| |  | | | | | | | It's not that all religious Jews in Israel are opposed to a hostage deal and support continuing the Gaza war until "total victory." Just head over to the weekly anti-government protests in Jerusalem that take place on Saturday nights, and you will discover a nice representation of religious Israelis among the crowds chanting "Bring them home now!" Indeed, the driving force behind these weekly protests is a group of progressive-minded observant Jerusalemites.
But among those Israelis who prefer wiping out Hamas to bringing home the hostages, it would be fair to say that Orthodox Jews are disproportionately represented.
How can this be the case if the sanctity of life is a fundamental principle in halakha (Jewish religious law)? Ron Margolin, a professor of modern Jewish thought, concludes in this essay that the apathy shown by many religious Israelis to the plight of those languishing in the tunnels of Gaza is a sign that their Judaism has undergone a "moral mutation."
In a similar vein, Dr. Rafi Walden notes the irony that many of those who have committed pogroms against Palestinians in the West Bank claim to be the authentic representatives of Judaism. He cites ancient Jewish texts in this column to prove that nothing could be further from the truth. | | |
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