Ping
Juggle fire and a body might be burned....
Yes, fighting fire with fire is ultimately unsuccessful. Keep above the fray. It’s worked out great so far.
Are these those stupid Haredis again, who are exempt from service in the IDF? If so, this once again proves they have way too much time on their hands.
Leave it to the BBC and others to skew things royally. Before this gets further out of hand, here is an explanation of what this is, and what it actually means.
First, you need to understand something about how Rabbis and Torah scholars view things. We debate and look at every side of a question, theory, or an issue, even if it is unpopular, or seemingly off the wall. We do this in reference to the Torah, the Talmud, Halacha, and other many other sefers and text written by our sages, throughout the many generations.
Torat HaMelech is NOT, I repeat NOT, about how, when or why Jews may kill gentiles. The book is about under what circumstances, and when, a soldier is permitted to kill. It is a sefer- a book- regarding military ethics. The question is if war is allowed, then what could justify the taking of life. There must always be a distinction between circumstances when killing is permitted- necessary and not permitted.
And, if you know anything at all about Judaism, we do NOT like taking life, and go out of our way to prevent it- often, to great danger to ourselves.
An example of this is when Israelis drop warning leaflets from their fighter jets, giving civilians warning to get out of an area because of a coming Israeli attack. What other people/nation does that???
In this particular book, the authors look at the question from a number of different theories. Some of these views are very calloused, some are based upon the Noahide laws, some on the Kabbalah, others are by “target priorities” and others by “universal military ethics, in which civilians/ civilian areas are unfortunately part of the target. An example of this would be the Allied bombing of Dresden, Germany.
But it is important to be very clear on one thing. Jews are not permitted to kill gentiles, any more than they are permitted to kill other Jews. But, in war, if someone comes to kill you, you are required to defend yourself, family, people, and nation.
What is very apparent is that the world does not seem to think Jews have a right to defense, let alone survive. And when Rabbis write a sefer on such theory for Rabbinic review, which is exactly what Torat HaMelech was, the Anti-Semites start to salivate over something new and exciting to skew and use. So, if anyone is under this impression, let me ease your minds and nip this craziness in the bud.....No the Jews are not coming to kill you......
‘The King’s Torah’ – a clash of values
http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Op-EdContributors/Article.aspx?id=228069
The thesis has historical precedent. Modernininity is all about peace and love. The thought is about replacing those methods and actions that promote survival and reverts to the norm.
When push comes to shove, death is a highly underrated motivator.
http://www.thesanhedrin.org/en/index.php/Hachrazah_5770_Cheshvan_30
Concerning the book “Torat haMelech (Laws of the King) - Capital offenses between Israel and the Nations”
1. There are two kinds of books in Jewish law: books published which have been universally accepted by all the scholars of Israel for practical rulings in Jewish law (probably the last one of this type was published in 1965[1]) and study books; Shapira and Elitzur’s book “Torat haMelech” is a study book. Even a partial review of the material shows it contains a study of mostly medieval material and the opinion of the researchers, and does not attempt to survey modern halachic authorities on the subject.
2. The book is one of about 30,000 study works published by thousands of researchers in our time. This book is one of the studies, and like the rest, it does not obligate anyone.
3. It is not meant to be a ruling in Jewish Law, but rather a summary of some of material written on the subject. Even the endorsements of rabbis who gave their endorsement were praising the efforts to study, not suggesting to use this book in the application of practical Jewish Law.
4. The book is not sold in stores, and obviously it is not meant for the general public unfamiliar with the material, and can only be obtained by direct request to the authors[2] The authors are not known as halachic masters or decisors in Jewish Law...