Jews Strive to Restore Sea-Tac Airport's Christmas Trees

Toward Tradition ^ | December 11, 2006 | Rabbi Daniel Lapin

[McGavin999]

Exactly thirteen years ago, a brick was thrown through a Jewish home’s window in Billings, Montana because inside that window was displayed a menorah. Within days, over six thousand Christian homes in Billings protested that anti-religious bigotry by displaying menorahs in their windows.

God I love my country.

[Mr. Mojo]

"They have this attitude that pisses me off and I'm getting tired of it. Having only 5% of the population"

Who's "they"? If you're under the impression that more than a handful of American Jews agree with the actions of this rabbi you're quite uninformed.

[Salem]

Please forgive the double ping on this thread.

"If the Religious Right in this country perceives that the Jewish religion is assaulting it (as opposed to the notorious liberal jewish lawyers that routinely do so), support for Israel itself will plummet like a rock."

As a member of the "Religious Right," I disagree. Those in my camp who support Israel, do so for reasons eternal, and certainly convictions much more deep that our dedication should be swayed by what amounts to a temporal skirmish in America's culture wars.

That being said, the on-site rep. for Chabad.org, Alouette, has gone to great lengths apologizing for this misunderstanding in behalf of Orthodox Judaism (which I'm sure the one Rabbi who started this has already heard an earful from his peers).

She represents Judaism in our eyes, especially here at Free Republic. Not this gentleman.

---

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spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass. (Joshua 21:45)
Letter To The President In Support Of Israel ~
'Final Solution,' Phase 2 ~
Warnings ~

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" ... It's time we recognized the nature of the conflict. It's total war and we are all involved. Nobody on our side is exempted because of age, gender, or handicap. The Islamofacists have stolen childhood from the world."—FReeper Retief
"Palestine is the wrong name for their State. It should be called Anarchy."—FReeper sgtbono2002
"Then let's wait and see what the Arabs do after they take Gaza. There's nothing like Arab reality to break up a Jewish fantasy."—FReeper Noachian
A student told his professor he was going to "Palestine" to "fight for freedom, peace and justice,"—Orwellian leftist code words that mean "murder Jews."
The Nature Of Bruce ~

[sageb1]

I want to see Christmas trees, nativity scenes, and menorahs at Christmas. It's how I grew up. What scares me is the idea that the next thing we're going to see is a request that all public places be adorned with the crescent and star during Ramadan. Any idea how we get around that one?

[WashingtonSource]

Rabbi Lapin understands very well all that is at stake. God bless him.

[EveningStar]

You're an idiot.

[EveningStar]

He's full of crap. Don't listen to him.

[TaraP]

Maybe Seatac refused to put up a Mennorah because thier peabrains thought they would also have to honor the wiccans with thier Dec 21st holiday We are no longer a Judeo Christian Nation. People are just plain goofy now... The Eight Sabbats or Wiccan Holidays YULE: December 21 Celebrating the Rebirth of the sun. This holiday is also known as winter solstice. A fire and a Yule log are present. A piece of the old yule log is kept for the next Yule to light the new log....this is also used to protect the home during the year. People also say this starts the wheel of the year, with the idea that the years turns continuous with spokes making the seasonal holidays

[gogogodzilla]

I signed it. I don't think Jews should prevent the majority in this country from observing their holiday. If the situation was reversed, I wouldn't stand for it either. "Merry Christmas," every one!

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The situation was already reversed and the rabbi tried to fix it. For the situation that existed was that Christmas displays were allowed, but no Chanukah ones. Which is why he asked for one to be included (obviously, to no avail).

But instead of fixing the problem by having both a Christmas tree and a menorah up, the Port Authority director kept with the '@ss-backward' tradition of bureaucracy and decided to end all holiday expressions.

[sageb1]

Chin up. It's conservative Jews and Christians against the world.

[ripley]

"so taking it out on the jewish population as a whole is rather ludicrous."

expressing one's opionion is not scapegoating.

[sarasmom]

You seem ever ready to constantly condemn Christians, as if they are the eternal "enemies" of the Jews.

Amazing that you are still allowed to spew your constant anti-Christianity rants here.

[gogogodzilla]

So the only reason the Religious Right supports Israel is because the Jews in America take a subservient stance regarding them?

Is that how it's supposed to work?

[SJackson]

They have this attitude that pisses me off and I'm getting tired of it...Having only 5% of the population they sure do sound like little yapping dogs....The muslims in detroit are picking up on their antics and are now playing copy cat !

I presume it's der Juden of whom you speak.

Yapping dogs, that works though sons of monkeys and pigs is more current.

5%, naah, those who self identify are a lousy 1.2% or so, 2% would be a high estimate. You're letting your fear overtake you.

And yes, those Muslims (it's capital M), they're learning everything from the yapping dog Jews.

[SJackson]

Only stupid members of the public will do this.

Lot's of them out there.

[RonDog]

If the situation was reversed, I wouldn't stand for it either...

See also, from www.beliefnet.com:

...Children learn in many ways: sometimes by example, sometimes by the power of a compelling story, and sometimes by the realization that human beings can be capable of extraordinary acts of courage and goodness.

All three elements came together in Billings, Montana, during the holiday season of 1993.

No one knew why it started, but 12 years ago the town of Billings began to be infiltrated by skinheads and members of racist groups. The tiny minority of Jews, African Americans, and mixed-race families who lived there were immediately targeted for acts of hate.

Though the vast majority of residents were white and Christian, they chose to take a principled stand based upon their conviction that an act of hate toward one citizen was an act of hate toward all. Many individuals and groups rose up to respond. For example, the Billings Painters Union offered to repaint for free any houses or businesses that had been spray painted with racial or religious epithets. And members of churches with predominantly white congregations came to the African Methodist Episcopal Church to pray with black neighbors when menacing skinheads began to show up at church services.

But then, as the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah approached, Jews became a special target. Windows in Jewish homes displaying Hanukkah menorahs began to be smashed. Jewish families were advised to remove their menorahs until the perpetrators were caught, but they resisted.

And so menorahs continued to be displayed and windows continued to be smashed. Ultimately, in a show of solidarity and support, tens of thousands of Billings residents displayed paper menorahs in their windows...

[TaraP]

He's really not Anti-Christian but a very fair poster to all, plus he loves animals...:)

[EveningStar]

You're post is paranoid and stupid. SJackson does no such thing.

[SJackson]

I want to see Christmas trees, nativity scenes, and menorahs at Christmas. It's how I grew up. What scares me is the idea that the next thing we're going to see is a request that all public places be adorned with the crescent and star during Ramadan. Any idea how we get around that one?

Simple, get rid of all displays on public property.

[dyed_in_the_wool]

Christmas trees are not religious symbols. Sure, folks will try to assert religious meaning, however, they are areligious.

I'm sure some armchair cultural anthropologist will point out where I'm wrong.

Beyond that, if the rabbi didn't want to make trouble then why bring a lawyer?