Oldnewlands #10
On the Chosen People, PTSD, and the Way to Support Me
Something Old
Jews view themselves as “The Chosen People”, which immediately stands out to many as, simply put, racist. But a people could be chosen to do all sorts of tasks, some of which are unpleasant, difficult, and limit freedoms — not necessarily a desirable thing to everyone. After watching a series of lectures by Israel Knohl, I understand that the Jewish tradition of “The Choice” may have started when a group of people, being far from any source of power or even ample sustenance, in the middle of the northern Arabian desert, managed to do something improbable — survive. God followed (עקב, from which the name Jacob comes) and saved them.
This unlikely survival may have inspired that group’s members’ explanation that Yahweh, as they called him, chose to save them for a reason. With that conviction, they went on to settle land and become a civilization in order to fulfill their side of the deal, to live by God’s laws and promote the values they viewed as progressive and fitting at the time. This is a very demanding life-mission that did not evolve from a simple belief that Jews are better than everyone else, but from a place of gratitude and education, trying to understand what the peoples that lived in Eretz Israel before did wrong, that caused them to be wiped out (according to the Bible).
This also explains why Judaism does not promote conversion like universalist religions (Christianity, Islam, Baha’i, etc.). First of all, Judaism is very much rooted in Eretz Israel, and its mission was to prosper here, not conquer the world. Secondly, it makes no sense for anyone whose history doesn’t trace back to the story of the miraculous survival in the desert to take upon themselves the duties of living as a practicing Jew. It is a hard life (I’ll be the first to admit I’m not ready to do barely any mitzvah), and God never required other Goyim to commit to those duties to earn a good life.
At the same time, Judaism, unlike the Druze faith, for example, allows people to join if they feel a calling deep inside them, which is a nice thing to do for people who choose, in turn, to enter into the covenant with God.
By the way, it’s interesting to think about the parallels between God’s choosing of the Jews and American Exceptionalism.
Something New
Each and every customer in the brightly lit supermarket stopped to cover their ears in shock when the familiar sounds began to fill the space they were in. If candescent neon lights and shelves stacked with a million eye-catching products weren’t overwhelming enough, now these screeches and squeaks that will last for half an hour at least… A collective thought rose to the rafters of the building, “Oh God, please make this stop”.
Jake, the young man who was the cause of this God-invoking ordeal, wished he could provide relief, but he could only join the others in their impromptu prayer, not believing anymore in his own ability to curtail the cacophony. In fact, shortly after entering the store, Jake left empty-handed and hungry - physically, emotionally, and mentally.
Back home, Jake looked in the mirror, still with darting eyes, just in case... The absurdity of wearing a rusty full-body medieval suit of armor 24/7 was glaring. And yet, the nightmarish memories circulating in his psyche will never, it seemed like, let him take his guard down. Relief would only come when he is recognized as something else than a used-up champion with a cracked soul, and this is not just up to him. It’s up to us as well, otherwise despondency will prevail.
A post-war Israel is a country that needs to find a way to heal its wounds, by healing the wounds of its PTSD sufferers. I am not an expert on PTSD, but I’ve known enough sufferers to notice that PTSD is partly a realization of how horrid, unfair, and ugly the world can be, and often is. In other words, a total loss of naïveté jeopardizes our very existence by killing our hope that the future holds good things. Healing from mental injuries doesn’t happen when we find a way to vacate our minds from “the bad stuff”. Instead, we must find a way to proactively do good in our societies. PTSD is a societal wound on the level of the individual, and what heals it is a rejuvenated and beneficial mutual relationship between the person and the people.
You, me, all of us need to have hope, find a good cause, and involve everyone, especially those with psychic injuries, in realizing it. I wrote before that I’ve been waiting to hear Alon Ohel playing the piano again, and play he did, on Israel’s top satire show. The song is a hopeful one, and talks about love (to Greta’s dismay). The whole thing is healing for everyone involved. Watch it here
Something Else
This is a longish edition, I know… Here’s a quick follow-up to last week’s Words of Gratitude: I set up a page through which you can support my work on this newsletter. Of course, this cannot replace actually coming here and encouraging your friends to come for a tour, too, which is still my preferred method of support.
You can make a one-time donation or sign up for a subscription-type thing HERE.
Thank you once again to all of you willing patrons! I hope to see you in Israel soon.