Wednesday, November 19, 2014

How to recognize a true child of God

The blood was not yet scrubbed from the Kehilat Bnai Torah Synagogue and already the political opportunists from across the spectrum were braying for vengeance.

Netanyahu was first off the mark, promising a resumption of house demolitions and "many other steps."

Bennet tried to score a few cheap points by blaming the attack on Israel's lap dog, the toothless Mahmoud Abbas.

Canada's ever-outraged FM John Baird, forever angling to be seen as Israel's best friend, chimed in with a press release that featured his vocabulary of indignation in finest form; condemns, condemns, cowardly, cowardly, savage terrorist attack, despicable terrorist acts...

Yes, it was certainly a red-letter day for the eye-for-an-eye crowd...

Meanwhile, back in Har Nof, a JPost reporter found a radically different attitude. An attitude of quiet resignation that, while deeply wounded, nevertheless believes that vengeance and judgement are in the hands of God, not up to the politicians.

"We are not a vengeful people. We are not a culture of blood for blood," a congregant of Kehilat Bnai Torah told the paper. "Our answer to such events is to strengthen our faith and our religious practice."

If more people, from every side in every conflict, could leave vengeance and judgement to God, and focus instead on being a better child of God, the world would be at peace.


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