Outcasts

Gathering in midtown Manhattan to listen to a famous French philosopher, liberal and peacemaker would seem like an event that should cause no one any concern. But Temple Emanuel had police, security guards, detectors, checking women’s purses during Bernard-Henri Levy’s conversation with Tablet editor Alana Newhouse. There were even police at the podium and when Levy signed autographs.

A new life in democracy

Attention to security has become commonplace in Jewish life in America. Major churches have open access, no security even for mass attendance during the holidays, and police are on duty outside synagogues if the doors are open. Attacks on Jews, threats and insults, and vandalism have become routine statistics.

The current situation of Jews is often compared to the pre-Holocaust era. But when it comes to world reaction, the comparison is wrong. Although Nazi propaganda tried to show that Germany’s policies and actions were motivated only by a desire to restore justice, to regain her historic lands seized after World War I, and a desire to free the country and the world from Jewish control, the world saw and understood the essence of Nazism. Hamas and its patrons have the same goals and rhetoric as the Nazis, but the world’s reaction is fundamentally different.

The world of the last few decades is full of wars, internecine feuds with hundreds of thousands of casualties, millions of refugees, outright genocide, but the primary focus is on Israel and Zionism. The self-defense measures used by Israel would be justified for any other country under existential threat, but Israel has a different fate.

Today, anti-Semitism is unmasked, but sometimes one has to observe decorum and say that the wave of extremist protests is not anti-Semitism but anti-Zionism. Hatred of Jews existed centuries before the First Zionist Congress and the creation of Israel, and it is on full display even against Jews who deny Zionist ideals and stand in solidarity with Israel’s opponents.

Most Jewish organizations in the United States are critical of the Zionist Organization of America and the international Zionist movement. The main concern of Jewish liberals is minorities of color, homosexuals, illegal migrants, teaching Israel how to live and fight, and above all fighting Trump. They faithfully follow a Christian precept that few Christians follow: “If you are struck on the left cheek, turn the right cheek.” Or, in the Russian proverb, “Spit in your eyes, God’s dew.” 

70% of American Jews belong to the Reform movement that supports the Democratic Party, in which many anti-Semites have found refuge and acceptance. But Reformers persist in trying to befriend their haters, hoping to influence them with good deeds and enlightenment. And although the results are opposite to expectations, they are not going to give up their convictions.

Temple Emanuel, the largest synagogue in America, plays a leading role in the Reform movement that has displaced traditional Judaism, replacing it with a surrogate utopian vision of man and the world and political activism in support of the Democratic Party. It is the site of extensive educational outreach; lecturers and panelists are America’s political and cultural elite of liberal persuasion, with moderate dissenters occasionally invited as well.

From France with love and advice

Prof. Levy has spoken at Temple Emanuel and other American auditoriums on numerous occasions. He has taught at Harvard, Columbia, New York, and other institutions. A colorful figure, he has extensive international experience, many popular publications and documentaries.

Levy is a continuator of the tradition of French philosophy – Pascal, Descartes, Voltaire, Diderot, Montesquieu, Rousseau, Sartre. French philosophy largely shaped the humanistic ideas of Western democracy and had a great influence on America’s founding fathers.

Bernard-Henry Levy is one of the leaders of the New Philosophy, which rejects Marxism and Soviet-style socialism. Born in Algeria, he grew up in France in a wealthy Sephardic family and managed to increase the fortune he inherited. In the history of philosophy, whose founders preached asceticism and stoicism, the rejection of worldly temptations, he is definitely the richest representative of this science. While rejecting Marxism, he follows the Marxist approach: the task of philosophy is not only to explain but also to transform the world.

Many consider Levy’s views not philosophical but political journalism. There is also harsh criticism from philosophers of the academic school. But who today, being in the limelight, would avoid opponents and critics?

Levy focuses on the Islamic world in the hope of finding ways to reconcile it with Western civilization. He worked in Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Somalia, Libya, Syria, Tunisia, Iraq, Darfur, Rwanda, Bosnia, Pakistan, India, supporting liberation movements and struggles for independence, and hoped that enlightened Islam would defeat radical Islam.

He also approached the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from these positions. Although he was called a Zionist, an agent of Mossad, in many cases he was able to find ways to dialog between the warring parties, trying to be an objective mediator of good will.

But after October 7, there was a major change in his views and political stance. The next day he flew to Israel to witness the scale of the catastrophe and to support the Jewish state. It would seem that all discussions about responsibility, about the necessary measures should be over – the evil had revealed itself openly in all its essence. But most governments, international organizations, public opinion reacted differently, the victim was called a criminal, the murderers victims. Laws, human rights, freedom and justice have been trampled, from rampaging street mobs to elitist universities the values and conditions of being of the civilized world have been perverted and used to protect the terrorists, their inspirers and enablers.

Theory and practice

The conversation with Levy was moderated by Alana Newhouse, creator and editor of The Tablet, in my opinion the most insightful analytical journal in the field of socio-political relations and culture. The publication shows the perniciousness of liberal utopias, the degradation of democratic institutions, and the short-sightedness and ineffectiveness of the leadership of Jewish organizations.

Jewish students from Harvard, Columbia, and New York Universities Iola Ashkenazi, Bella Ingber, and Shabas Kestalbaum took part in the discussion and spoke about the current atmosphere at the universities, which find themselves at the mercy of left-liberal ideology and open anti-Semitism.

Levy recalled that even before the outbreak of hostilities in Gaza, condemnation of terrorists in speeches and statements of politicians and governments, UN resolutions was accompanied by the obligatory “but…” – It is necessary to understand and take into account the situation of Palestinians, whose rights are trampled by Israel.

The event took place on September 11, a memorable day for America and the world for the Islamist terrorist attack, after which the U.S. and allies declared a global war on terror. The military action and its aftermath resulted in million of casualties, millions of refugees, colossal economic losses. The civilized world understood the reasons for the war and did not question America’s right to act thousands of kilometers from its borders.

The approach to Israel is different, although the country has been living under a real existential threat for decades and the victims of October 7 in proportion to the population are more than 20 times greater than those in America on September 11. Hamas, Hezbollah, and their patron Iran are as much enemies of the free world as Al Qaeda and ISIS, but they are treated differently; the difference is defined by the fact that their hatred is directed primarily at the Jewish state.

The double standard was clearly evident before the tragedy; October 7 only exposed the hypocrisy of policies and actions of Israel’s accusers. Protests and demands for an immediate ceasefire leave open the question of hostages for an indefinite period of time, give an opportunity for blackmail, make it possible to put forward the condition of exchanging innocent people for many times more terrorists.

Israel announces in advance the place and time of military operations, often extends the deadlines, allows humanitarian aid, but its actions, not those of Hamas, are declared genocide.

Levy’s important point about the reasons for the global upsurge in anti-Semitism is that the world has seen that Israel, the pillar, the backbone, the symbol of Jewish security around the world, is vulnerable and cannot achieve its goals, that its hands are tied. The weakening of the Jewish state, its inability to defend itself, would be a disaster for all Jews in the world.

Levy notes in his book, Israel Alone, that ten prosperous Singapores, ten Abu Dhabis could have been created in Gaza, but Hamas, its allies and patrons, and the anti-Semites of the world do not want the well-being of the Palestinians, but the destruction of Israel. That is why Gaza is riddled with tunnels, where terrorists are hiding under cover of hostages, and not covered with skyscrapers, international aid is spent not on peaceful construction, but on terror and corruption.

The current wave of anti-Semitism is due to Israel’s distinct isolation, its weakness, as military operations are conducted under unprecedented international pressure. Levy’s main message is “Israel must win the war, you cannot give moral reinforcement to anti-Semites, the enemies of freedom and democracy.”

Levy made the necessary diplomatic reservations about the American presidential election, but quite clearly noted the difference in Kamala Harris’s approach to the war between Ukraine and Russia and Israel and Hamas. In the first case, unconditional support, in the second, stop the fire now, everything else is a continuation of utopias about two states living in peace and prosperity. Levy is clearly a man of high intellectual and moral merit, a good reporter from the hot spots of the planet, and the author of many humanistic books. The audience expected from him not only coverage of the situation, but also practical judgments – what to do and what not to do, what to expect in the future.

Levy called for a struggle, expressed confidence that most people are virtuous, but today the “silent majority” is inactive, stands aside; the task is to build bridges, to explain the stupidity and ignorance of anti-Semitic propaganda.

He calls for seeking allies among those fighting for civil rights and freedoms, such as the women of Iran and Afghanistan. If this was said by someone else, without Levy’s regalia and credibility, it would be considered naive at best. One needs not look so far for allies, Jews have always and everywhere tried to help by deed and word to the disenfranchised and discriminated against, but today it is obvious that in their time of need they are alone, while their haters find broad support.

Levy is charismatic, a good speaker with tremendous experience, and spoke to a favorable audience of liberal Jews who have spent their lives hoping to build bridges, educate, help minorities, immigrants, the poor. Today, the beneficiaries of Jewish friendship and charity participate in pro-Palestinian demonstrations, very few of them, except out of duty, will express sympathy or empathy for the victims of terror and anti-Semitic bacchanalia.

Levy has spent decades visiting sites of acute ethnic conflict, including in the Middle East, on a mission of peace and goodwill, using his authority and experience to seek solutions and compromise. One might ask: what has his efforts actually changed?

He is convinced that the Jews must win not only by relying on Israel’s military might, but above all on intellectual and moral superiority. It is hard to imagine that logic and conscience can prevent the next attack by Hamas and its associates.

In France, Levy’s homeland, where he has a national reputation, anti-Semitism has reached levels unprecedented in postwar history and hopes for change have vanished. Natan Sharansky, a Jewish human rights activist and former minister in the Israeli government, in a conversation with the famous French philosopher Alanine Finkelkraut, asked if there was a future for the Jews of France. The philosopher responded with the question, “Do the French have a future in France?” Finkelkraut’s prediction, “It’s going to get worse from here.” Levy and Finkelkraut receive death threats, and their high status and prominence does not provide security of life, nor does it for any French Jew.

Hundreds of books have been written on the subject of “How to fight anti-Semitism,” thousands of lectures and speeches have been given, and countless resolutions and statements have been passed. Levy’s book stands out against this background for its cogency, culture of thought and literary skill.

Temple Emmanuel’s leadership decided to send 6,000 copies of the book to universities in hopes of its positive educational impact. Holocaust literature and museums did not clear minds. October 7 did not open eyes.  Will there be a single student, stupefied by liberalism and anti-Semitism, who will change their minds after reading Levy’s book?

Levy insists that Israel must win the war, that compromise is unacceptable. Will his conviction affect the decision of his listeners and readers in the upcoming elections? It is quite obvious who will demand that Israel be deterred and who will not tie its hands. But it is unlikely that Jewish liberals will change their minds.

Attempts to understand Israel’s destiny and the place of Jews in the world have been made since ancient times. The answer to this question is given 3,436 years ago in the Torah, the holy book of Jews, Christians and Muslims: “The people shall live alone, and shall not be included among the nations.” (Torah, Numbers, Bemidbar 23:9.)