Love you Jeff and thankful for all i learnt from your books through the years. As someone who was born and grew up in israel, it seems to me that the sentiment you give expression to here is the horror of life-destroying humanity-dividing tribalism in its most distilled form. And the irony, IMHO, is that today's supremacist Nazis who persecute, massacre, torture, abuse and mass-murder children, mothers, fathers & elderely (becasue of the religious label that was placed on us at birth) are those who have fallen into the destructive abyss of sectarianism/nationalism/religious-exceptionalsim/tribalism and call themselves Zionists. These are today's mass murdering anti-life Nazis. It's not me saying this, this is said by numerous holocaust survivors (see links below) who point out that supremacist right-wing zionist secterian tribalists think and act EXACTLY like the right-wing nationalists who persecuted and murdered their family in europe. See below for several examples of holocaust survivors saying this about Zionism.
I could be wrong of course, but it seems to me that unfortunately you might have also unwittingly fallen for the tribalist trap too Jeff, as well as for the VICTIMHOOD STORY that always ALWAYS accompanies the sectarian nationalist mentality (including the nazis who persecuted jews in europe, they also had a strong VICTIMHOOD story to fuel their tribalist nationalism). The victimhood story that says 'we are the victims here who are only defending purselves from those evil people over there who are resentful to us for no reason whatsoever, simply because they are evil antisemites by nature". This victimhood story is hammered into the head of every israeli child from birth. And i can almost hear you adding to your post the sentence that always follows immediately after the victimhood story, the sentence that faithfully repeats the Nazi Zionist victimhood propaganda and justifies the RUTHLESS, CRUEL, INHUMANE, MURDEROUS century-long zionist supremacist colonial project to disposses, mass-murder, throw-out, child-abuse, kidnap, torture, rape, DEHUMANIZE, invalidate, steal homes, steal land, steal resources (like water), starve, massacre and erase the indigenous children, mothers, fathers and elderly (who are not viewed as human beings by the indoctrinated zionist supremacist brain), justifies it with the SACRED VICTIMHOOD story "they are evil terrorists who are resentful of the zionist supremacist colonial project for no reason whatsoever, but simply because they are evil antisemites by nature". The story that's hammered into the head of every child in israel from birth. There is no other explanation, according to zionist propagandists, for why the indigenous people might feel resentful towards the invading colonial zionist project that disposseses, massacres, steals their home and dehumanizes them. Yes, it must be antisemitism, no other explanation... (and in a moment i will say WHY the right-wing zionist billionaires and their propagandists instill this story in the heads of israeli children from birth, and exactly why the billionaore elite MUST maintain a constant state of hostility, hatred and violence between ordinary israelis and palestinians, along religious lines)
To be clear, I am not here to judge you or anyone for doing that. I really truly understand the allure of nationalist-religious tribalism and the comfort and solace it can provide (i was a devout zionist for the first half of my life and fully believed and advocated for this nazi poison), understand its allure especially for those who have gone through the intense horrid trauma you have gone through. But rather, my only intention is to lovingly point out the shadow side of religious nationalist tribalist mentality (which is encouraged and utilized by the ultra-rich as a way to divide-and-rule the 99%), the murderous life-destroying God-forgetting side of religious-nationalist tribalism, the side which i think those who are in the infatuation phase with their religious-nationalist sectarian tribe (like you, Jeff?) might not be fully aware of..
By the way, if there's an interest, wrote my thoughts on religious identities and how that impacts the conflict and possibility of safety and cooperation for human beings, specifically with regard to the conflict in palestine-israel, here https://open.substack.com/pub/headandheart1/p/my-perspective-on-the-conflict-in
PS. And just to clarify why i described zionism as a neo-nazi ideology - that is becasue i know from personal experience that the deeply indoctrinated anti-unity SUPREMACIST zionist tribalists truly believe that the blood of those human beings who had the (childish and God-ignorant) religious label ‘jewish’ placed upon us at birth is ‘special’ and different from the rest of humanity and that unlike all other blood, ‘jewish blood’ - as the zionist supremacists call it - is superior in importance and value to the rest of humanity, and that is what gives them the "divine right" to commit the unspeakable aforementioned atrocities and human invalidation and erasure that they have been committing for many many decades against those who were not given at birth the "correct" religious label of the important chosen ones (anotner factor that drives their supremacist mindset and behavior is the narrative and psychology of 'we are the victims' which is very VERY deeply embedded in every israeli child from birth (i know this becasue i was born into this cult and personally went through this traumatization and indoctrination process. More details in the linked essay above)
PLUS they believe that the fake bloodthirsty tribalist genocidal hebrew “god” (the sectarian humanity-dividing fake “god” that the immature, frightened & violent nationalist brain invented for itself) made certain specific humans (those who had the label “jewish” placed upon us at birth) CHOSEN and elevated above others, and that this tribalist hebrew "god" works in his spare time as a real estate agent in the sky who dishes out lands specifically to his favored chosen ones (those cultists who prostrate before him the most and soothe his insecure ego by telling him repeatedly that he's the greatest "god" there is), and therefore this real estate agent "god" gifts lands to his chosen ones by ordering the slaughter and genocide of the “inferior” inhabitants of these lands (those who don't subscribe to the nazi belief in the supremacy and "divine rights" of certain humans over others, based on a childish religious label that was placed on us at birth)
As i wrote in my linked essay above
TRYING TO CREATE SECTARIAN SERCURITY (SECURITY ONLY FOR THE PART AND NOT FOR THE WHOLE, SECURITY ONLY FOR ME AND MY GROUP) IS THE VERY CAUSE OF INSECURITY!!
PPS. Here are a couple of examples of the holocaust survivors that i mentioned above who strongly oppose zionism and who describe exactly how it follows the same supremacist triibalist ideology of the right-wing NAZI tribalists in europe who persecuted and murdered their family. They show how the exact same DEHUMANIZATION that the right-wing Nazis in europe committed against jews, is now being employed by the right-wing neo-nazi zionist supremacists against the indigenous people of west Asia.
PPPS. Here are a couple of essayz by two israelis who write beautifully on the intense traumatizing indoctrination (into supremacist tribalism and the victimhood mentality) that every child in israel is subjected to from birth. Both of them show the profound PSYCHOSIS of the zionist tribalist cult (i do fully understand that it can be exhilarating to an outsider who first arrives into such an intensely tribalist society - that has completely separated itself from humanity and views its members as unique and more valuable than other humans - but i do humbly recommend reading what these two israelis have to say, in order to perhaps gain a deeper understanding of the very intense zionist supremacist tribalism, the victimhood story that underlies it, and the traumatizing indoctrination that fuels it)
PPPPS. Lastly, I very highly recommend listening to this profound speech (part of the oxford union debate) by an indigenous woman whose home has been stolen and whose family has been massacred by invading neo-nazi zionist colonizers. It is one of the most blisteting elucidations of the evil of zionism, of its supremacy & domination psychology, of the american billionaires' imeprialism behind it, and her description of the palestinian deep connection and reverence to the ACTUAL land (which colonizing zionists have none of. Invading zionist colonizers have an idea/belief in their head, but zero connection to the ACTUAL land, its soil, its olive trees, its hills) and the palestinian struggle to survive in the face of such profound murderous onslaught to disposses them off their land and throw them out to make way for the superior elevated chosen ones. Along with her other profound descriptions of the human corruption involved in colonialism, dispossesion and learnt ethno-superiority.
In my view, the spiritual and heart-based profundity of this speech is on par with the best of MLK’s speeches. A seminal speech for the ages.
Wow!!! Very well said!! I wonder if Jeff will be able to hear this. Judging by his latest writings where he is totally hypnotized into IDENTIFYING with his petty little religious label, it doesn't seem like he currently has the emotional "bandwidth" or capacity to hear the pro-life wisdom you are pointing out here. To me it seems like Jeff finds soothing for his pain and trauma in an idiotic and destructive SECTARIAN AND SEPARATIVE religious identity, and has fallen head over heels for the ideology that those who subscribe to his petty religious identity have a special divine right for a "homeland" colony AT THE EXPENSE of others, becasue his idiotic religious identity is apparently more important and valuable than those whom his "homeland" colony requires to be dispossesed and eliminated (to put their horrific genocidal terrorist crimes in very mild words).
I wonder what makes you think Jeff, that you or Tony from Brooklyn or blue-eyed blonde-haired Natasha from Moscow have a special "birth right" to arrive for the first time in your life to palestine and receive citizenship and permission to stay (if you wanted to) on the spot, and an apartment in a "nice traditional arab home" in jerusalem, while the native Yasmin, whose family has lived for generations in al-quds (jerusalem) is barred from even entering much less returning to her family home (the same home Natasha from Moscow will get to live in). WHY? Tell me why, Jeff? What is the reason? The only reason is because you and Natasha had a stupid petty little religious label placed upon you at birth, while Yasmin was not born into this stupid religious label. That is the only reason why you can live in Yasmin's family house if you wanted to, while her family is massacred and she is barred from returning to her home and land!! Why? Because she did not receive your stupid evil religious label!!
What do you call such pure EVIL, Jeff? There is only one word for this evil - SUPREMACY!! Anti-life religious SUPREMACY!!! Believing that those who carry the label "jew" are SUPERIOR in value and in rights to those who do not carry this petty little idiotic label. EVIL would be a mild word to describe this disgusting anti-life Nazi Zionist mentality!!!
Jeff, you and other ignorant and brainwashed tribalists like you are NOT more of a victim than the millions of children women and men that the TERRORIST ZIONIST colonial state murders en mass, imprisons, tortures, abuses, disposseses and throws off their land and home.
Despite what you are constantly being told in your sectaruan ONE-SIDED echo-chamber, you and your petty little tribalist cultists are NOT more of a victim than the HUMAN BEINGS that you think you have a divine right to disposses.
Jeff, You talk about jews being hunted down (by stupid right-wing nationalists who also have a victimhood story just like your beloved nationalists have), which i condemn with all my heart and want safety for everyone with all my heart, BUT you are BLIND, BRAINWASHED AND IGNORANT to the massive hunting down of the native people that your invasive terrorist state inflicts on those who don't carry your stupid little religious label (and are therefore not considered "sacred victims" by your anti-life tribalist cult).
You are BLIND, HYPNOTIZED & IGNORANT of that Jeff because it is clear from your writing that you are locked inside a sectarian ONE-SIDED echo-chamber where you are indoctrinated into your one-sided victimhood story that you think only your petty little tribalist group suffers from.
And this combination of victimhood and tribalist specialness that you're indoctrinated into, then naturally leads to the conclusion that you and indoctrinated tribalists are divinely entitled to colonize, steal, disposses and exterminate those who do not carry your stupid religious identity (and are therefore not as uniquely a victim as your tribalist supremacists are)
A victimhood story that every single religious or nationalist group on the planet tells itself in its own inward-focused echo-chamber, where its members (for example, brainwashed supremacist zionists) tell themselves their victimhood story again and again and are made aware of the trauma and suffering of ONLY their own members, and are NEVER ever made aware of the trauma and suffering that their stupid religious identity causes others in its quest for tribalist safety for ONLY its members.
I find it extremely depressing how, after millenia of living like this - destroying and traumatizing each other in the name of these immature and IDIOTIC religious (or national or tribal) identites - human beings have still not been able to evolve, not been able to see through this life-destroying stupidity. Still continue to be mesmerised by the slogans fed to us in our sectarian echo-chambers, that teach us that tribalism and ethnocentric exclusivism is the way to safety and security, when it obviously leads to THE EXACT OPPOSITE of that, when it obviously creates division, fragmentation, antagonism, suspicion, fear, sense of threat, hostility, hatred, losing of one's humanity (in tne name of the "sacredness" of only my group), conflict, constant warring hell on earth and LACK OF SECURITY for everyone!!
The SHORT-SIGHTED STUPIDITY OF RELIGIOUS TRIBALISM must create this hell reality because we are taught to believe the lie that those who subscribe to our religious identity are more entitled to safety than others, entitled to security even if it comes at the expense of others (those who are not considered part of our tribalist identity).
Amazing that after millenia of evidence to the contrary, human beings in the 21st century still continue to fall for this TRIBALIST STUPIDITY, short-sightedness and fragmentation that clearly and obviously brings the exact opposite of safety and security and that creates a divisive hell on earth, the hell of atomised tribalist groups all armed to the teeth and murdering each other in the name of the supposed exclusive sacredness of their own religious or national identity ("may god bless these ones, not those ones, but these ones, the ones subscribing to our identity"). Madness!!!
God is not jewish, or christian, or muslim or hindu or any other idiotic and petty religious label that divides human beings and makes people murder each other in the name of this stupid religious label.
If you'll notice, the time when human beings act in the most cruel, murderous, hateful, unGodly ways is when we are under the influence of sectarian conservative RELIGIOUS CONVICTION, and its inevitable tribal/national divisions, victimhood stories, hatreds, conflicts and organized nationalistic murder known as war (all done in the name of tribalist religion's so-called god, no less..)
To me, to believe that a petty divisive religious label (whether 'christian' or 'muslim' or 'jew' or 'hindu' etc) is who you actually are (I'm a muslim, i'm a jew, i'm a christian) is not only the most childish, blind, insensitive, stupid and invalidating (of our humanity) thing in the world, it also destroys love and is violent and war promoting, becasue it SEPARATES you from the rest of humanity, and it INEVITABLY promotes division, and makes you see labels before seeing human beings. Which is another way of saying, denies love and strips us of our humanity in exchange for a stupid religious label
But WE ARE NOT LABELS, JEFF. WE ARE HUMAN BEINGS!!!
I just can't find the right words for how stupid and destructive it seems to me to say 'I am a muslim, I am a jew, I am a christian'. The moment you say that and believe in this nonsense, you are immediately and INEVITABLY in opposition to the rest of humanity (those who don't subscribe to your petty little religious identity), you have INEVITABLY seperated yourself from humanity, and you are then INEVITABLY an agent of division and fragmentation.
To me, SECTARIAN DIVISIVE (NON-UNIVERSAL) RELIGION IS THE COMPLETE AND UTTER NEGATION OF GOD, NEGATION OF THE SACREDNESS OF HUMANITY.
In my view, If a religion is not universal (unity-based) but sectarian/tribalist (as unfortunately pretty much all of misguided conservative religions today are) then this type of DIVISIVE SECTARIAN religion is in my view a profound distortion of what God actually is.
Such a tribalist divisive religion is also profoundly destructive to our ability to bring our essence as Love into expression/manifestation on this earth, becasue SECTARIAN conservative (anti-unity anti-wholistic) religion is the number one cause for the division of humanity and therefore the number one cause for creating antagonism, conflict, war and INSECURITY for human beings on earth, and the number one cause for moving us away from God, from Love, from our Unity, and from the essence of life..
In my view, sectarian, tribalistic, divisive anti-wholistic, Love-denying (because its love is reserved only to those who subscribe to its specific tribalist identity), cruel, war-mongering tribalist conservative religion is therefore one of the most (if not THE MOST) life-destroying and God-denying forces on this earth.
Addendum: I now read your post that you linked to in the comment and i think it is a really wise post and is truly the way forward. I do wish Jeff would read it and reflect upon it becasue from his current writings he seems to be moving in the completely opposite direction of holistic wisdom, into the childish one-sided blindness of fragmentary tribalism, religious victimhood and national chauvinism. An extremely short-sighted, one-sided and destructive direction, in my view.
Thank you. You also made some very good points and your passion is felt and appreciated. I will read the essay you recommended by Dr. Martin. Thank you very much 🙏
There is actually plenty more i wanted to say previously but had to stop short becasue of space limits. For example, about how the zionist billionaire ruling class works in several different ways to make jews feel threatened and unsafe, in order to stay in power over us (i might elaborate on those ways later if i have the time). That is, the only reason people keep begrudgingly voting for the right-wing representitives of the billionaire predators who are fleecing israelis blind (did you know that more than 45 thousand holocaust survivors in israel live below poverty and don't have even the most basic necesitites, or that israel has the third largest wealth inequality gap in the world, with 18 ultra-rich billionaire families owning more than 76% of the country's GDP, and 23% of israelis living below the poverty line. You can read all about the attack of zionists on ordinary jews here https://www.pdrboston.org/israel-s-government-attacks-jews-to), the only reason some israelis still begrudgingly vote for the right-wing billionaire predators and their representitives is because these nationalist deceivers present themselves as the ones who will protect the people from the "evil monstrous scary antisemitic enemy over there who is coming to get ya. But don't worry, we the patriotic billionaires and our right-wing representitives really really love you and we want to protect you from that evil monstrous scary antisemitic enemy over there who is irrationally hostile towards the zionist state for some strange unknown reason. So don't worry, we will protect you, just make sure you keep voting for us so that we can keep transferring society's wealth upwards to the ultra-rich". That is the reason why the zionist billionaire ruling class (who don't give a shit about ordinary jews and attack jews regularly, as i will show later) MUST keep jews constantly in a state of existential fear and a sense of threat. Tribalist division, fear, violence and hatred is the BREAD AND BUTTER of right-wing billionaires' divide-and-control over the people. I might come back later to give more details on this, but for now you can see this research paper https://www.pdrboston.org/israel-s-government-attacks-jews-to which shows you exactly how the zionkst manipulators do this (see also the links leading out from it).
As well as see this profoundly important paper, that explains in detail and with numerous examples the principle of the BOOGYMAN ENEMY that the billionaire ruling class are using to scare people and ensure our loyality to them (as the ones who will protect us from the "evil scary enemy") https://www.pdrboston.org/oppressors-need-bogeyman-enemies.
Once this BOOGYMAN ENEMY principle is understood, then you can go back to the first research paper (here https://www.pdrboston.org/israel-s-government-attacks-jews-to) to see clearly how the zionist billionaire elite are employing this principle against ordinary jews.
I mignt come back later to say more on this and show all the ways that the zionist elite predators are using to attack and scare ordinary jews (both directly and indirectly) in order to keep jews living in fear and therefore in loyalty and obedience to the zionist billionaire elite (who are sold to people as the supposed "protectors of jews"), but for now i'll have to leave it at that.
I can relate. I was the only girl in my Hebrew school back in the late 50’s in Chicago. I had a Bas Mitzva and couldn’t approach the Torah. Oh course, I walked away right afterward. When I went to The Wall and saw the women separated, that feeling of separation poured through me. Walls….our inner walls being out-pictured by the outer ones. Thank You Jeff for all the ways you’ve blended creativity with Your Soul Journey. I am journeying with You as You share so openly, so deeply, your feelings and your relationship to the Jewish experience. Many Blessings🙏
I recently saw the movie a Real Pain. I thought it was such a good job with the whole way generational trauma can impact different people. It's always there, that feeling we have to be ready to grab things and run.
Jeff, this was so moving. And so spot on I think for many of us Jews who were disconnected from our history, and then somehow have found our way back to connection our tribe in the last 5 years or so. I have not been to Israel yet, but the pull is there for sure when before I was what I would call a non-Zionist. I didn't understand the need for Israel. I do now more than ever, especially when some of our own brethren empathize suicidally with those who wouldn't think twice to off us.
I find the idea that Jews shouldn't have a homeland utterly preposterous. In a world where they are regularly hunted, thank God they have a country to call home. Just to be here, to witness the young soldiers every 50 yards, to feel the determined vibration of all the people (not just Jews), you totally get that this place is essential.
Thank you for sharing! I think for many of us this past period has made us realize just how Jewish we actually are - for me it certainly has been that way. I haven't been raised with any Jewish traditions or anything, and even though I am of mixed descent this void on the Jewish side is largely due to the Holocaust. These past 1,5 years have often given me the feeling that these roots were being kicked back to life because they were so heavily under attack. As if I was forced to acknowledge them on a much deeper level than ever before because they were suddenly in so much pain, where before they may have just been numb. And all the opinions and gaslighting about our history has ultimately only made it more and more clear to me that speaking for myself, this ancestral connection undoubtedly leads to the desert in the Middle East and not anywhere else. None of the lands that my ancestors lived in - and fled from - in the meantime has ever truly been a place to root. This is more clear to me than ever before because I have really been open to seeing it if the truth would lead me elsewhere and it simply did not. Ancestral memories also have their own way of speaking, through our blood, from our bones, these voices are sacred and not something that should be up for discussion.
The 'tribal consciousness' that people tend to speak of negatively nowadays is something that I do not believe we can or should transcend. I believe we need to understand it and respect it. It can have it's downsides just as anything can, but there is also a sacred, beautiful and meaningful aspect to it. It has purpose, a purpose that can never be replaced.
Sending some extra love to all my Jewish brothers and sisters all over the world!
What a touching account of your first visit to Israel and the generational healing it brought.
I’m Israeli (and Jewish off course) living outside of Israel for 13 years now. I can’t say that I’m always at war but I can say that I’m a warrior who’s able to protect what I feel is right to protect when the time is calling for it. After October 7 I never felt so close to my Jewish roots. I’m still not at war with anyone since I don’t have to actively fight antisemitism in my daily life, thought friends of mine in the country I live now do. I feel that the idea of being a warrior is something that I’ve inherited. Unlike the disgusting hateful comments above (I honestly don’t know how these people can still breath with lungs and heart filled with so much hate) my grandfather who survived 5 death camps - including the death march- did not see himself as a victim. He (as far as I can say) saw himself as a warrior. Maybe I’ve inherited that from him as well - minding my own business, investing my energies and time in supporting and building and going actively to fight only when being directly attacked. I cherish the legacy I’ve inherited from my ancestors. Since October 7 I’m wearing more regularly and over my short the Star of David medallion they bought me at the old quarters of Prague, after we’ve had a root journey together. Being born to a Jewish legacy is no small karma and you are the perfect soul to carry onward the uncompromising wisdom. Thank you for who you are <3
Love you Jeff and thankful for all i learnt from your books through the years. As someone who was born and grew up in israel, it seems to me that the sentiment you give expression to here is the horror of life-destroying humanity-dividing tribalism in its most distilled form. And the irony, IMHO, is that today's supremacist Nazis who persecute, massacre, torture, abuse and mass-murder children, mothers, fathers & elderely (becasue of the religious label that was placed on us at birth) are those who have fallen into the destructive abyss of sectarianism/nationalism/religious-exceptionalsim/tribalism and call themselves Zionists. These are today's mass murdering anti-life Nazis. It's not me saying this, this is said by numerous holocaust survivors (see links below) who point out that supremacist right-wing zionist secterian tribalists think and act EXACTLY like the right-wing nationalists who persecuted and murdered their family in europe. See below for several examples of holocaust survivors saying this about Zionism.
I could be wrong of course, but it seems to me that unfortunately you might have also unwittingly fallen for the tribalist trap too Jeff, as well as for the VICTIMHOOD STORY that always ALWAYS accompanies the sectarian nationalist mentality (including the nazis who persecuted jews in europe, they also had a strong VICTIMHOOD story to fuel their tribalist nationalism). The victimhood story that says 'we are the victims here who are only defending purselves from those evil people over there who are resentful to us for no reason whatsoever, simply because they are evil antisemites by nature". This victimhood story is hammered into the head of every israeli child from birth. And i can almost hear you adding to your post the sentence that always follows immediately after the victimhood story, the sentence that faithfully repeats the Nazi Zionist victimhood propaganda and justifies the RUTHLESS, CRUEL, INHUMANE, MURDEROUS century-long zionist supremacist colonial project to disposses, mass-murder, throw-out, child-abuse, kidnap, torture, rape, DEHUMANIZE, invalidate, steal homes, steal land, steal resources (like water), starve, massacre and erase the indigenous children, mothers, fathers and elderly (who are not viewed as human beings by the indoctrinated zionist supremacist brain), justifies it with the SACRED VICTIMHOOD story "they are evil terrorists who are resentful of the zionist supremacist colonial project for no reason whatsoever, but simply because they are evil antisemites by nature". The story that's hammered into the head of every child in israel from birth. There is no other explanation, according to zionist propagandists, for why the indigenous people might feel resentful towards the invading colonial zionist project that disposseses, massacres, steals their home and dehumanizes them. Yes, it must be antisemitism, no other explanation... (and in a moment i will say WHY the right-wing zionist billionaires and their propagandists instill this story in the heads of israeli children from birth, and exactly why the billionaore elite MUST maintain a constant state of hostility, hatred and violence between ordinary israelis and palestinians, along religious lines)
To be clear, I am not here to judge you or anyone for doing that. I really truly understand the allure of nationalist-religious tribalism and the comfort and solace it can provide (i was a devout zionist for the first half of my life and fully believed and advocated for this nazi poison), understand its allure especially for those who have gone through the intense horrid trauma you have gone through. But rather, my only intention is to lovingly point out the shadow side of religious nationalist tribalist mentality (which is encouraged and utilized by the ultra-rich as a way to divide-and-rule the 99%), the murderous life-destroying God-forgetting side of religious-nationalist tribalism, the side which i think those who are in the infatuation phase with their religious-nationalist sectarian tribe (like you, Jeff?) might not be fully aware of..
By the way, if there's an interest, wrote my thoughts on religious identities and how that impacts the conflict and possibility of safety and cooperation for human beings, specifically with regard to the conflict in palestine-israel, here https://open.substack.com/pub/headandheart1/p/my-perspective-on-the-conflict-in
PS. And just to clarify why i described zionism as a neo-nazi ideology - that is becasue i know from personal experience that the deeply indoctrinated anti-unity SUPREMACIST zionist tribalists truly believe that the blood of those human beings who had the (childish and God-ignorant) religious label ‘jewish’ placed upon us at birth is ‘special’ and different from the rest of humanity and that unlike all other blood, ‘jewish blood’ - as the zionist supremacists call it - is superior in importance and value to the rest of humanity, and that is what gives them the "divine right" to commit the unspeakable aforementioned atrocities and human invalidation and erasure that they have been committing for many many decades against those who were not given at birth the "correct" religious label of the important chosen ones (anotner factor that drives their supremacist mindset and behavior is the narrative and psychology of 'we are the victims' which is very VERY deeply embedded in every israeli child from birth (i know this becasue i was born into this cult and personally went through this traumatization and indoctrination process. More details in the linked essay above)
PLUS they believe that the fake bloodthirsty tribalist genocidal hebrew “god” (the sectarian humanity-dividing fake “god” that the immature, frightened & violent nationalist brain invented for itself) made certain specific humans (those who had the label “jewish” placed upon us at birth) CHOSEN and elevated above others, and that this tribalist hebrew "god" works in his spare time as a real estate agent in the sky who dishes out lands specifically to his favored chosen ones (those cultists who prostrate before him the most and soothe his insecure ego by telling him repeatedly that he's the greatest "god" there is), and therefore this real estate agent "god" gifts lands to his chosen ones by ordering the slaughter and genocide of the “inferior” inhabitants of these lands (those who don't subscribe to the nazi belief in the supremacy and "divine rights" of certain humans over others, based on a childish religious label that was placed on us at birth)
As i wrote in my linked essay above
TRYING TO CREATE SECTARIAN SERCURITY (SECURITY ONLY FOR THE PART AND NOT FOR THE WHOLE, SECURITY ONLY FOR ME AND MY GROUP) IS THE VERY CAUSE OF INSECURITY!!
PPS. Here are a couple of examples of the holocaust survivors that i mentioned above who strongly oppose zionism and who describe exactly how it follows the same supremacist triibalist ideology of the right-wing NAZI tribalists in europe who persecuted and murdered their family. They show how the exact same DEHUMANIZATION that the right-wing Nazis in europe committed against jews, is now being employed by the right-wing neo-nazi zionist supremacists against the indigenous people of west Asia.
1. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YVmCwhFk6Pc
2. https://www.doubledown.news/watch/2024/may/7/holocaust-survivor-absolutely-demolishes-israel
3. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=upmrOAwfSsU
4. https://www.doubledown.news/watch/2024/april/28/meet-the-wrong-jew-the-media-doesnt-want-you-to-know-exists
PPPS. Here are a couple of essayz by two israelis who write beautifully on the intense traumatizing indoctrination (into supremacist tribalism and the victimhood mentality) that every child in israel is subjected to from birth. Both of them show the profound PSYCHOSIS of the zionist tribalist cult (i do fully understand that it can be exhilarating to an outsider who first arrives into such an intensely tribalist society - that has completely separated itself from humanity and views its members as unique and more valuable than other humans - but i do humbly recommend reading what these two israelis have to say, in order to perhaps gain a deeper understanding of the very intense zionist supremacist tribalism, the victimhood story that underlies it, and the traumatizing indoctrination that fuels it)
1. https://avigail.substack.com/p/israel-the-legacy-of-a-perpetrator
2. https://valdphillips.substack.com/p/if-you-dont-know-this-you-cant-make?
3. https://substack.com/profile/208248312-alon-mizrahi
PPPPS. Lastly, I very highly recommend listening to this profound speech (part of the oxford union debate) by an indigenous woman whose home has been stolen and whose family has been massacred by invading neo-nazi zionist colonizers. It is one of the most blisteting elucidations of the evil of zionism, of its supremacy & domination psychology, of the american billionaires' imeprialism behind it, and her description of the palestinian deep connection and reverence to the ACTUAL land (which colonizing zionists have none of. Invading zionist colonizers have an idea/belief in their head, but zero connection to the ACTUAL land, its soil, its olive trees, its hills) and the palestinian struggle to survive in the face of such profound murderous onslaught to disposses them off their land and throw them out to make way for the superior elevated chosen ones. Along with her other profound descriptions of the human corruption involved in colonialism, dispossesion and learnt ethno-superiority.
In my view, the spiritual and heart-based profundity of this speech is on par with the best of MLK’s speeches. A seminal speech for the ages.
Can be heard here https://web.archive.org/web/20250123200549/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nW5U_ZqGmZU(Had&themeRefresh=1
And can be read here: https://www.jewishvoiceforlabour.org.uk/article/how-the-oxford-union-debate-was-won
Yes.Thankyou
Wow!!! Very well said!! I wonder if Jeff will be able to hear this. Judging by his latest writings where he is totally hypnotized into IDENTIFYING with his petty little religious label, it doesn't seem like he currently has the emotional "bandwidth" or capacity to hear the pro-life wisdom you are pointing out here. To me it seems like Jeff finds soothing for his pain and trauma in an idiotic and destructive SECTARIAN AND SEPARATIVE religious identity, and has fallen head over heels for the ideology that those who subscribe to his petty religious identity have a special divine right for a "homeland" colony AT THE EXPENSE of others, becasue his idiotic religious identity is apparently more important and valuable than those whom his "homeland" colony requires to be dispossesed and eliminated (to put their horrific genocidal terrorist crimes in very mild words).
I wonder what makes you think Jeff, that you or Tony from Brooklyn or blue-eyed blonde-haired Natasha from Moscow have a special "birth right" to arrive for the first time in your life to palestine and receive citizenship and permission to stay (if you wanted to) on the spot, and an apartment in a "nice traditional arab home" in jerusalem, while the native Yasmin, whose family has lived for generations in al-quds (jerusalem) is barred from even entering much less returning to her family home (the same home Natasha from Moscow will get to live in). WHY? Tell me why, Jeff? What is the reason? The only reason is because you and Natasha had a stupid petty little religious label placed upon you at birth, while Yasmin was not born into this stupid religious label. That is the only reason why you can live in Yasmin's family house if you wanted to, while her family is massacred and she is barred from returning to her home and land!! Why? Because she did not receive your stupid evil religious label!!
What do you call such pure EVIL, Jeff? There is only one word for this evil - SUPREMACY!! Anti-life religious SUPREMACY!!! Believing that those who carry the label "jew" are SUPERIOR in value and in rights to those who do not carry this petty little idiotic label. EVIL would be a mild word to describe this disgusting anti-life Nazi Zionist mentality!!!
Jeff, you and other ignorant and brainwashed tribalists like you are NOT more of a victim than the millions of children women and men that the TERRORIST ZIONIST colonial state murders en mass, imprisons, tortures, abuses, disposseses and throws off their land and home.
Despite what you are constantly being told in your sectaruan ONE-SIDED echo-chamber, you and your petty little tribalist cultists are NOT more of a victim than the HUMAN BEINGS that you think you have a divine right to disposses.
Jeff, You talk about jews being hunted down (by stupid right-wing nationalists who also have a victimhood story just like your beloved nationalists have), which i condemn with all my heart and want safety for everyone with all my heart, BUT you are BLIND, BRAINWASHED AND IGNORANT to the massive hunting down of the native people that your invasive terrorist state inflicts on those who don't carry your stupid little religious label (and are therefore not considered "sacred victims" by your anti-life tribalist cult).
You are BLIND, HYPNOTIZED & IGNORANT of that Jeff because it is clear from your writing that you are locked inside a sectarian ONE-SIDED echo-chamber where you are indoctrinated into your one-sided victimhood story that you think only your petty little tribalist group suffers from.
And this combination of victimhood and tribalist specialness that you're indoctrinated into, then naturally leads to the conclusion that you and indoctrinated tribalists are divinely entitled to colonize, steal, disposses and exterminate those who do not carry your stupid religious identity (and are therefore not as uniquely a victim as your tribalist supremacists are)
A victimhood story that every single religious or nationalist group on the planet tells itself in its own inward-focused echo-chamber, where its members (for example, brainwashed supremacist zionists) tell themselves their victimhood story again and again and are made aware of the trauma and suffering of ONLY their own members, and are NEVER ever made aware of the trauma and suffering that their stupid religious identity causes others in its quest for tribalist safety for ONLY its members.
I find it extremely depressing how, after millenia of living like this - destroying and traumatizing each other in the name of these immature and IDIOTIC religious (or national or tribal) identites - human beings have still not been able to evolve, not been able to see through this life-destroying stupidity. Still continue to be mesmerised by the slogans fed to us in our sectarian echo-chambers, that teach us that tribalism and ethnocentric exclusivism is the way to safety and security, when it obviously leads to THE EXACT OPPOSITE of that, when it obviously creates division, fragmentation, antagonism, suspicion, fear, sense of threat, hostility, hatred, losing of one's humanity (in tne name of the "sacredness" of only my group), conflict, constant warring hell on earth and LACK OF SECURITY for everyone!!
The SHORT-SIGHTED STUPIDITY OF RELIGIOUS TRIBALISM must create this hell reality because we are taught to believe the lie that those who subscribe to our religious identity are more entitled to safety than others, entitled to security even if it comes at the expense of others (those who are not considered part of our tribalist identity).
Amazing that after millenia of evidence to the contrary, human beings in the 21st century still continue to fall for this TRIBALIST STUPIDITY, short-sightedness and fragmentation that clearly and obviously brings the exact opposite of safety and security and that creates a divisive hell on earth, the hell of atomised tribalist groups all armed to the teeth and murdering each other in the name of the supposed exclusive sacredness of their own religious or national identity ("may god bless these ones, not those ones, but these ones, the ones subscribing to our identity"). Madness!!!
God is not jewish, or christian, or muslim or hindu or any other idiotic and petty religious label that divides human beings and makes people murder each other in the name of this stupid religious label.
If you'll notice, the time when human beings act in the most cruel, murderous, hateful, unGodly ways is when we are under the influence of sectarian conservative RELIGIOUS CONVICTION, and its inevitable tribal/national divisions, victimhood stories, hatreds, conflicts and organized nationalistic murder known as war (all done in the name of tribalist religion's so-called god, no less..)
To me, to believe that a petty divisive religious label (whether 'christian' or 'muslim' or 'jew' or 'hindu' etc) is who you actually are (I'm a muslim, i'm a jew, i'm a christian) is not only the most childish, blind, insensitive, stupid and invalidating (of our humanity) thing in the world, it also destroys love and is violent and war promoting, becasue it SEPARATES you from the rest of humanity, and it INEVITABLY promotes division, and makes you see labels before seeing human beings. Which is another way of saying, denies love and strips us of our humanity in exchange for a stupid religious label
But WE ARE NOT LABELS, JEFF. WE ARE HUMAN BEINGS!!!
I just can't find the right words for how stupid and destructive it seems to me to say 'I am a muslim, I am a jew, I am a christian'. The moment you say that and believe in this nonsense, you are immediately and INEVITABLY in opposition to the rest of humanity (those who don't subscribe to your petty little religious identity), you have INEVITABLY seperated yourself from humanity, and you are then INEVITABLY an agent of division and fragmentation.
To me, SECTARIAN DIVISIVE (NON-UNIVERSAL) RELIGION IS THE COMPLETE AND UTTER NEGATION OF GOD, NEGATION OF THE SACREDNESS OF HUMANITY.
In my view, If a religion is not universal (unity-based) but sectarian/tribalist (as unfortunately pretty much all of misguided conservative religions today are) then this type of DIVISIVE SECTARIAN religion is in my view a profound distortion of what God actually is.
Such a tribalist divisive religion is also profoundly destructive to our ability to bring our essence as Love into expression/manifestation on this earth, becasue SECTARIAN conservative (anti-unity anti-wholistic) religion is the number one cause for the division of humanity and therefore the number one cause for creating antagonism, conflict, war and INSECURITY for human beings on earth, and the number one cause for moving us away from God, from Love, from our Unity, and from the essence of life..
In my view, sectarian, tribalistic, divisive anti-wholistic, Love-denying (because its love is reserved only to those who subscribe to its specific tribalist identity), cruel, war-mongering tribalist conservative religion is therefore one of the most (if not THE MOST) life-destroying and God-denying forces on this earth.
Addendum: I now read your post that you linked to in the comment and i think it is a really wise post and is truly the way forward. I do wish Jeff would read it and reflect upon it becasue from his current writings he seems to be moving in the completely opposite direction of holistic wisdom, into the childish one-sided blindness of fragmentary tribalism, religious victimhood and national chauvinism. An extremely short-sighted, one-sided and destructive direction, in my view.
Oh, and by the way, you mignt appreciate this essay from the wise Dr. Glen Martin. It touches upon the exact themes you mentioned in your post, of wholism and nationalist fragmentation https://oneworldrenaissance.com/2021/01/23/holism-fragmentation-and-our-endangered-future-a-new-vision-and-a-new-hope
Thank you. You also made some very good points and your passion is felt and appreciated. I will read the essay you recommended by Dr. Martin. Thank you very much 🙏
There is actually plenty more i wanted to say previously but had to stop short becasue of space limits. For example, about how the zionist billionaire ruling class works in several different ways to make jews feel threatened and unsafe, in order to stay in power over us (i might elaborate on those ways later if i have the time). That is, the only reason people keep begrudgingly voting for the right-wing representitives of the billionaire predators who are fleecing israelis blind (did you know that more than 45 thousand holocaust survivors in israel live below poverty and don't have even the most basic necesitites, or that israel has the third largest wealth inequality gap in the world, with 18 ultra-rich billionaire families owning more than 76% of the country's GDP, and 23% of israelis living below the poverty line. You can read all about the attack of zionists on ordinary jews here https://www.pdrboston.org/israel-s-government-attacks-jews-to), the only reason some israelis still begrudgingly vote for the right-wing billionaire predators and their representitives is because these nationalist deceivers present themselves as the ones who will protect the people from the "evil monstrous scary antisemitic enemy over there who is coming to get ya. But don't worry, we the patriotic billionaires and our right-wing representitives really really love you and we want to protect you from that evil monstrous scary antisemitic enemy over there who is irrationally hostile towards the zionist state for some strange unknown reason. So don't worry, we will protect you, just make sure you keep voting for us so that we can keep transferring society's wealth upwards to the ultra-rich". That is the reason why the zionist billionaire ruling class (who don't give a shit about ordinary jews and attack jews regularly, as i will show later) MUST keep jews constantly in a state of existential fear and a sense of threat. Tribalist division, fear, violence and hatred is the BREAD AND BUTTER of right-wing billionaires' divide-and-control over the people. I might come back later to give more details on this, but for now you can see this research paper https://www.pdrboston.org/israel-s-government-attacks-jews-to which shows you exactly how the zionkst manipulators do this (see also the links leading out from it).
As well as see this profoundly important paper, that explains in detail and with numerous examples the principle of the BOOGYMAN ENEMY that the billionaire ruling class are using to scare people and ensure our loyality to them (as the ones who will protect us from the "evil scary enemy") https://www.pdrboston.org/oppressors-need-bogeyman-enemies.
Once this BOOGYMAN ENEMY principle is understood, then you can go back to the first research paper (here https://www.pdrboston.org/israel-s-government-attacks-jews-to) to see clearly how the zionist billionaire elite are employing this principle against ordinary jews.
I mignt come back later to say more on this and show all the ways that the zionist elite predators are using to attack and scare ordinary jews (both directly and indirectly) in order to keep jews living in fear and therefore in loyalty and obedience to the zionist billionaire elite (who are sold to people as the supposed "protectors of jews"), but for now i'll have to leave it at that.
Treasure yourself. 🙏 thank you for sharing your heart.
I can relate. I was the only girl in my Hebrew school back in the late 50’s in Chicago. I had a Bas Mitzva and couldn’t approach the Torah. Oh course, I walked away right afterward. When I went to The Wall and saw the women separated, that feeling of separation poured through me. Walls….our inner walls being out-pictured by the outer ones. Thank You Jeff for all the ways you’ve blended creativity with Your Soul Journey. I am journeying with You as You share so openly, so deeply, your feelings and your relationship to the Jewish experience. Many Blessings🙏
I recently saw the movie a Real Pain. I thought it was such a good job with the whole way generational trauma can impact different people. It's always there, that feeling we have to be ready to grab things and run.
So very moving. Thank you for writing from your heart.
Wow wow wow
So generous of you to share this Jeff, thank you.
Jeff, this was so moving. And so spot on I think for many of us Jews who were disconnected from our history, and then somehow have found our way back to connection our tribe in the last 5 years or so. I have not been to Israel yet, but the pull is there for sure when before I was what I would call a non-Zionist. I didn't understand the need for Israel. I do now more than ever, especially when some of our own brethren empathize suicidally with those who wouldn't think twice to off us.
I find the idea that Jews shouldn't have a homeland utterly preposterous. In a world where they are regularly hunted, thank God they have a country to call home. Just to be here, to witness the young soldiers every 50 yards, to feel the determined vibration of all the people (not just Jews), you totally get that this place is essential.
Thank you! Love this.
Thank you for sharing! I think for many of us this past period has made us realize just how Jewish we actually are - for me it certainly has been that way. I haven't been raised with any Jewish traditions or anything, and even though I am of mixed descent this void on the Jewish side is largely due to the Holocaust. These past 1,5 years have often given me the feeling that these roots were being kicked back to life because they were so heavily under attack. As if I was forced to acknowledge them on a much deeper level than ever before because they were suddenly in so much pain, where before they may have just been numb. And all the opinions and gaslighting about our history has ultimately only made it more and more clear to me that speaking for myself, this ancestral connection undoubtedly leads to the desert in the Middle East and not anywhere else. None of the lands that my ancestors lived in - and fled from - in the meantime has ever truly been a place to root. This is more clear to me than ever before because I have really been open to seeing it if the truth would lead me elsewhere and it simply did not. Ancestral memories also have their own way of speaking, through our blood, from our bones, these voices are sacred and not something that should be up for discussion.
The 'tribal consciousness' that people tend to speak of negatively nowadays is something that I do not believe we can or should transcend. I believe we need to understand it and respect it. It can have it's downsides just as anything can, but there is also a sacred, beautiful and meaningful aspect to it. It has purpose, a purpose that can never be replaced.
Sending some extra love to all my Jewish brothers and sisters all over the world!
What a touching account of your first visit to Israel and the generational healing it brought.
I’m Israeli (and Jewish off course) living outside of Israel for 13 years now. I can’t say that I’m always at war but I can say that I’m a warrior who’s able to protect what I feel is right to protect when the time is calling for it. After October 7 I never felt so close to my Jewish roots. I’m still not at war with anyone since I don’t have to actively fight antisemitism in my daily life, thought friends of mine in the country I live now do. I feel that the idea of being a warrior is something that I’ve inherited. Unlike the disgusting hateful comments above (I honestly don’t know how these people can still breath with lungs and heart filled with so much hate) my grandfather who survived 5 death camps - including the death march- did not see himself as a victim. He (as far as I can say) saw himself as a warrior. Maybe I’ve inherited that from him as well - minding my own business, investing my energies and time in supporting and building and going actively to fight only when being directly attacked. I cherish the legacy I’ve inherited from my ancestors. Since October 7 I’m wearing more regularly and over my short the Star of David medallion they bought me at the old quarters of Prague, after we’ve had a root journey together. Being born to a Jewish legacy is no small karma and you are the perfect soul to carry onward the uncompromising wisdom. Thank you for who you are <3