Fork in the Road of History

Pandering for votes during an election campaign is as old as democracy itself. Nonetheless, it’s pretty jarring to see this upfront and in the open. Political candidates may sell out their most cherished values in exchange for a fleeting moment of perceived popularity. As the moral compass of our society at large continues to hit new lows, I am continually surprised by the level of pandering. Recently, a Jewish New Yorker running for Congress paid a visit to a mosque in NYC. The Imam of that mosque had in the past expressed that the Holocaust had been “greatly exaggerated” and, after the attacks of October 7, had praised Hamas. This individual, who shall not be named, after reciting verses from the Koran in broken Arabic, declared that “I believe, as a proud Jewish New Yorker, that Israel’s genocide in Gaza is a desecration, is a violation of the understanding that everyone is created in G-d’s image.” This individual is currently leading in the polls and appears to be the next congressman in a NYC district with a strong Jewish population. ​ This individual is just one of many who seek to curry favor with others, and goes out of their way to explain that they are not anti-Jewish but rather anti Zionist. Their version of Judaism apparently does not have the Land of Israel as part of its article of faith. Unfortunately, this is not a new phenomenon. In 1845, there was a major rabbinic conference of the Reform movement in Germany, in which Samuel Holdheim declared, “Berlin is our Jerusalem.” Holdheim, a leader of the Reform movement, wanted to avoid charges of dual loyalty. The Jewish commitment to sovereignty in Israel brought into question the allegiance of Jews to the Germanic state, where they were striving to be citizens. (We see from history how well this worked out.) In this week's parsha, we study the Parsha in which a group of Tribal Leaders intentionally demoralize the Jewish population about their excitement to enter the Land of Israel and settle there. They even went so far as to say they wanted to appoint a new leader who would take them back to Egypt. I imagine they did not intend to abandon the observance of the Torah and Mitzvos in Egypt. They argued that they would continue observing Shabbos, keeping kosher, etc. They just wanted nothing to do with the Land of Israel. Essentially, they were the first anti Zionists who believed that Judaism can exist independently of the Jewish connection to its ancestral homeland. The aftermath of the episodes was not pretty. 3,300 years later, our generation is confronting a conundrum very similar to the one it faced. In an effort to blend in nicely with Western society, we can renounce our emotional connection to Zion and the Land of Israel. Or, despite the increasing headwinds, we can make the choice to continue believing that Judaism and a Jew's emotional connection to its ancestral homeland are at the very core of our identity. At this most important fork in the road of history, we can ill afford to blow the moment. ​ Have a Peaceful Shabbos, Rabbi Yaakov Fisch