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Rabbi Yehuda Levin #fundie #homophobia jewishpress.com

[This was a letter to the editor regarding Chaim Levin (no relation), an Orthodox Jewish LGBT advocate.]

Evidence Of An Agenda

Chaim Levin’s recent article and appearances on video and Jewish radio provide ample evidence of an agenda far more wide-ranging than merely opposing bullying and reparative therapy.

It’s an exact duplication of the militant homosexual activist playbook: Desensitize society through constant discussion of homosexuality, urges, etc. Create feelings of guilt in others by exaggerated, unsubstantiated claims of Jewish homosexual suicides due to “bullying,” discrimination, etc. Gain public sympathy by using the media, and then solidify gains by forming organizations like Jewish Queer Youth.

Rashi (Devarim 25:18) describes Hashem’s eternal enemy, Amalek, as practitioners of homosexuality. Rambam rules that one who is tempted to sin disguise himself, sin secretly and act the hypocrite in public so as not to desensitize society to sin. Urging youth to join in a group that identifies itself with Amalek-type behavior reinforces negative self-identification and more often than not results in sinful misbehavior.

Imagine a Jewish adulterers’ Shabbaton, an “intimacy for the under-aged” shul or an adult incest organization forming a minyan. How about articles by and organizations of mamzeirim who demand sympathy and change because Jews are halachically forbidden to marry them? These are all spiritual oxymorons and would constitute a fifth column in the Torah community.

I have tremendous sympathy for those challenged by temptations and unkosher desires. As you do with cancer, you never stop trying to find a better treatment to cure yourself. If all therapies fail, as a last resort you use chemicals to stop the urge to act in a forbidden manner. (This resolution is ordered by European courts for offenders and it works.) Unpleasant, surely; but better than committing adultery, homosexuality or incest.

Vic Rosenthal #fundie #wingnut jewishpress.com

Hundreds of members of the Reform and Conservative movements from Israel and the United States arrived on Friday morning at the Kotel plaza for the Rosh Chodesh Adar B prayer. They were met with enormous resistance from mostly Haredi Jews, including an estimated ten thousand seminary women who followed the instructions of two leaders of the Haredi Lithuanian public,
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I believe that both the Israeli Masorti <Conservative> Movement and the Nashot Hakotel are shooting themselves in the foot by associating themselves with the Reform Movement, both its American mothership and its satellite in Israel. The Masorti Movement in Israel is doctrinally closer to Orthodox Judaism than it is to Reform Judaism. There is a commitment to binding halacha, and most of its members are observant of Shabbat and Kashrut.

Reform Judaism, on the other hand, makes Shabbat and Kashrut optional. It replaces the mitzvot [commandments] of the Torah as codified into halacha with a collection of platitudes that many observers note are identical to liberal – lately, “progressive” – American (or left-wing Israeli) politics.

The observance of mitzvot because they are mitzvot and not because of their social utility is the essence of Judaism, more important than any set of beliefs. This is entirely absent from Reform Judaism, and I think this in itself is enough to support the position that Reform Judaism is a different religion from Orthodox or even Masorti Judaism.
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The ordinary Israeli sees Reform Judaism for what it is, which is a politically left-leaning, spiritually vacuous, non-Jewish religion. But it is the 800-pound gorilla of the non-Orthodox world, with money, clout, and people that it uses to project its influence here in Israel, where, in my opinion, it does not belong. Both the women and the Masortim thought they could help their cause by hitching a ride with them.

Dr. Miriam Adahan #fundie jewishpress.com

[Dr. Miriam Adahan claims she cured her bipolar disorder through natural healing methods. This is after she was evaluated and prescribed medication during a psychotic episode.]

Thankfully, this relative [who had brought her to the psychiatrist] took me to a n alternative healer who had helped her in the past. He gave me a shot of vitamins, as well as various supplements to help me calm down. [...] Since then, I have never relapsed, although I still take natural supplements, avoid junk foods and gluten, and make sure to get adequate sleep. I share this in a public forum because Big Pharma and its advertisers have teamed up to convince people that they cannot be sane without psychiatric meds. They minimize the fact that, in addition to the "minor" side-effects, such as dry mouth, stomach upset and loss of libido, these drugs accelerate Alzheimer's, diabetes, Parkinson's, internal bleeding and osteoporosis. True, some people want to be put out of their misery quickly with drugs, but they must be informed of the consequences. If this article gives people hope to heal without drugs, then it is worth facing the ridicule and censure which is bound to come from people who are threatened by the concept of self-healing techniques.

[...]

I realize that many people will be outraged by these suggestions, especially those whose livelihood is threatened by self-healing methods. I have gotten hostile calls from conventional doctors who accuse me of being irresponsible and ignorant, and putting lives at risk by providing alternatives to psych meds. They repeat the refrain, "There are no side effects to psychiatric meds! Medication is the only way to deal with emotional problems." However, I have fifty years of experience which has shown me that people who were functional before a psychotic episode can heal by adopting a disciplined lifestyle, learning to think securely and eat correctly. Teens, in particular, need to learn these skills so that they do not feel like passive victims of their moods, but develop the confidence to help them ride out the emotional storms with positive thoughts and actions.

Jeff Dunetz #fundie #wingnut jewishpress.com

Two weeks ago, Bernie Sanders released a video to say he is “very proud to be Jewish” and that he looks forward to “becoming the first Jewish president in the history of this country.” I am not the Jewish police; therefore, as Bernie’s mother was Jewish, and he never converted according to Jewish law, Bernie IS Jewish. But if he is really proud to be Jewish, Sanders should be spending time studying Jewish theology. Because in many cases, socialism’s teachings are totally antithetical to Jewish teachings.

Karl Marx famously said, “Religion is the opium of the people.” Following Marx’s lead, socialism tries to replace God with a socialist Government. It destroys principals that are inherent to both Jewish and American traditions, such as limited government, individual responsibility, and traditional morals.
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This rabbinical story teaches us that it’s essential to have faith and believe God may eventually help us. Still, we cannot get that help until we take personal responsibility and act on our own. This, too, is antithetical to socialist philosophy, which teaches that government is the first place to look for help rather than looking at one’s self, family, and community.

On the other hand, socialism teaches citizens that the government will always bear the responsibility of protecting you; there is no individual responsibility, just the collective bailout. Instead of what the Torah teaches, each one of us assuming personal responsibility and using our good deeds to gain closeness to God. Per our rabbinical sages, following the 613 commandments are the Jewish version of what Thomas Jefferson called “the pursuit of happiness.”

It is God who instilled in us a personal responsibility to do the right thing, and also provided mankind with the choice to accept that responsibility or not. There is no room in our government faith for a government that forces their interpretation of the right thing down our throats. Per our rabbinical sages, following the 613 commandments in the Torah are the Jewish version of what Thomas Jefferson called “the pursuit of happiness.”

Bernie Sanders may be proud to be a Jew, but I suspect that’s for political purposes only But there is no argument about him being Jewish. That doesn’t change because of his anti-Israel policies or that the fact his campaign is filled with anti-Semites such as Linda Sarsour and James Zogby, and Shawn Scott, just to name a few.

While he is a Jew, the objective of Bernie’s Socialism is the government to supplant the role of God and take away the freedom of choice endowed by our created when we were created in Eden. Taking away that choice that is entirely antithetical to Jewish teaching. That’s why Jews who believe in God, must vote against and campaign against Bernie Sanders from becoming president. America is one nation under God, not one government that IS God.

If the above isn’t a good enough reason, just remember how Jews fared in the two most infamous socialist countries of the past century the National Socialist German Workers’ Party (Nazi) and the Soviet Union.

David Israel #wingnut #racist jewishpress.com

<this is from a chaintext sent to me by my mother>
Below, I’ve enclosed a transcript of Senator Bernie Sanders’ February 18 appearance on CNN’s Presidential Town Hall. It is a fine example of leftist thinking about reality in the Middle East that is so mired in the 1970s it would take a force as big as Yoko Ono, perhaps, to break it up. Point by point, Sanders reveals his deep ignorance about a region which has undergone breathtaking changes over the past decade – but said changes, alas, have made no impression on Bernie’s consciousness. And then there’s Bernie’s old lefty line about the Jewish State’s involvement in all this that goes: It all began when Israel retaliated. It’s a classic.

We know you’re Jewish, Bernie, we just don’t know why God did it to us.
So, here are the full quotes, courtesy of People for Bernie, in response about a question from the child of Israeli yordim regarding US-Israel relations under the Sanders Administration. Bernie said:

“To be for the Israeli people and to be for peace in the Middle East does not mean that we have to support rightwing racist governments that currently exist in Israel.”

This is a repeated argument by Sanders, which is yet to be challenged: should the US withhold its support from governments it deems rightwing and racist? Is that the President Sanders doctrine? Would the Sanders administration revoke its 10-year, $38 billion military aid contract with Israel, signed by the last Democrat in the White House, whom so many of us believed was anti-Israel?

Of course, it can’t be done, because that particular aid package is anchored in Congressional legislation, which would take a majority in both houses to dismantle. But Bernie, right off the bat, announces his intent to go to war against the Israeli government, should it be led, once again, by PM Benjamin Netanyahu or someone like him.

Good to know.

“And let me tell you this also, and I feel strongly about it, as somebody who’s Jewish, and knowing how much our people have suffered over the years…”

This line, folks, is taken directly from the PLO propaganda manual about the Jews who survived the Holocaust in Europe only to come home to Israel to start tormenting the “indigenous people.” Because the Jews suffered in the past, goes this deeply anti-Semitic logic, then all suffering endured by their Arab neighbors is by default the Jews’ fault. There are no other factors: tyrannical regimes, terrorist gangs usurping the hard-earned pennies of the working population, tribalism, illiteracy, Arab on Arab violence, the domination of women – none of that catches Bernie’s attention. Trust him, as a Jew himself, when he tells you: it’s the Jews.

Donny Fuchs #fundie #racist #wingnut #psycho jewishpress.com

A close friend and mentor of mine was very close to Rabbi Kahane. He once opined that Rabbi Kahane’s greatest contribution to Am Yisroel was that he was the first to address the real provocative Halachic <collective Torah nd Rabbinical law> issues that the State of Israel faces. Certainly, he was, and remains, the only one who actively campaigned for the transfer of all hostile gentiles from Eretz Yisroel, as per the requirements of Halacha. (Rachavam Zevi’s (may G-d avenge his blood) notion of voluntary transfer was ridiculous and impractical. Hence, it had no teeth and it didn’t raise the ire of the left.)
Yet Rabbi Kahane was not a one-issue personality, as those who know nothing of his authentic teachings are wont to believe. The Arab question was essential and integral, but merely one component of Rabbi Kahane’s comprehensive program for saving Eretz Yisroel and Am Yisroel. His Torah ideology was sophisticated and intellectual which grasped the significance of our miraculous age, and accepted the challenge to turn the State of Israel into a true Torah state, seeking to transform it into a precursor to Moshiach<Messiah>.

The small minded Jewish leaders and lay people (religious and secular) who condemned and smeared him were dishonest when it came to addressing the logical Halachic issues he raised. Worsel, something that the great man always resented, they were afraid to debate him on these very same issues. They naturally feared and insulted employing him ad hominem attacks, because in a debate on Jewish issues, they would have come up short. That is an understatement. He would have dissected them intellectually, as he always did during debates, radio interviews, or question and answer sessions with hostile individuals. The pathetic excuse of not wanting “to dignify his remarks” or “place him in the bounds of intellectual discourse” was aggravating enough when it came from hypocritical secular Jews. But when it came from religious Rabbis who knew that Rabbi Kahane’s message was predicated solely on Torah, the refusal to engage in debate was beyond grotesque.

Israel: Inherent Contradictions When Rabbi Kahane made Aliyah <permanent pilgrimage to Israel>, he addressed the existential Arab threat facing Israel; the problem of demography, and the inherent contradictions between Western Democracy which allows the voting Arab to become a majority one day (even theoretically), and a Jewish State, which by definition must remain Jewish lest it become something else. He was the first to throw the “T” word into public discourse, TRANSFER, which raised the blood pressure of the Left, who only tolerate the word when it is applied to Jews as evidenced during the Gaza expulsion of Jews. Of course, then they use the ridiculous euphemism, “evacuation,” as if they are saving Jews from a typhoon or an earthquake.

If Jews are stoned today from atop Har Habayit, it is because Labor and Likud are committed to appeasing Arab terrorists. While the Arabs set Jerusalem on fire, and run over Jewish babies with their new “car intifada,” Netanyahu grovels before the head dog of Jordan to assure him that he needn’t worry. Jews will not be able to pray on Har Habayit <Temple Mount>. If Arabs are ramming their cars into crowds of Jews, crushing our brothers and sisters, it is because Israel’s leadership fails to grasp the message. If Arab lynch mobs, armed with knives and deadly weapons, are roaming Jerusalem to spill Jewish blood, it is only because our leaders are impotent, fearful, and weak. They silenced Rabbi Kahane, and the Jewish people are bleeding for it.

'Die Rechte' demonstrators in Dortmund #wingnut jewishpress.com

German neo-Nazis in the western city of Dortmund on Monday called on the Palestinian Authority to annihilate the State of Israel.

“Palestine help us, Israel still exists,” marchers chanted as they tramped through the streets. “Israel no more,” they shouted.

Its unbeliveble.#Germany allows a demonstration of a extrem far right Nazi party "#DieRechte" to walk in Dortmund screaming: "Never again Israel" or "please help us #Palestine, #Israel still exist". Police do nothing, and this parols are clear #Antisemetic!
— Xy5Z89 (@Xy5Z89) September 30, 2019

At least 70 neo-Nazi activists were involved in the demonstration, holding flags bearing large swastikas and praising the Third Reich, according to a report published by Ynet.

#Nazi marsh of the tiny far right extrem Nazi party "Die Rechte "in Dortmund screaming "Never again #Israel". #Police dosnt do anything…
(After law the demonstration has to be end)@yes_itsmyturn @bamdad_azad @BenWeinthal https://t.co/T9BVfRqm9N
— Xy5Z89 (@Xy5Z89) September 30, 2019

[...]

It’s not clear why police allowed the march to go forward; Germany strictly prohibits public display of Nazi symbols, such as the Hakenkreuz swastika and the SS logo, as do a number of other European nations.

Rabbi Sholom Blank #fundie #quack jewishpress.com

What is Hashem <God> teaching us with the coronavirus? Here’s my take:

When Moshiach <Messiah> comes and we can fulfill all 613 mitzvos, one mitzvah <act of good> will be harder to keep than the rest: taharah <ritual purity>. Not only is it not understandable; it inhibits movement. Don’t touch this! Don’t go there! Dip your clothes in the mikveh <community ritual bath>! It’s a hard sell.

How do you get the world to accept it? It seems impossible! So along comes the coronavirus, and all of a sudden the whole world is practicing similar restrictions, religiously, as if it were second nature.

Moshiach is preparing the world for a new elevated life of taharah and kedushah! Get ready! It’s coming!

Rabbi Sholom Blank