Immigrants and Israelis

Thursday, August 09, 2007

Throughout their wanderings, what most distinctively characterized the Jews was/is their insularity: as Jews insinuated themselves into the host culture, did not invite their hosts into their culture.

The immigration issue in the US has struck a nerve at least as- or even more- sensitive than the evil situation the US has trapped itself in in Iraq and the Middle East. Some people are comparing the current inflection point of US culture to Rome, one way or another: either as an empire extending its power, or as a corrupt and rusted culture trending toward demise.

One component of the demise of Rome was the influx of Gothic (German) tribes who had been mercenaries of the Roman empire. As the climate and economy in the lands of the Goths experienced stress, Gothic tribes surged across the Rhine in waves to start new lives in the Roman empire, among Romans with whom they were familiar by virtue of having fought for Rome in Rome's wars, AND IN THE ROMAN STYLE. Gothic tribes blended with the Roman culture, engaging in a two-way sharing of religious, cultural, and political strengths and weaknesses.

Jews never tire of demanding the pity of the world by reciting, endlessly, the litany of their dislocations and relocations. In fact, in history, most people have been similarly dislocated. My Italian mother and father lived out their lives in a country alien to the place where they were born and the culture that they were familiar with. My mother's family was forced to give up the village farmhouse that had been her parent's home and her grandparents' home. That's just one example from one small family; it has been repeated millions, perhaps billions of times throughout history; Jews are far from unique in having been forced to live in a place that was not home.

What IS unique to the Jews is their determined refusal to leaven their culture with practices of the host culture. To be sure, ever since Joseph charmed his way into the Egyptian government, Jews have entered into the power structures of their host -- or target-- country, but they did not place their loyalties there; their migration has been one way. When my Mother became a naturalized citizen of the US, she swore this oath:

The Oath of Allegiance for United States Citizenship

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I hereby declare, on oath,that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God.

Israeli law makes honest swearing of the US Oath of Naturalization impossible: every Jew in the world always has the benefits of Israeli citizenship open to him/her, and numerous Jews in the highest reaches of US government practice dual citizenship in both the US and in Israel. Americans claim to subscribe to the New Testament, where, in the book of Matthew 6:24, is written:

"No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one
and love the other; or else he will hold to one and despise the other."

Where does the United States Senator for the State of Connecticut, Joseph Lieberman, place his loyalties?

History has shown us, repeatedly, that nations that host Jews and invite them into positions of influence in their governments ultimately suffer for their hospitality.

It is also true that Jews refusal to allow their culture to be leavened and seasoned by incorporating outside cultural practices have also had a negative impact on the Jewish people. They are a small demographic by their own choosing;* they are clannish by their own choosing; and because they have not committed their loyalties to others, when tensions rise and stresses force choices between preferred solutions, Jews do not have relationships that will protect them against self-interested parties.