For those who are home, and for those who are on the way. For those who support the historic and just return of the land of Israel to its people, forever loyal to their inheritance, and its restoration.
I apologize in advance that this is only going to be presented in Hebrew, because it's priceless. I will try to explain it as much as possible, but if anyone from Manhigut is reading this (you know you are), please try to subtitle the videos for readers abroad.
As many of you know, the Likud is having internal elections at the end of the month and Moshe Feiglin is running against Binyamin Netanyahu. What I'm about to show you is an advertisement for the campaign kickoff event tomorrow night (which I cannot make) and what you're about to hear is a Feiglin commercial. The commercial is based upon an ad that has been flooding the radio here for months (if not several years) in which someone calls for an insurance quote and gets a number that is well above the quote they got from a direct (without an agent) insurance company.
In the commercial, which was played Monday morning on Army Radio and drew compliments from Leftist broadcaster (okay, I probably don't have to say Leftist when it comes to Army Radio - they all are) Razi Barkai, someone asks about getting Supreme Court justices who represent the public, and gets asked if they will settle for having current Supreme Court Chief Justice Dorit Beinish replaced by one of the other justices. They say no, and then get told that if they really want Supreme Court Justices who represent the public will, they will have to vote for Feiglin (you will recall that Prime Minister Netanyahu tried to defend the current judicial selection process).
Updates throughout the day at http://calevbenyefuneh.blogspot.com. If you enjoy "Love of the Land", please be a subscriber. Just put your email address in the "Subscribe" box on the upper right-hand corner of the page. .
(Manhigut has been trying to get this point across for some time and later today will be a major test of strengths within the Likud. Hopefully the potential to bring about change will still be open to those who enter the playing field at this time. Y.)
Anyone familiar with Israeli politics knows that the Israeli right’s worst enemy is itself. Small right-of-center factions toppled both Yitzhak Shamir’s Likud-led government in 1992 and Benjamin Netanyahu’s first government in 1999; those decisions led, respectively, to Yitzhak Rabin’s election and the Oslo Accords, and to Ehud Barak’s election and the second intifada.
Moreover, it was rightist voters who ensured Rabin’s victory by wasting thousands of votes on splinter parties that failed to enter the Knesset. Had all those votes gone to the main center-right party, Likud, Shamir would have formed the next government and not Rabin. Yet instead of learning the lesson, rightists continued wasting thousands of votes on unelectable splinter parties in subsequent elections.
So it was encouraging to read the following notice in a local newsletter (Hebrew only) published by the West Bank settlement of Eli: “After much thought, it has been decided by the [Givat Hayovel neighborhood] committee, the town council and rabbis, with backing from senior officials involved in the matter, to register people for Likud. Likud is the ruling party, and that is where we need to have an influence. … Joining Likud is the most effective way of influencing ministers and Knesset members to work with us on both the court case and other matters of importance to the town.”
Granted, Eli is only one settlement, and its decision stems from a very specific problem: the aforementioned court case, in which Peace Now is seeking a court order to raze Givat Hayovel on the grounds that it was built illegally. Eli contends that the neighborhood, built with massive government support, was always slated for legalization and needs only the final government permits — hence its quest for lobbying clout.
Nevertheless, this is a revolution. During Likud’s last membership drive, in 2008, a party activist who canvassed Eli and other settlements using this very same argument told me despairingly that most people didn’t get it. Now it is being promoted by the town’s entire political and religious leadership.
If you enjoy "Love of the Land", please be a subscriber. Just put your email address in the "Subscribe" box on the upper right-hand corner of the page. .
The Children of Israel waited for Moses for forty days and forty nights. In our era of the "instant," that is an eternity. Moses turned off his cell phone, closed his pc, and didn't even send his nation a text message. No Twitter announcing, "I'm learning Torah with the Almighty, see you soon". Zero information. For forty days and forty nights the Children of Israel waited at the foot of Mt. Sinai for their leader to return.
But there were impatient people among them who wanted a god immediately. Naturally, they turned to Aaron the High Priest. They wanted a tangible object to which to pray, something that they could see and respond to.
This is the point at which we see the great difference between Moses, the leader and Aaron the High Priest. Aaron was endowed with boundless love for his nation. He was the ultimate peacemaker; restoring love between husbands and wives, neighbors and competing factions of the nation. Everybody loved him. As the right hand man of Moses - the leader who set rules and boundaries, Aaron was indispensable. But during Moses' absence, he failed as a leader. His benevolence and soft-heartedness became a liability that allowed evil to take over. "And when Moses saw that the people were broken loose--for Aaron had let them loose for a derision among their enemies" (This week's Torah portion, Ki Tisah, Exodus 32:25).
The synergies of Moses, the leader who can break the Tablets, burn the golden calf, judge the transgressors and purify the camp of Israel - and Aaron, the lover and pursuer of peace is triumphant. Together, they build the Sanctuary in the desert and draw down G-d's Divine Presence on Israel. Together, they lead the Children of Israel until they enter the Promised Land.
But Aaron without Moses, when he has to face the impatience of the nation, unsuccessfully tries to negotiate his way through a tragedy that has lasted throughout the generations.
As we create authentic Jewish leadership for Israel, this is a lesson that we dare not ignore.
Wherever I go and wherever I speak, the same question surfaces time and again: How do we know how you will stand up to pressure when you are prime minister? Who's to say that you won't change your policies like all of your predecessors?
"It makes no difference who the prime minister is," explained Israel Radio's commentator this week. "He will always implement the policies of the Left."
Is he right? Is this just a fact of life? Maybe once a person becomes prime minister he is privy to knowledge that we mere citizens do not know? Maybe this secret knowledge leaves them with no choice but to capitulate? What exactly did Sharon discover when he became PM that he did not know when he served in almost every other ministerial capacity in the government? What new insight has Netanyahu perceived that he didn't know the last time he was prime minister?
Let us explore the two worst-case scenarios: One scenario is that Obama is threatening Netanyahu that the US will not stop Iran's nuclear development and will even penalize Israel if it attacks Iran without his authorization. The second scenario is that Obama has threatened Netanyahu that if he does not clamp an immediate freeze on building in the settlements, he will consent to a "Palestinian" unilateral declaration of independence – which would effectively transform us all into war criminals.
When Ben-Gurion was poised to declare the establishment of the State of Israel, our situation was much worse. We did not have tanks or fighter jets, seven Arab armies threatened to easily finish the job that Hitler had begun and to top it all off, the US threatened that if Ben-Gurion would declare statehood, it would impose an embargo on all US arms sales to Israel. That is, in fact, exactly what happened and the American arms embargo remained intact until Israel liberated Judea, Samaria and Gaza in the six day war of miracles in 1967.
When Saddam Hussein was about to produce his own nuclear bomb, America was opposed to an Israeli pre-emptive strike. When Begin instructed the air force to destroy Iraq's nuclear reactor, Shimon Peres tried to torpedo the plan. Begin was forced to keep the mission a secret from Peres so that he would not leak the information to America. After the fact, the Americans condemned the attack, but Israel was strengthened, which in turn strengthened the American interest in continued relations with Israel. Ultimately, the US also thanked Israel for its pre-emptive strike.
Today, Israel is in a much more dangerous situation. Elimination of the Iranian nuclear threat is liable to trigger a massive missile attack on Israel from Iran, Lebanon, Syria and Gaza. We must be prepared to deal with all of those threats simultaneously.
Approximately one thousand years after the destruction of the second temple and Israel's exile from its homeland, deep in the depths of the harsh exile and one thousand years before the beginning of the return to Zion - the great Torah commentator Rashi opens his monumental commentary on the Torah with the question of the ownership of the Land of Israel. What with all the hardships and troubles facing European Jewry at the time, with the Land of Israel but a vague and distant memory, the most pressing problem demanding Rashi's attention is what we will answer the non-Jewish world when it will claim that we are robbers in our own land, usurping its ownership from the local Canaanites.
The Torah should have begun with the first commandment G-d gave to Moses, Rashi quotes his father. Why, then, does the Torah open with the story of creation? His answer may not have seemed relevant then, but it is certainly pertinent today and reads like a current events account. Rashi explains that the Torah opens with the story of creation to establish the fact that G-d created the world. "If the nations of the world say to Israel, 'You are robbers - you have conquered the lands of other nations,' Israel can answer as follows: The entire world belongs to the Holy One, Blessed Be He. He created it and gave it to whom He pleased."
The Givot Olam "outpost" near Itamar
During the Sunday Manhigut Yehudit Sukkot event in Jerusalem, Rabbi Yitzchak Brand gave me a paper with some of his Torah thoughts. "With all due respect to Rashi," Rabbi Brand, head of a large faction of ultra-Orthodox Jews in Manhigut Yehudit begins his presentation, "wouldn't it have been better if we had received the Land of Israel empty of previous residents? Why did the Creator of the world choose to bring us to a land that was already occupied? Why didn't He give us the Land of Israel first - just like he gave France to the French and England to the English? Why do we first have to conquer and then look for excuses?"
Rabbi Brand answers that if we would not have been forced to conquer the Land of Israel, nobody could have accused us of robbery. But then we would not have been able to answer with the irrefutable facts that Rashi points out in his commentary on this week's Torah portion, Genesis. And, after all, the reason for our presence in the Land of Israel is specifically so that we may give this answer. In other words, when the Nation of Israel - the nation that is a living testimony to the existence of the Creator of the world - drives out it enemies and settles the Land of Israel, it essentially declares that there is a higher authority in this world. He created the world and He determines the path that it will take. The only reason that we merit to live in Israel is so that we may proclaim that G-d is King of the World. This is the only way that we can justify our presence here in the eyes of the world.
When I read what Rabbi Brand had written, I remembered a short article that Manhigut member Meyer Goldmintz had sent me. The State of Israel expelled Meyer from his home in Yad Yair, destroyed it and turned the place into an Arab garbage dump. Today, Meyer lives with his family in the settlement of Haresha. In his article he asks a simple question:
How is it that we, the settlers, who have taken the utmost care not to settle lands privately owned by Arabs, who searched for strictly state-owned lands to settle and were sure to distance ourselves from even the slightest hint of robbery of Arab-owned land - are nevertheless constantly accused of robbing Arab lands, while the kibbutzim of the leftist Shomer Hatzair, almost all of which were built on lands that had belonged to Arab villages that were conquered and destroyed in 1948 - are considered bastions of "peace"? Meyer answers that it is specifically the fact that the settlers are careful not to build on Arab land that has brought about their dismal reputation. Very simply, they (we) have betrayed our mission and cannot give the answer that Rashi gives at the beginning of the Torah.
The leftist kibbutz member, who had ostensibly disassociated himself from the Torah, did not deny the fact that he was a Jew. As a Jew, he drove out the non-Jew living in his land and settled in his place. By doing so, even though he likely did not intend to - our leftist fulfilled the essence of the reason for the return of the Jews to their Land. He showed the world that there is a Creator and that He decides when non-Jews will live in His land and when His children will live in their place. Thus, the borders of Israel in the places from which the Arabs were forcibly expelled are not questioned today. But we, the settlers, who strive to fulfill G-d's commandments - have not yet fulfilled the basic reason for settlement of the Land. On the contrary, we have avoided it. We were careful not to drive the Arabs out - the complete opposite of the sanctification of G-d's Name accomplished by the leftist kibbutzim.
True, it is the State of Israel that decides when and whom to expel - not private people. But we never protested and enthusiastically adopted this approach. Today, we are suffering the consequences of our actions.
Just before Passover, 5757 (1997) twelve and a half years ago, the members of Manhigut Yehudit gathered to formulate the ten founding principles that would be a guiding light for our movement. At the time, Netanyahu had just begun his first term as prime minister. Nobody had yet considered joining the Likud. Now, twelve and a half years later, we can do a reality check and see if Manhigut Yehudit's founding principles are indeed in harmony with Israeli reality. (Click here for the full list of Manhigut Yehudit's Founding Principles).
1. From Existence-Based Zionism To Destiny-Based Zionism Those people who perceive subtleties are in for a pleasant surprise. Israel has begun to abandon its "existence" claims in favor of previously unheard-of claims such as "The Holocaust is not the reason for the existence of the State of Israel." In the past, practically the only place to find a sentence like that would have been in a Manhigut Yehudit speech or publication. But little by little, this claim is becoming a plank in Israel's policies.
The Yesha Council leaders demonstrating against the building freeze from their protest tent in Jerusalem are still afraid to raise their heads above human-rights claims of natural growth or the tried and true security claims. Unfortunately, the Yesha Council is still stuck in Existence-Based Zionism. But in his speech at the United Nations, PM Netanyahu needed to rely on more than mere existence. From his attack against Holocaust denial he went on to talk about the inheritance of our forefathers. True, for Netanyahu Jewish destiny is an unknown. Furthermore, his talk of the rightful inheritance of our forefathers becomes grotesque when in the same breath he offers the Land of our Forefathers to a non-nation. Nonetheless, the very fact that the prime minister resorted to a plane beyond Existential Zionism is important progress. Manhigut Yehudit can rightfully take credit for inserting this concept into Israel's political lexicon.
2. Jewish Orientation for the State of Israel Suddenly, everybody is talking about a Jewish state. Suddenly, everybody notices that our very existence as a Jewish state is not a given. Suddenly, everybody understands that the question is not if we recognize the need for a "Palestinian state," but rather if the "Palestinians" and the rest of the world recognize the legitimacy of and need for the existence of a Jewish state. After years of attempts to distance the State of Israel from its Jewish character and after years of attempting to build a state of all its citizens, the demand to recognize Israel as a Jewish state has become a fundamental issue - so much so that the fact that the US president said the magic words "Jewish state" in his speech at the UN was portrayed as a major achievement.
Netanyahu has appointed former Chief Justice Aharon Barak to pen Israel's formal response to the Goldstone report. But the former Chief Justice has only recently declared that he sees Israel as a state of all its citizens. In other words, he is not interested in a Jewish state. By virtue of that perspective, he does not have and cannot have an answer to the report that presents Israel's soldiers as war criminals. What can he possibly say? That Israel acted within the framework of self-defense for robbers?
But even in this case, we can and should look at the glass that is half full. Despite the confusion and dissonance, we are witnessing substantial progress. Not because people necessarily realize how much Manhigut Yehudit has influenced Israeli society. Simply because Israeli society has begun to adopt Manhigut Yehudit's Founding Principles and they are seeping deep into our collective psyche.
Israeli society is in the process of profound change. The only leftists that remain are those for whom being Left is a business. The vast majority of Israelis fasted this past Yom Kippur. The artists - the sensitive weathervanes of societal change - have switched direction and are using their creative talents to express their connection to Judaism. Manhigut Yehudit did not create this revolution. But it is certainly a catalyst for this renaissance and highlights its significance on a national level.
In the short term, it could be that this process will hamper our progress in the political arena. Suddenly, there is no opponent from the Left because Meretz, Kadimah and Labor are rapidly losing their significance. Netanyahu's new mode of public relations may convince many that we have reached our ultimate goal.
But this is true only in the short term. In the longer term, the process that we are witnessing with wide-eyed amazement is vital for the changing of the guard (Founding Principle #5). If, until not long ago, we thought that the changing of the guard and the establishment of authentic Jewish leadership for the State of Israel would necessarily be the product of a head-on collision with the "old guard", the newly developing dialectic may just save us from this unsavory scenario.
Two-poled Zionism (Left/Right) is slowly being replaced by Zionism informed by one consciousness - Zionism developing from existence to destiny. This new form of Zionism is positioned to herald a harmonious state in which Israeli society as a whole will steadily progress toward the goal of Destiny-Based Zionism. Clearly, this national consciousness will require leadership hewed from Jewish foundations and committed to the historic destiny of the Nation of Israel. In short - Jewish leadership.
This is completely in line with our fifth Founding Principle:
Changing of the Guard The Zionist consciousness that realized the first stage of the Return to Zion is incapable of dealing with the problems facing the State of Israel. It has reached its end. Manhigut Yehudit has deep and genuine appreciation for Zionism and the dedication of its pioneers. It identifies with their positive intentions and desires to continue their positive actions. As such, Manhigut Yehudit strives to create a deep change in the national consciousness - a fundamental, spiritual and ethical change. A transformation to belief-based consciousness is the only way to continue the historical process of the Return to Zion.
There is no doubt about it. 5769 was a special year for Manhigut Yehudit. There is practically not one Israeli who was not exposed to our movement this year. But in truth, we need a wider perspective – perhaps a perspective of a decade – to understand the processes that we had the merit to set in motion.
Ten years ago, the dream of faith-based leadership for the State of Israel did not exist. The political leaders of the faith-based public were basically sectorial lobbyists. One of our main declared goals was to change the old guard and to integrate the faith-based public into Israel's leadership. Today, even those people who still do not connect to all of our ideas are beginning to understand that they must act within the national leadership arena and leave the sectorial field.
In the beginning, we encountered serious opposition. But today, ten years later, all the heads of the large local councils in Judea and Samaria are Likud members. A large cross section of the faith-based public is actively involved in the Likud.
We must remember that this fundamental achievement – the change of direction in the mentality of the faith-based public – is only a fringe benefit and a signal that we are on the right path in our progress toward our basic goal – that was, and remains, leadership of the Likud and the State of Israel.
In the primaries that were held at the beginning of this year and also in various events that took place at the end of this year we have witnessed Netanyahu's bizarre battle against the faith-based alternative. This battle has no political logic. It is a losing proposition for the Likud. But what we are experiencing is much more than politics. In actuality, this is the stubborn, rearguard war of Israel's ruling elite. Netanyahu is simply a tool in the hands of this elite, which is battling to stop the changing of the guard that is evolving in Israel's leadership arena – the Likud.
At the beginning of the year, we were just a hairsbreadth away from completing the political faith-based revolution. When I was elected to the Knesset despite all of Netanyahu's efforts – a wave of enthusiasm swept the general public. It was clear that the faith-based public would be registering en masse for the Likud and the faith-based revolution would become an accomplished fact.
If that scenario had played out, nobody would be talking about a Palestinian state today. All the Likud MKs and ministers would have lined up behind the dominant force in our party and with the Likud constitution and values. Even more important, my victory in the next elections for the head of Likud would have practically been in my pocket and would have already changed Israel's direction.
But G-d had different plans. Netanyahu was willing to lose approximately ten Knesset mandates and to lose to Kadimah just to stop this process. He used the Supreme Court to prevent me from claiming my Knesset seat, discouraged the faith-based public and delayed its entrance into the leadership arena. Many returned to their sectorial mentality and voting habits. Lieberman benefited most from the lack of a serious political alternative; the National Union was revived and even the NRP in its new form managed to get some Knesset seats.
Why should we continue to play this game?
We well understand that the Left was never truly democratic. After all, they are an avant garde , born on the lap of the Bolshevik revolution. We clearly understand that even when we will win the elections by a large majority, with G-d's help – nobody will roll out the red carpet for us. But no regime – no matter how despotic – can stand for any length of time when it loses its public legitimacy. With all due respect to the Israel ruling club, the Soviet regime was even stronger. But it also collapsed at once when the hearts of the nation were no longer with it and turned to others.
Our active involvement in the political arena builds public awareness. It is this change in awareness that will bring the revolution. Not the decisions handed down by this judge or the other, not the declarations of one corrupt election official or another. The true sovereign is always the nation. Wherever its dreams are is where the ruling power will ultimately be, as well.
Every drop of energy that we invest today in developing Manhigut Yehudit – even when we do not reap the immediate rewards in the Knesset – ensures that as the moment of truth draws near, Israelis will have a faith-based alternative to which to turn.
We had a small taste of the turn to the Jewish alternative in this year's Likud Knesset list primaries. What we learned is that the Israeli public is ready and waiting. We learned that all the separation fences and character assassination that the Israeli ruling club erects between the nation and us collapse when the time comes. As soon as the possibility of truly reaching out to the public is created, a natural connection to our ideas forms.
If somebody thought that now, when Netanyahu is in power and we are no longer constantly in the media eye, that Manhigut Yehudit has finished its role, the Manhigut Yehudit meeting with Minister Ya'alon at the end of the summer reminded us of the Archimedean point – the strategic outpost that we have conquered on the path to Israel's redemption. We learned that even in seemingly quiet times, the old guard is not afraid of Lieberman, not of Ketzaleh, not of Hershkowitz, not of Marzel and not of Deri. It is afraid of the faith based alternative that is slowly but surely growing within the Likud – by means of Manhigut Yehudit.
So now what do we do?
First of all, we must give thanks and praise to the Master of the Universe and also to you, our many members and activists. We are grateful to have had the merit to lead the most important process of these times – the establishment of faith-based Jewish leadership for Israel.
We are at the gateway to a new year and as we know from our experience – it is not going to be boring… The old guard will obviously continue to fight against us with all its might. But the experience of the past generation has shown that all the prime ministers who attempted to prevent the return of Israel to all parts of its land, to separate the Nation of Israel from the Land of Israel - soon lost their power. Sooner or later there will once again be elections for head of the Likud, that will likely determine who will lead Israel in the near future.
As I have promised in the past, as long as G-d affords me the possibility to do so, I will continue to run for the leadership of the national movement - to guarantee that the changing of the Israeli leadership guard will not stop.
Our time is running out. Next time, we must win. Without believing Jewish leadership, the State of Israel collapses. The price of that eventuality is too heavy for us to pay. Our victory depends mostly on us. Each and every one of us must join the team and convince friends and more and more Jews who will be loyal to the Likud to register for the party. This is critical to our success.
I have two requests from you on this Rosh Hashanah eve:
The first request is that by Sukkot, you will have sent at least five new Likud registration forms in to our offices. We all have friends, children who have recently turned 18 who have not yet registered, relatives, hitchhikers who we take in our cars. In short, people who, with a bit of good will, we can easily convince to register for the Likud. Believe me, this works and many people are registering today.
And now for the second request. Please include us, the staff and members of Manhigut Yehudit and the important mission that we have taken upon ourselves in your High Holiday prayers. If we do what needs to be done and if we add to that our worthy prayers – we can be sure that our Father in Heaven will answer our prayers and with G-d's help, we will merit in this coming year to establish authentic Jewish leadership and to experience the complete redemption.
In my name and in the name of the entire Manhigut Yehudit staff, I would like to bless you with a good year, a year of health and success in all that you do; a year of naches in all areas of your lives, a year of abundance and prosperity – a year in which all of our good dreams will come true – for the individual and for the entire nation. May this be the year that we merit to see authentic Jewish leadership that will eliminate our enemies, gather all the Jewish exiles to Israel, make the deserts of our Land blossom, build our Temple speedily, the year in which we will merit to perfect the world in the Kingdom of the Almighty.
This Sunday, Vice Premier Moshe Bogey Ya'alon spoke to a wall to wall audience of Manhigut Yehudit supporters in Jerusalem. The importance of the meeting was first and foremost the very fact that it took place. The meeting replaced the walls of suspicion and distrust on both sides with first person insight into the policies advocated by both Moshe Feiglin and Minister Ya'alon.
On Wednesday evening, Israel's Channel 2 news aired a clip of the meeting, recorded with a cell phone. In the clip, Ya'alon refers to Peace Now as a "virus." His words have triggered furious responses and are currently making the top headlines in Israel.
In addition, the meeting seemed to have impacted significantly on Vice Premier and former Chief of Staff Ya'alon, who the next day toured the destroyed settlement of Homesh and announced that Israel must return to Homesh and that the very concept called "illegal outposts" is itself illegal. Ya'alon had voiced this opinion before, but never on Israel TV.
We hope that Ya'alon will continue to press an agenda loyal to the Land and People of Israel and that his meeting with the Manhigut Yehudit members, who have not succumbed to the national media brainwashing, has opened his eyes to the fact that a large and high-quality bloc of Likud voters will firmly support loyal Likud MKs and ministers.
Manhigut Yehudit member Rafi Farber attended the conference. The following are excerpts from his report, which can be read in full here.
The calm of the event and how normal it felt belied how unprecedented it actually was. The place was packed from front to back. There weren’t even enough chairs for everyone in attendance. Moshe “Bogey” Ya’alon, Minister of Strategic Affairs and Vice PM, took time out of his day to sit down with a group of "Feiglinites" working inside the Likud, and speak with them about his vision. Bogey showed guts in sitting down with Feiglin and his supporters since his boss, PM Netanyahu, is known to loathe this man, and fears him like the plague. To be caught sitting with Feiglin – you’ll take quite a media beating if you get caught. This may be why Feiglin sent no official word to the media about the event. Bogey’s lambasting of the Israeli media during his 40 minute speech to the group could have been another factor.
At the meeting, Bogey spoke about how peace is impossible for now, since the other side has not recognized Israel as the national home of the Jewish people. What he seemed to miss, however, is that to Feiglin, this is completely irrelevant. Whether the other side is ready for peace, willing to make compromises or anything else, plays no role in Feiglin’s thought. “Peace is not my objective,” he replied to Bogey. He continued, “There is no country on the entire planet, except us, that has peace as its national objective. The minute that peace is your national objective, you lose it.” The Zionism of old doesn’t interest him either. “Zionism has reached the end of its road,” he says. “It is time for the next level – the one based on faith and the God of Israel. If we don’t build the second level, we will lose the whole thing.”
Then what is Feiglin trying to do? He wants nothing less than a total revolution at the core of Israel’s consciousness, to redefine the purpose of her existence, to change everything at the very core, and he wants to do this by winning the Likud leadership, and then the leadership of Israel. The objective of peace, according to him, demonstrates that Israel’s current leaders want her to be a nation among nations, to simply be left alone to her own development, to live without having to launch a defense war every 3 years. Feiglin’s idea is much more basic than an absence of conflict. It is to be a uniquely Jewish nation through a national Jewish revival.
Jewish revival, for him, begins with the most basic common denominator – Jewish identity. With the sectoral mentality prevalent among pretty much every Israeli today, this type of unity is impossible. This is why operating within the Likud is much more than just a simple tactic for him and his followers. It is, rather, a statement of taking responsibility for the leadership and future of the country and the Jewish people, rather than the leadership of a sectoral party and the funding of your sector’s economic welfare.
Feiglin began with 3% of the Likud vote in 2002, 12% in 2005, and 24% in 2007. He is constantly recruiting new Likud members for this purpose, swelling his support base in the party. He does not back down despite any challenge, fair or unfair from Netanyahu and the Likud leadership.
This is something his political rivals should take to heart. Bogey’s arrival at Feiglin headquarters just brought him one step closer to his objective. .
I visited Hevron in November 2000 after the outbreak of the Rosh Hashanah War to see what could be done to assist in the face of the growing daily attacks on the community. After returning to work for the community in the summer of 2001, a bond and a love was forged that grows to this day. My wife Melody and I merited to be married at Ma'arat HaMachpela and now host visitors from throughout the world every Shabbat as well as during the week. Our goal, "Time to come Home!"
This Sunday, Vice Premier Moshe Bogey Ya'alon spoke to a wall to wall audience of Manhigut Yehudit supporters in Jerusalem. The importance of the meeting was first and foremost the very fact that it took place. The meeting replaced the walls of suspicion and distrust on both sides with first person insight into the policies advocated by both Moshe Feiglin and Minister Ya'alon.
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