Typology of the Dietary Law - Afrikaans

April 1, 2025

Tipologie van die Dieet Wette.

“Kyk, daar kom dae, spreek die Here HERE, dat Ek 'n honger in die land stuur, nie 'n honger na brood nie en nie 'n dors na water nie, maar om die woorde van die HERE te hoor.” (Amos 8:11)

Wat in die laaste dae gaan gebeur is aan ons vooruit gesê deur gebeure wat alreeds in die geskiedenis gebeur het. Spesifiek wat met Israel in die laaste dae gebeur het voordat hulle in ballingskap weggevoer is en ook wat gebeur het tot en met die Romeinse verwoesting van Jerusalem in 70 nC. is voorbeelde van die finale laaste tyd van die Laaste Dae.

In hierdie tye was daar en sal daar weer hongersnode wees en soos wat ons weet dat gedurende tye van hongersnood sal mense enige iets eet om te oorleef. Reëls en voorsienigheid en voorkeure word vergeet wanneer mense honger genoeg raak. Maar dit is belangrik om op te let dat die fisiese hongersnode van hierdie tye en die wat nog moet kom, simbole is van die meegaande hongersnood van die Woord van God.

In die voorbeelde van Samaria, Juda en Israel in 70 n.C. het die mense nie net letterlik gesterf van die honger nie maar ook geestelik as gevolg van die feit dat hulle nie die Woord van God ontvang het nie. Net soos wat ‘n sterwende persoon enigiets sal eet om aan die lewe te bly sal ‘n geestelike sterwende persoon ook na enige lering gryp wat normaalweg nie goed is nie, wat geen voedingswaarde bevat nie en wat die honger ook nie sal versadig nie. Bybels gesproke word die verskil tussen goeie lering en valse lering uitgedruk as rein en onrein.

(Lees Levitikus hoofstuk 11 voordat jy verder gaan. In hierdie studie word die teks nie streng in vers volgorde gevolg nie.)

Lev. 11: 44?47: “Want Ek is die HERE julle God; toon dan dat julle heilig is en wees heilig, want Ek is heilig; daarom, verontreinig julle self nie deur enige ongedierte wat op die aarde kruip nie. Want Ek is die HERE wat julle uit Egipteland laat optrek het om julle God te wees. So moet julle dan heilig wees, omdat Ek heilig is. Dit is die wet oor die diere en die voëls en al die lewende wesens wat roer in die water en aangaande al die wesens wat op die aarde wemel, om te onderskei tussen wat onrein en rein is, en tussen die diere wat geëet en die diere wat nie geëet mag word nie.”

V: Wat beteken dit om “geheilig” te wees?
A : Die woord “toegewy” (consecrate) in Hebreeus is " qadash" en word ook vertaal as “geheilig.” Dit is om iets uit sy eenvoudige staat, aardse omgewing uit te haal na ‘n afgesonder sfeer. Iets wat skoon en aanvaarbaar gemaak word om in die teenwoordigheid van God te kom vir diens. Op die mees basiese vlak is ‘n gewone item “onrein” en ‘n geheiligde item “rein”.
V: Hoekom is dit belangrik dat die opdrag sê: Toon dat julle heilig is— “ Heilig julleself”?
A: Alhoewel God die reëls vir mense voorsien en stipuleer vir dinge wat afgesonder en skoongemaak moet word, word dit gedoen deur keuse. Dit ons wat KIES of ons geheel en al toegewyd wil wees. Dit gebeur nie in die teenwoordigheid van die Here nie maar in die voorbereiding om in die teenwoordigheid van die Here te kom vir aanbidding en diens.
Punt : Oorweeg ander Skrifte met betrekking tot die verhouding tussen die Woord van God en voedsel.

“En Hy het jou verootmoedig en jou laat honger ly en jou die manna laat eet wat jy en jou vaders nie geken het nie, om aan jou bekend te maak dat die mens nie van brood alleen lewe nie, maar dat die mens lewe van alles wat uit die mond van die HERE uitgaan.” (Deut. 8:3)

“Hoe is dit dat julle nie begryp dat Ek nie in verband met brood vir julle gesê het om op te pas vir die suurdeeg van die Fariseërs en Sadduseërs nie? Toe het hulle begryp dat Hy nie gesê het dat hulle moes oppas vir die suurdeeg van die brood nie, maar vir die leer van die Fariseërs en Sadduseërs.” (Mat.

16:11?12)

“En Jesus sê vir hulle: Ek is die brood van die lewe; wie na My toe kom, sal nooit honger kry nie; en wie in My glo, sal nooit dors kry nie”. (Joh. 6:35)

Toepassing:

Verstaan jy dat hierdie wette bedoel is om ons te leer om te onderskei tussen rein en onrein, en tussen die eetbare dinge en dinge wat ons nie mag eet nie, en dat dit nie beperk is tot fisiese voedsel nie maar ook geestelike voedsel?

Is jy bereid om jou politieke korrektheid eenkant te sit om hierdie soort onderskeidings te kan maak? Sien jy die nodigheid om jouself voor te berei, om te kies om jou self te heilig as ‘n voorbehoude om in die teenwoordigheid van God te kom? Bespreek die volgende Skrif of dit van toepassing is vir dit wat ons hier bespreek.

“En dit bid ek dat julle liefde nog meer en meer oorvloedig mag word in kennis en alle ervaring, om die dinge waar dit op aankom, te onderskei, sodat julle rein en vir niemand 'n aanstoot mag wees nie, tot op die dag van Christus, vervul met die vrug van geregtigheid wat daar is deur Jesus Christus tot heerlikheid en lof van God.” (Fil. 1:9?10)

Waarneming:

Diere word deurgaans in die Skrifte gebruik, nie net vir geestelike dinge en omstandighede nie, maar ook heel dikwels om ons te leer oor die kwaliteite en die natuur van Jesus. In die res van hierdie hoofstuk leer die “rein” diere ons iets oor die Messias, ‘n duidelike voorbeeld van om die Lam te wees, en die onrein diere verteenwoordig die valse leraars / leiers, soos wanneer valse leraars as wolwe beskryf word.

Eerstens: Wat KAN ons eet?

Lev. 11:1?3: “En die HERE het met Moses en Aäron gespreek en aan hulle gesê: Spreek met die kinders van Israel en sê: Dit is die diere wat julle mag eet van al die viervoetige diere wat op die aarde is. Alles wat onder die diere gesplitste kloue het, en wel heeltemal gesplitste kloue, en herkou dit mag julle eet.”

V: Wat is sommige van die dinge wat aanvaarbaar is om te eet? Hoe kan hulle ons leer van die Messias?

  1. Die Lam . “??Dáár is die Lam van God wat die sonde van die wêreld wegneem! (Joh. 1:29) Die Paaslam is ‘n simbool van die Messias.
  2. Bok: Die Yom Kippur sondebok was ‘n beeld van die Messias.
  3. Vleis: . Soos die van Osse, die sterke sal vir die swakke sterf soos wat die onskuldige vir die skuldige gesterf het. [Daar is baie meer voorbeelde in die Skrifte as wat hier bespreek word, doen jou self die guns en ondersoek dit.]

Lev. 11: 9: “Dit mag julle eet van alles wat in die water is: alles wat vinne en skubbe het in die water, in die seë en in die riviere dit mag julle eet.”

V: Wat is sommige van die dinge wat aanvaarbaar was om te eet? Hoe leer dit ons van die Messias?
A . Vis: “En die HERE het 'n groot vis beskik om Jona in te sluk; en Jona was drie dae en drie nagte in die ingewande van die vis. (Jona 1:17) Jesus Self wys vir ons dat Jona se 3 dae in die vis ‘n teken van Sy geloofwaardigheid is.
V: Verse 13?19 praat van onrein voëls. Wat is die voorbeelde van onrein voëls, hoe tipeer dit die Messias?

A) 1) Kuikens: . “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, jy wat die profete doodmaak en stenig dié wat na jou gestuur is, hoe dikwels wou Ek jou kinders bymekaarmaak net soos 'n hen haar kuikens onder die vlerke bymekaarmaak, en julle wou nie! (Mat. 23:37)

  1. Duif: “ En Johannes het getuig en gesê: Ek het die Gees soos 'n duif uit die hemel sien neerdaal, en Hy het op Hom gebly.” (Joh. 1:32)
  2. Lev. 11: 20? 22 : “Al die insekte met vlerke wat op vier pote loop 'n gruwel is hulle vir julle Maar die volgende mag julle eet van al die insekte met vlerke wat op vier pote loop: wat bokant die pote springbene het om daarmee op die grond te spring. Van hulle mag julle die volgende eet: die treksprinkaan volgens sy soorte en die boomsprinkaan volgens sy soorte en die springer volgens sy soorte en die voetganger volgens sy soorte.”
  3. V: Wat is sommige van die dinge wat vir ons aanvaarbaar is om te eet? Wat leer dit ons van die Messias?
  4. A : Sprinkane: “En Ek sal julle vergoed die jare wat die treksprinkaan, die voetganger, die kaalvreter en die afknyper verslind het??my groot leërmag wat Ek teen julle gestuur het.” (Joel 2:25) Wanneer mense hulle bekeer dan sal die Here dit herstel wat die sprinkane opgevreet het.
  5. Dit wat ons NOOIT mag eet nie.
  6. Lev. 11: 4?8: “Maar die volgende mag julle nie eet nie van die wat herkou en van die wat gesplitste kloue het: die kameel, want hy herkou, maar het geen gesplitste kloue nie onrein is hy vir julle; en die das, want hy herkou, maar het geen gesplitste kloue nie onrein is hy vir julle; en die haas, want hy herkou, maar het geen gesplitste kloue nie onrein is hy vir julle; ook die vark, want hy het gesplitste kloue, ja, heeltemal gesplitste kloue, maar hy herkou nie onrein is hy vir julle. Van hulle vleis mag julle nie eet nie en aan hulle aas nie raak nie onrein is hulle vir julle.”
  7. V: Hoe verwys onrein dinge na valse gelowe en vals lering?
  8. Kameel: . “Blinde leiers, julle wat die muggie uitsif, maar die kameel insluk!” (Mat. 23:24) Hierdie is slegte geestelike leiers wat op die kleinste onperfekte dinge fokus terwyl hulle die mees uitstaande verkeerde dinge ignoreer, dit is ironies dat beide die muggie en die kameel “onrein” is en ten spyte van hulle valse toegewydheid kan hulle nie die “onrein” dinge vermy nie.
  9. Vark: “Moenie wat heilig is, aan die honde gee nie; en gooi julle pêrels nie voor die varke nie, sodat hulle dit nie miskien met hulle pote vertrap en omdraai en julle verskeur nie.” (Mat. 7:6) Nota: Wat is die betekenis van die verhaal toe Jesus die duiwels in die trop varke gedryf het en van die krans af in die see? (Mat. 8:28?34; Mark 5:1?20; Luk. 8:26?39) Dit is beeld van die oordeel waar die onheiliges na ‘n plek toe gestuur word wat vir Satan en sy engele voorberei is. Diegene wat met die Evangelie spot sal in die poel van vuur eindig.
  10. Donkie . “Jy mag nie met 'n os en 'n esel tegelyk ploeë nie.” (Deut. 22:10) ‘n Herhalende Bybelse lering is om NOOIT die onrein met die rein te meng nie, dit moet apart en rein gehou word.
  11. Wilde donkie . “Want húlle het opgetrek na Assur??'n wilde?esel wat eiesinnig rondloop, is Efraim! ??hulle het onwettige bondgenootskappe gewerf.” (Hos. 8:9) Dit is beeld van diegene wat aan fisiese wellus oorgegee is.
  12. Perd: . “Wees nie soos 'n perd, soos 'n muilesel wat geen verstand het nie, wat 'n mens moet tem met toom en teuel as sy tuig, anders kom hy nie naby jou nie.” (Ps. 32:9) Sulke diere is rigtingloos en hulle verteenwoordig diegene wat van een lering na die ander gaan met geen gesaghebbende rigting of regverdiging nie.
  13. Perd . “Die perd help niks vir die oorwinning en red nie deur sy groot krag nie.”(Ps. 33:17) Daar is diegene wat net op hulleself en of hulle besittings vertrou, hulle is ‘n god vir hulleself.

Lev. 11:10?12: “Maar alles wat geen vinne en skubbe het in die seë en in die riviere nie, van al die gewemel van die water en van al die lewende wesens wat in die water is 'n gruwel is dit vir julle. Ja, 'n gruwel moet hulle vir julle wees; van hulle vleis mag julle nie eet nie, en hulle aas moet julle vir 'n gruwel hou. Alles wat geen vinne of skubbe in die water het nie 'n gruwel is dit vir julle.

V: Hoe verteenwoordig die onrein dinge valse geloof en lering?
A : Skulpvis:. Hulle is naby aan die bodem van die see. Bybels verteenwoordig die see die nasies. Hierdie diere verteenwoordig mense wat so ver in die wêreld afgedaal het dat hulle nie gered sal word nie, hulle is te naby.

Let op die kontras van Christus se belofte: “Ek sal julle vissers van mense maak” (Mat 4:19) waar mense uit die nasies uit die see gered word en in die koninkryk van God.

Lev. 11:13?19: “En die volgende moet julle van die voëls vir 'n gruwel hou hulle mag nie geëet word nie, 'n gruwel is hulle: die arend en die lammervanger en die aasvoël; en die kuikendief en die valk volgens sy soorte elke kraai volgens sy soorte; en die volstruis en die naguil en die seemeeu en die kleinvalk volgens sy soorte; en die steenuil en die visvanger en die steunuil; en die silweruil en die pelikaan en die klein aasvoël; en die groot sprinkaanvoël, die reier volgens sy soorte, die hoep hoep en die vlermuis.”

V: Hoe verteenwoordig die onrein dinge valse geloof en lering?
  1. Aasvoël . “Want oral waar die dooie liggaam lê, daar sal die aasvoëls saamkom.” (Mat. 24:28) Valse leraars wat op die skape teer en vir hulle niks terug gee nie, is tevrede om die bene kaal te vreet totdat hulle geheel versadig is.
  2. Die Arend: “??? Van ver kom hulle aangevlieg net soos 'n arend wat op sy prooi neerskiet!” (Hab. 1:8b) In realiteit is valse leraars roofdiere.
  3. Die Pelikaan en die uil : . “Ek is soos 'n pelikaan van die woestyn, ek het geword soos 'n uil op die puinhope. Ek is slapeloos en het geword soos 'n eensame voël op die dak.” (Ps. 102:6?7) Diegene wat nie hou van aktiwiteite nie, wat die geestelike vermy, is geestelik leeg en dor, hulle hou van vakuum leerstellings.

Lev. 11: 26?28: “? aan al die diere wat gesplitste kloue het, wat nie heeltemal gesplits is nie, en wat nie herkou nie. Onrein is hulle vir julle; elkeen wat aan hulle raak, sal onrein wees. En alles wat op kaal pote loop onder al die viervoetige diere onrein is hulle vir julle; elkeen wat aan hulle aas raak, sal tot die aand toe onrein wees. Ook hy wat hulle aas dra, moet sy klere was en sal onrein wees tot die aand toe.

Onrein is hulle vir julle.”

V: Hoe verteenwoordig die onrein dinge valse geloof en lering?

1) Die Jakkals: Jesus noem Herodus ‘n jakkals.(Luk. 13:32). Herodus verteenwoordig korrupte leraars.

2a) Wolf: “Maar die huurling en hy wat nie 'n herder is nie, van wie die skape nie die eiendom is nie, sien die wolf kom en laat die skape staan en vlug, en die wolf vang hulle en jaag die skape uitmekaar.” (Joh. 10:12) Daar is sogenaamde pastore / herders net in naam vir wie dit nie ‘n roeping is nie maar ‘n be?roep, soos enige ander beroep. Hulle is huurlinge wat niks met die welsyn van die skape te doen wil hê nie. “Maar pas op vir die valse profete wat in skaapsklere na julle kom en van binne roofsugtige wolwe is. (Mat. 7:15)

  1. Wolf : “Want ek weet dit, dat ná my vertrek wrede wolwe onder julle sal inkom en die kudde nie sal spaar nie.” (Hand 20:29?30) In sy vaarwel boodskap aan die leiers van Efese, praat Paulus van valse leraars.
  2. Hond: “ Want honde het my omsingel; 'n bende kwaaddoeners het my omring; hulle het my hande en my voete deurgrawe. (Ps. 22:16)? Ongelowiges.
  3. Hond: “Want dit sou vir hulle beter wees as hulle die weg van die geregtigheid nie geken het nie, as dat hulle, nadat hulle dit leer ken het, hulle afkeer van die heilige gebod wat aan hulle oorgelewer is. Maar oor hulle het gekom wat die ware spreekwoord sê: Die hond het omgedraai na sy eie uitbraaksel, en die gewaste sog om in die modder te rol. (2 Pet. 2:21?22) Teruggevalle Christene of die saad wat rotsagtige deel geval het, ’n ander uitdrukking van ongelowiges.
  4. Hond: “ Let op die honde; let op die slegte arbeiders; let op die versnyding. " (Filp. 3:2) Valse gelowiges.
  5. Hond: “ Maar buite is die honde en die towenaars en die hoereerders en die moordenaars en die afgode dienaars en elkeen wat leuens liefhet en doen.” (Op. 22:15) Let op die “eenheid” wat die honde saamhou.
  6. Lev. 11:29?30: “En die volgende is vir julle onrein onder die ongediertes wat op die aarde wemel: die mol en die muis en die akkedis volgens sy soorte, en die krimpvarkie en die geitjie en die klipsalmander en die koggelmander en die verkleurmannetjie.”
  7. Q: Hoe kan onrein dinge valse gelowe en lering voorstel?
  8. Verkleurmannetjie: Die Hebreeuse woord vir verkleurmannetjie is "sabua"? iets wat van kleur verander, dieselfde woord wat vir geveinsdes? skynheiliges gebruik word. Eendag staan hulle vir die waarheid en die volgende dag verkondig hulle dwaalleer. “Maar daar was ook valse profete onder die volk, net soos daar onder julle valse leraars sal wees wat verderflike ketterye heimlik sal invoer, en ook die Here wat hulle gekoop het, verloën en 'n vinnige verderf oor hulleself bring;” (2 Pet. 2:1)
  9. Leviatan . “Hy kyk alles aan wat hoog is; hy is koning oor al die trotse roofdiere.” (“ He looks on everything that is high; He is king over all the sons of pride.) (Job 41:34) Mense geheel en al onder beheer deur eie belange.

Lev. 11: 41?43: “En al die ongediertes wat op die aarde wemel, is 'n gruwel dit mag nie geëet word nie. Alles wat op die buik seil en alles wat op vier pote loop, ook alles wat baie pote het, naamlik al die ongediertes wat op die aarde wemel julle mag dit nie eet nie, want dit is 'n gruwel. Moenie julle self 'n gruwel maak deur enige ongedierte wat wemel nie: julle moet jul daaraan nie verontreinig, sodat julle daardeur onrein word nie.”

V: Hoe kan onrein dinge valse gelowe en lering voorstel?

Slang: Satan as die slang is die verleier soos voorgestel toe die slang Eva verlei het. Pasop vir geestelike verleiding.

Adders: . “Slange, addergeslag, hoe sal julle die oordeel van die hel ontvlug?” (Mat. 23:33) Die godsdienstige leiers in die dag van Jesus was korrup, en dit het gegaan oor geld, mag en self verheerliking. Adders verteenwoordig korrupte godsdienstige leiers.

Toepassing:

Het enige van die bogenoemde beskrywings jou laat dink aan godsdienste, organisasies of individuele? Hoekom dink jy hulle is onrein? Hoe gaan jy dit vir jouself bewys?

Kan jy sien hoekom dit so belangrik is om die oorsprong van die “NUWE” dinge wat in die kerke ingevoer word uit te vind en te verstaan? Hoe voel jy oor dinge wat gebaseer word op ander gelowe soos Joga, New Age, en die labirinte? ens?

Wat is JOU beste persoonlike beskerming? Wat moet jy doen vir ander se onthalwe?

Lev. 11:33?34: “En elke erdevoorwerp waar een van hulle in val alles wat daarin is, sal onrein wees, en julle moet die voorwerp self stukkend breek; enige voedsel wat geëet word waar water op kom, sal daarin onrein wees; en enige drank wat in so 'n voorwerp, van watter soort ook, gedrink kan word, sal onrein wees.”

V: Wat word in die aanhalings vanaf vers 31?40 uitgedruk in verband met hierdie les met betrekking tot rein en onrein lering en leraars?
A : Dit is ‘n lering oor mense wat probeer om onder twee verbonde te lewe, soos die Sewende dag Adventiste of kultusse soos die Ebioniete wat glo dat Jesus die Messias is maar nie God nie. Paulus sê vir ons in 1 Kor. 7 dat ‘n Jood en ‘n heiden nie hulle identiteit moet prysgee nie? dit is egter nie die punt nie. Die punt is dat ons nie moet toegee aan Satan se leuens om mense so ver te kry om onder twee verbonde te probeer staan nie.

Punt: Dit is ‘n manier hoe om al die verskillende variasies te dek van hoe om die bogenoemde dinge? rein en onrein te meng om iets te verkry wat ‘n voorkoms van wettigheid het . Onthou: Vermenging word deur die Bybel verbied. Sal jy ‘n glas water drink wat net een druppel gif bevat?

Algemene toepassing:
  • Dink ernstig na oor jou die oorsprong van jou invloede. Is hulle stewig gegrondves in die Bybel of wyk dit somtyds af al klink dit na heel aanvaarbare verhale? Is hulle meer afhanklik van verduidelikings, illustrasies as aan Bybelse verklaring?
  • Wie is die leraars na wie jy die meeste luister? Hoe goed het jy hulle gemeet teen God se standaarde? Kom hulle persoonlike lewe ooreen met die kwaliteit van dit wat hulle praat?
  • Wat sal jy doen as jy ge konfronteer word met die feit dat ‘n organisasie of ‘n persoon by een van die onrein tipes pas wat hier gelys word? Is dit reg om toe te laat dat dinge aangaan as hulle “meestal” reg is of as hulle goeie bedoelings het?
  • Bespreek wat die volgende vir jou beteken in die lig van hierdie bespreking:

“Toe U woorde gevind is, het ek hulle opgeëet, en u woord was vir my vreugde en vrolikheid vir my hart; want u Naam is oor my uitgeroep, HERE, God van die leërskare!” (Jer. 15:16) †††


October 12, 2026
Written by - Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM Examples abound in history of how the responses to innovations in technology that disrupted and transformed the nature of warfare have taken a delayed time to be adapted. Chain mail and armour had to be altered and bolstered to repel arrows from the English Longbow in Medieval Europe, but this didn't occur in time to the dismay of the French at Agincourt. It took the Spanish decades to redesign their cumbersome Galleons that lay prey to the swifter English ships. Napoleonic era field tactics were still being employed during the American Civil War, with mass charges mowed down by the Gatling barrel machine gun. Trench warfare was only later embraced during WWI. With the cheap manufacture of drones and the advances in AI a new chapter has opened in how war is waged in our own time. The conflicts in Ukraine and Iran have demonstrated how asymmetric warfare has become as much an economic calculation as a game of cat and mouse. Drones (and relatively cheaply manufactured ballistic missiles by Iran) are being shot down at great expense. AI which has been extensively deployed for target identification in Gaza is also proving to be a vital tool in hunting incoming drones. But as in the delayed development of military countermeasures historically, drones are ahead of AI in the battlefield. This is reflected in the enormity of Russian military casualties that have fallen victim to Ukrainian drones. AI is able to cut through the 'background noise' of distracting projectiles, birds and other debris to home in efforts to eliminate the actual drone target. The magic formula is speed and precision. Humans can detect and assess a threat, but AI can process radar, cameras and other sensors almost instantly, and with increasing accuracy predict where a drone intends to strike. When swamped with a wave drone attack, AI acts to identify and track the multiple threats. AI can also help decide how to respond. Depending on the system, the response could involve electronic warfare, an interceptor drone, a missile or a gun-based system. Ukraine has installed automated machine gun turrets instructed by AI to protect Kiev. In some cases, humans still make the final decision to engage, while AI handles the calculations and tracking required to make that decision quickly. More broadly, drone warfare is becoming a contest between autonomous systems. The challenge is no longer simply building a better missile or a better drone. It is building a system that can see the threat first, understand it quickly and respond before the drone reaches its target. In that sense, AI is becoming a critical part of air defence. The advantage may increasingly belong to whoever can make the fastest and most accurate decisions—not necessarily whoever manufactures the most expensive weapons. AI's pace of progress is exponential. It is beyond comprehension what capacity could be realized in even the next 2-3 years. The combination of drones, robotics and AI may render the traditional military hardware of tanks, frigates and fighter jets almost functionally obsolete. The development of AI's course of military application will be largely directed by the conflicts where it is deployed. In the pre-AI world of 1987, the black Friday market crash during the Reagan Administration saw a dangerous drop in the Dow, where computer analysis issued sell orders against a background of Reagan's massive budget deficits. Amidst Reagan's budget deficits this created an environment where social security was looted to fund defence spending. A supposed conservative President ran a fiscal policy with simultaneous increases in the Pentagon budget, coupled with tax cuts. The computer generated sell off was beyond the functional control of brokers and market makers, while the Soviets attempted to engineer market irregularities affecting the American economy which had further global ramifications due to massive American trade deficits with Japan under Reagan. The current Securities exchange environment is at best no less complex now. Given the spectre of what transpired in 1987 with computerised over control of stock exchange trading, and a shadow hanging over the bond market we are left to ponder could another such scenario be triggered in the age of AI? And even more illuminous prospect over shadows us now with the question can AI gain a decision-making operational capacity over command-and-control decisions. Certainly, for tactical weapons systems or even a doomsday scenario with Russia, China, India or Pakistan placing nuclear launch control in the hands of AI that could result in an exchange that either the US, Britain, France or Israel would be forced to react to. Without scaremongering it is necessary for strategic planners to prevent the nuclear powers that be from arriving at the precipice of such an abyss.
September 21, 2026
The interlinked nature of third-party involvement in the ongoing conflicts in Iran and Ukraine has increasingly come to the fore in recent weeks. It emerged that China has not only been providing Iran with radar systems, navigation tools, and electronic warfare technology, but also high-resolution satellite imagery and geospatial data to direct its rockets. The same great-power relationships that are shaping the Middle East are affecting the conduct and constraints of the war in Ukraine. It is apparent that a reciprocation in kind is dictating Russia's conduct towards the US in Iran. Intelligence and targeting support mirror similar U.S. assistance to Ukraine. But this picture becomes murkier when considering the backroom accommodations Trump is willing to give Putin. Recently, Trump pressured Zelensky to stop targeting Russian diesel infrastructure, saying the attacks were causing a shortage of the fuel that is "hurting the world." The U.S. national average price for diesel, which is used by trucks, trains, ships, and farm equipment, rose above six dollars a gallon for the first time last Thursday. Such interventions demonstrate how developments on the battlefield in Ukraine can no longer be considered independently of wider economic and geopolitical calculations. China has been using tankers that are already at sea, when that runs out the American blockade will create shortage problems for the Chinese economy, as China no longer gets Venezuelan oil and is reliant on Iran and international spot market prices. The war with Iran is now spreading to Yemen, with the Houthis attempting to replicate the Iranian chokehold model perfected in the Strait of Hormuz. The strategic importance of controlling or threatening critical maritime chokepoints is central to the wider contest. What happens in the Gulf can therefore have consequences for shipping, energy markets, and military calculations far beyond the immediate theatre. So far, the US has declined Saudi requests to slow the Houthi advance. Neither Turkey nor Egypt seems inclined to come to Saudi Arabia's aid. This is despite the signing of a very recent mutual defence pact between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan. More developments can happen in these conflicts on an average day than can be afforded mention, but they should be increasingly understood as interconnected parts of a wider geopolitical confrontation. Assistance in one theatre triggers reciprocal action in another. Consequently, these cease to be discrete, containable conflicts and are extending into prolonged multinational conflicts. There is a distinct possibility that these may become frozen conflicts over time. A more terrifying eventuality is something more akin to the Thirty Years' War, which was fought in the first half of the 17th century in Europe. It is important to remember that this calamity, which ravaged Europe, began as a localized rebellion that gradually drew in more and more powers. The initial religious nature of the fighting gave way to political struggles. The mechanism by which a localized conflict becomes a multinational struggle offers a historical warning worth considering. The danger today is that a collection of individually distinct conflicts could become sufficiently interconnected that containing any one of them becomes increasingly difficult. Iran, Ukraine, Russia, China, the United States, and the conflict involving the Houthis are already linked by military assistance, intelligence, energy, trade, and strategic competition. The question, therefore, is no longer simply how any one of these conflicts ends. It is whether they can remain separate conflicts at all.  (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).
By David Passmore • September 12, 2026
Moriel & Jacob Prasch request prayer for our sister in Jesus - Wendy Blomkamp, widow of Brother Fred Blomkamp (now with The Lord), the founder of Moriel South Africa Branch (not to be confused with Moriel's Ebyown Aids Children's Mission in South Africa founded by David Royle). Wendy, (an equestrian rider of all things) is originally from West Yorkshire, England but has lived most of her life in South Africa and is currently in retirement in the USA. Unfortunately, Wendy is diagnosed with inoperable pre terminal cancer with cardio pullmonary complications. The Lord will either intervene supernaturally or call her home. We request prayer for Wendy and her beloved family and wisdom for her physicians. In Christ, All at Moriel
By David Passmore • September 7, 2026
The US midterm elections are around the corner and the results could have profound effects on US foreign policy concerning Israel. Much has been said about this vote being a referendum on Trump's unpopular war with Iran. But it can equally be said to be about Trump's other foreign policy engagements that are viewed rather more favourably like the overthrow of Maduro in Venezuela and his replacement with a pro-American regime. With Israel the picture is less clear. It used to be a given that Israel enjoyed bipartisan support on the Hill. You could count on the fingers of one hand the number of politicians opposed to supporting Israel - the occasional fringe Democrat representing a singular Michigan constituency with a high Arab origin demographic, or a rare odd ball Republican preaching strict isolationism. This dynamic has shifted quickly in the last decade. The Democrats have all but abandoned any inclination of a pro-Israel position. Even establishment figures like Chuck Schumer have been pressured to side with the Party's radical left wing. With 60-80% of Democrats now anti-Israel, Israel can no longer rely on Jewish Democrats to oppose anti-Zionism or antisemitism. The most outspoken Democratic member of the Senate advocating a pro-Israel position, Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania is being pressured to resign and leave the party even by Pennsylvania's Jewish Governor Shapiro and Soros sponsored Philadelphia Prosecutor Krasner. This is happening concurrently with mass endorsement from 170 leading Hollywood Jewish actors writing a letter of support for Mark Ruffallo - despite his antisemitic comments naming Jewish investors supporting a Hollywood studio mega merger as being associated with apartheid genocide. However most shocking, were the comments by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel who stood before an audience of Jewish Democrats last weekend telling them they may need to sacrifice the safety, and even the future, of their own people in exchange for saving the rest of humanity. Such rhetoric is contrary to basic human instincts of survival and self-preservation. If any other nation were suggested this course of action, I wonder what their response would be? On the Republican side the foreboding sense of an altering course towards Israel no longer seems so distant. The anti-Israel faction in the Republican party led by Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens and Nick Fuentes are now being supported by Vice President Vance. Jewish kingpins in the Trump Administration such as Witkoff and Kushner have been tied to business dealings in N.Y. with the Muslim Brotherhood controlled Qatari government through its business holdings. Should Republicans lose control of the Senate while Democrats take the House, Israel could find itself having to drastically re-access its relationship with Washington. We wouldn't see an immediate break in ties. American military, intelligence, technological and strategic cooperation with Israel is too integrated into the core of US institutions and corporations that would take a protracted period to dismantle. However, the power of Congress is in no way feeble. Congress controls funding, foreign-assistance legislation, sanctions, arms-related legislation and, perhaps most importantly, the political milieu in which an administration operates. A Democratic House combined with a Senate no longer controlled by Republicans could place enormous pressure on Trump to alter his attitude towards Israel. Practically this could entail demanding further accountability from Israel over military operations in Gaza, and the West Bank Settlers causing civilian casualties and property damage. Military aid could face more conditions or restrictions, but an immediate cutoff is unlikely. Israel has historically depended upon the presumption that regardless of who was President, there would be a robust enough bipartisan coalition in Congress to prevent a major deterioration in the relationship. Now the opposite appears true. Israel is taking the gamble of solely relying on a friendly President like Trump getting elected to maintain cordial relations. With the erosion of even much of Jewish American support for Israel and the hijacking of the Democratic party by a pro Islamist socialist left seen in Mamdani and others, Israel is forced to confront the inescapable reality that the last strong bastion of support for it is the Republican Party's evangelical base. But even younger voters in this key demographic are beginning to question support for Israel. The hostility displayed by the Haredim in Jerusalem and elsewhere against Christians including evangelicals, is to say the least counter-productive to the national interest. To attack the one friend Israel has left with a proven track record of loyalty and is vital to pro-Zionism internationally, is particularly detrimental to the national interest. It is Iran with its Mahdiist interpretations of jihad and sharia as a religious ideology that drives its hatred of Israel and the USA, and The West, to the detriment of the interests of the majority of the Iranian populace who want non hostile co-existence.  Such religious fanaticism and ideologically fuelled hatred ought not be given place in Israeli Judaism. It too, will generate adverse consequences for the majority of Israelis, including religious moderates, who desire an ongoing friendship with Evangelical Christians whose theology is not one of anti Semitism, but of proven Philo-Semitism and pro Zionism.
By David Passmore • August 21, 2026
Don't bite the hand that feeds you - Irish hypocrisy towards Israel Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM Amongst European nations, Ireland in recent years has gained the reputation as being the leading anti-Zionist country. The Irish Republic has never been favourably inclined to Israel. It only established an Embassy in Tel Aviv in 1996. In poll after poll the vast majority of the Irish public have indicated hostility towards Zionism and strong support for Palestinian Statehood. The curious aberration to this is that in British Ruled Northern Ireland support is demarcated along sectarian lines. Catholic Republican areas predictably tend to ardently support the Palestinian cause, while Protestant Unionist communities are overwhelmingly pro-Israel. Perhaps some credence can be given to sentiments of traditional Catholic antisemitism hardwired into the Irish psyche as contributing towards this disposition. It was certainly odd that the Irish government promptly sent a delegation to the Nazi German Ambassador in Dublin to convey condolences after news of Hitler's suicide broke at the end of WW2. But more concretely if you were to ask the average Irish protester on a pro-Palestine march the basis of their empathy for the Palestinian cause, they would point to the ostensible parallels between the Irish experience of fighting for independence from British colonial oppression to the plight of Palestinians living under Israeli occupation. Further remonstrations on a diplomatic level concern the actions of the IDF interreacting with Irish Peace Keepers in Southern Lebanon that have caused the deaths of several Irish Peace Keepers over the decades in friendly fire incidents. Ireland has contributed the most peace keepers to this mission per capita and the government has condemned Israel for these deaths that they view as avoidable. This animosity towards Israel is unbalanced. There are reasons to consider that Ireland and Israel have a shared experience of national liberation. Both countries fought the British in the pursuit of independence. Both countries made great efforts to resurrect their ancient languages for modern wide scale use. Both the Irish and Jews form major diaspora communities in New York. Despite all this Ireland ranks as Israel's second largest export market after the US. The preponderance of Israeli exports to Ireland comprises electronic integrated circuits, micro-assemblies, and tech manufacturing components. American multinational colossal tech corporations like Intel are substantially engrossed in this trade through the chain of supply. Ireland and Israel are hubs for design and manufacture of high-tech hardware components for US corporations. So, due to the nature of the most prosperous and competitive sectors of their respective economies, Israel and Ireland are inextricably bound in bilateral trade ties. Resolutions from the Irish government to impose sanctions on West Bank originating produce is merely perfunctory rhetoric. Such actions amount to a drop in the bucket in terms of impact to overall trade. The stark reliance of Ireland on advanced Israeli aviation equipment recently caused a spectacle when Ireland's new government jet struggled to land in heavy fog due to it being ordered without an advanced Israeli made navigation system. This was directly due to a short-sighted government decision not to buy Israeli military technology. There is a marked disparity between the official position of the Irish government designed for domestic public consumption and the economic policies that it actually pursues towards Israel. The government is acutely aware that the US is massively invested in the Irish economy and they don't want to do anything to jeopardise this. Washington demands that their enterprises in Dublin are intertwined with operations in Israel. The Irish government dare not even prevent US military supply flights refuelling at Shannon Airport on their way to Tel Aviv. The Irish government knows that times change and now the gripping social issue is the anti-immigrant/anti-Islam popular street protests. Soon the anti-Israel protests could become a mere side show only really promoted by Sinn Fein given the pressing ramifications of mass migration. So, in the meantime certain politicians will rile against the occupation, purported genocide and pass paltry sanctions against insignificant produce from the West Bank. All the while making hand over fist in money with the Israelis where it really matters in tech.  (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).
By David Passmore • July 31, 2026
The Tide Has Changed Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM The America that Netanyahu touched down on is a changed America. The death of Lindsey Graham represents a changing of the guard. Graham was a staunch Israeli ally who will most probably become an increasingly rare breed in Washington. Sixty percent of Americans now hold a unfavourable view of Israel which politicians are finding difficult to ignore. It was once unthinkable to believe that New York City with such a strong Jewish electoral base and influence on all sectors of economic and cultural life would have a mayor that is so hostile to Israel to such an extent that he is calling for the arrest of its Prime Minister. From all accounts Netanyahu was cordially welcomed at the White House. The official press release stated that the talks were constructive. What is more telling is what was left unsaid particularly concerning the proposed sale of F35's to Israel's new regional adversary -Turkey. Trump is keen to find a swift resolution to the Iran War, while Netanyahu is opposed to a premature departure. When the US and Israel initiated their attacks on Iran over five months ago, Trump and Netanyahu appeared united in the War's goals and purpose. But as the protracted conflict has staggered to topple the Iranian regime fractures have emerged. Much has been said about the imminent political realities both leaders face. The Republicans could take a big hit in the November midterm elections should the war continue and global energy markets be negatively impacted. Netanyahu is anxious to demonstrate a big win to the Israeli public with the upcoming October election. In Israel, the Iran War is not viewed in isolation, but rather as an extension of the response to the colossal disaster of the October 7th massacre. Netanyahu must rehabilitate his reputation as a competent steward of national security having had the greatest loss of civilian life in an attack happening under his watch. Aside from the Iran issue, Trump is being pressured by Erdogan to insist upon Israeli withdrawal from Syrian territory pre-emptively seized by Israel following the toppling of Assad. Trump has also indicated disapproval of the extent of continuing Israeli measures against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, questioning the proportionality employed. Netanyahu is not in an envious position. Throughout his tenure and political career, he lauded his ability to engage successfully with the American public by zealously advocating Israel's position. Yet under his government Israel's reputation has plummeted in the US. Trump may be the last US President to extend such overwhelming bilateral support to Israel. The days of politicians like Lindsey Graham are fast ending. While John Fetteman and Marco Rubio appear to be remaining more solid, even some of the most warmly inclined leading Republican and Democrat voices like Donald Trump and Rahm Emanuel have nuanced their support for Israel. The tide has shifted and will at best level off if not continuing to shift further.  (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).
By David Passmore • July 24, 2026
The Saudi Nuclear Deal: An attempt to alter the Regional Balance of Power Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM The initiative to develop a civilian nuclear program in Saudi Arabia with US assistance isn't new. There were concrete plans discussed towards these ends during the first Trump Administration. The recent announcement to actualize this deal follows the geo-political regional tumult in the wake of the Iran War. Several dimensions of motivation underlie the US decision. An overarching US strategic agenda is to keep the Saudis firmly in the American sphere of influence. Washington knows all too well that the Chinese and Russians are eager to offer their nuclear technical assistance to the Saudis in order to draw them closer to their camp. On a personal note, the nuclear agreement is a significant achievement for Bin Salaman. The Saudis have long had designs to diversify their energy supplies. Having a civilian nuclear program also adds prestige to Saudi Arabia as an emerging market economy. For the US, a monopoly on contracting companies for the requisite construction offers lucrative economic opportunities. Although the Civilian Nuclear deal does not allow the enrichment of Uranium, the Saudis will be in a position to do so if Washington gives the green light. This will act as a counterbalanced threat hanging over the Iranians. After the recent flare up of renewed fighting with Iran due to their lack of adherence to the moratorium of understanding, something had to budge in Trump's estimation. A reconfiguration of the power balance in the Gulf by introducing the potential of Saudi Arabia to be able to acquire nuclear weapons shifts the dynamic and places further pressure on Iran to strictly abstain from nuclear proliferation. Despite Israeli concerns about the agreement, Trump sought to assuage their alarm by making it contingent upon Saudi Arabia normalizing relations with them. Given the inherently unstable nature of an autocratic Saudi regime Israel views a diplomatic relationship with the Saudis as being on precarious footing in the long term. Israel is already forced to contend with the implications of one nuclear armed Muslim state - Pakistan and it will further weaken its own deterrent capability if another similarly capable hostile neighbour were to emerge in the future. The roles of Turkey and Qatar in all this foray are a wild card. Officially Turkey is served under the NATO nuclear umbrella for defence that is subject to US control. However, its civilian nuclear program remains in its infancy. Now with the Saudi deal, Erdogan may be inclined to exert pressure on the US to help accelerate his own nuclear program. Just as Erdogan's efforts to acquire F35 fighter jets from the US greatly disturbed Israeli military planners, a heightened Turkish nuclear ability will intensify this fear. Qatar views itself as pursuing its own independent foreign policy that has managed to remain rather neutral during the current war, thereby escaping the ire of Iran's strikes on US regional assets. Overall, the Qatari government has grown closer to the Turkish vision for the region and so likely isn't particularly amiable to the Saudi agreement. Ultimately the Saudi deal is a gamble. Many will see it as throwing more fuel on the fire which will further imperil the tinder box region and heighten tensions. But Trump finds himself at a continuing impasse with a stubborn regime in Tehran that is leveraging their geographic hold on the straits of Hormuz to inflict damage on the global energy markets. Iranian strikes upon US Arab regional allies have underscored the de facto alliance between Israel and the Arabs against Iran and its Shia proxies. The US hopes to use the Saudi nuclear deal as a means of making this alliance official by having Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords as a pre-condition.  (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).
By David Passmore • July 14, 2026
Circling the wagons Ruben Rothler LLB, LLM Israel is a society riddled with tension and division. It is sociologically, if not politically miraculous that a country drawing Jews from all over the world is able to exist at all. The army affords a degree of integration as a melting pot. But this is only a marginal source of national unity in the overall scheme of things. More so are the myriads of external threats that face this small country. In the former generation the Ashkenazi (Jews of European descent) - Sephardic (Jews of Oriental descent) divide was far more pronounced. The dominant Ashkenazi establishment held the reins of political and economic power which was resented by the Sephardim. However, due to a combination of inter-marriage and political accommodation much of the chasm that separated these distinct groups was forged. Menachem Begin (an Ashkenazi politician) in 1970 successfully ran on the Likud Party ticket with a campaign that brought Sephardic Jews under his conservative political umbrella. Later the immigration of Russian Jews following the end of Communism would add a whole new dimension to the Israeli demographic milieu. The younger generation of these immigrants tended to adapt well to Israeli society and contributed much to the economy. The wider division in Israeli society that crosses ethnic lines concerns that between religious and secular Jews. This can be further bifurcated to the clash between the secular and specifically ultra-orthodox Jews (Haredim) as distinguished from the national religious Jews (Dati Leumi). The Secular and the Religious generally part on what they envisage a Jewish State to entail. Religious Jews desire the State to strictly adhere to the stipulations of Jewish Law (Halacha), while at present Halakhic influence is largely limited to certain areas of Family Law concerning Jewish citizens. Wider considerations of promoting a socially conservative political agenda would also be forefront amongst the religious mindset broadly. Secular Jews view the imposition of such proposed measures as a serious infringement of their civil rights. With regard to the Haredim, the bone of contention looms larger, in that this group is fundamentally opposed to participating in society at large. This is acutely manifested in diminished contribution to the work force and a refusal to be conscripted into the army. The 2023 judicial reform protests posed a significant threat to social civil order. The nation appeared to be bitterly divided into two opposing camps. This split reflected broader divisions concerning visions of how the country should be governed. The judicial reforms would have weakened the Supreme Court's ability to render the Executive branch accountable. However, the Supreme Court was also accused of using its considerable powers to promote a socially liberal agenda. Left wing secular Israelis tended to oppose the proposed reforms while those on the right (which included the majority of Religious Jews) supported the reforms. Every weekend droves of protesters were brought onto the streets causing major disturbances to traffic. The polarising nature of this impasse threatened the future of Israeli democracy. It was the October 7th attack that brought a swift end to this public debate and civil strife. The nation instinctually united in response to this common existential threat. The judicial reforms were shelved for a future point when the urgent security threats subsided. However, as the war dragged on the enduring issue of Haredi refusal to conscript into the army became more pronounced. Mounting casualties combined with ever increasing manpower demands to field troops on the multiple theatres of action on which the IDF is engaged has depleted the ranks, and the army is now in much need of fresh conscripts. Haredi belligerent refusal to participate in the pressing national defence has escalated from being a political debate to a matter of very practical vital importance. Overall we can observe that the challenges to national unity in successive generations since the establishment of Israel has recurrently been ameliorated by the common necessity of defence towards outside threats. Most recently we can see this happening with regard to the global anti Semitism and anti-Zionism that has been raging since the October 7th atrocities. These hostile attitudes have paradoxically acted as a force which promotes nationalism and a sense of national cohesion in Israel that otherwise might not functionally exist.  (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).
By David Passmore • July 8, 2026
A Divided Nation Rubin Rothler LLB, LLM The Haredi community has had a complicated, paradoxical relationship with the State since its founding. Rooted in a Talmudic precept that the Jews are forbidden to resettle the land of Israel en masse by force before the coming of the Messiah, the secular democratic State of Israel presents itself as blasphemous by its mere existence. Yet due to practical considerations such as the need to obtain funding for its religious academies the Haredi leadership reached a settlement with the State's founders that exempted Haredi men from being conscripted for military service. This was at a time when the Haredi population in Israel was relatively small. Over the past decades this demographic ballooned until the point that soon the majority of Jewish children in Israel will be born into Haredi families. Such a situation is clearly unsustainable. Recently the Knesset's (Parliament's) Haredi parties have pressured their coalition partners in government to codify Torah Study as part of the Country's Basic Laws. This was purposefully done to elevate the status of their institutions to be on parity with service in the IDF. Israel is yet to promulgate a written Constitution, so legislation classed as a Basic Law holds Constitutional status for all intents and purposes. These moves by the religious parties represent a back door power grab to enshrine in law very significant hurdles to prevent the enlistment of Haredi men. The burden of Israel's defence is comparatively massive for a country its size and it is vastly disproportionately shouldered by the secular population. Until now there have been political initiatives to conscript the Haredim. But given the huge manpower shortages emerging in the wake of near continual conflict on multiple fronts since the events of October 7th this matter has become urgent and not merely a theoretical discussion of what is fair and equitable. It is important to draw a distinction between the Haredim and national religious Jews (Dati Leumi). The Haredim adhere to a lifestyle entirely committed to observance of Jewish Law and Talmudic study. This is embraced to the exclusion of gainful employment and participation in wider society. They are either outrightly opposed to Zionism or consider themselves non-Zionist. Conversely, followers of the national religious movement in Israel although being observant of Jewish law and learning would alongside this pursue secular professions. Furthermore, they are ardently Zionist and disproportionately serve in IDF combat units. This is often done within the framework of a program called Hesder Yeshiva that combines religious learning with military service. Efforts to cater a similar model for accommodating Haredi participation in the IDF have so far failed to make substantial gains. Such measures designed to override Haredi objections to service based upon modesty concerns by strict segregation of the sexes in these specially formed units have failed to appease the Haredi leadership. For them, any form of military service is considered a dereliction of their duty to fully devote themselves to a Torah lifestyle. They argue that their Talmudic learning and prayers are in itself a form of national service and act to protect the Jewish people spiritually from enemy attack. It is as if two parallel societies exist within Israel. And the trajectory of separation between the two is only growing. The Haredim are cloistered away in their Yeshivas, immersed in lives devoted to adhering to the stipulations of Jewish law. While the particulars of actually running the State is left to the Secular. The Haredim desire all the benefits of subsidizing their lifestyle without contributing to society. What we really have going on here at source is two profoundly different and opposing ideological visions of what is important in life and what is the purpose of a Jewish State. At the State's founding these divergent perspectives were more manageable. Ben Gurion only had to contend with one religious party –the National Religious Party. Later in 1970 Begin aligned with the NRP to form a coalition government that also brought Sephardic Jews under the Likud umbrella which had the effect of bringing unity to the country by bridging the Ashkenazi-Sephardi divide. However, over time Israeli politics has seen a proliferation of religious parties, gaining further leverage as king brokers in forming governments due to the proportionate representation voting system which secular Israelis not uncommonly view as political blackmail. (Author is an Israeli American lawyer academically qualified in British and in U.S.A. law, and a graduate of the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. He is a Jewish believer in Jesus and is currently based in Israel).