Tova Herzl: “There are those among us who believe that the commandment to conquer the land and the events described in the “Book of Joshua” are a guide for operating a state in the 21st century.”
Hertzl is sounding the alarm about the religious right in Israel pushing for re-occupation of the #Gaza Strip.
“I would not be surprised if following a ground operation there is an Israeli presence in Gaza, and a demand comes for something small, trivial, let's say #Torah lessons for soldiers on the ruins of a #synagogue that was there before the disengagement, or prayer, and then maybe another one, and the tiny request will get the backing of politicians, those whose support is needed for the coalition's survival. Who will object? And there, a small step on the path to redemption. Or the opposite.”
“There is an urgent need to clarify that the voices seeing the terrible disaster that has befallen us as confirmation of a messianic worldview and a call for its promotion are a dangerous minority. If there is a significant opposing voice among the leaders of religious Zionism, including influential rabbis - I have not heard it. Silence is akin to agreement, confirmation, encouragement. There is a heavy responsibility on anyone who understands where the messianics want to lead us and what the consequences will be, to cry out already now, before it is too late.”
Herzl was #Israel's first ambassador to the recently independent Baltic States (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania), as well as Israel's ambassador to South Africa. She served two stints as Congressional liaison in Israel's embassy in Washington, D.C.
The messianics are foaming at the mouth at the opportunity to resettle Gush Katif (southern Gaza Strip).
"We are signaling #Netanyahu and the ministers to strike a powerful blow, so they can prepare the ground for us to return to the settlement we abandoned. We want to go back home [...]"