Blessing and a curse

Reflecting on last week's Torah reading, Re'eh, I've realized the parsha is too connected to what is going on today in Israel for me to not post some excerpts for you.

"See, I present you with a blessing and a curse. The blessing: that you hearken to the commandments of Adonoy, your God, that I command you today. And the curse: if you don't hearken to the commandments of Adonoy, your God, and you stray the path that I give to you today..." Devarim, 11:26-28

OK, as you can see we clearly have a "pro-choice" God. God has given us the free will choice to live by His laws and be blessed, or to live according to our own personal whims and desires and be cursed. The choice should be easy, right? I mean, nobody ever wants to be cursed so everyone must be going with God's commandments! It's a no brainer, isn't it?

Not so fast, lowly humans. We happen to be infected with the yatzer hara, or evil inclination, to do all those things that God tells us not to do, making the choice to follow His laws much tougher than it would outwardly seem. You see, the yatzer hara is nothing to sneeze at, and even God's promise of a "blessing or a curse" is not enough to overcome it without great effort and discipline on our part.

You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations you shall possess worshipped their Gods; on the high mountains and the hills, and under every leafy tee. You shall break apart their altars; you shall smash their pillars; and their sacred trees shall you burn in the fire. Their carved images you shall cut down; and you shall obliterate their names from that place.

You shall not do this to Hashem your God...You shall not do as everyone else does here today,[i.e.] every man what is proper in his eyes...You shall cross the Jordan and settle in the Land that Adonoy, your God, causes you to inherit, and He will give you rest from all your enemies all around, and you will dwell securely. Devarim, 12:1-12:4, 12:8-12:10

Well, these are very obvious commandments given to the Jewish people in the Land of Israel, yet they are not being fulfilled at all. Why? How is it possible that despite Israel's military might they choose not to wipe out the vermin and destroy their shrines? How is it possible that on the Temple Mount - THE TEMPLE MOUNT - we have permitted the Al Aqsah abomination to remain standing?

In addition, the commandment to not just do whatever we want whenever we want to because it's "all good", but to do what God wants of us instead, is being violated in the most perverse and extreme of measures. Gay porn stars entertaining the IDF troops? Moslem MK's publicly observing "Nabkah Day" (the mourning of the creation of Israel) and holding war time rallies in support of Hezballah and Hamas alongside leftist Jews?

The blessing that God offers His people in the Holy Land, provided we follow his decries, is that "He will give you rest from all your enemies all around, and you will dwell securely", and yet the corrupt liberals instead reject God, reject his offer of blessing, and instead accept His curse and the horrible terror that comes with it.

Like I said above, the yatzer hara is nothing to sneeze at. It has dominated the State of Israel since it came into existence in 1948, and will continue to draw the wrath of God (via the terrorist vermin) until the Jewish people rise up and finally choose His blessing of peace and life instead.

L'chaim!

-MZ