Jan. 5, 2009
I am a permanent news correspondent for Antena 3 and Antena 1, two independent news channels from Romania. Could you please get me in contact with someone from your organization in London for a short interview on the topic of the Gaza war? Thank you and please accept the expression of my utmost respect.
Sincerely,
Mihai Ursu
Mr. Ursu,
Our representative in London told me that you contacted him. He asked me to write you as follows. Since True Torah Jews Against Zionism is a worldwide organization centered in New York, he would like to have the questions you will ask him in advance so that he can discuss them with our rabbinic board in New York before the interview. Please send me the questions and I will forward them to him.
Thank you so much,
It is my pleasure to send you the following lines of questions that I have
in mind for my interview with your colleagues in London:
1. What is the True Torah Jews Against Zionism general perspective on what
is going on now in Gaza?
Once again, we find ourselves reading horrifying headlines regarding the unrest in the Middle East. In one long chain of tragedies and civilian bloodshed, residential neighborhoods have been transformed into war zones, the daily lives of civilians distorted by ever-present shadows of terror and fright.
Our readers have long been familiar with the Torah position; let us re-announce it boldly and clearly:
The Zionist ideology is antithetical to the Torah. Zionism was deviously designed to replace the Torah and its holy, God-given commandments with nationalistic, power-driven ideals that are devoid of holiness, godliness, or spirituality.
God-fearing Jews believe that the ultimate Redemption of the Jewish Nation will come about only through the Hands of God, and that at the time of the Redemption, peace will reign in the entire world. Any other type of forced redemption is but a sinful transgression, condemned by God and His Holy Torah.
What more proof does one need than the fact that for centuries, Jews have lived peacefully in Arabic countries, enjoying the respect and friendship of their neighbors? The tragedy of Zionism changed all of that.
Obviously, the State of Israel has absolutely no connection with either Jews or Judaism. Furthermore, Torah-true Jews did not participate in the founding of the State, and for decades, we have announced our disapproval and disassociation from the State of Israel at every opportunity.
The following explanation clarifies this issue beautifully: Would the Jews be held responsible in a conflict between North Korea and South Korea? Obviously not! In the same way, Jews should not be held responsible for the Zionists conflicts with their neighbors. The State of Israel has as much to do with Jews and Judaism as does New Zealand or Zimbabwe.
The Zionists are neither our representatives nor our spokesmen. They have absolutely no right to speak in the name of world Jewry. It is a terrible mistake to confuse Jews with Zionism, or to blame Jews for Zionist actions. We truly wish to live in peace with every nation in the world. We pray for our Jewish brethren as well as for the non-Jews in the Middle East, that they may be saved from danger and peril.
And most of all, we await that great day when G-d’s glory will be revealed in the entire world, and there will be peace for all of humanity.
2. What do you think should be the appropriate means to get to a lasting
peace between Palestinians and Israelis?
The only way to get a lasting peace is for the State of Israel to give up all sovereignty over the Holy Land. The international community will then arrange a solution in which all Jews and non-Jews who want to live in the land can live there peacefully. The Torah forbids a Jewish state, but if the state has a non-Jewish majority it will not be considered a Jewish state.
This is obviously not being considered by those in power now, but you cannot ask us: what should they do assuming that they want to keep their state?
Ill give you an analogy. A few years ago there was an Israeli astronaut named Ilan Ramon who was killed in the American space shuttle disaster. Before he went up to space, Ramon asked a rabbi, When should I observe the Sabbath in orbit, where the sun rises every 90 minutes? When should I pray the morning and evening prayers? The rabbi said, It is forbidden to go up to space because it is dangerous, and the Torah does not allow a Jew to put his life in danger. Therefore I cannot answer your questions.
The same here: since the entire state is forbidden by the Torah, it makes no sense for us to offer opinions about what they should do now that they want to disobey the Torah and have a state.
3. What has been done wrong so far? What were the biggest mistakes in your
opinion in dealing with the situation in the region?
It is a mistake for the Zionists to think that with military force they can subdue Hamas. The suicide bomber goes on his mission with the knowledge that he will die, and therefore the threat of death does not scare him. The Hamas militants are not getting any weaker because the Zionists killed a few of them or even a few hundred of them. On the contrary, they are getting stronger due to this attack, because every civilian casualty they suffer gains them more sympathy in the world and makes the Zionists look worse.
4. Are there any Jews in London that may have relatives or connections
with Romania? What is their personal message to the people of Romania
concerning the on going war?
Satmar (Satu Mare in the province of Transylvania) as well as Sighet, Klausenberg, Grossvardein, Krohle, Margareten, Desh, Tashnad, Sekelhid, Simloy and Vishene are part of Romania today and were also part of Romania between between World War I and World War II. Our people got along well with the Romanians. The Romanian Jews were never subject to mass deportation during the war, and many Hungarian Jews escaped over the border to Romania. It was only due to the Vienna awards that Transylvania was part of Nazi-allied Hungary during WWII and the Jews were deported to Auschwitz
There are many of us still alive today who remember those times and can speak Hungarian.
5. I have seen Jews protesting alongside Palestinians in London against
the occupation and against the war. What is your position about them and
please explain why.
Thank you very much for your time and patience and I hope to hear from you
soon.
Best regards,
Mihai Ursu
We agree with their ideology (that there should be no Zionist state), but in this case we do not use the same method of spreading it. The reason is that these protests against the Gaza war have often turned violent and hateful, and slogans such as Kill All the Jews have been displayed. Protesters have committed vandalism against synagogues. We dont want to be associated with these kinds of hate speech and hate crimes. We are a peaceful movement and our goal is to preserve the lives of Jews and non-Jews, and to show the world that a Jew is not the same thing as a Zionist.
Furthermore, we want to show that our opposition to Zionism is not based on the current situation in which the Zionists attack the Palestinians. Even if they were to make peace with the Palestinians and every other nation in the world, we would still oppose them for religious reasons.
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