Dear Friends, shalom,
For a Jewish tour guide who spends most of his time walking through Moslem neighborhoods of Jerusalem and explaining Islam and its relationship to Judaism, a conference on Islamism and Islam in Germany was sure to interest me.
I didn’t even have to go all the way Germany because the Heinrich Heine University in Dusseldorff and some of its professors and even students would explain it all at a conference at the Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies in Herziliyah.
There was even transportation and when the bus arrived at the centre a veritable Aladdin’s cave of delectable cakes, cherry on the top and all opened up before my eyes waiting to be gobbled up.
We had just celebrated Shavuot when eating a lot of cakes is an old Jewish custom. We want to show that we love Torah as much as we love cheese cake.
We had a great Shavuot party, everyone was there. Tamar was of course my favorite person at the party but she paid me less attention than a chocolate covered cookie with cream inside, known as a crembo (the cream’s inside) which Ettie makes especially for her.
The papers presented by 3 Israeli and 2 German professors* showed how widely divergent are the Israeli and German perceptions of Islamization.
The Germans see Islamization as a trend brought on by the recent immigration of Moslems, mainly from Turkey. They are seeking ways to integrate Moslems into German society; how best to help them develop into well adjusted German citizens making a positive contribution to society.
The Israelis, on the other hand see Islamisation as a deliberate method of radical Moslem organizations with help from some Moslem countries like Saudi Arabia, Iran and others to penetrate Western, Christian society.
The trouble with all radicalism is not that it’s bad (every religion has its own form of radicalism) in fact its radicalism’s good intentions that make it so attractive, especially to idealists.
Seeing Israel as the cause of Moslem suffering many Germans and others don the mantle of the knight in shining armor by joining the ranks of radical Moslems and like the knights of yore set out to avenge the sufferers.
These people and even many Israelis link radical Islam with Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians.
Moslem leaders and unfortunately some Israelis (unintentionally, I presume) strengthen this link by constantly harping on how downtrodden Moslems are in Israel, how Jews and Israel persecute Moslems, how Jews have stolen Palestinian land etc.
Radical Moslems mount their steeds of gelignite, katyusha and kasam rockets and charge bravely to avenge the persecuted and to punish and eradicate the persecutors so that the world will become a perfect place without persecutors.
Support of the persecuted people of the world is the raison d’etre of the Moslem Radical. All his acts of terror are to avenge the persecuted people against those who have persecuted them.
Radical Moslems carried out 9/11 to take revenge on American Jews and others who became rich on the backs of the persecuted Moslems.
Moslem radicals also deny the Holocaust, because if there was a holocaust the Jews have been persecuted and a radical Moslem being sympathetic to persecuted people would have to be sympathetic to the Jews.
On our way back to Jerusalem after the conference the giant, sparkling new white tour bus rolled majestically down a wide boulevard, a grassy, tree lined island running through the middle of the town ending up in a beautiful square with the elegant old synagogue, a great stairway leading up to its balcony where the mayor or some other important dignitary can stand and look down on the bustling, modern town below where people are either drinking coffee or shopping and address his citizens.
Once again I bemoan the tourists who leave Israel, oblivious to the beauty and charm of towns like Herziliyah and Ranaana, both located very close to the coastal road where all the tour busses fly pass northwards.
The fact that radicalism and idealism isn’t bad in itself is shown by the achievement of Zionist idealism compared with the “achievement” of idealism of Radical Islam.
The beautiful town of Herziliyah is only one example of many of Zionist idealism. The chaos and death toll in Gaza, the Palestinian ruled territory, Iraq, Afghanistan, 9/11 and countless other tragic events and place are examples of the idealism Moslem Radicalism.
Wishing you a great no news day
Yours truly
Leon Gork
· Prof. Ina Wunn Religious sectarianism and politics, Dr. Avi Primor, With Islam against terror. Ana Jose Paulsen, Islamic terror in Germany, prosecution. Ltn Col. Jonathan Figel, The radicalization process, Dr. Etan Azani, Moslem Communities between radicalization and de radicalization.
Come for a Jerusalem Walk with Leon Gork
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legork@netvision.net.il
Tel: 052 3801867