בס”ד
Parashat Masei

The Apostle Paul writes to the congregation in Rome, “For the gifts and calling of
G-d are irrevocable” Rom.11:29. Therefore when G-d gives the Land of Israel to the descendants of Jacob, then this promise is valid even today. In this week’s Torah portion HaShem says to Moses in the plains of Moab, by the Jordan at Jericho,

“…when you cross the Jordan to the Land of Canaan you shall drive out all the inhabitants of the Land before you; you shall destroy all their places of worship and graven images and you shall destroy all their high places. You shall possess the Land and you shall inhabit it, for to you have I given the Land to possess it!
Numbers 33:50-53

The word of G-d is very clear in regard to this issue; the Land of Israel is G-d’s gift to the Jewish people. So why is it that so many people who say they believe the Bible is the word of G-d, are in favor of dividing the Land up between two nations? The answer is simple, their anti-Semitism out weighs their commitment to the Holy Scriptures. People need to realize that topics such as abortion, homosexual rights, and Israel are not political in nature; they are Scriptural issues to which the Bible speaks  in a most clear manner. Politicians have taken hold of them in order to do the work of the enemy.

Recently I was listening to an individual speak about the “plight” of the “Palestinian” people. Whenever one uses this phrase he is referring to the suffering of those in Judea and Samaria who are not Jewish. There is a subtle inference that the cause of these people suffering is the Israel government and the Jewish people. Two important points that need to be stated: why does not the media speak of the suffering of Jewish people in these same areas who suffer at the hands of terrorists? Who have to live in communities with heavy security, whose children have to travel to school in bullet proof buses with a military escort? While their “Palestinian” counterparts live in communities without any security whatsoever. Whose children can play without any fear of their Jewish neighbors harming them?

I am not ignorant or unsympathic of the suffering of these individuals, but one should attach blame to those who are guilty. It is not the Jewish people, but the “Palestinian” leadership that use the hundreds of millions dollars that both Israel and the world gives to assist the “Palestinian people” to buy weapons and line their own pockets. Can anyone forget the fact that Yasir Arafat had an estimated Billion dollars in foreign bank accounts when he died.

G-d loves all people in the same manner. Non-Jewish people are free to continue to live in Judea and Samaria, in Haifa and Yafo, and in the Galilee and the Negev only if they recognize Israel’s right to exist and obey the same laws that every Jew has to obey. If not, would it not be better for them to be driven from the land? Why is it that the settlers (8,000) who lived in Gaza were forced to leave their homes as well as those who live in Samaria (4,000) were physically removed from their homes? Why anti-Semitism! It is unfortunately alive and growing. I applaud those in the Church who stand with Israel I just wish the number was larger.

It also bothers me when they talk about the so called refugee camps of the “Palestinians”.  First of all, one needs to remember that in 1967 Israel was attacked by its neighbors. Jordan joined in the war even though Israel had done nothing to justify their involvement in the war. Israel took control Judea and Samaria so that it could maintain its security; otherwise Israel would have a border just north of Tel Aviv to almost Haifa of 6-10 miles in width. The quality of life for all in Judea and Samaria has deteriorated greatly in the last 15 years. Why? Because administration of much of this area has been given to the Palestinian Authority.

If one continues to ignore the facts and blame the Jewish people, if one continues to deny the Jewish people their rights to the Land and lobby for a “Palestinian” state, and if one thinks that this state will bring peace to the region; then such a person rejects the teaching of the word of G-d and holds positions that are rooted in a unwarranted dislike for G-d’s chosen people.