The Historical Jesus

Israel has set itself the ambitious goal of getting rid of Hamas and its ideology. Considering that this ideology is thousands of years old, this will be quite a formidable task. Jews are demonized as the source of all evil in the world. They are called pigs and devils. They are portrayed simultaneously as weak and as all powerful. Their very existence is an insult to Islam and their existence in the mid-East is an even bigger insult. Many years ago, around the year 1900, an early Zionist, Ahad Ha'am predicted that in the future, there would be increased humanitarianism for all sorts of people -- for women, children, prisoners in jails, and more. Except not for Jews. Why not? Wise men, Ha'am said, will answer this way: It's simple. When we think about Jews, we forget about humanity. And when we think about humanity, we forget about the Jews. Humanity for everyone, except the Jews. So when we talk about what is humane and anti-humane, let us not forget who are the original and continuing victims of inhumanity. Leon Zitzer

 Somewhere in the Talmud, a rabbi says that those who wait also serve. He may have meant they serve God's interests or the interests of justice. Either way, it's a very generous view. But I find all this waiting very hard to do.

I believe the same rabbi (maybe R. Tarphon?) also said that it may not be up to you to finish the task, but it is up to you to begin it. I feel I've done a good job at beginning to recover the very Jewish Jesus. It will be up to others to finish the job.