By Michael Kuttner…
This week we started reading the Torah portion from creation again.
The phrase which resonated loud and clear was the Hebrew expression “Tohu va-vohu” which literally translated means primordial emptiness, void, chaos, disorder and confusion.
I cannot think of a better and more apt description for the state of the world we currently face.
In the next Torah portion we will read about how violence, anarchy and humanity’s descent into a lawless society resulted in a climatic catastrophe.
There are potent lessons to be learnt from these Biblical accounts especially if we do not want to repeat the same fatal and flawed mistakes.
The Jewish People have seen it all over the millennia.
Current trajectories should send warning signals.
Examples abound – here are just a few choice selections.
Look no further than France for a glimpse at how chaos and disorder can triumph when there is a gaping governing void. For several weeks violent mobs have taken to the streets of numerous French cities causing damage, carnage and mayhem. Ostensibly rioting for better educational facilities the rioters have now broadened their grievances to a longer list of demands.
The scenes coming out of Paris and other cities convey a stark picture of a society disintegrating and are reminiscent of earlier periods in French history when the mobs ruled the streets.
What started out as protesting students very quickly attracted the support of the extreme political left and disaffected immigrants from former French Islamic colonies.
This volatile and potently lethal combination of student agitators and Zionist/Israel/Jew haters raises the probability of collateral damage to French Jews. Failure by Macron and his allies in suppressing this uprising is just another step towards the steady conquest of Europe by jihadist protagonists and their willing partners.
An astute commentator summed the situation up very well by describing France as “a sick country in a sick continent.”
Although not at present part of the European Union the United Kingdom is rapidly being infected with the same sickness rampant on that continent. Almost every weekend thousands of Hamas supporters and rabid Zionist/Jew haters march through the Capital spewing the vilest slogans and calling for the intifada to be globalized.
It now transpires that a Greens member who has been elected to the party’s “disciplinary” committee has been caught declaring a liking for some poisonous pronouncements. The declarations involved stated that “there is no country called Israel – there is only Palestine which is currently occupied by an army of international thieves and murderers.” Shocking as that statement may sound it merely exposes the true agenda of those steadily gaining influence in British political circles.
Actually, the Brits do not have a monopoly on these slanders. It is reported from the USA that the bottom line for all those demonstrating their allegiance to jihadist and anti Zionist ideologies is the removal of Israel and its replacement by an Islamic Palestine.
At the recent UK Labour Party conference the “proud Jewish Foreign Secretary” was given an ecstatic welcome by the Labour Friends of Palestine. Miliband did not disappoint his audience and delivered yet another condemnation of Israel. Contrast this with the fact that not one Cabinet member attended the Labour Friends of Israel gathering. It’s not hard to discern who the Burnham Government is cozying up to.
An indication of how primordial disorder is growing is provided by how the 7 October pogrom was “celebrated” worldwide.
According to the Israel Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, 262 anti Israel protests and events have been identified in 37 countries. The United States had the largest number of such events with 45, followed by Spain with 40, Australia with 21 protests, UK 19, and Italy 16. Germany and Canada followed with 14, France with 10 and Netherlands 8.
Pro Palestinian solidarity actions also occurred across every major part of the world including South Africa, Uruguay, Malaysia, Ecuador, South Korea and New Zealand.
One can express incredulity at these manifestations of international irrationality but when one looks more closely it is easy to understand how they have become a permanent feature of the political scenery.
On the one hand we can hear rote stuttering condemnations by political leaders of the heinous events which Hamas perpetrated three years ago.
On the other hand these same politicians almost without exception in their next breath manage to condemn Israel’s response and continuing efforts to defeat terror and real genocidal ambitions of terror patrons.
Brain addled protesters and media facilitators take their lead from the corrupt United Nations and its associated groups. The UN Secretary General barely manages to mumble meaningless comments.
One of the best examples of the international moral void now prevailing is the award of the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize to Navi Pillay, former UN human rights chief.
Anyone not irretrievably befuddled by what passes for human rights at the UN Council would not be surprised by this latest winner. Norway, the country which organizes this annual ceremony is not exactly a member of the Israel fan club. It in fact is considering three years incarceration for anyone caught and found guilty of the heinous crime of attempting to import any goods manufactured and sold in Judea, Samaria, Jerusalem or the Golan.
Pillay, this year’s winner, is the person responsible when she headed the UN Commission, for determining that Israel engaged in “genocide” while responding to the 7 October massacre by Hamas. With a track record like that it is only natural that she should be embraced by the Norwegian Nobel committee and accorded almost saint like status by the international media and sycophantic groupies.
Outrage at this travesty is a wasted exercise in futility. After all, if this same Nobel committee can award a “peace” prize to Arafat, the architect and promoter of intifadas, terror and duplicitous deceptions, nobody should be amazed at this year’s choice.
Look at the photo of Arafat, Peres and Rabin showing off their medals and certificates in Oslo in 1994.
Arafat is grinning like a Cheshire cat knowing that he has fooled everyone including gullible Jews into believing that the Oslo accords have purchased “peace.”
Peres is basking is some sort of self induced delusion that the new Middle East had finally arrived.
Rabin has a look which could very well say – “what the hell am I doing here?”
The Oslo fiasco of that year epitomizes the same warped thinking which rewarded this year’s candidate.
Hamas has warmly endorsed and congratulated Pillay which tells you everything you need to know about the recipient of this year’s prize.
If you think that absurdity has reached its ultimate limit let me detail two final examples of how a confused and irrational sickness is becoming increasingly prevalent.
The ambassador to the UK of fake “Palestine” made an astounding assertion. He claimed in all seriousness that “the Bible is a Palestinian book that was rewritten to be used against the original Christians and people of the book – i.e. the Palestinians.”
I have yet to discover any expressions of outrage from either the UK Government or interfaith bodies to this crass piece of fiction.
This is how the most outrageous lies gain a life of their own and, thanks to social media, become accepted dogma. It’s the oldest trick in the book and one which has proven to be adopted by all those looking for another conspiracy weapon with which to attack Israel and the Jews.
It also raises another question.
Where are all those countries which have recognized the fictional country of Palestine? Their silence in the face of continuing incitement exposes their hypocritical policies.
The last example of a world gone mad explains why western democracies are in a death spiral of their own making. The UK has lost control of its own borders as every day illegal boatloads cross the Channel from France. Woke authorities have no idea how many terrorists or jihadists are embedded in this influx.
According to reports in the British media, leaflets have been distributed advising men that in the UK that the rape of women is a criminal offense. Over one thousand free hijabs have been distributed by the Government to women, presumably as a gesture of goodwill to the burgeoning number of undocumented Islamists making the UK their new home.
I can’t think of a more appropriate description of the current state of affairs than to use the Biblical phrase “Tohu va – vohu.”
Michael Kuttner is a Jewish New Zealander who for many years was actively involved with various communal organisations connected to Judaism and Israel. He now lives in Israel.
[This article was originally published on J-Wire and is reproduced here with permission from Michael Kuttner.]
