'Islamization
of Europe a good thing' Rabbi Baruch Efrati
believes Jews should 'rejoice at the fact that Europe is paying for
what it did to us for hundreds of years by losing its identity.' He
praises Islam for promoting modesty, respect for God Kobi
Nahshoni|Published: 11.11.12 , 13:52
As concerns grow over the increasing number of Muslims in Europe, it
appears not everyone is bothered by the issue, including an Israeli
rabbi who even welcomes the phenomenon.
Rabbi Baruch Efrati, a yeshiva head and community rabbi in the West
Bank settlement of Efrat, believes that the Islamization of Europe is
actually a good thing.
"With the help of God, the gentiles there will adopt a healthier life
with a lot of modesty and integrity, and not like the hypocritical
Christianity which appears pure but is fundamentally corrupt," he
explained.
Rabbi Efrati was asked to discuss the issue by an oriental studies
student, who inquired on Judaism's stand toward the process Europe has
been going through in recent years.
Following the election of a hijab-wearing Muslim woman as the mayor of
the Bosnian city of Visoko for the first time in continent's history,
the student asked the rabbi on the Kipa website: "How do we fight the
Islamization of Europe and return it to the hands of Christians and
moderates?"
Efrati wrote in response that the Islamization of Europe was better
than a Christian Europe for ethical and theological reasons – as a
punishment against Christians for persecuting the Jews and the fact
that Christianity, as opposed to Islam, is considered "idolatry" from a
halachic point of view.
"Jews should rejoice at the fact that Christian Europe is losing its
identity as a punishment for what it did to us for the hundreds of
years were in exile there," the rabbi explained as the ethical reason
for favoring Muslims, quoting shocking descriptions from the Rishonim
literature (written by leading rabbis who lived during the 11th to 15th
centuries) about pogroms and mass murders committed by Christians
against Jews.
"We will never forgive Europe's Christians for slaughtering millions of
our children, women and elderly… Not just in the recent Holocaust, but
throughout the generations, in a consistent manner which characterizes
all factions of hypocritical Christianity…
"A now, Europe is losing its identity in favor of another people and
another religion, and there will be no remnants and survivors from the
impurity of Christianity, which shed a lot of blood it won't be able to
atone for."
'Islam a relatively
honest religion'
The theological reason, according to Rabbi Efrati, is that Christianity
– which he sees as idolatry – has a tendency to "destroy normal life
and abstain from it on the one hand, while losing modesty on the other
hand," as it "ranges between radical monasticism to radical Western
licentiousness."
Islam, the rabbi added, is "a religion which misjudges its prophets but
is relatively honest. It educates a bit more for a stable life of
marriage and creation, where there is certain modesty and respect for
God."
Efrati ruled, therefore, that "even if we are in a major war with the
region's Arabs over the Land of Israel, Islam is still much better as a
gentile culture than Christianity."
Non-Jews should not be allowed to live in Israel – Israel’s Chief Rabbi Published time: 29
Mar, 2016 21:01 Edited time: 30 Mar,
2016 00:03
Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef has faced a public backlash after
saying that according to Jewish law some non-Jews should be forbidden
to live in Israel.
“According to Jewish law, it’s forbidden for a non-Jew to live in the
Land of Israel – unless he has accepted the seven Noahide laws,” Rabbi
Yosef said during his weekly Saturday lecture on March 26.
Non-Jews who fail to live by the seven Noahide laws should be expelled
to Saudi Arabia, he added.
“If he’s not willing to accept one of them, [which is] not to commit
suicide, if he’s not willing to accept this, you send him to Saudi
Arabia,” Yosef said.
The seven Laws of Noah include prohibitions against idolatry,
blaspheming God, murder, illicit sexual relations, stealing and eating
a limb of a live animal. It also prescribes the establishment of a
legal system that would ensure obedience to the law.
If a non-Jew stays in Israel, he has to serve the Jews, the Rabbi said.
“Who will be the servers? Who will be our assistants? Therefore, we
leave them here in the land,” he said.
However, following a wave public outrage, Yosef had to backtrack on his
comments. He explained that his words had nothing to do with today’s
world as he had been referring to the “days of the messiah.”
“These laws are theoretical, [and] refer to fulfilling the seven
Noahide Laws in the days of the messiah, and have no connection to the
present day,” he wrote, adding that he has “always adopted a peaceful
and embracing path.”
“It’s clear that there’s no law in our time, God forbid, to expel
non-Jews from Israel,” he concluded.
This is not the first time Chief Rabbi Yosef has found himself in hot
water over his comments. Earlier this month he said that Israelis
should not be afraid to kill terrorists armed with knives.
Netanyahu: Illegal
African Immigrants - a Threat to Israel's Jewish Character Prime Minister urges
construction of fence along border with Egypt to prevent infiltrators
from entering Israel.
Barak
Ravid Jul 18, 2010 5:20 PM
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that the recent "flood
of illegal workers infiltrating from Africa" into Israel was "a
concrete threat to the Jewish and democratic character of the country."
Speaking at a meeting aimed at formulating Israel's immigration policy,
Netanyahu said that most Western nations have already taken action to
prevent similar dangers. "It is inconceivable that Israel, the one
country that faces more threats than any other in the Western world,
has no defined immigration policy to protect our national and security
interests. The issue has been ignored for many years, and my aim is to
bring it to an orderly and responsible legislation by the end of this
year, during the winter seating of the Knesset."
Six months ago, Netanyahu visited the area near the border between
Israel and Egypt in order to examine the possibility of an Israeli
fence along the border to prevent infiltrations. Netanyahu said this
trip highlighted the need for such a fence. "The situation, from the
point of view of terrorism and infiltrations, is more severe than I
thought," he said.
"We must man the region, and then it will be possible to minimize the
terrorist infiltrations, as well as the smuggling of drugs and illegal
workers," the prime minister went on to say. "If we don't move forward
with construction of the fence, the problem will only get worse."
"Infiltrations [into Israel] have become an entire industry," Netanyahu
added.
"The Egyptians are doing what they're doing, but we can't rely only on
them. Egypt doesn't oppose the construction of the fence and everything
is settled under the framework of the peace treaty [between Israel and
Egypt]. A country's borders can't be penetrable – it is a national
threat," Netanyahu concluded.
