Why dedicate a page to Israel?
Because every Muslim, of any hue and colour, would have an opinion on this subject. Also, because today’s Israel wants the world to recognise it as a ‘Jewish State’, it deserves some scrutiny – in religious/moral terms.
Palestinian View
Palestinians, who lost their lands and are humiliated daily basis, see the Israelis for what many inhabitants of our village believe: as invaders. And, they want them out. They see the current Israeli occupation, as one of the many invasions in their past – by the Crusaders, the French, etc.
As to the claim of the Israelis being the original owners of the land, the Palestinians retort that the ancient Jews themselves were the migrants from Egypt.
This brings to the fore the religious claim – that God bestowed Israel the land between the two rivers.
If the case indeed is religious, then, a regional issue assumes a global geo-political dimension. That has been the reality since the early 20th century. While the non-Abrahamic faiths seeks comfort in this internecine war, the Atheists of the 21st century are having a gala time, hoping for final annihilation of the religion itself.
Israeli View
For the Israelis, they have no home – unlike the Crusaders or the French.
Israelis have invested heavily for their home – some have left their original homelands to emigrate to this spiritual homeland; others have invested billions of dollars in infrastructure. Leaving the project now would lead to trillions of dollars of loss to the world economy.
Though a regional power, Israelis understand they are very vulnerable – to the world opinion and to the equations of current and emerging powerful capitals. Add local hostilities, and they have an existential threat looming over their heads. Thus, many Israelis have dual passports – just in case.
So, one can understand the Israeli concerns. They do have a right for a national homeland, and a life of security.
My View
I believe, just like Australia, Israel should simply say sorry to the natives of that land. And life can move on.
Okay, Israelis are the natives returning after 2000 years. However, daily humiliation and loss of lives of current natives is simply wrong and immoral, even for a nation with atheist founding fathers.
As to the demand of recognition of Israel as the Jewish Homeland, I think Israelis should debate and legislate such a thing first. They haven’t agreed on this issue for over 2000 years. Once an internal debate is over, and matter settled, the world can recognise that fact too – just as we have come to recognise Israel itself. The village, with its collective human nature, is quite forgiving I think.
Insanity of Israeli Government
Here are my thoughts on the contradictions of the Israeli state policies. The idea is to bring the parties to a state of moderation. I do not have to document the crimes of Palestinians leaders as they are widely circulated here and everywhere.
30th June 2014: ‘Crystal-Night’ for the Palestinians?
One hates to compare Israelis with Nazis, and one risks being invoked Godwin’s Law.
The collective punishment and terror launched on Palestinians by the Israeli state is worse than the Nazis. At least the Nazis knew the identity of the killer, and the perpetrators were punished in the trial later on.
In the case of Israel, its Prime Minister along with Israeli Rabbis were calling for revenge, even before the identity of the perpetrators were known. The lost lives and property is just non-sensical. This, from a state that calls itself Jewish, is simply scandalous. Mother Judaism, that matron of all religions, must be silently wailing.
3rd August 2014: Israel losing the battle of hearts and minds
After almost a month’s bombing on Gaza, supported by almost all sections of the Israeli society, Israeli army is now ‘redeploying‘. So, what is the end game? Hardly rational. The battle began with a false claim; the troops were called back home after an equally false claim; the interim saw huge destruction of life and property.
As most Israelis firmly believe that Zionism solely represents Judaism today, some in the diaspora can also be seen as equally arrogant, challenging anyone who disagrees with their worldview with uncalled for labels.
While few Israelis have openly called for Palestinian genocide, others pitched in with a more civil talk with similar aims. To the atheists, it proves, all religions behave madly, and immorally.
During the 20th century, the Socialist Century, the early Israelis (mostly socialist, and generally agnostics) were eloquent in selling their cause to the world, and were rewarded by both parties of the Cold War. Today’s religious Zionists are being distanced by Jews themselves – from South Africa to Europe to US.
The notion that the Zionists ‘rule the world‘ is being slowly replaced, by the notion that they are being used as pawns by the powers-that-be. With no friends in the region, and all eggs in one basket, Israelis can end up like the unlucky but brave tribe of Camdodia. In that context, I can understand the anxiety of sand, slipping from the fingers of the believers of Zionism.
Third Temple: How should it be built?
In 70 CE, the Romans invaded the heart of Judaism and destroyed what is today called the ‘Second Temple’. The Jews of that age called the place simply as ‘Beit-Yahwah’ (House of God); which was used exclusively by the Rabbi (entering it while in a state of ‘ritual impurity’ is one of 36 offences punishable by kareth: ‘cutting off’; denial of a share in the hereafter).
The ‘Second Temple’ was believed by the Jewish scholars to be the place where Moses built his House of God (Tabernacle) – which later became the only place of Jewish ritual of animal sacrifice.
The Lost Sanctity
By 136 CE, after losing yet another rebellion, the Jews were banned from living inside Jerusalem. The only monotheistic religion of the world felt the full brutal weight of the mightiest empire of the world. The humiliation was complete when a Roman temple was build over the destroyed Beit-Yahweh. The Romans thought they have erased Judaism – the root of ever-growing Christianity within their empire.
Or so they thought. Jews are amongst us today; not the Romans 🙂
For nearly 2000 years, the exiled rabbi prayed daily for their return to Jerusalem. However, they were not certain as to the exact place of this Beit-HaMiqdas (or Bayt-al-Muqaddas in Arabic, the ‘Sanctified House’) in Jerusalem.
Creation of Israel, and Conquest of Jerusalem
By 1948, Israel is formed against the wishes of the natives. The claims of the white ‘natives’ were viewed with universal cynicism by the religious peoples of the world.
In 1967, Israel conquered Jerusalem with the help of the US. However, the Chief Rabbis of Israel banned Jews from entering the Temple Mount. The Chief Rabbinate Council formalised this; again confirmed by another declaration published in 2005.
The ‘Ottoman Status Quo’
In 1757, the Ottoman Sultan, Osman-3, divided the sacred sites in Jerusalem among the Abrahamic brethren. This ‘Ottoman status quo’ was maintained by the Treaty of Paris (1856), the Treaty of Berlin (1878), the British Mandate (1923-48) and the Jordanian administration (194-67). This OSQ was continued by the State of Israel (1967-today), confirmed again by the Israeli-Jordanian Peace Treaty (1994).
The Push for the Third Temple
Today’s Zionism (aka religious) divides Israel; their unity lies in the continued occupation of the lands seized by their agnostic founding fathers (the leftist Zionism). Post-9/11 environment is oxygen to their fire against Palestinian subjects, and Muslims in general.
So one of their tricks, to keep the communities polarised, is to demand the ‘restoration of the Third Temple’, much to the despair of Israeli establishment. As usual, the Jewish ulema vacillates on the subject, allowing policy-making and morality relegated to politics.
The Israeli Supreme Court, that upholder of Juristic Judaism today, has rejected applications to allow Jews to pray on the Temple Mount – on the grounds of ‘public order’. Such shameful spirit of dispensation of justice.
The Muslim Reaction
The Quran and Sunnah does not prevent the rebuilding of the Third Temple.
The real problem is that Chutzpah, that dirty trick: one cannot seize lands in the name of one’s ancestors, humiliate the natives daily, and demand the Third Temple in the name of Freedom of Religion. This, in the name of the world’s first juristic/moral religion, is scandalous.
The teens who are killing and dying today are simple-minded teens, whose hopes have been crushed by the Israeli State.
Muslims around the world feel the pain of this injustice, just like any other human. The West Bank is occupied, Gaza is caged and the Golan is annexed. The loss of the al-Aqsa, as perceived by the Palestinians, is the humiliation felt by the early Jews when the Romans raised their pagan temple over the destroyed House of God.
Even in Israel, it is being felt that the persecuted are becoming the perpetrators, with each passing year. Israel needs to revisit its principles, and reconcile itself with Judaism.
