Soul-Mates in Deadly Spite
It's a sad reality, one must suppose, that no group of people, no religion, is exempt from gross stupidity and the irrationality of believing that they are exceptional and as such entitled to behave in an exceptionally insane manner. Religious intolerants are bigots who scream racism when they are in the cross-hairs of a high-powered rifle. But that when they turn that rifle on others believing that they have the right to do so to protect themselves they are justified.Islamists, fundamentalists who interpret Koranic precepts in a manner that supports their distrust, contempt and hatred of other religious, believe that they are in perfect accord with Islamic precepts in waging bloody war against others because to do so supports Islamic dominance. If mass murder furthers the interests of Islam, it is therefore permissible, and even required of the faithful, to be expressed through jihad.
Who knew this kind of lunacy would be capable of spreading to other religions? All religions claim to be based on peace and understanding, on the recognition of the universal brotherhood of humankind. Dig a little deeper and one uncovers exceptionalism, the belief inherent in each religion that they are superior and all others pretenders. The dark miasma of dismal prejudice reigns supreme.
And the ignorance of superiority has become a communicable disease. Two rabbis in Israel, Dov Lior and Yaakov Yosef are defying the heritage of Judaic scripture and rabbinic tradition for their own, set out in a book banned in the country, titled The King's Torah, which holds that under certain circumstances it is justifiable to kill non-Jews.
The book claims that babies and children of Israel's enemies may be killed in certain circumstances to avoid a future when they become capable of doing harm to Israel. This is reminiscent of the Mosaic days of Egyptian bondage of the Jews when Pharaoh deemed that all Jewish infants be murdered because among them would be born one who would bring destruction to Egypt.
The King's Torah is said to claim that non-Jews are "uncompassionate by nature", so that to attack them suffices to "curb their evil inclination". So those who believe in what the book claims prove their compassionate nature by attacking non-Jews, while the attacking Jews fail to curb their evil inclination. Impressive logic.
Further, the book is said to state that "anywhere where the influence of gentiles constitutes a threat to the life of Israel, it is permissible to kill them". That such virulently hateful passages would appear in a theological treatise is hard to fathom, but this recently-published book appears to have launched a passionate dialogue within the country between secularism and religious fundamentalism.
The two rabbis have a loyal following, simply proving that any religious-ideological movement regardless of how preposterous will always gain adherents. Israeli police called both rabbis in for questioning and they both refused to respond. Insisting that the laws of the Torah are above the laws of the state. Which is most certainly not in accord with the country's entrenched system of democratic judicial values.
In refusing to appear for questioning, the two rabbis disobeyed the justice system which arrested them, causing their supporters to rise in a violent protest in the streets of Jerusalem, burning bins, blocking roads, until they were finally dispersed by police. The spiritual leader of the ultra-Orthodox party Shas who happens to be the father of Yaakov Yosef, disagreed with his son.
"Why does this idiot not respond to a police summons?" he was quoted as having said in justifiable exasperation.
Seems the two rabbis would find soul-mates in the presence of and exchange of opinions with Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei.
Labels: Human Relations, Iran, Israel, Political Realities
posted by Pieface @ Sunday, July 10, 2011
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