It's the same in any lingo

בַּת-בָּבֶל, הַשְּׁדוּדָה: אַשְׁרֵי שֶׁיְשַׁלֶּם-לָךְ-- אֶת-גְּמוּלֵךְ, שֶׁגָּמַלְתּ לָנוּ
אַשְׁרֵי שֶׁיֹּאחֵז וְנִפֵּץ אֶת-עֹלָלַיִךְ-- אֶל-הַסָּלַע


How can one be compelled to accept slavery? I simply refuse to do the master's bidding. He may torture me, break my bones to atoms and even kill me. He will then have my dead body, not my obedience. Ultimately, therefore, it is I who am the victor and not he, for he has failed in getting me to do what he wanted done. ~ Mahatma Gandhi
If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am not for others, what am I? If not now, when? ~ Rav Hillel, Pirke Avot

This Red Sea Pedestrian Stands against Judeophobes

This Red Sea Pedestrian Stands against Judeophobes
Wear It With Pride

03 April 2009

Kaddish

My niece's bat mitzvah is this weekend. We gathered at the synagogue for Kabbalat Shabbat with family and friends. As my brother chanted the concluding kaddish I noticed something that I hadn't seen in print. The kaddish typically ends with the phrase:

Oseh shalom b'mromov, hu ya'aseh shalom aleinu v'al kol Yisrael; "You who grants peace above, grant peace to us and all of Israel."

This version also has the additional line that I typically chant, and have heard others chant: v'al kol yoshvei tavel; and to all who are upon the earth.

My brother didn't recite that line. Later, I asked him about it and he said that the rest of the world has plenty of people blessing them, the assumption being that Jews do not. And while I agree in part, considering the dangerous waters into which we are sailing I cannot help but feel that we cannot ask for the bestowing of peace, for all of us, enough. Though I will always defend Jews from those who seek to do us harm, I will always believe that peace for all must be the end result. Is that not Yeshiah's vision?

"Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, nor shall they learn war anymore."


9 comments:

Sandra Miller Linhart said...

I like this. I like the way you think. I couldn't agree more.

Congrats to your niece and your family. If I could spell mazel tov and knew it was appropriate in this sense - I would, but as my readers point out almost on a daily basis - i be ignorant. :o)

lililam said...

Hi, shtuey, Gradulations (as that infamous Florida congresswoman sez) to your niece! Whenever I see the word "Kaddish", I think many things, but one is its affinity to my dad's original Hebrew surname, which translates as holy or sacred, to give you a hint! Of course, when they came here, they all pretended like they were French Catholics, a la Maurice Chevalier, and changed the name accordingly. I can understand both your brother's and your sentiments here. They are both valid, but yours is so much more magnanimous, of course.

Shtuey said...

Thank you SML. You spelled it just fine.

I definitely understand my brother's thinking, especially in light of the fact that our Resident Liar has bowed before the Saudi king, whose family literally pays a king's ransom to radical Islamists committed to killing infidels and deposing the Saudi royal family, to keep themselves in power; and in light of the fact that TelePrompter Jesus has endorsed the Saudi plan to force Israel to go back to the illegitimate pre-'67 borders and commit national suicide. This is a dangerous time for Israel, and Jews in general.

The United States has never been a real friend to Israel ($3 billion in US aid doesn't mean a whole lot when your "friend" uses compromising your security as leverage with OPEC). The difference now is that the Arab and radical Islamist states have a friend in the White House who will appease our enemies and willingly sacrifice Israel on the appeasement altar.

From my view, I do not pray for peace at the expense of Israel. I pray for peace based on Israel's enemies finally deciding that baseless hatred does not serve them, God, or anyone else. The best corollary I can think of is the concept of teshuva; the turning away from the dark to a path of real spiritual awareness, There is nothing wrong with praying that repressive regimes that sanction the rape and burning or women, and the killing of infidels, will turn to embrace the human rights of all people.

I hope that the new Prime Minister of Israel holds to his stated intention to curb the brutal practices of the growing organized crime in Israel, and that if checkpoints in the West Bank and border control in the territories is to be maintained, that measures are undertaken that can ensure continued security for Israelis, but are less dehumanizing for the Palestinians, until such time as they can be removed without fear of further bloodshed against Israeli citizens.

A guy can dream can't he?

lililam said...

shtuey- wasn't your brother an obot at one time? If so, what is his current opinion?

Shtuey said...

He supported Hillary in the primaries, but voted for TPJesus in the general. His logic being that if Obama came out fully against Israel, instead of the hedging that most presidents do (giving them money while fucking them over with the Saudis), that would wake up the Israeli government to break from the US and make economic and strategic alliances with countries that have less at stake in the region, like India and China who have a great deal of capital, and interest in Israeli technology for security purposes (India), and environmental (China is already working with Israeli firms on plug-in car technology in the hopes of ending their need to import oil, they used to simply supply themselves from their own reserves). I'm not high on Israel strengthening relations with China, but maybe Israel could get some political cover, and influence the Chinese to deal with Darfur and Tibet. China could then lean on the Saudis to pressure the dissolution of Fatah, and Hamas so that the peace process could move forward. Those dynamics are not fully clear to me yet, but it could conceivably work that way with the proper dialogue.

To get back to my brother, let's just say that now that TPJesus has bowed to King Abdullah, he hopes Netanyahu will come to Washington and tell him to go fuck himself.

Sandra Miller Linhart said...

I tried that once... it didn't work. (the f myself stance.) I didn't know if I would rather take top, or bottom. Choices, choices...

Anyway - I do understand whence you both come. It's a crazy world when one soul is placed above another, especially when it comes to different ways of worship, but also for every one of our quirky differences.

Ironically, I believe our differences are what make us the same.

Love - and healing of the mind, body and spirit for all - that's what I pray for. (that wasn't too gaggy-sweet, was it? I do mean it, however impractical it seems, when one person's idea of compromise is "you meet me halfway - then, since you're already halfway here, why don't you make it easier for me and just come the rest of the way. If someone is going to be inconvenienced, it may as well be you!")

In Joy & Enjoy

lililam said...

That's a unique logical perspective that he took, although it sounded a bit risky. Well, it appears that he has seen the light.

Israel looks more and more like an island, doesn't it? With carnivorous sea monsters buzzing around, not to overdo a victimhood metaphor. I just don't see a lot of allies lining up.

Shtuey said...

Thing of it is lililam, it was always that way. The money and lip service that Israel got from the US made Israeli governments think they had a friend, when in fact they were dealing with a knife juggler who'd sooner drop one on your head than cut themselves. No, there aren't very many allies lining up. And with a douche like TPJesus in the White House, a lot of pressure may be put on Jordan and Egypt to turn back to the old ways. We will see. India and Israel are a good fit. They both have worries from a nuclear Pakistan and Iran (India has to be shitting themselves a little with the Taliban being ceded control of the Swat valley, only 100 miles from the capital. Israel has the technology. India has the workforce and expanding economy. A mass production of something like; fighter jets and bombers would make a lot of sense right now for both sides.

I would rather us all be in a situation where we all were scaling back our need for weapons. But with the unabated rise of radical Islam, a resurgent Taliban, an re-expanding Russian empire, and an asshole in the White House shitting the world down the crapper to satisfy his masters and his own need for the trappings of power, an arms buildup is the only prudent course for nations like Israel and India.

This is not how all this is supposed to be working.

Anonymous said...

Though I will always defend Jews from those who seek to do us harm, I will always believe that peace for all must be the end result. Is that not Yeshiah's vision?
....
You are a gem Shtuey, I miss your writing and now come by to see what you are up to.

I must say I have had my concerns with the new label of 'Moderate Taliban' being bantered about in the Obama Administration.

Woman Voter