All posts by Y.B. ben Avraham

Stubborn European Traditions

February 16, 2015 Y.B. ben Avraham 2 Comments

Rabbi Menachem Margolin, Chabad Lubavitch shaliach, and head of the European Jewish Association, about which I have written both in praise and in criticism, has a new badge of honor. Someone specifically wants him DEAD.

Israel’s Channel 10 reports that someone calling themselves Richard Wright wrote, “Menachem Margolin will be a dead man if he does not stop. We will stick a bullet in his head,” on Rabbi Margolin’s Facebook page.

The post was luridly Jew-Hating, replete with a selection of curses.

Clearly, someone does not want Jews in Europe armed, nor able to leave Europe. Well… not alive, anyway.

Some traditions die hard, don’t they?

defense of others, hatred of Jews, self defense

Copenhagen

February 15, 2015 Y.B. ben Avraham 5 Comments

Yesterday evening, more “random” bloodshed came to Europe, this time in Copenhagen. Twice.

A meeting on “Art, blasphemy and freedom of expression.” at the Krudttoenden Cultural Center was shot to pieces by a masked, athletic, man trying to emulate the Charlie Hebdo affair.

One of the meeting’s participants, Lars Vilks, drew a political satire cartoon depicting the Islamic Prophet, Muhammad, as a dog… eight years ago. Death threats have followed him ever since. Vilks was quickly moved to safety by his bodyguards. However, another participant; filmmaker Finn Noergaard, was less fortunate. He was murdered by the gunman.

Later that night, a twelve-year-old girl was hosting a party with her community. She was celebrating her Bat Mitzvah; the marking of her accepting personal responsibility for observing the six-hundred and thirteen commandments specifically placed upon the Jewish people at the revelation on Mount Sinai.

This joyous event, and the young participants’ very existence, was so determined to be so offensive that they were likewise targeted for death. An attempted reprise of the Hyper Cacher terror murders was underway. A guard stood at the entrance to the synagogue. His name was Dan Uzan. He was shot in the head, and later died, defending the celebrants’ lives.

Before sunrise on Sunday, five policemen were shot and an unlucky bystander was also murdered. The entire city is on virtual lockdown, and the streets are filled with soldiers with machineguns.

Police, who had the likely gunman’s house under surveillance, subsequently killed him at a nearby train station. Two others were caught at an internet café and led away in handcuffs.

There are about 6,400 Jews in Denmark, and falling.

There are about 270,000 Muslims in Denmark, and climbing. Forty percent were admitted as asylum seekers, mostly from Iran, Iraq, Somalia, and Bosnia. 2,800 are native Danes who have converted to Islam in recent years.

The Danish Prime Minister and the head of their Intelligence department have broken ranks with many other European leaders’ sorry tradition of obfuscation and cowardice, plainly declaring the act as Islamic terrorism.

One other hopeful factor exists. As a commentator duly noted; “Denmark is not Sweden”. He points out that Denmark has nearly four-hundred-thousand skilled private marksmen in a broad selection of gun clubs. There are over one million firearms in their hands.

No wonder the Danish government seems to be taking this seriously. This mess will only end one way. And, it will be bloody.

Rabbi Menachem Margolin should have never backed down, no matter what the groveling Ghetto-Yidden say. He should double down, pressuring for streamlined firearms access, right now.

He should also quietly coordinate with his fellow Chabad shluchim, across Europe to help anyone interested in Aliyah with leaving, and soon.

Uncategorized

Lighten the Mood

February 6, 2015 Y.B. ben Avraham 4 Comments

Some of us have had more than our share of stressors recently, so I offer a brief humor break. Isis Bloopers And now, back to our regularly scheduled broadcast.

gun control, Politics, self defense

Mixed-Bag Menachem

January 15, 2015 Y.B. ben Avraham 9 Comments

Several days ago I took Menachem Margolin, Chabad rabbi, and Director of the European Jewish Association, to task for his framing “Aliya” as a “Pavlovian” (as in simplistic, determinist, ring a bell and the dog drools) response as insulting, wrong-headed from a practical perspective, and ultimately contrary to Torah.

Rabbi Margolin, based in Brussels, Belgium (home of the European Union) has openly called for a major review, not only in France, but in all of Europe of their onerous hodge-podge of firearms laws. He does so with an eye towards making defensive firearms, ammunition, and training available to peaceful, law abiding Europeans; Jew and non-Jew alike. And he wants it sooner than later, because the threat is real, and imminent. He reportedly wants a little ”something in everyone’s pocket.” So far- so good.

He makes all the right bowing-and scraping noises about “working within the law”, not asking for “tanks or heavy weapons”. He emphasizes background checks, government supervision, etc. (ptui)

Bad enough that there is credence in some quarters that Jews have magical, shape-shifting powers and still have an appetite for blond-haired, blue-eyed goyishe cherubim for matzoh making ritual sacrifice… okay, okay, yes… the new narrative these days has the cherubim brown-haired and eyed, rather tan, and living in Gaza or Hevron. But Jews with Tanks and RPG’s?! That might precipitate a continent-wide conniption fit before the smart Jews pack up and leave altogether. So… “reasonable” is the resulting theme.

It is a bad place to start the negotiations with one’s rulers, but understandable, I suppose.

I still differ with him in his criticism of Israeli politicians calling for the Jews of Europe to come home to Eretz Yisrael. Is it political pandering? Of course it is. So what? Nu? They don’t pander in France, or England, etc.? Is the modern State of Israel Gan Eden (the Garden of Eden)? No. The risk to life and limb is generally small, and one can at least live upright and proud, among one’s brothers and sisters, in an often idiotic, frustrating, imperfect Country, that just so happens to be on (most of) the land promised to your people by G-d.

As a start, I suggest Rabbi Margolin call on each European country to immediately enact uniform possession and carry permits, valid for one’s residence, business, automobile, and person, issued on a “shall issue” basis, to any adult citizen or legal resident. The permit should cover any handgun or shoulder fired rifle through 20mm and any shotgun through 4ga. Ammunition and reloading supplies should be unlimited, save for demonstrably valid fire-safety considerations. Carry should also be valid for all forms of public transport. There shall be no restrictions on body armor. Excepting suspension upon conviction of a dangerous felony, the permit should be good for life.

Negotiate from THERE.

And meanwhile quietly get as many Jews out of Europe and into Israel as fast as we can.

Then we can take that same (initial) permit scheme and institute it in the Jews of Europe’s new and vibrant home, in the land of their forefathers. And “Judenrein” Europe can fend for itself, without their favorite scapegoat.

duty, Israel, Jewish philosophy, self defense

Sorry, Reb Margolin… You are (mostly) full of crap.

January 11, 2015 Y.B. ben Avraham 3 Comments

In the wake of the Islamic terrorist attacks on the French, culturally-leftist (Do I repeat myself, here?) publication, Charlie Hebdo, and the aligned slaughter at Hyper Cacher, Chabad Rabbi, and European Jewish Association Director, Menachem Margolin advised against mass emigration of his charges from France to Eretz Yisrael. In doing so, he directly disputed with many Jewish leaders, including Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu, styling such “Aliya” (literally, “going up” or “ascending”) as an ill-advised “Pavlovian” response.

Currently, the estimated Jewish population in France is somewhere between 400,000 and 500,000 people, and falling fast. This represents perhaps 10% of the quickly growing Muslim population in France. Both nativist and Islamic attacks on Jews throughout Europe have been climbing steadily. The leader in this trend is France, followed, arguably by Britain and the Scandinavian countries.

In France, there are more than SEVEN HUNDRED FIFTY neighborhoods classified officially as “sensitive”, or unofficially, as “No-Go” zones for the police. These areas have been effectively excised from the country, and are managed exclusively by the most radical (some say Islamically observant) Muslim individuals and groups. Nearly every horror seen in the international press associated with Islam happens also within these neighborhoods; “Honor” Killings, “Grooming” Gang-Rapes, Torture, Slavery, Violent and Racist Assaults, Child Marriages… on, and on, and on.

The rest of Europe dare not be smug, either. They all have their own, albeit, smaller variations. They have their “No-Go” zones, their “Honor” Killings, Rapes, etc. Each of their governments and lick-spittle press desperately tries to hide, mischaracterize, or deny what is happening. Their police and courts have been neutered by decades of politically correct policies aimed at maintaining their social(ist) welfare systems and industries in the face of declining native birthrates and the harsh mathematics that must implode any Ponzi Scheme. Europe is in a pickle… and the Jews will be the first victims (it is a tradition), but hardly the last.

I understand the problems Rabbi Margolin has to deal with.

First, as a shaliach (emissary) of the Rebbe, not unlike a captain on a sinking ship, he is duty-bound to serve the religious needs of every Jew within his reach. If every single other Jew has left France, save one, then he helps that one Jew. He should be literally the last one to leave.

Second, while a shaliach does this holy work, he must try to obtain critical cooperation from the civil authorities. Openly calling for mass “Aliya” frames France, or any other country similarly situated, as a “failed state”. Better to remain silent on the question, and quietly, but vigorously help anyone so inclined.

The ideal scenario would be one where soon, and much to everyone’s surprise, all the Jews are gone, and are learning Hebrew in their new, albeit modest, home, in the hills of Judea and Samaria.

Third, there is the belief that “Aliya” to the schizophrenic modern State of Israel need not be at the top of one’s priorities. That increasing observance of Torah and Mitzvot will hasten the coming of Moshiach. Upon his arrival, the stage is set for all the Jews of the world to (perhaps supernaturally) return home to Israel, anyway.

All well and good, but last I looked, at the Passover Seder, and many-many other times of prayer, we do not long for the return to , nor say “Next Year in Crown Heights” or “Next Year in Williamsburg”, or “…Monsey” or “…Lakewood”… or Paris. There is no avoiding the mitzvah of returning home… to the Land of Israel, in order to do even more mitzvot, including those that can ONLY be done there.

Besides…dead Jews are very limited in the kind of mitzvot they can perform. Live ones, eh, not so much!

In his favor, Rabbi Margolin called on the government to “ease” the availability of gun permits (oh, how I bristle at the Idea of asking, nay, begging, government for permission to have the tools to stay alive). He also threw a bone to the general rectitude of “Aliyah”, but desperately tried to sever it from practical concerns like continuing to be alive.

All in all, he should have just shut up.

~~~~~

An afterthought…

Any Jews reading this from the U.S. or Canada and thinking it doesn’t apply equally to each and every one of YOU (and your kids… and grandkids) had better damned-well reconsider. The same issues are already here. Yes, you may have some time to get a little more for your house or business, than those poor slobs in Europe, but don’t dawdle. The last time we did, the price was very, very high.

And to those “Rabbis” and “Jewish Community Leaders” who openly oppose “Aliya” for any Jew, especially now, you should be profoundly ashamed of yourselves. What are you thinking?

Inspiration

Tzedakah, Not Charity

December 31, 2014 Y.B. ben Avraham 3 Comments

In these dark days of winter we all see people around us who have suffered great reversal of fortunes. As many of us struggle to support our own families, it is easy to harden our hearts or avert our gaze.

Jews, contrary to (favorable) popular myth, do not give “charity”. Rather, Jews give “Tzedakah”. The word tzedakah shares its root with tzaddik. It means righteousness. In recognition that everything comes from G-d… EVERYTHING… by aiding our fellow man, we please G-d and elevate our souls.

The RaMBaM (Maimonides) distilled the Talmudic Sages’ principles of how to give tzedakah to a list from least to best:
1. Giving begrudgingly
2. Giving less than you should, but giving it cheerfully.
3. Giving after being asked
4. Giving before being asked
5. Giving when you do not know the recipient’s identity, but the recipient knows your identity
6. Giving when you know the recipient’s identity, but the recipient does not know your identity
7. Giving when neither party knows the other’s identity
8. Enabling the recipient to become self-reliant

But, simply giving is not enough. As with all mitzvot; G-d wants us to be happy, so, as in this video showing the Lulav and Etrog during the Festival of Succot, this mitzvah must be done with joy.

“To what extent must a person endeavor to cling always to the trait of kindness, as Scripture states: ‘He told you, Oh man, how good, and what the L-rd requires of you, only doing justice and loving kindness… (Michah 6:8).’ …The prophet’s message is that, albeit, we all perform acts of kindness, usually these acts come out of a sense of duty… Therefore, do not make the mistake of thinking that by the fact that you do perform acts of kindness you are fulfilling your obligation fully. Rather a person must have a love for this trait of kindness.”

The Chofetz Chaim writing in Ahavas Chesed Part II, Chapter One
In closing, I offer this moving video, with wishes that each and every one of us have a happy, healthy and more prosperous (secular) New Year, that we may be able to perform more and greater mitzvot, and we thus merit the coming of Moshiach, soon and in our time.

duty, Israel, Jewish history, Political philosophy, resistance, Sellouts and traitors

The Backstory of Chanukah: Clarity of Purpose Secured and then Lost

December 22, 2014 Y.B. ben Avraham 1 Comment

Just who was this hotheaded man who just killed a fellow Jew and started a war, this Matityahu ben Yonatan?

First and foremost, he was a Kohen, a member of the priestly line, tracing his lineage all the way back to Pinchas, the third High Priest of Israel. Pinchas was grandson to Moses’ brother, Aaron, and whose painful devotion to principle, in order to stave off the anger of G-d, gave birth to the duties of a Kohen.

Since the Exodus from Egypt, and subsequent Revelation at Sinai, the job of a Kohen is to carefully and scrupulously conduct the prayer and sacrifices in adulation, praise, thanksgiving, and as pleas for the forgiveness of sin, before Hashem Elokeinu, the G-d of Israel.
Along with their tribal kinsmen, the Leviim (who are in charge of the facilities and ritual objects) these duties have been passed from father to son since the time of the Mishkan (the portable Tabernacle).

The Mishkan was, after Sinai, the special place where G-d dwelled on Earth with his Jewish People. It traveled with them in the desert and for nearly four hundred years sat at Tel Shiloh. King David then established his capitol at Yerushalayim, but the permission from G-d to build the Beit HaMikdash, a fixed and permanent Temple, was withheld from King David and given to his son, Shlomo (Solomon).
Although the obligations were great, and generally the Kohanim and Leviim earned the great respect accorded them, just as with Kings, they were subject to human frailties, and on occasion a Kohen was simply corrupt.

As an example, the Prophet Eli, High Priest at Shiloh, sadly concluded that both of his sons were such evil men, that they could not succeed him. They were so bad that when they led the Ark of the Covenant in a military campaign against the Philistines, G-d provided a harsh lesson and withdrew this favor in battle. Many died and the Ark was carried off by the enemy. Fortunately, G-d had provided a righteous young man, a Levi placed in Eli’s care and instruction, by his parents. He was Shmuel ben Elkanah (Samuel), the last of the Biblical Judges.

Up until this time, the Jews had lived as a confederacy, with spiritual leadership by the Kohanin / Leviim, and secular affairs run by the Tribal Elders. In time Samuel learned to his dismay that he too had two bad sons. Seeing this, the Elders, lacking in emuna (faith), and envious of the foreign nations, then begged Shmuel to anoint a King to judge (rule) over them. G-d plainly declared this as a rejection not of the Prophet but of G-d Himself. G-d told Shmuel to leave them to their folly (a very hard lesson from a stern, but loving father), but to warn them of what would come of it. He did so, saying:

“This will be the manner of the king who will reign over you; he will take your sons, and appoint them to him for his chariots and for his horsemen, and they will run before his chariots. And he will appoint them to him commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and to plow his plowing and to reap his harvest, and to make his weapons and the equipment for his chariots. And he will take your daughters for his perfumers, for cooks, and for bakers. And he will take the best of your fields, your vineyards, and your olive trees, and will give them to his slaves. And he will tithe your grain crops and your vineyards, and he will give them to his officers and his slaves. And he will take your male and female slaves, and your handsomest youths and your asses, and put them to his work. And he will tithe your flocks, and you will be slaves to him. And you will cry out on that day because of your king, whom you will have chosen for yourselves, and the Lord will not answer you on that day.”

The Tribal Elders, nevertheless insisted. Shmuel went to anoint Saul ben Kish as the first earthly King of Israel, and subsequently King David. All subsequent, legitimate, anointed Kings of Israel are from the House of David, as will be, it is believed, the final (earthly)King; Moshiach ben David (see 2 Shmuel, Chapter 7: Verses 3-29)

And therein lies the rub…

Initially, Matityahu ben Yonatan, High Priest at Modi’in, and his sons; Yehuda, Elazar, Shimon, Yochanan and Yonatan enjoyed the favor of G-d. They demonstrated pure faith in Him, and were rewarded with many truly amazing victories. Recapturing the Beit HaMikdosh, cleaning it of the filth and degradation, restoring it to its purpose was a tremendous victory. Matityahu died in battle in the first year. Driving out the Syrian-Greeks and their assimilationist Jewish allies from the immediate neighborhood took four years. Their true mission had been accomplished.

Then, Yehuda Maccabee’s brother Shimon assumed the throne as King. He was not of the Davidic Line. Neither was he of the tribe of Yehuda. The Hasmoneans could certainly continue their duties as Kohens, but Kingship was improper. Nonetheless, a reign of Hasmonean monarchs followed from 140 BCE to 27 BCE, concluding with Antigonus II Mattathias.

Jewish land was retaken. Other revolts against the Seleucid Empire as far away as Persia were inspired. Palace intrigues were executed. Alliances were made. The trappings of Kingship and Empire ate away at the nobles, the people, and even the land. A civil war was afoot. Once again, a very harsh lesson from G-d was brewing… at the hands of the Roman Empire.

And, this time the lesson would last two thousand years.

duty, Inspiration, Israel, Jewish history, Jewish philosophy, resistance, spirit of rebellion

Prelude to Rededication

December 17, 2014 Y.B. ben Avraham 1 Comment

Once again the Children of Abraham were in peril… but not for the reasons you might think.

The king of Babylon had allowed their return to Israel, and even allowed the rebuilding of the Holy Temple. One empire defeated another and soon Alexander the Macedonian came. His visit foreshadowed things to come.

An apostate sect known as the Samaritans had long challenged a core element of Jewish belief; the three-part revelation of Torah (Mystical, Oral, and Written). They had come to the point of militating for the destruction of the Holy Temple and the wholesale murder of the Priests and Levites. Alexander, on his way to leveling Gaza and engaging the Egyptians, was about to do their bidding.

Learning of this, a High Priest donned garments reserved for the holiest event of the year; conducting ritual sacrifices, on behalf of the entire people on Yom Kippur. He and a group of dignitaries went out to meet Alexander in a small town.

Upon their approach, even Alexander’s commanders expected the great slaughter to commence, but instead Alexander dismounted and bowed down to the Priest. Alexander explained that before commencing his long series of campaigns a man came to him in his dreams, looking exactly as this man, and had advised him in ways critical to his subsequent success.

The High Priest told Alexander that they had no intent to undermine him and only asked that the Jewish people be allowed to worship G-d in the ways they were intended and to live in peace. Alexander agreed and was taken on a tour of the Holy Temple, and all of the functions explained. The Samaritans had failed.

But, then Alexander, believing the panoply of gods to be essentially meaningless and interchangeable, and more than a bit impressed with himself, declared that he wanted a giant statue of himself erected in the Temple.

Horrified, but wise, the High Priest gently explained that they could not do that within the Temple, as it would deny the fundamental precept that Hashem Elokeinu is G-d and that there is nothing and no one else. Instead, the High Priest suggested that every male child born in to the Priests’ families during the next year be named Alexander. That way Alexander’s name would live on and be known even better than by a mere statue.

As was the practice, Alexander left administrative control of his conquered lands to his generals. These Syrian-Greeks came to be known as the Seleucids. They, in turn sought out local leaders to act on their behalf in day-to-day affairs. In Israel, the Seleucid Generals worked through the High Priest. There were a series of appointed Seleucid Generals, and a series of High Priests.

Sadly, this dual-loyalty relationship corroded the integrity of the Priesthood. Likewise, the material wealth, power, and sophistication of the Syrian-Greeks seduced the Jewish People, away from their Covenant with G-d. They increasingly emulated the Syrian-Greek, culture, appearance, and even worship. When a High Priest who might oppose this evolution arose, he was replaced, and/or murdered.

Ultimately, in greed and power-lust, a true madman arose to rule. He was named Antiochus. He styled himself Antiochus Epiphanes, seeing himself as a god in the form of a man.

A series of edicts followed. Observing the Sabbath was prohibited. Possession, much less study from, of a Torah Scroll was a capital offense. Brit Milah (ritual entry into the Covenant of the Jewish People with G-d) , aka circumcision was banned. If a circumcised male child was found, both the child and its parents were put to death.

Temple sacrifices; the focal point of communal interface with G-d at his “place” on Earth, was banned. The Temple itself was defiled and filled with idols. The monies used to support the Holy Temple services and the families whose job it was to conduct them, not to mention the destitute, and infirm, had been seized.

These things were entirely approved of by the vast majority of now thoroughly assimilated Jews. A Greek gymnasium had been erected in Jerusalem. Nude athletics were commonplace. The veneration of physical beauty was now elevated and the purification of the soul, in service to G-d, was despised.

At towns throughout the land Jews lived as Greeks and worshiped as Greeks. The G-d of Israel was for bumbling rustics and dying old people.

Once, a Syrian-Greek patrol was out looking for renegades who continued to worship at tiny rural altars to Hashem Elokeinu, the True G-d. They found such a place and demanded that they both stop and that instead they worship as the Greeks. A young man rushed to abide and started to sacrifice to the Greek gods.

Witnessing this was one of those “old rustics”, a Hasmonean named Matityahu ben Yonatan. The weight of his world upon him, in an uncontrollable rage, he drew his sword, slew the young man and many of the Syrian-Greek patrol. He loudly declared, “All those who stand for G-d, follow me.”

A revolt against one of the mightiest empires on earth, and more importantly, against the spiritual suicide of his people, had begun.

defense of others, self defense

Blood at 770 (Updated)

December 9, 2014 Y.B. ben Avraham 3 Comments

Well, that didn’t take long.

Last night at the huge synagogue at 770 Eastern Parkway in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, a young student was stabbed badly in the side of the face. Levi Rosenblatt is in Serious to Critical condition. His “off his meds” attacker is dead, at the hands of the NYPD.

The attacker had driven in his mother’s car all the way from Long Island earlier in the day, and after acting very odd, asked to leave. He came back at 1:30 in the morning with a kitchen knife.

The shul at 770 typically has a couple of cops in a squad car sitting out by the median and a Shomrim (guardians) van around the corner. This facility sees literally thousands of people come and go at all hours of the day and night for study, inspiration, and prayer.

Demographics are such that a dramatically more dangerous neighborhood starts literally two blocks away. So, as the saying goes; “When seconds count, the police are only minutes away”.

I will not criticize the NYPD response. They got there pretty quick, and after prolonged attempts to get the perpetrator to drop the knife, shot him.

A little more problematic is the strangely quick, official Lubavitch spokesperson’s response that “it is not a case of terrorism”. Just a few weeks after the slaughter at Har Nof? An “off his meds” guy drives all the way from Long Island with a kitchen knife to the world headquarters of the Chabad Lubavitch chasiddic movement, and stabs a student at 1:30 in the morning? Yeah. Just one of those random things. Like a hangnail. Or, a flat tire. Move along, now. Nothing to see here.

The real lesson here is quite simple. Ultimately, you cannot delegate self-defense. Dying Kiddush Hashem (in sanctification of G-d’s name) is far too big a habit for Jews. We do it all the time. We’re really good at it. We have a backlog of those who have so died good for the next few thousand years, don’t you think?

What better place than Crown Heights, Brooklyn … smack in the middle of New York City … to start reversing this deadly situation? Starting today, quietly arm yourselves. Seek out competent instruction and guidance. Get a shotgun in every home. Learn Krav Maga. Get a knife of your own. Run the NYC gauntlet and get a handgun.

Yes, I know there are legal and practical impediments, but the real problem is between our ears. Start there.

Update: Some good news… http://www.collive.com/show_news.rtx?id=33163&alias=wounded-770-bochur-wakes-up

defense of others

Zidan Saif ~ A Credit to His People

November 26, 2014 Y.B. ben Avraham 1 Comment

When, earlier this month, great evil came to the Kehillat Bnai Torah Yeshiva Synagogue, at the western edge of Jerusalem, one of the first on the scene was a young man named Zidan Saif. He died trying to save the innocent from butchery reminiscent of the 1929 Arab Riots and Hebron Pogrom.

Mr. Saif was not a Jew. He was an Israeli Druze. The Druze, or as they call themselves, al-Muwaḥḥidūn, are a monotheistic community traditionally residing from the Upper Galilee to the Golan (the area where the borders of Israel, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon meet).

The Druze are said to trace their lineage back to the ancient Kenites. Yitro (Jethro), the father-in Law of Moses, was a Kenite. To this day the Druze revere Yitro as a great prophet; his grave, near Tiberias, is the most important Druze shrine.

The Kenites were also related to the house of Rahab, which joined the Israelites in saving the city of Yericho (Jericho).

The heroine, Yael, was married to “Hever – the Kenite”. In the time of Prophetess / Judge, Devorah, Yael sheltered the fleeing enemy general Sisera, plied him with dairy until he fell asleep, and then drove a tent-peg through his head.

Ten years ago the spiritual leader of the Druze; Sheikh Muwaffak Tarīf, called on all non-Jews to commit to making a “…better humane world based on the Seven Noahide Commandments and the values they represent commanded by the Creator to all mankind through Moses on Mount Sinai.”

Clearly, Zidan Saif lived a life steeped in the timeless values, personal bravery, and the culture of his ancient and proud people. He died with honor. He will be missed by many. May his memory be a blessing, and may his story be told for generations to come.

ADDENDUM: His family, led by his father Sheikh Nuhad Seif, recently visited the synagogue. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/187969#.VHdfzmeOqSo