Egyptian el-Sisi and Turkish Erdogan represent two completely opposite models: The former “sort of” took leadership by force, but seems to impose democracy and relative secularism. The latter reached power democratically, but seems to impose a religious theocracy. The built-in weakness of democracy is the option to eliminate it from within, using democratic tools. This […]

This one really pissed me off. All this talks about the “Chosen People” always makes me feel uncomfortable. I am a Jew but I am not “chosen” in any way. Either I am the only person aboard (and all the rest are products of my imagination, a la Descartes) or everyone else is similarly “chosen”. […]

This morning I watched the Israeli Channel 2 morning program. The interview that caught my attention hosted two known figures, Dov Halbertal and Emily Amrusi, allegedly representing “left” and “right”, eagerly discussing “from both sides of the fence” the future of the Jewish nation and the State of Israel. Two people who believe that some […]

The art of inventing excuses is an old art. Most of our ancient “sacred” texts contain a myriad of contradictions and conflicts, but being “sacred” – these contradictions and conflicts must be resolved… How can the gods be mistaken? The good news is that it’s relatively easy to come up with solutions to practically everything. […]

“Religion is the opium of the people” is one of the most frequently quoted sayings of Karl Marx. Religion and economy don’t mix well, like oil and water. Together, they tend to form a vicious circle: Religion promotes poverty, which promotes religion. It takes a great leader, someone like Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, to pull a […]

“Religious media” is much like “religious university” – sort of oxymoron. The purpose of media in general and newspapers in particular is to convey information and opinions about the world around us. Religiously-oriented media and newspapers often convey information and opinions, but about another world. Want some examples? Sure you do. Here are some references […]

The Wailing Wall is considered as one of the most sacred Jewish places. Historically it is said to be the western wall of the ancient Jewish temple, known also as the Western Wall “It is a remnant of the ancient wall that surrounded the Jewish Temple’s courtyard, and is arguably the most sacred site recognized […]

So the Israeli elections are behind us, or so it seems. The media is super-busy with coverage, providing occupation for tens of local analysts and commentators, not to mention hundreds of comedians and other jokers making fun of our elected representatives, often rightfully. Most of the statistics we hear about refer to allegedly “important” things: […]

Whad’ya know, it’s election time again in Israel. And in election time, the rules of nature change. While nearly everyone tends to look at things from the traditional “political left and right” point of view, it seems that almost every major political party tends to place at least one religious figure in its list of […]

I have often been asked how the State of Israel will look when its Haredi (ultra Orthodox) people are the majority of Jewish people. I admit this is a bit like asking for a prophecy, but in practice I can identify two conflicting trends. One trend is in favor of an increasing Haredi population and […]