Question

Hi Michi,
After sitting over this for about two weeks, writing a reflection on the connection between the Binding of Isaac and Trump’s declaration, writing and revising the wording, checking and deleting, and each time thinking, “This is it — I’ve finally reached the right and proper formulation,” then just a little while ago, when I checked my reflection once again, it turned out that I’d walked into some kind of trap.
I managed to formulate a logical connection between the Binding of Isaac and the principle I had established — that a God who is believed in by a human being does not permit harming anything in creation. And it was clear to me that not only Jews and Christians would connect to this principle, but that it might even be possible to gain the agreement of Muslim religious scholars as well. And then, if we were to do xyz, and the Muslims did their part, it would be possible to reach the longed-for peace.
And then I checked my assumptions one more time, and I remembered the preservation of family honor, in which many of our cousins practice “extra beautification” and kill women based only on some suspicion or despicable gossip — and this in complete contradiction to the Quran! Then I remembered inter-clan fights in which people from the rival clan are killed [not murdered, Heaven forbid]. And blood feuds despite reconciliation ceremonies.
So I understood that Muhammad tried to restrain the violence characteristic of Arab society, and apparently he deluded himself into thinking that if unbelievers were threatened with the torments of hell in the end of days, they would turn back from their evil path.
Who are the unbelievers? Everyone who does not believe in Muhammad as a prophet! Which means that they do not accept his ideas!
After all, among other things Muhammad tried to influence Muslims to be more compassionate and less violent. But Bedouin society made part of its living from raiding and plunder, and changing patterns of life and behavior in this case was apparently impossible. And it is reasonable to assume that because the Bedouins spread Islam in the Middle East, they created the linkage between Islam and practices of violence.
But, “hand on heart” — is Arab society really more violent than Western society? If we are referring only to the last two decades, then certainly yes. But in the 20th century European society did not particularly excel in humanitarianism either, from World War I to Yugoslavia…
So, speaking generally, Arab society lags behind the West.
But what about Turkish society? We have a bad image of Turkey. But my daughter Rotem traveled with another friend about 20 years ago in Turkey — two young women alone — and she came back enchanted by the Turks, by their warmth and caring. Because of her work developing tomato varieties and the like, she gets to Turkey from time to time. From our perspective the Turks aren’t all that different from the Arabs, but…
Since I have very close Arab friends, from whom I heard about the violence in Arab society, I can’t ignore the difference in Arab society, which is still based on clans. The subordination of the individual and the family to the clan drags even nonviolent people into violent brawls.
[Nepotism is not really the issue here.] Writing this reflection led me to read more and more about Islam and Arab society. And now the penny has dropped for me: the prophet Muhammad adopted various ideas and customs from Judaism and Christianity. But he missed the practice of excommunication and ostracism.
As a result of the absence of excommunication and ostracism in Muslim society, the punishment for violators of religion is only physical: flogging and cutting off hands in this world, and burning brass poured down the throat in the end of days… From here it is understandable why Muslim society cannot deal with ordinary scoundrels.
In short, Michi: let’s open a school for excommunications and ostracisms in Mecca, with one branch at Al-Azhar and another near Al-Aqsa, and then redemption will have come to Zion…
To be continued — God willing — next week, and until then, Sabbath peace to you and your whole family.