Like black Americans in the United States, Jews have been colonized for so long that we no longer have a singular Jewish culture – not even in Israel. We have lost a lot, despite our unique survival as an ancient indigenous ethno-religious people. While it is true that Jews did Read more…
“In the end, we must all recognize that we are full of contradictions, colonizer and colonized alike. Even those of us who have a greater critical consciousness are tormented by the contradictions and compromises with which we must live. In the end, we all have considerable work to do.” What Read more…
Part 1 of definition of an “indigenous people”…. history details matter! What is the definition of an “indigenous people”? To answer this properly, we must first briefly summarize pre-Industrial history of Empires. (I promise to keep it directly brief!) From ancient BCE to the 6th century CE, Arabs were the Read more…
We Jews have been colonized for so long that we see ourselves through the lens of colonization. This is NOT a good thing! Please, allow me to explain with a recent few social media posts. ————- Did you know that, like First Nations of the “American” continent, Jews are grouped Read more…
Is there anywhere in world history where Jews are a colonizing people whose actions are justified by a universal religion? No, there is *not* in non-fictional history (and, it can be easily argued, not even in our mythic history)! So, why are we Jews arguing, educating, and justifying our Jewish Read more…
Jews have always known that the Table of Nations – “Noah’s Sons” – is not an actual family genealogy, but rather a catalog of peoples that make up Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa. The list does not include a name for South African peoples beyond the African Cushite Read more…
Some comments (and my responses to) historically ignorant or racist colonizers of Palestine trying to justify their indigeneity in the land. “Tsefan Josef, Big news for you: a) Many palestinians are descendants of Egyptians, as well as Canaanites. b) That land was part of … the New Kingdom of Egypt Read more…
Correct. The Torah has never once said that a woman was created to be subservient to a man, in the original Hebrew. What it says, when correctly translated, is … she is his equal. בראשית ב:יח וַיֹּ֨אמֶר֙ יְ־הוָ֣ה אֱלֹהִ֔ים לֹא־טֹ֛וב הֱיֹ֥ות הָֽאָדָ֖ם לְבַדֹּ֑ו אֶֽעֱשֶׂהּ־לֹּ֥ו עֵ֖זֶר כְּנֶגְדֹּֽו׃ And YHWH Elohim said, Read more…
Four Species Six Directions – (more than explanation, the actual doing of the mitzvah)! Truly worth 10 minutes of your day. We prayed for rain, food, and fertility in our harvest celebratory movements (in the ANE), we now pray for peace and oneness among the “human” species in our harvest Read more…
When Omar Khalifah, an Associate professor of *Arabic* literature and culture at Georgetown University, Qatar, who is a *Jordanian* Palestinian and has an *Israeli*-issued ID Card, says: “Gaza is not a state. The West Bank is not a state either. In fact, there is no Palestinian state. The conflict between Read more…