"Let Us Deal Wisely with Them"
Lessons from Passover for the year to come
Western culture and religion tends to view time as linear. Original sin, early prophecies, “go forth,” “in the beginning.” History hurtles toward an end goal, a messianic era, an afterlife — the destruction of life as we know it in favor of something better. In today’s Western secular religion, “the long arc of history bends toward justice.”
Even though traditional Judaism shares this long-game principle, the Jewish people’s existence is cyclical, with the origin being Passover.
Welcomed into Egypt by a Pharaoh whose kingdom was spared from famine thanks to Joseph, the ancient Hebrews grow until a new Pharaoh with no historical memory comes to power and gets nervous. What if these Hebrews become so powerful that they side with our enemies against us? Let’s outsmart them, he decides. Thus begins the era of slavery and the ultimate redemption and crossing of the sea to none other than the land of Israel. This story is the most important one in our tradition.
As the joke goes, “they tried to kill us, they failed, let’s eat.” Over and over and over again. It doesn’t feel funny when it’s happening though.
We are living through global gaslighting. People who believe they are on the “right side of history” are falling for the same destructive ideas we’ve seen pop up and snarl civilization through the ages like unrelenting blackberry vines. Jews are thieves, tricksters. They have blood lust. They are controlling the media. They are power hungry and must be stopped.
“Let us deal wisely with them.” “Resistance by any means possible.”
Just this week, we saw Seattle Public Schools finally address the problem of radical activist teachers when they put Chief Sealth High School social studies chair Ian Golash on leave — only after he said on camera and surrounded by his own students that the murder of Israeli civilians was justified.
And on Tuesday, on the first day of Passover in an inverted exodus scenario, the Revolutionary Students Unions around the state are calling for a walkout.
Note the demands are getting more precise, and the walkout is sponsored by organizations run by adults.
Remember, it’s not about Gaza.
They Don't Care About Gaza
These wise people fighting the brutal regime of a country smaller than New Jersey are careful to separate Jews and Zionists into vague categories, which makes this intellectual battlefield very hard to navigate. Are we JVP or Ben Gvir? This is a bad-faith question that we are constantly tricked into answering. When you are talking about de-liberating a nation, these distinctions are irrelevant.
Pharaoh set out to deal “wisely” with the Hebrew population. The Hebrew verb is the reflexive of “haham,” as if to say, “let us wise ourselves up.” But the enemies of Israel never wise up. They double down on the same old bad ideas, call up the same old myths, and come up with the same old bad solutions.
It’s been six months since the Hamas attack. On Simchat Torah, we began the prayer for rain; on Passover, that prayer switches back to dew. By some accounts, Passover is the actual Jewish new year. It’s time to rinse off and move forward. Let’s find and support our allies, like the brave Iranians who take a stand against the regime. Let’s help them in their struggles and create new friendships. Let’s avoid falling into rhetorical traps and arguments about things like whether or not women were raped, arguments that swirl the drain of insanity. Let’s stop apologizing. Let’s stop qualifying our right to live freely.
Chag sameach.
Meet the Arabs Who Support Israel
Community Announcements
Check out the Seattle Jewish community calendar.
Check out ways to support Israel through UNX (UnXeptable) Seattle.
Candlelighting in Seattle is at 7:47 p.m. The parasha is Metzora.
Shoutouts
Mazel Tov to Hanna Esther Begoun on the marriage of her daughter, Raizel, to Natan Tal.
—Stuart Kaufman
I recently heard someone speak to what qualities define Judiasm. There was quite a bit to it, far too much for me to remember all of it. But I do remember two important principles, the pursuit of both knowledge and social justice.
There aren't many institutions remaining that prevail upon themselves to advance principled living.
I think Judiasm is one of those survivors.
Principled living is an alternative to the moral vacuum that humanity is descending into. Judiasm, independent of politics, is well positioned. Don't just defend Judiasm, promote it. Others will follow.