Jerusalem Post February 21, 2010 Few biblical verses are more commonly misquoted than Isaiah 49:17, in which the prophet promises Israel that they have not been forsaken, that the day will come when “your destroyers and despoilers shall leave you.” But the Hebrew words that mean “shall leave you” – mimech yetzei’u – can also be easily translated as “will come from among you.” Taken out of context, therefore, Isaiah’s promise of a secure future can be read to mean, “Those who destroy and despoil you will come from amongst you.” And though it’s not at all what Isaiah meant, the mistranslation still rings true. Much has been written ...

Nov. 5, 2009 DANIEL GORDIS , THE JERUSALEM POST It's been one of those months, with its renewed call for "balance" and "honesty" in discussion of Israel. First there was the Goldstone report, with its accusations that Israel committed war crimes during Operation Cast Lead in Gaza. Goldstone was followed by the J Street Conference, celebrated by many as an opportunity to demonstrate their devotion to Israel by encouraging the US to get tough with it, to force it out of ...

Jul. 2, 2009 Daniel Gordis , THE JERUSALEM POST I wouldn't be surprised if Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu were thinking of Tevye these days. Tevye was, after all, a quasi-pathetic character simply trying to make sense of a world changing far more quickly than he might have ever imagined possible. Having granted his daughter, Hodel, permission to marry Perchik the pauper, he wonders, "What am I going to tell your mother?" He didn't choose Perchik, and he doesn't really approve. But he is powerless. And when his wife expresses her dismay, the best explanation he can offer is "It's a new world, Golde." "It's a new ...

In Perspective: Protecting the Zionist narrative at last Jun. 4, 2009 Daniel Gordis , THE JERUSALEM POST Imagine that Germany, embittered by incessant reminders of what happened during the Holocaust, passed a law forbidding German Jews from publicly marking the destruction of European Jewry. Or that the US Congress, tired of hearing Native Americans recite their tales of woe, made it illegal for them to mention their losses on July 4. If Turkey passed legislation like that, directed at Armenian memories of 1915, we would hardly blink an eye. But if a genuine democracy followed suit? We would scarcely believe our ears. So why are we not more distressed by legislation before the Knesset that would criminalize marking the "Nakba" ...

Interfaith Radio (http://interfaithradio.org) recently interviewed Avrum Burg, former speaker of the Knesset, on his recent controversial book.  They then interviewed me for an alternate perspective.  The interview (along with an audio file that can be downloaded) is available at http://interfaithradio.org/node/892.  Burg's interview begins at 22 min 56 sec, while the segment with me begins at 37 min 12 sec. In a controversial new book, Avraham Burg argues that Israel is “stuck in Auschwitz,” using the Holocaust as the defining experience of Jewish identity. This former speaker of the Israeli Parliament says his country's preoccupation has led to an unhealthy nationalism that mourns the past, fears the future and feeds violence. Daniel ...

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