Dr. Salman Masalha - MEMRI, Special Dispatch No. 4901, August 21st, 2012
Responding to the violence in Syria, he recently penned an article titled “The Crimes Of The Regime And Of The Opposition,” which was posted on the liberal Arabic-language website Elaph. In it, he calls for self-examination on the part of Arab societies in order to end the tradition of violence and backwardness that has characterized the Middle East for generations.
The following is a translation of the article:[1]
“Recently, many websites, especially YouTube, have posted a series of films documenting the murder and mutilation of bodies [perpetrated against] the followers of the fascist Ba'thist regime, who were themselves part of the mechanism that brutally oppressed the Syrians who rebelled against this same criminal regime. These films are similar to the films which documented the crimes of the [Syrian] regime's shabiha and army against the Syrian citizens. In other words, we are [only] now witnessing the reality which this oriental country [Syria] has been experiencing for a year and a half.
The ultimate goals of Assad's 'Alawite regime, which used the fascist pan-Arab [Ba'th] party as a no more than a rhetorical tool, was to consolidate [Assad's] tribal, sectarian rule. Now this regime is facing the ugly outcome of the sectarian, tribal seeds it sowed. We are now facing a reality that is best described by the old proverb 'you reap what you sow.' The Assad regime is the source of all this sectarian, ethnic destruction.
“What is happening now in the Syrian arena, and has been happening for months, is the best proof of the ruin and desolation [that afflict] this land – except that this desolation, which is essentially a moral desolation, is not new. It is part of the character of this region, which has never been characterized by the virtues of modern civilization. The great scholar Ibn Khaldun, may he rest in peace, recognized this character a long time ago – [a character] that has always been incapable of embracing civilization. [He wrote:] 'Whenever the Arab nomads conquer a place, destruction soon follows, because they are a barbaric people. The habits of barbaric existence have taken hold of them and have become [part of] their nature, and they like it that way… This nature is the very antithesis of civilization… For example, if they need stones to place beneath their cooking pots, they will destroy a building to use its bricks… Therefore, their very presence is incompatible with construction, which is the basis of civilization' [Muqaddimat ibn Khaldun, p. 146].
“In this discussion of Arab nomads, Ibn Khaldun speaks of the material [aspects of] civilization. However, we should extend his approach to a new domain, and speak of other [aspects], namely of the non-material [aspects of] civilization. While Ibn Khaldun speaks of stones, I wish to extend his reasoning to human beings. Whether the crimes that the world is witnessing on the modern media are perpetrated by the brutal henchmen of the fascist [Syrian] regime or by those who oppose it, any member of the homo sapiens race is shocked by the enormity this human brutality. While Ibn Khaldun speaks of the stones that the Arab nomads placed under their cooking pots, I [wish to] speak about human beings that the Arabs used as support for their pots. Because today's crimes, which the Arabs and the whole world are witnessing, can be traced back to the cultural legacy upon which generations of Arabs were raised.
“For example, let's read what previous generations have recorded for us about [renowned military commander] Khalid ibn Al-Walid, known as Allah's Sword, and how he ordered to cut off the head of [tribal chief] Malik bin Nuwayra in order to place it under a cooking pot used by his army. [The source says:] 'Malik was the hairiest of men, so when the soldiers placed their pots on the heads of the slain enemies, all the heads burned as soon as the fire touched them, except for his. His head did not burn even when the food was already cooked, because his hair protected the skin from the heat of the fire.' And that isn't all. Cultural heritage teaches us that Khalid ibn Al-Walid did this because he desired Malik's wife, of whom it was said, 'no legs were more beautiful than hers.' And indeed, [according to the source,] 'it is said that Khalid ibn Al-Walid married the wife of Malik and consummated the marriage, and this fact is agreed upon by all historians.' This historical report is found in [a number of] sources, such as Tabari's Tarikh Al-Rusul Wa'l-Mulouk, Ibn Kathir's Al-Bidaya Wa'l-Nihaya, Ibn A'tham's Kitab Al-Futouh, Ibn Hajar's Isaba, and many others.
“As another example, let us read about the head of [the Prophet's grandson] Al-Hussain ibn 'Ali. It has been recorded by ancient writers that [Umayyad provincial governor] 'Ubayd Allah bin Ziyad placed Hussein's head upon a tray and started to play with it, using his cane. This report, [too,] can be found in a number of sources… And there are many more bloody [stories] of this kind in the heritage upon which generations of Arabs were raised.
“What is clear in all the Arab countries that emerged out of the ruins of the Ottoman [empire] and later out of the colonial rule, is their absolute failure to cultivate the non-material aspects of civilization, that is to say, cultivate an integrated humane civilization. These countries grew out of one kind of autocracy and replaced it with another kind of autocracy, which purported to be nationalist when in fact it was tribal and sectarian. In other words, these countries exchanged foreign colonialism for a tribal colonialism under those called 'family.'
“The ancient Arab poet put his finger on an essential human truth when he described injustice coming from one's family as the hardest to bear. Yes, discovering the falseness of family is hardest to bear, and leads one to despair and depression. When one is surrounded by injustice, it leads one to distrust all of mankind, [and] this distrust of mankind is the source of [all] ruin. It is the source of the moral desolation, which, in turn, leads to spiritual disintegration. Yes, this is the very opposite of humane civilization. This, essentially, is the great failure of all the regimes that are [now] gradually perishing in the so-called Arab countries. For none of these various regimes succeeded in building an integrated people. Every one of them is based on tribal and religious tyranny. And since religious and tribal tyranny is the opposite of freedom and of human spirit, it cannot last. It is a temporary state, which soon collapses when faced with the outburst of a call for human freedom. Ultimately, freedom is the [true] human nature.
“The way out of this bloody Arab whirlpool is obvious, and there is no need to reinvent the wheel. The Arab needs only to look at the world around him in order to clearly see the way. The Arabs urgently need to base their societies upon foundations that transcend the boundaries of religious, ethnic and tribal affiliations. Such a development can only be realized in civil states, which transcend all such affiliations. This does not mean non-affiliation; it only [means] building the social structure upon stronger foundations: those that underlie modern civilization.
“For this reason, there is also an urgent need to reevaluate [the entire annals of] Arab life and civilization since its appearance on the stage of history. Everything published about the crimes committed in Arab countries, whether they are committed by the regime or the opposition, shows that there is a thin but powerful line connecting all these crimes that have been documented by Arabs since ancient times, examples of which we have given above. Anyone who truly wishes for a way out of these bloody Arab whirlpools must sever this line and sever the connection with those crimes. Indeed, there is an urgent need for an Arab self-examination. And for this self examination to have an effect on the Arab fate in future generations, it must be held publicly. It must be absolutely frank, and everything must be subjected to public questioning and discussion, without hiding any dirt under the carpet. Because only through frankness one can make peace with oneself and with the other. Without such an examination, [the Arabs] will have no way [forward], except the way towards ruin and moral desolation.”
Endnote:
[1] Elaph.com, August 15, 2012.
Dr. Salman Masalha is an Israeli-Arab poet and writer who regularly
publishes articles on current political and cultural Middle Eastern affairs,
in both Arabic and Hebrew, in international Arab media and in the Israeli
daily Haaretz.
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Palestinos e israelíes: ¿Coexistencia o normalización?
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Palestinos e israelíes: ¿Coexistencia o normalización?
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Mar Ago 14 2012 (26 Av, 5772)
Una improvisada carpa en el barrio de Musrara (entre las zonas árabe y judía de Jerusalén) en la que se reparten trozos de sandía y se escucha a la noche el sonido del laúd es el último ejemplo del debate sobre la conveniencia de actividades mixtas entre israelíes y palestinos: ¿coexistencia o normalización?.
¿Son las iniciativas de acciones conjuntas una muestra de coexistencia y un paso hacia el conocimiento mutuo y la paz, como defienden algunos, o son, más bien, un intento de normalizar la situación y hacer que en el exterior se olvide que hay un pueblo que ocupa a otro, como argumentan otros?.
Los activistas israelíes y palestinos miran con lupa las iniciativas en las que participan: manifestaciones contra el muro o los asentamientos, actos culturales, eventos deportivos, diálogos entre grupos de uno y otro lado, ONG mixtas, debates, exposiciones... ¿tienen detrás un ánimo normalizador?, se preguntan muchos.
La etiqueta de "coexistencia" es muy atractiva, muestra un ánimo de acercamiento, tolerancia y confraternidad, pero no pocos recelan de este concepto y se alejan de todo aquello que no tenga un objetivo claro y se quede en gestos vacíos.
Matan Israel, artista israelí promotor del proyecto "Green2Red", que instaló una carpa con exposiciones, música y platos de sandías y queso a la que decenas de jerosolimitanos -judíos y árabes- acudían en las primeras noches de agosto, reconoce a Efe que la cuestión de la normalización fue uno de los debates clave entre los organizadores.
"Queríamos crear un espacio en el que cualquiera pudiera sentirse a gusto y lo conseguimos. Nuestro mensaje no era ni de derechas ni de izquierdas, era simplemente: encontrémonos. Pero sabemos que esto, aquí, es también un mensaje político", explica Matan.
Entiende que "crear un lugar de celebración siempre puede llevar a que los palestinos se pregunten: ¿qué hay que celebrar, si estamos bajo ocupación?" pero piensa que "las conexiones personales son las que lo cambian todo. Hay que empezar por hablar, por destruir las barreras que se han levantado entre las dos partes".
Señala que han sufrido el boicot de muchos palestinos que "no están dispuestos a sentarse con israelíes a comer sandías" y asegura entender esa postura, aunque cree que su labor es "ofrecer espacios de encuentro".
De la misma posición es el Centro Peres de la Paz, uno de los grandes promotores de actividades de coexistencia cuyo director, Ido Sharir, explica a Efe que su objetivo es "juntar a la gente en proyectos de construcción de paz para encontrar un lugar común y compartido".
Para ello, organizan programas en torno a actividades culturales, deportivas, de medio ambiente o empresariales, "que sirvan de paraguas para que la gente se junte físicamente y se de cuenta de que el otro no es tan diferente y comprenda su trayectoria y su narrativa".
Sharir cree que "sin los encuentros uno a uno es imposible llegar a la paz".
Xavier Abu Eid, portavoz de la OLP (Organización para la Liberación de Palestina), afirma tajante a Efe que "no puede existir la coexistencia mientras una parte esté por encima de la otra. La coexistencia no existe. Todo es normalización, que daña la causa palestina porque hace que el mundo se olvide de que aquí hay una ocupación."
"Hemos hecho decenas de campamentos de nuestros niños con los suyos y el resultado de esto, y de veinte años de proceso de paz y esfuerzos de coexistencia han sido el Likud (partido derechista en el Gobierno) y (Avigdor) Liberman (ministro de Exteriores israelí y colono de la ultraderecha nacionalista)".
Para el periodista palestino Omar Rahman, los proyectos de coexistencia "promueven una falsa idea de paridad entre las partes en conflicto, proyectan una falsa imagen de simetría y normalidad e ignoran la opresión, la colonización y privación de derechos de una parte contra la otra".
"La normalización puede estar bien para superar la distancia entre la gente en India y Pakistán o Venezuela y Colombia, donde ambas partes están en el mismo nivel, pero no en Israel y Palestina, donde una parte vive bajo el yugo y la cadena del otro", afirma.
Muchos críticos de la normalización apoyan, sin embargo, las actividades conjuntas entre palestinos e israelíes cuando estas se dirijan a luchar contra la ocupación: el concepto de corresistencia frente al de coexistencia.
Meir Margalit, fundador del Comité Israelí Contra la Demolición de Viviendas (ICHAD), considera que "las actividades conjuntas que no tengan como objetivo claro y conciso acabar con la ocupación, sobran. Partidos de fútbol mixtos están de más. Mientras haya ocupación, no hay lugar para la filantropía y el humanismo".
De la misma opinión es Roberto Krimer, de la ONG Centro de Información Alternativo (AIC) para quien "hacer talleres de pintura conjuntos, por ejemplo, puede ser bonito, pero supone, en realidad, no hablar del conflicto, ni de las desigualdades brutales que existen. Es normalizar algo que no es normal".
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Vie Ago 24 2012 10:11:44 (6 Elul, 5772)
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Mie Ago 22 2012 10:19:51 (4 Elul, 5772)
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Palestinos e israelíes: ¿Coexistencia o normalización?
Fuente: Terra.com.mx
Mar Ago 14 2012 (26 Av, 5772)
Una improvisada carpa en el barrio de Musrara (entre las zonas árabe y judía de Jerusalén) en la que se reparten trozos de sandía y se escucha a la noche el sonido del laúd es el último ejemplo del debate sobre la conveniencia de actividades mixtas entre israelíes y palestinos: ¿coexistencia o normalización?.
¿Son las iniciativas de acciones conjuntas una muestra de coexistencia y un paso hacia el conocimiento mutuo y la paz, como defienden algunos, o son, más bien, un intento de normalizar la situación y hacer que en el exterior se olvide que hay un pueblo que ocupa a otro, como argumentan otros?.
Los activistas israelíes y palestinos miran con lupa las iniciativas en las que participan: manifestaciones contra el muro o los asentamientos, actos culturales, eventos deportivos, diálogos entre grupos de uno y otro lado, ONG mixtas, debates, exposiciones... ¿tienen detrás un ánimo normalizador?, se preguntan muchos.
La etiqueta de "coexistencia" es muy atractiva, muestra un ánimo de acercamiento, tolerancia y confraternidad, pero no pocos recelan de este concepto y se alejan de todo aquello que no tenga un objetivo claro y se quede en gestos vacíos.
Matan Israel, artista israelí promotor del proyecto "Green2Red", que instaló una carpa con exposiciones, música y platos de sandías y queso a la que decenas de jerosolimitanos -judíos y árabes- acudían en las primeras noches de agosto, reconoce a Efe que la cuestión de la normalización fue uno de los debates clave entre los organizadores.
"Queríamos crear un espacio en el que cualquiera pudiera sentirse a gusto y lo conseguimos. Nuestro mensaje no era ni de derechas ni de izquierdas, era simplemente: encontrémonos. Pero sabemos que esto, aquí, es también un mensaje político", explica Matan.
Entiende que "crear un lugar de celebración siempre puede llevar a que los palestinos se pregunten: ¿qué hay que celebrar, si estamos bajo ocupación?" pero piensa que "las conexiones personales son las que lo cambian todo. Hay que empezar por hablar, por destruir las barreras que se han levantado entre las dos partes".
Señala que han sufrido el boicot de muchos palestinos que "no están dispuestos a sentarse con israelíes a comer sandías" y asegura entender esa postura, aunque cree que su labor es "ofrecer espacios de encuentro".
De la misma posición es el Centro Peres de la Paz, uno de los grandes promotores de actividades de coexistencia cuyo director, Ido Sharir, explica a Efe que su objetivo es "juntar a la gente en proyectos de construcción de paz para encontrar un lugar común y compartido".
Para ello, organizan programas en torno a actividades culturales, deportivas, de medio ambiente o empresariales, "que sirvan de paraguas para que la gente se junte físicamente y se de cuenta de que el otro no es tan diferente y comprenda su trayectoria y su narrativa".
Sharir cree que "sin los encuentros uno a uno es imposible llegar a la paz".
Xavier Abu Eid, portavoz de la OLP (Organización para la Liberación de Palestina), afirma tajante a Efe que "no puede existir la coexistencia mientras una parte esté por encima de la otra. La coexistencia no existe. Todo es normalización, que daña la causa palestina porque hace que el mundo se olvide de que aquí hay una ocupación."
"Hemos hecho decenas de campamentos de nuestros niños con los suyos y el resultado de esto, y de veinte años de proceso de paz y esfuerzos de coexistencia han sido el Likud (partido derechista en el Gobierno) y (Avigdor) Liberman (ministro de Exteriores israelí y colono de la ultraderecha nacionalista)".
Para el periodista palestino Omar Rahman, los proyectos de coexistencia "promueven una falsa idea de paridad entre las partes en conflicto, proyectan una falsa imagen de simetría y normalidad e ignoran la opresión, la colonización y privación de derechos de una parte contra la otra".
"La normalización puede estar bien para superar la distancia entre la gente en India y Pakistán o Venezuela y Colombia, donde ambas partes están en el mismo nivel, pero no en Israel y Palestina, donde una parte vive bajo el yugo y la cadena del otro", afirma.
Muchos críticos de la normalización apoyan, sin embargo, las actividades conjuntas entre palestinos e israelíes cuando estas se dirijan a luchar contra la ocupación: el concepto de corresistencia frente al de coexistencia.
Meir Margalit, fundador del Comité Israelí Contra la Demolición de Viviendas (ICHAD), considera que "las actividades conjuntas que no tengan como objetivo claro y conciso acabar con la ocupación, sobran. Partidos de fútbol mixtos están de más. Mientras haya ocupación, no hay lugar para la filantropía y el humanismo".
De la misma opinión es Roberto Krimer, de la ONG Centro de Información Alternativo (AIC) para quien "hacer talleres de pintura conjuntos, por ejemplo, puede ser bonito, pero supone, en realidad, no hablar del conflicto, ni de las desigualdades brutales que existen. Es normalizar algo que no es normal".
0 OPINIONES DE PARTE DE NUESTROS LECTORES OPINAR
ARTÍCULOS RECIENTES
Israel e Irán amenazándose, ¿Qué significado tiene?
Vie Ago 24 2012 10:11:44 (6 Elul, 5772)
Tiempo de descuento
Jue Ago 23 2012 10:21:00 (5 Elul, 5772)
Atacar o no atacar, he ahí el dilema
Jue Ago 23 2012 10:16:08 (5 Elul, 5772)
La capacidad militar israelí
Mie Ago 22 2012 10:19:51 (4 Elul, 5772)
Ahmedinejad o el discurso del ogro
Lun Ago 20 2012 10:41:23 (2 Elul, 5772)
Envía esta Página
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Hits: Este artículo ha sido visto 134 veces.
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Israel e Irán amenazándose, ¿Qué significado tiene?
Por: Mauricio Zieleniec
Vie Ago 24 2012 (6 Elul, 5772)
Tiempo de descuento
Por: Ari Shavit
Jue Ago 23 2012 (5 Elul, 5772)
Atacar o no atacar, he ahí el dilema
Por: Moisés Salinas Fleitman
Jue Ago 23 2012 (5 Elul, 5772)
La capacidad militar israelí
Por: Abraham Nissan
Mie Ago 22 2012 (4 Elul, 5772)
LIBROS RECOMENDADOS
Ver Más Ver en una página Buscar por categoría
Tevie el Lechero
Por: Schólem Aléijem
L'Antisemitisme Eclaire: Inclusion Et Exclusion Depuis I'Epoque Des Lumieres Jusqu'a I'Affaire Dreyfus/Inclusion and Exclusion: Perspectives on Jews ... Series in Jewish Studies) (French Edition)
Say It in Yiddish
By: Beatrice Weinreich
Di dray bern : Mirele-Goldherele antshuldikt zikh
Por: Marshe Grus Levenson
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Wednesday, August 15, 2012
"Islamism" and the Climax of Civilization
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The Theological Issue of Our Times: "Islamism" and the Climax of Civilization
Prof. Paul Eidelberg
Many scholars use the term "Islamism" to describe what they also call "radical" Islam, "political" Islam, and "militant" Islam." Whatever the validity of these adjectives, they tend to obscure or trivialize what is at stake in the conflict between Islam and the West, that is, between "Islamism" and Judeo-Christian civilization. Let us get to the heart of the issue.
We all know that the Hebrew Bible proclaims in Genesis 1:26 that man is created in the image of God. But few know that Islam regards this revolutionary verse of the Torah as blasphemous—the verse that inspired the American Declaration of Independence!
It may appear academic to say that Islamic theology maintains that nothing finite can be compared to the infinitude of God. But we need to understood, especially in this age of collective madness and recurring massacres, that the concept of Imago Dei teaches provides the foundation for the primacy of reason which distinguishes man from beasts.
By denying the concept of Imago Dei, Islam degrades man. Islam’s dismal and distorted theology therefore lends itself to Islam’s contempt for human life. It is from this theological perspective that we can best understand Islamic Jihad or the wanton murder of "infidels"—of innocent men, women, and children. Admittedly, it’s hard to avoid the conclusion that what scholars call "Islamism" is unmitigated evil.
This is the candid and courageous conclusion of Kenneth Hart Green, who teaches in the Department for the Study of Religion at the University of Toronto.
Professor Green contends—and here I will simplify his remarks—that "Islamism is an original and unprecedented form of modern evil, and especially of religious abomination." It "emerges as a true monotheistic idolatry" [for it denies the free will of man]. [Islam] "unapologetically embraces all the modern devices (ideology, technology, mass persuasion, etc.), and employs them to do its radical evil."[1]
It’s more than difficult to suggest that the "creed" of 1.5 billion people is evil. The difficulty begins with the error of regarding Islam as one of the three world monotheistic religions. Theologian George P. Weigel rejects this theological equivalency. “To speak of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam as the “three Abrahamic faiths … obscures rather than illuminates. These familiar tropes ought to be retired.”[2] Dr. Weigel is understandably understates the issue. We are approaching a climax in history. Allow me to be more outspoken.
We are deafened by the virtual silence of Muslim theologians and intellectuals who have not denounced Muslim racists who call non-Muslims "pigs" and "dogs"? But how can they read words in the Quran? Still, why have no prominent Muslims assembled in Washington, D.C. and denounced Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s malediction "Death to America." and his vow to wipe Israel, a member of the UN, off the map? Such imprecations and threats are repeated again and again by Muslim leaders and spokesmen and broadcast throughout the world. These Muslims feel perfectly free to vent their murderous hatred and curses without the slightest fear of hostile response. Internet is far more reaching and effective than Mein Kampf.
Ladies and gentlemen: There is only one rational and manly response to this shrill and disgusting evil, and that is to boldly pursue a multifaceted and step-by-step strategy whose ultimate objective is to relegate this widespread evil to the dust heap of history before its leaders obtain nuclear as well as biological and chemical weapons of mass destruction.
We are approaching a climax of civilization and world-history. We had better act before it’s too late.
[1] See Kenneth Hart Green, “Leo Strauss’ Challenge to Emil Fackenheim: Heidegger, Radical Historicism, and Diabolical Evil,” in S. Portnoff, J. A. Diamond, and M.D. Yaffe (eds.) Emil L. Fackenheim: Philosopher, Theologian, Jew, (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 2008), 151n42.
[2] (George Weigel, Faith. Reason, and the War Against Jihadism: A Call to Acton (New York: Doubleday, 2007), p. 17.
Tue Aug 14, 2012 2:32 pm
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FW: "Islamism" and the Climax of Civilization
From: paul@... The Theological Issue of Our Times: "Islamism" and the Climax of Civilization Prof. Paul Eidelberg Many scholars use the term "Islamism"... rufina@...
bernardetti Aug 14, 2012
2:56 pm
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The Theological Issue of Our Times: "Islamism" and the Climax of Civilization
Prof. Paul Eidelberg
Many scholars use the term "Islamism" to describe what they also call "radical" Islam, "political" Islam, and "militant" Islam." Whatever the validity of these adjectives, they tend to obscure or trivialize what is at stake in the conflict between Islam and the West, that is, between "Islamism" and Judeo-Christian civilization. Let us get to the heart of the issue.
We all know that the Hebrew Bible proclaims in Genesis 1:26 that man is created in the image of God. But few know that Islam regards this revolutionary verse of the Torah as blasphemous—the verse that inspired the American Declaration of Independence!
It may appear academic to say that Islamic theology maintains that nothing finite can be compared to the infinitude of God. But we need to understood, especially in this age of collective madness and recurring massacres, that the concept of Imago Dei teaches provides the foundation for the primacy of reason which distinguishes man from beasts.
By denying the concept of Imago Dei, Islam degrades man. Islam’s dismal and distorted theology therefore lends itself to Islam’s contempt for human life. It is from this theological perspective that we can best understand Islamic Jihad or the wanton murder of "infidels"—of innocent men, women, and children. Admittedly, it’s hard to avoid the conclusion that what scholars call "Islamism" is unmitigated evil.
This is the candid and courageous conclusion of Kenneth Hart Green, who teaches in the Department for the Study of Religion at the University of Toronto.
Professor Green contends—and here I will simplify his remarks—that "Islamism is an original and unprecedented form of modern evil, and especially of religious abomination." It "emerges as a true monotheistic idolatry" [for it denies the free will of man]. [Islam] "unapologetically embraces all the modern devices (ideology, technology, mass persuasion, etc.), and employs them to do its radical evil."[1]
It’s more than difficult to suggest that the "creed" of 1.5 billion people is evil. The difficulty begins with the error of regarding Islam as one of the three world monotheistic religions. Theologian George P. Weigel rejects this theological equivalency. “To speak of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam as the “three Abrahamic faiths … obscures rather than illuminates. These familiar tropes ought to be retired.”[2] Dr. Weigel is understandably understates the issue. We are approaching a climax in history. Allow me to be more outspoken.
We are deafened by the virtual silence of Muslim theologians and intellectuals who have not denounced Muslim racists who call non-Muslims "pigs" and "dogs"? But how can they read words in the Quran? Still, why have no prominent Muslims assembled in Washington, D.C. and denounced Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s malediction "Death to America." and his vow to wipe Israel, a member of the UN, off the map? Such imprecations and threats are repeated again and again by Muslim leaders and spokesmen and broadcast throughout the world. These Muslims feel perfectly free to vent their murderous hatred and curses without the slightest fear of hostile response. Internet is far more reaching and effective than Mein Kampf.
Ladies and gentlemen: There is only one rational and manly response to this shrill and disgusting evil, and that is to boldly pursue a multifaceted and step-by-step strategy whose ultimate objective is to relegate this widespread evil to the dust heap of history before its leaders obtain nuclear as well as biological and chemical weapons of mass destruction.
We are approaching a climax of civilization and world-history. We had better act before it’s too late.
[1] See Kenneth Hart Green, “Leo Strauss’ Challenge to Emil Fackenheim: Heidegger, Radical Historicism, and Diabolical Evil,” in S. Portnoff, J. A. Diamond, and M.D. Yaffe (eds.) Emil L. Fackenheim: Philosopher, Theologian, Jew, (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 2008), 151n42.
[2] (George Weigel, Faith. Reason, and the War Against Jihadism: A Call to Acton (New York: Doubleday, 2007), p. 17.
Tue Aug 14, 2012 2:32 pm
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FW: "Islamism" and the Climax of Civilization
From: paul@... The Theological Issue of Our Times: "Islamism" and the Climax of Civilization Prof. Paul Eidelberg Many scholars use the term "Islamism"... rufina@...
bernardetti Aug 14, 2012
2:56 pm
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
1929 Redux? David Wilder
1929 Redux?
David Wilder
August 06, 2012
Last week a young woman from Toronto visited me at my office here in Hebron. She told that her name was Slonim, that her family was from Hebron, that her family was miraculously saved during the 1929 massacre.
I told her, yes, members of the Slonim family were holed up in Rabbi Ya'akov Slonim's home. The Rabbi's Arab landlord, hearing about the impending riots, stood at the door of the house, refusing to allow the marauding Arabs to enter. They put a sword on his throat, threatening to kill him if he didn't move. He didn't budge. They drew blood. He stood his ground. Finally, they left. The building's residents survived, including her grandmother.
The young woman's eyes bulged. 'That's the exact story my grandmother told me," she exclaimed.
Not far from Rabbi Ya'akov Slonim's house is Beit Hadassah - the Hadassah House in Hebron, was built in 1893 as a medical clinic for Arabs and Jews in the city. It served the community for 26 years.
Today Beit Hadassah is home to Jewish families in Hebron. A small synagogue is located on the ground floor. The basement floor is rather unique. There is the Hebron Heritage Museum, detailing the magnificent history of Israel's first Jewish city, some 3,800 years old. Many of the groups touring Hebron visit this site. It provides, as I am wont to tell visitors, a taste of Hebron's Jewish history, over the centuries.
Perhaps the most difficult and emotional room in the museum is a memorial to victims of the 1929 riots and slaughter. At least 67 Jews were murdered in Hebron, with over 70 injured. A total of over 130 Jews were killed throughout pre-state Israel, in Jerusalem, Tzfat, Motza and other places.
The accounts are documented and the events well-known. On Thursday, August 22, that being the 16th day of the Hebrew month of Av, a group of Jews from the Haganah, led by Mordechai Shneerson, came to Hebron and met with its Jewish leadership. 'Mufti Amin el-Husseini is inciting. There's going to be trouble. Take weapons to protect yourselves.' Hebron's Jewish leaders refused. 'The Arabs are our friends. The protected us in the past, and will do so again now. We've already met with them. Weapons will only act as a provocation.'
The Haganah representatives left with the weapons they'd brought for Hebron's Jews, who remained defenseless. They paid dearly for their error in judgment. The next day rioting commenced. One Hebron Jew, a yeshiva student, Shmuel Rosenhalz, was murdered just prior to the beginning of Shabbat. British police officer, Major Raymond Cafferata, told the Jews to stay home and lock their doors. The next morning Arabs went house to house, torturing, raping, pillaging and killing. Virtually nothing was done to help the Jews. True, there were Arabs who saved Jews. But not enough. At least 67 were killed. Three days later, the survivors were expelled.
Following recitation of the account, and viewing of the horrid photos in the room, I repeat, to just about anyone and everyone visiting with me, two messages: First, in 1967, when Israel liberated Hebron, it did not conquer and occupy a foreign city. It came home. Second, Israel always has to be able to protect itself. When we leave our fate in the hands of others, this is the result.
In theory, the lesson need only be learned once, the hard way. Unfortunately Israel continues to make the same mistake, time and time again. Since Oslo was signed, putting much of Israel's security in the hands of our neighbors, over 1,500 Jews have been killed in cold-blooded terror attacks. Since abandonment of Gush Katif and Gaza, well over 10,000 rockets have been shot into Israel. Those attacks continue, to this very day.
This is particularly significant at present: To Israel's north we are witness to a barbaric slaughter of men, women and children. I'm no great fan of Syria, or its Arab population. They have warred against Israel and killed our citizens. However, politics aside, it is difficult to watch a twenty-first century bloodbath, perpetrated by one man trying to hold on to power, with virtually nothing being done to stop him and the carnage. World powerstis and hiss, but that's about it.
North east of Damascus, less than a thousand miles away, sits another Bashar Assad, this one going by the name of Ahmadinejad. He doesn't care a whole lot more about his hometown folks in Teheran than does the butcher in Damascus. But his target is different. About 590 miles away, (that being some 1,500 kilometers) is Tel Aviv.
So what's the lesson to be learned? Crystal clear. If we – if Israel waits for someone else to protect us, to ensure our security, the loss is liable to be much greater that the Jews massacred in 1929. The world watches as Syria burns; why should they act different while, G-d forbid, Israel burns? Hebron's 1929 Jewish population was decimated, while others watched from the sidelines. Would world leaders act any differently from Raymond Cafferata?
Why were Hebron's 1929 survivors expelled, following the riots? Years ago I was told, by a man whose family survived, that his father wrote to the British high commissioner, asking that very question. The answer was short and to the point. 'There were more Arabs than Jews in Hebron and you couldn't continue living together. It was easier to expel the Jews than the Arabs.'
What might today's international 'high commissioner' declare, following an Iranian attack on Israel? Might not the state of Israel face the fate of Hebron's 1929 Jewish survivors?
1929 Redux?
The Jewish Community of Hebron
POB 105 , Kiryat Arba-Hebron 90100 hebron@...
Tour Hebron: Tel 972-52-431-7055 or write:
tour@...
The Hebron Fund
1760 Ocean Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11230
www.hebronfund.com hebronfund@...
718-677-6886
Web: www.hebron.com
Ma'arat HaMachpela: www.machpela.com
To subscribe or unsubscribe to the Hebron list, simply email:
hebron.mail-subscribe@...
hebron.mail-unsubscribe@...
The Jewish Community of Hebron
P.O. Box 105, Kiryat Arba 90100 Israel
Tel: 972-2-9965333; Fax: 972-2-9965304
info@...
David Wilder
August 06, 2012
Last week a young woman from Toronto visited me at my office here in Hebron. She told that her name was Slonim, that her family was from Hebron, that her family was miraculously saved during the 1929 massacre.
I told her, yes, members of the Slonim family were holed up in Rabbi Ya'akov Slonim's home. The Rabbi's Arab landlord, hearing about the impending riots, stood at the door of the house, refusing to allow the marauding Arabs to enter. They put a sword on his throat, threatening to kill him if he didn't move. He didn't budge. They drew blood. He stood his ground. Finally, they left. The building's residents survived, including her grandmother.
The young woman's eyes bulged. 'That's the exact story my grandmother told me," she exclaimed.
Not far from Rabbi Ya'akov Slonim's house is Beit Hadassah - the Hadassah House in Hebron, was built in 1893 as a medical clinic for Arabs and Jews in the city. It served the community for 26 years.
Today Beit Hadassah is home to Jewish families in Hebron. A small synagogue is located on the ground floor. The basement floor is rather unique. There is the Hebron Heritage Museum, detailing the magnificent history of Israel's first Jewish city, some 3,800 years old. Many of the groups touring Hebron visit this site. It provides, as I am wont to tell visitors, a taste of Hebron's Jewish history, over the centuries.
Perhaps the most difficult and emotional room in the museum is a memorial to victims of the 1929 riots and slaughter. At least 67 Jews were murdered in Hebron, with over 70 injured. A total of over 130 Jews were killed throughout pre-state Israel, in Jerusalem, Tzfat, Motza and other places.
The accounts are documented and the events well-known. On Thursday, August 22, that being the 16th day of the Hebrew month of Av, a group of Jews from the Haganah, led by Mordechai Shneerson, came to Hebron and met with its Jewish leadership. 'Mufti Amin el-Husseini is inciting. There's going to be trouble. Take weapons to protect yourselves.' Hebron's Jewish leaders refused. 'The Arabs are our friends. The protected us in the past, and will do so again now. We've already met with them. Weapons will only act as a provocation.'
The Haganah representatives left with the weapons they'd brought for Hebron's Jews, who remained defenseless. They paid dearly for their error in judgment. The next day rioting commenced. One Hebron Jew, a yeshiva student, Shmuel Rosenhalz, was murdered just prior to the beginning of Shabbat. British police officer, Major Raymond Cafferata, told the Jews to stay home and lock their doors. The next morning Arabs went house to house, torturing, raping, pillaging and killing. Virtually nothing was done to help the Jews. True, there were Arabs who saved Jews. But not enough. At least 67 were killed. Three days later, the survivors were expelled.
Following recitation of the account, and viewing of the horrid photos in the room, I repeat, to just about anyone and everyone visiting with me, two messages: First, in 1967, when Israel liberated Hebron, it did not conquer and occupy a foreign city. It came home. Second, Israel always has to be able to protect itself. When we leave our fate in the hands of others, this is the result.
In theory, the lesson need only be learned once, the hard way. Unfortunately Israel continues to make the same mistake, time and time again. Since Oslo was signed, putting much of Israel's security in the hands of our neighbors, over 1,500 Jews have been killed in cold-blooded terror attacks. Since abandonment of Gush Katif and Gaza, well over 10,000 rockets have been shot into Israel. Those attacks continue, to this very day.
This is particularly significant at present: To Israel's north we are witness to a barbaric slaughter of men, women and children. I'm no great fan of Syria, or its Arab population. They have warred against Israel and killed our citizens. However, politics aside, it is difficult to watch a twenty-first century bloodbath, perpetrated by one man trying to hold on to power, with virtually nothing being done to stop him and the carnage. World powerstis and hiss, but that's about it.
North east of Damascus, less than a thousand miles away, sits another Bashar Assad, this one going by the name of Ahmadinejad. He doesn't care a whole lot more about his hometown folks in Teheran than does the butcher in Damascus. But his target is different. About 590 miles away, (that being some 1,500 kilometers) is Tel Aviv.
So what's the lesson to be learned? Crystal clear. If we – if Israel waits for someone else to protect us, to ensure our security, the loss is liable to be much greater that the Jews massacred in 1929. The world watches as Syria burns; why should they act different while, G-d forbid, Israel burns? Hebron's 1929 Jewish population was decimated, while others watched from the sidelines. Would world leaders act any differently from Raymond Cafferata?
Why were Hebron's 1929 survivors expelled, following the riots? Years ago I was told, by a man whose family survived, that his father wrote to the British high commissioner, asking that very question. The answer was short and to the point. 'There were more Arabs than Jews in Hebron and you couldn't continue living together. It was easier to expel the Jews than the Arabs.'
What might today's international 'high commissioner' declare, following an Iranian attack on Israel? Might not the state of Israel face the fate of Hebron's 1929 Jewish survivors?
1929 Redux?
The Jewish Community of Hebron
POB 105 , Kiryat Arba-Hebron 90100 hebron@...
Tour Hebron: Tel 972-52-431-7055 or write:
tour@...
The Hebron Fund
1760 Ocean Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11230
www.hebronfund.com hebronfund@...
718-677-6886
Web: www.hebron.com
Ma'arat HaMachpela: www.machpela.com
To subscribe or unsubscribe to the Hebron list, simply email:
hebron.mail-subscribe@...
hebron.mail-unsubscribe@...
The Jewish Community of Hebron
P.O. Box 105, Kiryat Arba 90100 Israel
Tel: 972-2-9965333; Fax: 972-2-9965304
info@...
Monday, August 6, 2012
What kind of support is this ?
What kind of support is this?
I have just posted a new article on my website [http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001O9hkprsacRSKqVAqGNXQuEjUoyr1-VWDY6OecVFor8cLf7OJdC2eiLcTVyhl4xP3UWo0fxoYmFPEQfGbVawNN8CUjMZ6pIhgZ4bBA_vZ-krnN6BO8A1Auw==]
and I'm happy to send you a copy.
Feel free to email me [mailto:melanie@...] with any comments and
I will do my best to reply
Melanie Phillips
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Much anguish has been expended over Jews who detest Israel so virulently they are
in the forefront of the delegitimisation campaign. Such people were devastatingly
satirised by Howard Jacobson as 'as a Jew' Jews, who parade their identity solely
to demonise Israel.
There is, however, another group which is having a devastating impact on the cause
of bringing truth and reason to bear on the Arab war against Israel. These are the
'as an Israel supporter' Jews, who are creating even more confusion and damage.
These are, to all intents and purposes, supporters of Israel. They visit frequently,
often have homes there and may even be significant philanthropic donors to the country.
Yet they can never bring themselves to speak about it except in the most bitter
terms, and appear to see in it only the bad.
They dwell upon the racism of Israeli Jews towards African immigrants, or the Bedouin.
'As an Israel supporter they obsess about the Charedim [ultra-Orthodox] who spit
on girls in the street.
For sure, racist violence towards immigrants, harsh treatment of the Bedouin or
the attacks on women are disgusting and shameful. But why do these Jews exaggerate
their importance, never acknowledging the complexity of the situation and creating
the false impression that all Israelis or Charedim are racist, intolerant, violent
bigots?
Why do they never express horror at the ill-treatment by Palestinians of Palestinian
women, or the violence by Hamas against the people of Gaza, or the ethnic cleansing
of Palestinian Christians by Muslims? Why do they not obsess about Arab attacks
on Jews?
They parrot Arab propaganda. 'As an Israel supporter', they say it is the settlers
and Netanyahu's intransigence that are preventing peace. They wail about the checkpoints,
the humiliation of Palestinians, the shuttered Arab shops without ever acknowledging
the sole reason for that hardship is that the Palestinians never cease attempting
to murder Israelis.
If the 'as an Israel supporter' Jews had their way and Israel departed the disputed
territories tomorrow, they would fall into the hands of Hamas or worse. How do they
imagine Israel would then defend itself against bombs and rockets down the road?
Do they care? Indeed, do they support any Israeli military defence against attack?
Because we never ever hear that from them.
Of course, with Abbas and co now stating regularly they will never accept Israel
as a Jewish state, the fiction that the Palestinians will ever agree to a two-state
solution becomes ever more absurd.
So now, the 'as an Israel supporter' Jews are moving the goalposts. Maybe, they
murmur, one state is the answer. Maybe Israel should cease to be a Jewish state
at all. Otherwise it might turn into apartheid South Africa. Or Iran. Or Syria.
'As an Israel supporter', you understand, they say this.
You hear such talk round the dinner tables of north-west London or in the pews of
certain synagogues. Its behind the recent controversies over statements by certain
individuals in leadership positions in the community
.
So just what is the Israel they support? A fantasy land where the Palestinians yearn
only to live peacefully alongside the Jews, where no-one wants to rule over anyone
else, where Islam is a religion of purest peace, where the Charedim are jailed en
masse, where Jews never have to get their hands dirty and where there is no prejudice
or extremism of any kind. And if only it wasn't for Bibi, that's what we could have!
Has there ever been another people in the history of this planet who are capable
of quite such self-destructive stupidity?
Mon Aug 6, 2012 5:55 am
Granddaddy Hand
hisdude2004
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What kind of support is this? (Melanie Phillips)
I have just posted a new article on my website... Granddaddy Hand
hisdude2004 Aug 5, 2012
10:55 pm
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