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Counting Jews in Israel: The ‘Other’ Is Not Enough
On November 7, 2023, just one month after the Hamas massacre of Israelis and the onset of the war in Gaza, The Jerusalem Post’s Zvika Klein reported on a surge of interest in immigration to Israel by French and American Jews. So, it comes as no surprise that on February 14, 2024, the Israel Minister of Aliyah and Integration announced that, in spite of an ongoing war, 6,500 new immigrants had arrived in Israel since October 7, including a significant number from Western countries such as the US and Canada. According to the Minister, this burst of immigration is due mainly to a sense of solidarity with Israel, rather than a result of antisemitism.
The latest population report from the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics notes that as of January 1, 2024, close to one-half (47%) of the world’s 15.2 million Jews live in Israel. In addition, fertility values for Israelis have been consistently high, by far the highest of the 38 developed countries that make up the OECD. In a recent article, Ofir Haivry writes that two thirds of all Jewish babies are born in Israel. Thus, it is a safe bet to say that a majority of the world’s Jews will probably live in Israel by 2048, the centenary of the state, and possibly sooner.
The Central Bureau also reported that the population of Israel stood at 9,842,000, as of January 1, 2024. (The number includes Jewish settlers in the West Bank, but not Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza.) This is more than a ten-fold increase over the population of Israel when the state came into being 75 years ago, and a substantial 1.9 % increase over the previous year. The number of Jews was listed as 7,208,000, (73.2 %) and Arabs as 2,080,000 (21.1 %).
What about the missing 5.7 %? This demographic is listed as “others,” and includes groups such as Baha’is, Karaite Jews, Samaritans, Messianic Jews etc. What the Central Bureau does not state explicitly, is that many in this group — more than one-half million people — are immigrants from the Former Soviet Union (FSU), most recently from Russia and Ukraine. While most self identify as Jewish, they do not satisfy the Orthodox definition used by the government for civil procedures such as marriage etc. (Ironically, the Central Bureau also reports that close to one-half of Jewish Israelis consider themselves to be secular.)
These citizens of Israel immigrated to the country, either as spouses of Jews, or under the regulation stipulated by the Law of Return, which gives the right to anyone with one or more Jewish grandparents to apply for Israeli citizenship. This does not agree with Jewish law (Halacha), but it does coincide with the definition used by the Nazis to define a Jew.
These people participate in Israeli democracy, they speak Hebrew and celebrate the rites of the yearly Jewish calendar, and they and their offspring serve — and indeed some die — in the IDF. According to Sue Surkes in a recent Times of Israel article, these “others” from the FSU accounted for 20% of Israel’s population growth in 2023. She also notes that data from a Labor Force Survey indicate that this is the cohort with the highest employment numbers, and the longest work hours of any group in Israel. They are an essential component of the Israeli economy,
To Jews the designation “other” — acher in Hebrew — should bring to mind the story of Elisha ben Abuyah, the first century CE rabbi and sage who was ostracized by his peers for straying from Jewish particularism to a Hellenistic view of the world. Elisha, a colleague of Rabbi Akiva, teacher of the great Rabbi Meir, and one of the estimated 120 Tannaim, or teachers, responsible for writing the Mishna during the early Talmudic period, was referred to later in the Talmud not by name but as acher.
Rather than the vague and insensitive category “others,” it would be more accurate to specify that the demographic makeup of Israel today includes 7.7 million Jews, 7.2 million of whom are Jewish according to religious law. The sum represents approximately 75% of the total population of Israel.
Jacob Sivak, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, is a retired professor, who taught at the University of Waterloo.
The post Counting Jews in Israel: The ‘Other’ Is Not Enough first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself. Really?
JNS.org – If I asked you to name the most famous line in the Bible, what would you answer? While Shema Yisrael (“Hear O’Israel”) might get many votes, I imagine that the winning line would be “love thy neighbor as thyself” (Leviticus 19:18). Some religions refer to it as the Golden Rule, but all would agree that it is fundamental to any moral lifestyle. And it appears this week in our Torah reading, Kedoshim.
This is quite a tall order. Can we be expected to love other people as much as we love ourselves? Surely, this is an idealistic expectation. And yet, the Creator knows us better than we know ourselves. How can His Torah be so unrealistic?
The biblical commentaries offer a variety of explanations. Some, like Rambam (Maimonides), say that the focus should be on our behavior, rather than our feelings. We are expected to try our best or to treat others “as if” we genuinely love them.
Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi, in his classic text called the Tanya, argues that the actual feelings of love are, in fact, achievable provided that we focus on a person’s spirituality rather than how they present themselves physically. If we can put the soul over the body, we can do it.
Allow me to share the interpretation of the Ramban (Nachmanides), a 13th-century Torah scholar from Spain. His interpretation of the verses preceding love thy neighbor is classic and powerful, yet simple and straightforward.
“Do not hate your brother in your heart. You shall rebuke him, but do not bear a sin because of him” by embarrassing him in public. “Do not take revenge, and do not bear a grudge against your people. You shall love your fellow as yourself, I am God” (Leviticus 19:17-18).
What is the connection between these verses? Why is revenge and grudge-bearing in the same paragraph as love your fellow as yourself?
A careful reading shows that within these two verses are no less than six biblical commandments. But what is their sequence all about, and what is the connection between them?
The Ramban explains it beautifully, showing how the sequence of verses is deliberate and highlighting the Torah’s profound yet practical advice on how to maintain healthy relationships.
Someone wronged you? Don’t hate him in your heart. Speak to him. Don’t let it fester until it bursts, and makes you bitter and sick.
Instead, talk it out. Confront the person. Of course, do it respectfully. Don’t embarrass anyone in public, so that you don’t bear a sin because of them. But don’t let your hurt eat you up. Communicate!
If you approach the person who wronged you—not with hate in your heart but with respectful reproof—one of two things will happen. Either he or she will apologize and explain their perspective on the matter. Or that it was a misunderstanding and will get sorted out between you. Either way, you will feel happier and healthier.
Then you will not feel the need to take revenge or even to bear a grudge.
Here, says the Ramban, is the connection between these two verses. And if you follow this advice, only then will you be able to observe the commandment to Love Thy Neighbor. If you never tell him why you are upset, another may be completely unaware of his or her wrongdoing, and it will remain as a wound inside you and may never go away.
To sum up: Honest communication is the key to loving people.
Now, tell me the truth. Did you know that not taking revenge is a biblical commandment? In some cultures in Africa, revenge is a mitzvah! I’ve heard radio talk-show hosts invite listeners to share how they took “sweet revenge” on someone, as if it’s some kind of accomplishment.
Furthermore, did you know that bearing a grudge is forbidden by biblical law?
Here in South Africa, people refer to a grudge by its Yiddish name, a faribel. In other countries, people call it a broiges. Whatever the terminology, the Torah states explicitly: “Thou shalt not bear a grudge!” Do not keep a faribel, a broiges or resentment of any kind toward someone you believe wronged you. Talk to that person. Share your feelings honestly. If you do it respectfully and do not demean the other’s dignity, then it can be resolved. Only then will you be able to love your fellow as yourself.
May all our grudges and feelings of resentment toward others be dealt with honestly and respectfully. May all our grudges be resolved as soon as possible. Then we will all be in a much better position to love our neighbors as ourselves.
The post Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself. Really? first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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‘Nonsense’: Huckabee Shoots Down Report Trump to Endorse Palestinian Statehood
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee looks on during the day he visits the Western Wall, Judaism’s holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem’s Old City, April 18, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
i24 News – US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Saturday dismissed as nonsensical the report that President Donald Trump would endorse Palestinian statehood during his tour to the Persian Gulf this week.
“This report is nonsense,” Huckabee harrumphed on his X account, blasting the Jerusalem Post as needing better sourced reporting. “Israel doesn’t have a better friend than the president of the United States.”
Trump is set to visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. The leader’s first trip overseas since he took office comes as Trump seeks the Gulf countries’ support in regional conflicts, including the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and curbing Iran’s advancing nuclear program.
However, reports citing administration insiders claimed that Trump has also set his sights on the ambitious goal of expanding the Abraham Accords. These agreements, initially signed in 2020, normalized relations between Israel and the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan. The accords are widely held to be among the most important achievements of the first Trump administration.
The post ‘Nonsense’: Huckabee Shoots Down Report Trump to Endorse Palestinian Statehood first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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US to Put Military Option Back on Table If No Immediate Progress in Iran Talks
US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy-designate Steve Witkoff gives a speech at the inaugural parade inside Capital One Arena on the inauguration day of Trump’s second presidential term, in Washington, DC, Jan. 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
i24 News – Unless significant progress is registered in Sunday’s round of nuclear talks with Iran, the US will consider putting the military option back on the table, sources close to US envoy Steve Witkoff told i24NEWS.
American and Iranian representatives voiced optimism after the previous talks that took place in Oman and Rome, saying there was a friendly atmosphere despite the two countries’ decades of enmity.
However the two sides are not believed to have thrashed out the all-important technical details, and basic questions remain.
The source has also underscored the significance of the administration’s choice of Michael Anton, the State Department’s policy planning director, as the lead representative in the nuclear talks’ technical phases.
Anton is “an Iran expert and someone who knows how to cut a deal with Iran,” the source said, saying that the choice reflected Trump’s desire to secure the deal.
The post US to Put Military Option Back on Table If No Immediate Progress in Iran Talks first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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