians beheld the woman that she was very fair.
12:15 And the princes of Pharaoh saw her, and praised her to Pharaoh; and the woman was taken into Pharaoh’s house.
12:16 And he dealt well with Abram for her sake; and he had sheep, and oxen, and he-asses, and men-servants, and maid-servants, and she-asses, and camels.
12:17 And the Lord plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai Abram’s wife.
12:18 And Pharaoh called Abram, and said: ‘What is this that thou hast done unto me? why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife?
12:19 Why saidst thou: She is my sister? so that I took her to be my wife; now therefore behold thy wife, take her, and go thy way.’
12:20 And Pharaoh gave men charge concerning him; and they brought him on the way, and his wife, and all that he had.
13:1 And Abram went up out of Egypt, he, and his wife, and all that he had, and Lot with him, into the South.
13:2 And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold.
13:3 And he went on his journeys from the South even to Beth-el, unto the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Beth-el and Ai;
13:4 unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first; and Abram called there on the name of the Lord.
13:5 And Lot also, who went with Abram, had flocks, and herds, and tents.
13:6 And the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together; for their substance was great, so that they could not dwell together.
13:7 And there was a strife between the herdmen of Abram’s cattle and the herdmen of Lot’s cattle. And the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelt then in the land.
13:8 And Abram said unto Lot: ‘Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and thee, and between my herdmen and thy herdmen; for we are brethren.
13:9 Is not the whole land before thee? separate thyself, I pray thee, from me; if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou take the right hand, then I will go to the left.’
13:10 And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of the Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, as thou goest unto Zoar.
13:11 So Lot chose him all the plain of the Jordan; and Lot journeyed east; and they separated themselves the one from the other.
13:12 Abram dwelt in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelt in the cities of the Plain, and moved his tent as far as Sodom.
13:13 Now the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners against the Lord exceedingly.
13:14 And the Lord said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him: ‘Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art, northward and southward and eastward and westward;
13:15 for all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.
13:16 And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth; so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.
13:17 Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for unto thee will I give it.’
13:18 And Abram moved his tent, and came and dwelt by the terebinths of Mamre, which are in Hebron, and built there an altar unto the Lord.
14:1 And it came to pass in the days of Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim,
14:2 that they made war with Bera king of Sodom, and with Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, and Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela–the same is Zoar.
14:3 All these came as allies unto the vale of Siddim–the same is the Salt Sea.
14:4 Twelve years they served Chedorlaomer, and in the thirteenth year they rebelled.
14:5 And in the fourteenth year came Chedorlaomer and the kings that were with him, and smote the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim, and the Zuzim in Ham, and the Emim in Shaveh-kiriathaim,
14:6 and the Horites in their mount Seir, unto El-paran, which is by the wilderness.
14:7 And they turned back, and came to En-mishpat–the same is Kadesh–and smote all the country of the Amalekites, and also the Amorites, that dwelt in Hazazon-tamar.
14:8 And there went out the king of Sodom, and the king of Gomorrah, and the king of Admah, and the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela–the same is Zoar; and they set the battle in array against them in the vale of Siddim;
14:9 against Chedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim, and Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar; four kings against the five.
14:10 Now the vale of Siddim was full of slime pits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, and they fell there, and they that remained fled to the mountain.
14:11 And they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their victuals, and went their way.
14:12 And they took Lot, Abram’s brother’s son, who dwelt in Sodom, and his goods, and departed.
14:13 And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew–now he dwelt by the terebinths of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner; and these were confederate with Abram.
14:14 And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued as far as Dan.
14:15 And he divided himself against them by night, he and his servants, and smote them, and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus.
14:16 And he brought back all the goods, and also brought back his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people.
14:17 And the king of Sodom went out to meet him, after his return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer and the kings that were with him, at the vale of Shaveh–the same is the King’s Vale.
14:18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine; and he was priest of God the Most High.
14:19 And he blessed him, and said: ‘Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Maker of heaven and earth;
14:20 and blessed be God the Most High, who hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand.’ And he gave him a tenth of all.
14:21 And the king of Sodom said unto Abram: ‘Give me the persons, and take the goods to thyself.’
14:22 And Abram said to the king of Sodom: ‘I have lifted up my hand unto the Lord, God Most High, Maker of heaven and earth,
14:23 that I will not take a thread nor a shoe-latchet nor aught that is thine, lest thou shouldest say: I have made Abram rich;
14:24 save only that which the young men have eaten, and the portion of the men which went with me, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, let them take their portion.’
15:1 After these things the word of the Lord came unto Abram in a vision, saying: ‘Fear not, Abram, I am thy shield, thy reward shall be exceeding great.’
15:2 And Abram said: ‘O Lord GOD, what wilt Thou give me, seeing I go hence childless, and he that shall be possessor of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?’
15:3 And Abram said: ‘Behold, to me Thou hast given no seed, and, lo, one born in my house is to be mine heir.’
15:4 And, behold, the word of the Lord came unto him, saying: ‘This man shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir.’
15:5 And He brought him forth abroad, and said: ‘Look now toward heaven, and count the stars, if thou be able to count them’; and He said unto him: ‘So shall thy seed be.’
15:6 And he believed in the Lord; and He counted it to him for righteousness.
15:7 And He said unto him: ‘I am the Lord that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee this land to inherit it.’
15:8 And he said: ‘O Lord GOD, whereby shall I know that I shall inherit it?’
15:9 And He said unto him: ‘Take Me a heifer of three years old, and a she-goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtle-dove, and a young pigeon.’
15:10 And he took him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each half over against the other; but the birds divided he not.
15:11 And the birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, and Abram drove them away.
15:12 And it came to pass, that, when the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and, lo, a dread, even a great darkness, fell upon him.
15:13 And He said unto Abram: ‘Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years;
15:14 and also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge; and afterward shall they come out with great substance.
15:15 But thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age.
15:16 And in the fourth generation they shall come back hither; for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet full.’
15:17 And it came to pass, that, when the sun went down, and there was thick darkness, behold a smoking furnace, and a flaming torch that passed between these pieces.
15:18 In that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying: ‘Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates;
15:19 the Kenite, and the Kenizzite, and the Kadmonite,
15:20 and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Rephaim,
15:21 and the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Girgashite, and the Jebusite.’
16:1 Now Sarai Abram’s wife bore him no children; and she had a handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar.
16:2 And Sarai said unto Abram: ‘Behold now, the Lord hath restrained me from bearing; go in, I pray thee, unto my handmaid; it may be that I shall be builded up through her.’ And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.
16:3 And Sarai Abram’s wife took Hagar the Egyptian, her handmaid, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to Abram her husband to be his wife.
16:4 And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived; and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes.
16:5 And Sarai said unto Abram: ‘My wrong be upon thee: I gave my handmaid into thy bosom; and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes: the Lord judge between me and thee.’
16:6 But Abram said unto Sarai: ‘Behold, thy maid is in thy hand; do to her that which is good in thine eyes.’ And Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her face.
16:7 And the angel of the Lord found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shur.
16:8 And he said: ‘Hagar, Sarai’s handmaid, whence camest thou? and whither goest thou?’ And she said: ‘I flee from the face of my mistress Sarai.’
16:9 And the angel of the Lord said unto her: ‘Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands.’
16:10 And the angel of the Lord said unto her: ‘I will greatly multiply thy seed, that it shall not be numbered for multitude.
16:11 And the angel of the Lord said unto her: ‘Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son; and thou shalt call his name Ishmael, because the Lord hath heard thy affliction.
16:12 And he shall be a wild ass of a man: his hand shall be against every man, and every man’s hand against him; and he shall dwell in the face of all his brethren.’
16:13 And she called the name of the Lord that spoke unto her, Thou art a God of seeing; for she said: ‘Have I even here seen Him that seeth Me?’
16:14 Wherefore the well was called ‘Beer-lahai-roi; behold, it is between Kadesh and Bered.
16:15 And Hagar bore Abram a son; and Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael.
16:16 And Abram was fourscore and six years old, when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.
17:1 And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him: ‘I am God Almighty; walk before Me, and be thou wholehearted.
17:2 And I will make My covenant between Me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly.’
17:3 And Abram fell on his face; and God talked with him, saying:
17:4 ‘As for Me, behold, My covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be the father of a multitude of nations.
17:5 Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for the father of a multitude of nations have I made thee.
17:6 And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.
17:7 And I will establish My covenant between Me and thee and thy seed after thee throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee and to thy seed after thee.
17:8 And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land of thy sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.’
17:9 And God said unto Abraham: ‘And as for thee, thou shalt keep My covenant, thou, and thy seed after thee throughout their generations.
17:10 This is My covenant, which ye shall keep, between Me and you and thy seed after thee: every male among you shall be circumcised.
17:11 And ye shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of a covenant betwixt Me and you.
17:12 And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every male throughout your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any foreigner, that is not of thy seed.
17:13 He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised; and My covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.
17:14 And the uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken My covenant.’
17:15 And God said unto Abraham: ‘As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be.
17:16 And I will bless her, and moreover I will give thee a son of her; yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall be of her.’
17:17 Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart: ‘Shall a child be born unto him that is a hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?’
17:18 And Abraham said unto God: ‘Oh that Ishmael might live before Thee!’
17:19 And God said: ”Nay, but Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son; and thou shalt call his name Isaac; and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his seed after him.
17:20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee; behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation.
17:21 But My covenant will I establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear unto thee at this set time in the next year.’
17:22 And He left off talking with him, and God went up from Abraham.
17:23 And Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all that were born in his house, and all that were bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house, and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the selfsame day, as God had said unto him.
17:24 And Abraham was ninety years old and nine, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
17:25 And Ishmael his son was thirteen years old, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
17:26 In the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son.
17:27 And all the men of his house, those born in the house, and those bought with money of a foreigner, were circumcised with him.
The question "do you sleep well at night" is a sensitive one for a young parent like me. But in these times, it is a question we all must ask. When Senate Majority Leader Frist thinks it more worrisome that a government source revealed that the U.S. “disappears” people in secret foreign prisons than that those prisons exist at all; when the President, Vice President and almost 10% of the Senate believe the CIA should be exempt from the prohibition on torture, we all need to ask ourselves how we can sleep at night, and what we can do to fight against these outrages, in the hopes that all the world (if I really start to dream, then why not include babies and young parents) may some day sleep soundly through the night. This week’s Haaretz presented us with two very different approaches to working in this world in order to sleep through the night: IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz and human rights lawyer Michael Sfard.
First, my apologies for another extended absence. Been working on a (too) long piece about whether "peace" activism in the American Jewish community is a "waste of time" or not, a post which I hope to put up this weekend. And I’m also gearing up to take a new job in less than 2 weeks, so, sadly (for me anyway) this will be among my last posts (my new job is with the government, and may involve the Middle East at some point, so I can’t continue to post.)
OK, enough about me. On to Halutz and Sfard. For his part in Haaretz, IDF Chief Halutz was announcing the official resumption of the targeted killing/assassination policy. According to the article, “Halutz told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that the policy has proven itself to be extremely effective in curbing terror activity.”
This is an impossible assertion to prove with such clarity. On one hand, of course terror activity is curbed if you kill individuals who either lead or are otherwise associated with terrorist groups. Just like when the same argument is made about the Wall, it is true that terror activity will be curbed if people are behind a massive wall, guarded by soldiers and private security companies.
On the other, what do the assassinations leave behind? Is it more effective to kill people than detain them? And if you can build a case against them, a la Marwan Barghouthi, is it more effective to kill them than try and imprison them? If you choose to kill, rather than any other means at your disposal, what does it leave behind? For either side?
Lt. Gen. Halutz himself has shown us what the policy leaves behind for Israel and the IDF. In 2002, when he was then Chief of Staff of the Israeli Sir Force, Halutz helped oversee the killing of one of the chief Hamas leaders in Gaza, Saleh Shehadeh. This assassination was different than most others – a 1-ton bomb was dropped in the middle of the night on to the apartment building where Shehadeh lived with his family. Shehadeh was indeed killed. But so were 14 innocent people, including several children. The essence of morality is how you deal with this choice.
Halutz then gave an interview in Haaretz to defend the act, himself, his pilots and the entire policy. It is among the most chilling interviews I have ever read, and should be a must-read for anyone who trumpets the old line that the IDF is “the most moral army in the world.”
Here are a few excerpts. The first, when asked what he had to say to his pilots:
"Guys, you can sleep well at night. I also sleep well, by the way. You aren’t the ones who choose the targets, and you were not the ones who chose the target in this particular case. You are not responsible for the contents of the target. Your execution was perfect. Superb. And I repeat again: There is no problem here that concerns you. You did exactly what you were instructed to do. You did not deviate from that by so much as a millimeter to the right or to the left. And anyone who has a problem with that is invited to see me."
An army, an air force where the soldiers need not consider for a moment anything other than the execution of the mission. Where is the morality there? Because the pilot who dropped the bomb in the middle of the night in a crowded neighborhood, he should not be responsible, or even consider what he has done for a moment? Or longer?
The interviewer then asked how the Shehadeh bombing had impacted the IAF.
So the IAF just took the event in its stride? A month later, and nothing remains of the event?
"An event like that make us want more than ever to continue being the professionals we were and to present things as they are, like we always do. The event did raise questions about the scope of the understanding that exists among various bodies in relation to the reality we live in."
The impact of the event is one of PR and “understanding”? Of all the ways a leader can respond to this kind of action, is this one that should have been rewarded with a promotion to Chief of Staff of the IDF?
The final, and perhaps most infamous part of the interview, shows us the depth of the issues at stake:
A pilot drops a bomb. A bomb kills people - sometimes those he planned to kill, sometimes not. Isn’t it legitimate to ask a pilot what he feels after he releases the bomb? Can we expect him to ask himself that question, and is it in fact asked in the IAF?
"No. That is not a legitimate question and it is not asked. But if you nevertheless want to know what I feel when I release a bomb, I will tell you: I feel a light bump to the plane as a result of the bomb’s release. A second later it’s gone, and that’s all. That is what I feel."
What more needs to be said? The death of innocent women and children is nothing more than a "light bump to the plane." Morality implies consideration of consequences, implies an understanding and connection to both human emotion and rational necessity. This statement shows us none of that, but only a callous disregard for human life, for morality. It directly led to the refusal of more than 30 elite pilots to continue flying missions.
But Halutz was still promoted.
And that promotion was challenged in court. By one of the emerging leaders of the human rights bar in Israel, Michael Sfard. Although he lost that case, and many others, Sfard nevertheless brings the cases to challenge the IDF and the state because he believes it his responsibility to do so. His responsibility to fight injustice and challenge the power behind the occupation. His cases, for me, warm the chill in my heart that Halutz brings on.
Last week, Sfard was interviewed in Haaretz – by the same reporter who conducted the above interview with Dan Halutz. Again, some excerpts. First, in responding to a question about subtleties and nuances in terminology, in legal cases, in morality, he says:
"That is true, but I choose to focus on what happened to us, within us. Morality obliges me to do that first. I am ashamed of my country and I feel a deep guilt at the manner in which it treats human beings. I’m very angry at it. The first intifada was child’s play compared to the present one from the point of view of Israel’s attitude toward human life and human dignity. All the barriers were breached this time. Together with the liquidation of wanted people, all the moral inhibitions were also liquidated. We lost them and we lost our sense of shame."
Then there is a fascinating exchange that should again be must reading for those who seek to rest the entire conflict, and the absolution of Israeli responsibility and morality, on Palestinian terrorism:
In other words, you understand the phenomenon of the suicide bombers and the terrorist attacks on Israel - you see the occupation as the background to their emergence and us as the only blameworthy party in this story?
"I do not justify terrorism. Palestinian terrorism, like any terrorism, is of course reprehensible. But the true threat that is latent in it is negligible. It never posed an existential threat to the State of Israel. Regretfully, terrorism all over the world has wonderful public relations. And as for your second question, yes, it is clear that we bear the major blame. I don’t understand - what do you want, for me to condemn terrorism? For us to deal in the self-evident?"
Maybe you could elaborate a little: what thoughts and feelings went through you in light of this terrorism?
"What, that I should say it is monstrous, that it is inhuman? That’s obvious, no?"
When you talk about your country and its actions, you are easily able to report a range of diverse and complex emotions: anger, hatred, rejection, shame, guilt. But when it comes to Palestinian terrorism, which seeks to kill you and me in the streets of the cities, your lexicon becomes very meager.
"So you want me to say that I’m angry at the terrorism? I’m angry at the terrorism. To say that I’m afraid? Yes, I’m afraid. It’s not an interesting subject to talk about."
Why not? Why doesn’t it interest you to talk about my human rights and yours, and of a few million more people - for example, the right to life?
"I feel morally responsible only for what is mine. For my part. For the part of my country. Here I am responsible. I am not responsible for what the Palestinians do, even if they do horrific things. Let us do our spiritual stocktaking and let them do theirs."
Almost all your cases have to do with infringement of Palestinians’ rights, but there are so many other wrongs.
"First of all, I have other cases, too. But in principle that is true, and my answer is very simple: the number of cases in which I represent Palestinians (as opposed to Israelis) is congruent with the number of infringements that the State of Israel perpetrates against the humans rights of the two groups. That does not mean that I don’t take an interest in infringements of human rights of Jewish Israelis. However, as an attorney, I deal with the relations between the individual and the state, with the violation of human rights by the state. Harm done to Israeli citizens by other human beings is a matter for the police or the army. What exactly am I supposed to do as a citizen - file a petition in the High Court of Justice against Hamas?
You specialized in international law. How does one wage a legitimate moral war against terrorism, when the terrorists take refuge amid a civilian population, hide in its homes and surround their hiding places with innocent neighbors?
"The fact that I reject despicable methods on a moral and judicial basis does not oblige me to propose alternative solutions. And yes, there are many prices that an orderly state must pay so that it will not behave like the terrorists. An army that, without batting an eyelash, deliberately kills innocent civilians, whom the state, with terrible cynicism, calls `uninvolved.’ The IDF does not care that it kills and wounds innocent people. Do you know when it began to care? Only when this began to exact a public media-image price in Israel and internationally."
I could go on for hours about what both men said. About the difference between "being morally responsible for what is mine" and feeling a light bump on the plane when dropping a bomb in the middle of the night on a crowded Gaza neighborhood that you know will kill innocent people. About the difference between occupation and terrorism, between justice and violence.
But the bottom line is that Halutz and Sfard show us two sides, and give us a chance again to think about our own actions, our own beliefs, and the actions and beliefs of the U.S. and those of Israel. What do we choose to believe, to do, in the hopes that we, too, may sleep through the night? For me, I take comfort in knowing that one positive development of the resumption of the assassination policy is that the Israeli Supreme Court cases, brought by Michael Sfard, challenging this policy may (unlikely, but possible) come out of their deep freeze. Maybe the next time we read about these two in Haaretz it will be because Sfard has won his case. That is when I will start sleeping a little better — because Dan Halutz will not be.
More on the story of Ahmed Ismail Khatib, the thirteen year old Palestinian boy who was shot and killed by the IDF while he was playing with a toy gun. We reported yesterday that the boy’s parents had decided to donate his organs to Israeli children in need of transplants, “for the sake of peace between the two peoples.” I saw this morning in the ultra-right wing paper Arutz Sheva that finance minister Ehud Olmert had invited the parents to Jerusalem. YNet now reports that Sharon would like to meet with them to offer his personal apologies…
(T)he boy’s father said he was invited to meet with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who offered to apologize for the killing, Palestinian news agency Ma’an reported.
According to the Palestinian report, Ismail Khatib said that “if this would serve the Palestinian problem and advance a just peace, I will meet with Sharon and bring him a message of peace.”
Maybe a single act of kindness can accomplish more than an army.
I hope this is true.
Shabbat is over. We said Havdallah prayers and doused the candle in wine. I turned my computer back on, and found this….
Ahmed Ismail Katib, age thirteen, was shot by IDF soliders last week. He was playing with a toy gun he’d recieved for the holiday of Eid, which marks the end of Ramadan. Soldiers mistook it for a real gun, and shot him in the chest and the head.
Yedioth reports today:
The parents of a Palestinian boy who died from his wounds in a Haifa hospital on Saturday said that they have decided to donate his organs for implants “for the sake of peace between the two people…"
Mustafa Makhamid, Ahmed’s uncle, told Ynet that “Ahmed was a wonderful and smart little kid who just wanted to play. We want to donate his organs to all the children of Israel whom we consider our children. Enough blood spilling. We hope that we will start a new process that will exceed all others and end blood spillage.”
Mustafa said Ahmed was the fourth son of a family of six who excelled at school where he drew pictures of peace between Israel and the Palestinians. “We still can’t digest that he was killed from IDF fire,” the uncle said…
MK Mohammad Barakeh (Hadah Ta’al) who was by the boy’s bed when his soul left this world, supported the family’s decision to donate Ahmed’s organs to Israeli children urgently in need of organs.
“The family’s father said that he is interested in showing his humanity as opposed to the recklessness of the murderers. He knows that the organs will be donated to Israelis yet he doesn’t care. A kid is a kid. The father took a tough decision and I supported it from the beginning,” said Barakeh, who noted that the father had consulted Muslim religious figures who gave their consent.
Readers may recall that the biblical figure of Ishmael, from whom I assume the boy’s middle name was derived, was Abraham’s son by Hagar, Sarah’s maid. When Sarah became pregnant, she prevailed upon Abraham to send Hagar into the desert to protect her own son’s birthright. The Jewish lineage, of course, continued through Isaac. Ishmael, born in exile, survived, a symbol of the dispossessed.
The parents of Ahmed Ismail Katib have honored God, honored us all, with their incredible generosity.
This word does not appear in the Hebrew dictionary, but an old-new weapon from the sophisticated arsenal directed against the Palestinian people has again suddenly emerged. While not deadly, it is fiendish: the sonic boom.
The world’s best air force is amusing itself by creating fear in a helpless and terrified civilian population. Twenty-nine such booms were sounded during a period of four days in September, and this practice was repeated again recently, according to Physicians for Human Rights-Israel and the Gaza Community Mental Health Program, which jointly submitted a High Court petition on this matter. If there is such a thing as an unequivocal case of collective punishment, then this is it.
Parents in Gaza speak about the fears their children have suffered in recent weeks, the nightmares and bed-wetting. Husbands tell about pregnant women who have experienced panic attacks. The windowpanes in homes shatter one after another. Here is a scoop: Palestinians can also be "trauma victims."
These booms, whose only purpose is to sow fear among innocent civilians, have been added to the artillery shells pounding the Gaza Strip and the daily barrage of liquidation missiles, which indiscriminately kill armed militants and innocent people. The fact that the air force is employing this weapon mainly late at night, or early in the morning, when masses of pupils are making their way to school, only makes its wickedness more conspicuous.