Zionist

Zionism (ציונות, Tsiyonut) is the national movement for the return of the Jewish people to their homeland and the resumption of Jewish sovereignty in the Land of Israel, advocated, from its inception, tangible as well as spiritual aims. Jews of all persuasions, left and right, religious and secular, joined to form the Zionist movement and worked together toward these goals. Disagreements led to rifts, but ultimately, the common goal of a Jewish state in its ancient homeland was attained.

If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning. Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I remember thee not; if I set not Jerusalem above my chiefest joy. -Psalm 137:5-6

I'm not Jewish. While there is disagreement in Christian and Messianic circles regarding Gentiles in the Messianic age, I don't automatically believe I have a physical inheritance over even one square inch of the Land of Israel. I've never visited Israel, though I wish I could, and I may not be able to in this lifetime.

Yet, for the sake of God's will and His promises to the Children of Israel, starting with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, I fervently desire and support an Israel exclusively for the Jewish people.

The Lord said to Abram, Go forth from your native land and from your father's house to the land that I will show you.
I will make of you a great nation,
And I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
And you shall be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you
And curse him that curses you;
And all the families of the earth
Shall bless themselves by you."
-Genesis 12:1-3 (JPS Tanakh)

This ancient promise of God has never been revoked or abandoned, regardless of what some churches, occasionally some synagogues, and especially what the Palestinians say about it. Why am I up in arms this morning?

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Friday night that in the future Palestinian state "there will be no Israeli presence."

While touring Ramallah, Abbas rejected the possibility that Israeli soldiers would remain stationed along the borders of the future Palestinian state or will be a part of an international force that will deploy there.

"We are prepared to move toward peace based on international resolutions, the Road Map and 1967 borders, but when a Palestinian state is established it will be empty of any Israeli presence," said the Palestinian leader.

"If a Palestinian state is established with Jerusalem as its capital, we will object to the presence of even one Israeli in its territory. This is our position," he said.

Ynetnews.com article: Abbas: No Israeli presence in future state

Even while thousands celebrate Christmas in Bethlehem in a Palestinian controlled area of Israel, Abbas continues to hack away his own slices of Israel, including Jerusalem, the City of David, for an Arab people who have no right to override the promises of God.

You may think that it's poor manners on my part to "get political", particularly on December 25th and especially on Shabbat, but as we all know, or should know, there's a lot more at stake.

With the current American administration throwing Israel under a bus and supporting the demands of the Palestinians to carve up the borders of Israel like a Christmas goose, it looks like the safety and security of Jewish Israel and the unity of Jerusalem is experiencing its greatest danger since the modern state of Israel was founded.

But then, I remind myself of this:

In the last days
the mountain of the LORD’s temple will be established
as the highest of the mountains;
it will be exalted above the hills,
and peoples will stream to it.

Many nations will come and say,

“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the temple of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us his ways,
so that we may walk in his paths.”
The law will go out from Zion,
the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
He will judge between many peoples
and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide.
They will beat their swords into plowshares
and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
nor will they train for war anymore.
Everyone will sit under their own vine
and under their own fig tree,
and no one will make them afraid,
for the LORD Almighty has spoken.
All the nations may walk
in the name of their gods,
but we will walk in the name of the LORD
our God for ever and ever.
-Micah 4:1-5

Remember the former things, those of long ago;
I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me.
I make known the end from the beginning,
from ancient times, what is still to come.
I say, ‘My purpose will stand,
and I will do all that I please.’
From the east I summon a bird of prey;
from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose.
What I have said, that I will bring about;
what I have planned, that I will do.
Listen to me, you stubborn-hearted,
you who are now far from my righteousness.
I am bringing my righteousness near,
it is not far away;
and my salvation will not be delayed.
I will grant salvation to Zion,
my splendor to Israel.
-Isaiah 46:9-13

The Bible is replete with such promises of God to the Children of Israel and, as grim as many of the stories in the news may be, we must remember (yes, I must remember too) that events will become much worse before they get better and that God ultimately will fulfill His promises to the Jewish people and to the Land of Israel...and to the rest of us.

The Master said it this way:

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing. Look, your house is left to you desolate. I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’” -Luke 13:34-35

I read a news story a few days ago which quoted Rabbanit Tzivya Eliyahu, widow of former Sephardic Chief Rabbi (Rishon LeTziyon) Mordechai Eliyahu regarding Christmas and the Shabbat falling on the same day this year:

Jewish observance of the Sabbath day is a known way to bring the Messiah, she said. It is written in the Talmud that if the Jews were to observe two Sabbath days in a row, “they would be redeemed immediately,” she noted.

Each individual can make a difference, she said, “When I asked the rabbi, he always said that even just one extra person keeping the Sabbath day could tip the scales in favor of everyone.”

At times like this, I find faith in unexpected sources:

Spock: "History is replete with turning points, Lieutenant. You must have faith."
Valeris: "Faith?"
Spock: "That the universe will unfold as it should."
Valeris: "But is that logical? Surely we must....."
Spock: "Logic, logic, and logic..... Logic is the beginning of wisdom, Valeris, not the end."

The scene I just quoted was acted out between Leonard Nimoy and Kim Cattrall in the film Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991). It seems to say that, while each of us should fulfill our role in the affairs of humanity and God and act in accordance to those roles, it's God, in the end, who brings about His will and who fulfills His promises as He has stated.

Abbas can make whatever proclamations about the "future state of Palestine" he wants, but it is God who will have the final word in everything. It's our job not to lose faith and, in keeping our faith, we gain everything.

Afterword, December 26th: Read this haaretz.com story this morning called Deputy FM: 'The state of Facebook' is more real than Palestine. Seems to be relevant to the theme of this blog post.