Page 18 - HaMizrachi # 21 Tisha B'Av 2020 USA
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GLOBAL RELIGIOUS LEADERS
Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks
Seven
Principles
FOR
Maintaining
Jewish
Peoplehood
tarting with the Fast of everything, but then, on most and his brothers when the Torah
Tammuz, we begin a period in things, I don’t agree with myself.” says, “They could no longer
Sthe Jewish calendar known as speak peaceably together.” The
The Three Weeks, culminating in Ours is the only civilization I brothers sold Yosef as a slave and
the 9th of Av. During this period, know whose canonical texts are yet eventually they all, as well as
we recall the tragedies throughout anthologies of arguments. The their grandchildren, ended up in
history that have befallen the Jewish prophets argued with G-d; the slavery. The second followed the
people, many of which, according rabbis argued with one another. completion of the First Temple.
to the Sages, were brought about We are a people with strong views Shlomo died, his son took over,
as a result of sinat chinam, baseless – it is part of who we are. Our the kingdom split in two. That was
hatred and discord between ability to argue, our sheer diversity, the beginning of the end of both
individual Jews and within the culturally, religiously and in every the Northern and the Southern
Jewish people. other way, is not a weakness but a Kingdoms. The third was during
strength. However when it causes
Jews are an argumentative people. us to split apart, it becomes terribly the Roman siege of Jerusalem,
We say “The L-rd is my shepherd” dangerous because whilst no empire when the Jewish men and women
but no Jew was ever a sheep. I on earth has ever been able to besieged inside were more focused
remember once having a dialogue defeat us, we have, on occasions, on fighting one another than the
with the late and great Israeli been able to defeat ourselves. enemy outside. Those three splits
novelist Amos Oz who began by within the Jewish people caused
saying, “I’m not sure I’m going It happened three times. The the three great exiles of the Jewish
to agree with Rabbi Sacks on first was in the days of Yosef people.
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