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Manhigut Yehudit in the News

Canada's Jewish Tribune: 16 Menachem Av 5767 (July 31, 07)

Is Israel Ready for Jewish Leadership?

By Atara Beck

TORONTO – Shmuel Sackett, American-born international director of Manhigut Yehudit (Jewish Leadership), a faction within the Likud party dedicated to forming a government based on Torah principles, addressed an audience at B’nai Torah synagogue before setting up a live hook-up with Manhigut Yehudit leader Moshe Feiglin. Israeli polls indicate that Likud is likely to form the next government. On Aug. 14, elections will be held for the party chairmanship. The two main candidates are Binyamin Netanyahu, a former prime minister, and Feiglin.

A third candidate, Danny Danon, head of World Likud, recently entered the race for the party leadership. He’s been raising funds for his campaign from Jews as well as evangelical Christians, claiming they share his ideology.

“We’re seeing that about 60 per cent voting for the Likud leadership is undecided,” Sackett told the Jewish Tribune. “That’s already encouraging. It means they don’t like Netanyahu; they don’t trust Netanyahu.”

As the Jewish Tribune goes to press, according to reports from Israel, the Likud’s Elections Committee met to discuss petitions for the disqualification of Feiglin as a leadership candidate, saying he’s too religious and right-of-centre. Feiglin countered that Netanyahu is using “violent and dictatorial methods for taking out political rivals,” reported Arutz-7.

Here in Toronto, the charismatic Sackett captivated the crowd – supporters and non-supporters – with his wit and fervour.

“We Jews believe in the resurrection of the dead,” he began. “I’ll give you two words to help you understand the concept: Shimon Peres.

“I say that because – and he should live to 120 – Peres died 50 times, but he’s revived and he’s president. Here in North America, you recycle garbage. In Israel, we recycle politicians – Peres, Barak, Netanyahu, they’re all making a comeback.

“This is crucial to understand. Peres lost every election, but he’s laughing at us. He really won every election. There’s Shimon Peres the man, a loser. But Shimon Peres’ ideology won every election. And what is his ideology? Running away from Torah, running from places like Hebron, being part of the nations of the world. That’s his dream. But in reality, it’s also Livni’s dream, Olmert’s, Netanyahu’s. Make no mistake; they all want the same thing. It’s very important that we find a new direction.

“We lost in Lebanon because they [the enemy] had their faith, but we lost ours. Without faith, there’s no reason to be in Israel. We have to defeat our corrupt and faithless leaders.”

Feiglin told the gathering that the Manhigut Yehudit platform encompasses five main values:

• Education: Every Jewish child in the country would have one hour a day devoted to authentic Jewish education.

• Family values: “It’s time to take the Jewish family out of the closet.” Asked what he means by family values, Feiglin explained, as an example, that under the current laws, many couples find it economically beneficial to divorce and then continue to live together, and many women avoid having children until later in life because of economic considerations. Under his leadership, there would be financial incentives for people to marry and raise families. “One of the ways to take the Jewish family out of the closet is to give each family a home,” he added, indicating his intention to build in Judea, Samaria and Gaza.

• Security: There would be a “restoration of moral strength and deterrent power to Israel’s army,” with the understanding that “we have an enemy and have decided to win.”

• Justice: According to the Manhigut Yehudit position, this means “taking the court system out from the claws of Meretz [ultra-leftist party].” There would be a judicial policy “based on Jewish values.”

• Zero Tolerance for the Arab Rebellion: Recognition of the Israeli Arabs as today’s greatest threat to the country. The concept that the Land of Israel belongs to the Jewish people would be reflected in both internal policy and foreign affairs.

Elaborating on this point, Sacket said, “The term ‘Israeli Arab’ is another taboo. Everyone talks about Palestinians, the Taliban…the danger today is from the Israeli Arabs and nobody talks about it.

“The words ‘enemy’ and ‘victory’ have become taboo. We hear about fighting terror. We don’t hear that we want to win. But we must defeat the enemy. There is an enemy. His name is Nasrallah. His name is Fatah.”

Adding that Fatah, described as ‘moderate,’ has killed more Jews over the years than Hamas and Hezbollah combined, he quipped: “Would you want your wife to be moderately faithful or extremely faithful? I don’t want to be killed by an extremist or by a moderate.”

Feiglin said, “I’m very excited. I feel that we’re getting through. Most Israelis see themselves first as Jews but ruled by a small group intent on destroying their Jewishness. We want to give the state back to the Jews.

“We are all one nation. It belongs to all of us. That’s why we want you to have the ability to vote. It’s a Jewish state. The diaspora is not the right place for you to be, but that’s between you and Hashem [God].

“Many Israelis don’t believe anymore that their own state will exist 30 years from now. This is terrible. There’s despair, fear. A tremendous revolution can happen.”

“We’re talking about a new spirit that will clean the environment of bribery and cynicism.”

Does the secular right within Likud look favourably upon Manhigut Yehudit and its faith-based platform?

“First and foremost,” the people wouldn’t be told to change their lifestyle, Feiglin explained. There would be no religious coercion, only education through Grade 12, after which the graduates would decide how they want to live.

According to the Manhigut Yehudit position, the overwhelming majority of the Likud members and most Israelis in general are concerned about Jewish identity and the fact that their children are ignorant of their heritage; therefore, they welcome the educational aspect as well as an overall return to core Jewish values.

Responding to concerns about the possibility of pressure from the United States and Europe and a halt to financial aid and military supplies should Israel take a more hardline approach, Feiglin said that people tend to overestimate the aid given to Israel.

“When you talk about economic repercussions, you have to know what you’re talking about,” he said, reminding the audience that tremendous resources were spent to evacuate Gush Katif and give money to Arab families, which ended up costing so much bloodshed and destroying the economy. Also, “in principle, when you talk about subjects important to your country, you don’t consider what everybody will say. When Israel stands up for itself, the world will respect it. Israel has a strong, stable economy – the strongest in the Middle East, stronger than Saudi Arabia. The US and many European countries do very good business with Israel. At the end of the day, it’s always more a question of economic interest than ideology and politics.”

Sackett added that now it’s as if Israel has been wearing a sign that says, “Kick me!” After the Six Day War, it wasn’t being kicked, he said.

In reversing the so-called peace process, would a Manhigut Yehudit government take land back?

There would be two stages, Feiglin responded. The first would be “to stabilize Israeli sovereignty in the Holy Land” before taking back the land given away during the disengagement. “We want to build their homes, build their villages again, encourage them to come back and pay them for all that was done to them, build more and more yeshivas, flourish in the Gaza Strip, encourage Arab refugees to leave, in the most humane way. It’s not their land; it’s ours.

“Not only Gush Katif, but the entire land of Israel. For a strong, powerful Jewish state that will make you so proud, you won’t be able to stay where you are anymore.”