We also have the Green Party who did very well They won 4 seats and a +4% change in their vote share. However, over 300 Green party candidates agreed with various antiIsrael sentiments - this seems to be where the far left now nds its anti-Israel voice.
What is remarkable is what I have written above can be found in this week’s Parsha –the most political Parsha in the Torah.
Korach is all about rebellion. The parsha begins with Korach and co complaining to Moshe:
“You have gone too far This entire assembly, all of us, we are kadosh, why do you raise yourself up above Hashem’s congregation?” Bamidbar16:3
What makes you more important than us, what makes you senior and lording over us
This is a direct confrontation against the leadership of Moshe and Aharon.
And the rst question we must ask is why? Why now?
And the answer is because of what’s just happened.
The last parsha, Shelach Lecha, was a disaster for the Jewish people. Moshe’s approval ratings would have plummeted. Suddenly the infallible leader of the Jewish people, the man who had taken us out of Egypt, who had brought us to Har Sinai, who had been chosen by Hashem and performed unbelievable miracles, had now overseen the disaster of the spies.
They would say '“Moshe it was your idea, you sent the spies in, and it went terribly. We now have forty years of wandering in the desert. People are going to die before their time, not going to see the land of Israel - It’s a tragedy.”
Korach realises this is the time to strike. It could be that he has had these ideas for years, but he was waiting. Waiting until his opponent was at his lowest before he could strike
Similarly, the Tories approval ratings have been plummeting for years. They haemorrhaged support to the left and the right as well as to voter apathy and were probably at their lowest ebb. For Labour it was a perfect time for an election – which is ironic, because Rishi Sunak chose the date!
However, the really interesting take on the election and the wider issue of the current anti-Israel sentiment is later in the parsha.
And Moshe sent for Datan and Aviram to come. They said, “ we are not coming to talk with you. ” Bamidbar 16:12
Who are Datan and Aviram? They are the people who hate Moshe, even if Moshe saved the lives of slaves in Egypt, they are ungrateful.
There’s just nothing Moshe can ever do to get praise from Datan and Aviram.
Who are Datan and Aviram today?
They are the people who hate the Jewish people. It doesn’t matter what we do – I’m not talking to you, I’m not going to discuss anything with you, because I hate you. I am not going to look at the facts, not going to enter into a discussion with you
What’s even more interesting is that Datan and Aviram have got into bed with Korach. Datan and Aviram have a massive problem with what? With Moshe lording it all over everyone else. They don’t like that. However, to get into bed with a Levite, with Moshe’s cousin, with the same family, in essence they are going to have the same issues. But they are blind to it. Because what is governing them is their hatred of Moshe. They loathe him with a passion, they are willing to work with somebody who they know, or they should know, is never going to deliver for them.
It’s the same today We have this ridiculous alliance between the Islamists and the radical left. Knowing full well that what the radical left stands for in terms of gender equality and sexuality, is an anathema to Islamists. But they get into bed together, why? Because they hate the Jewish people, they hate Israel. Unnatural bedfellows may hate each other but they will unite against a common enemy In the case in the parsha it is Moshe.
In our case today, Israel and the Jewish people
Now listen to what Datan and Aviram say to Moshe. It’s remarkable. They won’t come talk to him, but they will make a statement to the press And what’s their statement?
“It’s not enough that you have brought us up from a land owing with milk and honey to cause us to die in the wilderness - you wouldalso lord it over us!” Bamidbar 16:13
That’s a complete and utter lie!
He brought them up from the land of Egypt where they were enslaved for 210 years by horri c taskmasters!!
Two weeks ago, the Jewish people had talked about how they had leeks and cucumbers in Egypt, they were just being delusional. This is a complete and utter lie and not just any lie. Look at the language.
You brought us up from שׁבדוּבלחתבזץרא - the very land that Moshe has said we’re going to, and they are now using that same phrase to condemn Moshe.
It’s ridiculous, it’s absolutely crazy But that’s EXACTLY what’s happening today
The lies that are said by Israel and Jew haters are remarkable. They are using the moral fortitude of Israel against us The fact is, that Israel has been so precise when destroying Hamas terrorists with remarkable accuracy. Never before in any warfare have we seen such limited deaths from airstrikes in terms of civilian casualties.
Normally the ratio of the civilian to combatant in these wars is 9:1. The battle with ISIS and battles in other places when the UK or the USA have had to shoot and re missiles there have been huge amount of deaths of civilians. It’s war, it unfortunately happens.
However, with the IDF, the death toll has been so much smaller in comparison with the upper estimates being a civilian combatant ratio of 1:1, but as far as our enemies are concerned it is purposeful butchery and murder of Palestinian children. Just look at the campaigns of some of those standing for Parliament across the UK.
It’s such a lie. Of course, we grieve any death that happened but don’t give me a blatant lie
Then: “You took us out from a land owing with milk and honey.”
Now: “You’re butchering and murdering Palestinian children.”
It’s mad but that’s the hatred. They so passionately hate the Jewish people, so passionately hate Moshe. They will outright lie and just say something completely ridiculous that it is even trying to abuse what that person or country stands for.
You can’t negotiate, you can’t argue, you can’t debate with these people. They are irrational.
The hatred for Israel at the moment that comes from certain parts of the media, certain parts of academia and of course of the political left is obscene. It’s illogical, irrational
and hateful But we see it in Datan and Aviram And we even sometimes see it unfortunately in Korach from our own family.
So, what does Moshe say after this outburst?
This distressed Moshe greatly and he said to Hashem “Pay no regard to their offerings, I have not taken a single donkey of theirs nor have I wronged even one of them.” Bamidbar 16:15
It’s the same line that the Israeli government quite rightly says, we have done everything in our power, we’ve done nothing but try to help. We gave them Gaza in 2005, we left them greenhouses, schools and everything to build an infrastructure to live in a beautiful society. Yet they destroyed it all and built weapons and rockets to murder our civilians.
It is so upsetting for Israel to see what’s happened to Gaza. Even when they try and destroy the terrorists and the terrorist infrastructure and limit the civilian casualties, they are still condemned by the world, condemned by Datan and Aviram, condemned by their family, the modern day Korachs
Of course, we know the end of the story in Korach. The end of the story is tragic. That Hashem basically says no more, and he and his sympathisers are wiped out and Moshe is vindicated and his vision, our vision, God’s vision for the Jewish people is intact.
However, we have to realise, Torah is timeless. The lessons of Korach against Moshe. The lessons of Datan and Aviram against Moshe. The alliance between Datan and Aviram and Korach. These things aren’t just ancient stories in the Torah. They are as today internally with our people and externally with the world.
Korach is a very tragic story, but we have to realise that the story is still being told and acted out today.
So, we have a new government – hatzlacha to Keir Starmer and enjoy having Friday night off! We will watch with interest if the politics of envy, division and anger can be replaced by what Rabbi Sacks called, the politics of hope. He will have his challenges and so will the new opposition parties (I think there are now three of them!)
However, there are issues that concern us and we must be vigilant. Yet we must also be con dent that, just as in the times of Korach, eventually good will triumph Just as then, the journey of the Jewish people to Israel was completed in unity, we must pray that now, we can, as a people, also complete that journey.
Bimheira V Yamenu
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