Jews are at the center of discourse because Jews are God's chosen people - opinion

The question nags at our souls as the Gaza (Hezbollah?) war interminably carries on: “Why does the world care so much about the Jews?” After all, while for us this crisis is certainly an existential struggle – which our government is only now, belatedly, beginning to admit – it is certainly not the only crisis in the world at large. There are civil wars in Ethiopia, Myanmar, the Congo, and Yemen; starvation in Somalia and Sudan; repression in Afghanistan; brutal conflict in Ukraine; and weather-related catastrophes worldwide.

Yet with all this going on, global eyes seem firmly fixated, largely, if not exclusively, on events in our relatively tiny country. While virtually ignoring the planet’s other trouble spots, news agencies are obsessed with what is happening here. One cannot tune in to any international news station without seeing a dramatic, over-weighted focus on Israel. A cholera outbreak in Haiti? No available medicine in Venezuela? Two million people displaced in Burkina Faso (yes, that is a real place)? Half a million murdered by the dictator Assad in Syria? Nobody gives a damn about these unfortunates. But a Gazan child shot in a crossfire, a rocket fired at Kiryat Shmona, a protest on a Tel Aviv highway, or the extension of a balcony in Efrat – that occupies center stage on global airwaves.

And it has always been this way, even long before the modern State of Israel came on the scene. Abraham, the first Hebrew/Jew, was a major player in the cradle of civilization – so much so that he is still revered by three of the world’s great religions.

Jacob and his 12 sons were well known and even feted with special honors and privileges by the Pharaoh. Kings David and Solomon played host to the world’s potentates (indeed, David is one of the four kings depicted to this day on standard playing cards!), and both Jewish and non-Jewish visitors from far and wide made pilgrimage to the Temples when they stood in Jerusalem. We heroically took on the Greek empire, famously rebelled against Rome – no small feats – and our ancestors stood out academically throughout the centuries in Europe. And, of course, we were at the heart of the fanatical, Nazi-led attempt to rule the planet that brought about World War II.

But why!? What is it about us that attracts so much attention – much of it unwanted? Why can the poets, the pundits, and the politicians not simply leave us alone and ignore us as they do in so many other countries? Why must we routinely be front-page news?!

The Chosen People

I suggest it is because we were selected by God to be global emissaries to the nations and spread one central divine message to the masses: There is a Higher Power that seeks – demands, in fact – that humanity conduct itself within a moral framework and strive to be elevated above all other species. That is the deeper reason why we Jews were scattered to all parts of the planet, where we could influence the greater world by teaching the way of God. And that is why, as one mighty empire after another disappeared from history, we were miraculously blessed not only with eternal survival, despite overwhelming odds, but also with the ability to recreate our national homeland no less than three times.

Yet along with this gift of immortality comes a weighty chore and challenge: We have to be what the Torah calls m’tzuyanim, exceptional. We have to embody a code of behavior that elevates ourselves and all of humankind. Like it or not, we are, in a word, meant to be God’s prototype, lighting the way and showing the world that might is not necessarily right, that truth will always prevail, and that love between people is the glue that holds civilization together. We cannot always be like everyone else, and when we forget that, the world is ready and eager to take us to task.

This is no easy mission. The world can be stubborn and resistant, and we are, after all, only human. We live in constant danger of falling prey to the mortal foibles of power, money, immorality, and, perhaps worst of all, apathy. A part of us longs to be left alone and allowed to melt into general society, even as we sense that we have a holier plan and purpose. We carry a spiritual weight on our shoulders that makes it harder for us to stand up straight, so we often grow weary and fall. But we also have the remarkable ability to collect ourselves and rise again.

There are times when we stumble along the way, producing a Marx or a Madoff rather than a Moses or a Maimonides and a Deri rather than a David, and so we invite abuse far out of proportion to what would normally be heaped on others. We are meant to be the model, so when we falter and abdicate our uniqueness and our godly nature, and when we mimic the depravity and deceit that permeate modern society, we fail those who look to us to provide a higher standard of ethics and behavior. For deep down, every good person’s soul seeks redemption.

Yet when we do live up to our better selves, we strike an elemental chord in others. When Jewish music soothes the world, when Jewish ingenuity makes life more palatable and peaceful, and when Jewish intelligence informs the collective mind, we gain admiration. When we dress modestly and act patiently – yes, even on our highways – we lessen lust and anxiety while promoting civility. When Israel sends crack medical teams to help far-away earthquake victims, perform sight-saving cataract surgery in Africa, or save the hearts of impoverished children worldwide, we garner respect, grudging as it may be. And when our holy soldiers conduct themselves with unparalleled morality in the most difficult of situations, exhibiting Torah values in terrible tunnels, we demonstrate that even war can be fought in a godly way.

Cursing and castigating our detractors is not how we should be expending our energy. At this cataclysmic juncture in our history, each one of us must look not outward at what may indeed be a cruel and critical world, but rather inward at what we can do to restore God’s trust in us as faithful messengers. That is our strength. That is our service. That is the key to our survival, as well as that of the world. It is up to the Chosen People to make the right choice. 

The writer is director of the Jewish Outreach Center of Ra’anana; rabbistewart@gmail.com