In all the furor, no one mentions that according to classic Jewish law, one becomes a Jew either by having a Jewish mother or by undergoing a proper conversion to Judaism.
The antireligious stance of the current Israeli government has created deep resentment and condemnation. The funding of the Arab sector and the defunding of the chareidim; “reforms” in kashrus; recognition of anti-halachic movements, and the weakening of the Chief Rabbinate are all very harmful, but they are not simply the result of anti-religious prejudice. In a larger sense they demonstrate a deep-rooted ignorance of what it means to be a Jew — an ignorance that is to be pitied rather than condemned.
For example: See what happens to one’s thinking when one views the Jewish People and the State of Israel as just one among many other nations, with no special connection to G-d or Torah or holiness. Exhibit A is the recent resurgence of anti-Semitism around the world. Among the more odious Jewish reactions is that this resurgence is a result of a failure in Israel’s public relations. If we had better PR, goes the litany, the nations would respect us more
Such superficialities are not those of unlettered Jews. Instead, it is the diagnosis of no less than Israel’s foreign minister and prime minister-in-waiting, Yair Lapid. “We need to invest more in PR to tell our story to the world,” he declared.
Reading this, it occurred to me that it is unfortunate that the Jews of Persia didn’t have better PR: they might have averted the enmity of Haman. And if European Jews had better “spin,” we might have been spared the loss of the six million; and if our forefather Yaakov had skillful PR, then the enmity of his brother Eisav might have been prevented.
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