Why We're Here

We are here outside the White House during Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Washington, D.C. Netanyahu claims to represent all Jews and the Jewish religion, but this is an embarrassment to our people and a desecration of the Jewish faith. Everything that Benjamin Netanyahu and the state of Israel stand for—the crimes committed over decades, especially the genocide in Gaza and the continuous murder in the West Bank—these are crimes not only under international law but under Judaism itself.

Zionism as a Contradiction to Judaism

The killing, stealing, and oppression of an entire people is criminal in Judaism. The entire philosophy of building a sovereign homeland for Jews through the movement of Zionism is in total contrast to the very basics of Judaism. Benjamin Netanyahu and the state of Israel he represents do not represent the Jewish people or the Jewish religion in any way. This is an embarrassment to us. Masses of Jewish people around the world, in Israel, Washington D.C., New York, and beyond are opposed to what is happening—not only to the genocide of the last three years, but to Zionism itself.

Judaism as Religion, Not Nationalism

Judaism stands for belief in Almighty God and the practice of His commandments. That is all that Judaism is. Judaism is not about politics or nationalism, which is what the movement of Zionism is doing. Zionism attempts to transform Judaism from a religion into a nationalism. They claim that you no longer have to believe in God in order to be Jewish—you just have to support the national movement of Zionism. This is a tragedy for Judaism as a religion; it is an uprooting of the religion from masses of Jewish people. Those behind this movement are the true enemy of the Jewish people and of Almighty God, not only the enemy of Palestinians and neighboring countries. This is unacceptable and we do not accept it.

The Doctrine of Jewish Exile

According to Judaism, in addition to the crimes of killing, stealing, and oppressing an entire people—especially those who are indigenous to the land and who welcomed and protected Jews for the longest time—creating Jewish sovereignty is forbidden. For the past 2000 years, since the destruction of the Second Temple, which we believe is a divine decree, Jewish exile is the will of Almighty God. We are forbidden to end that godly decree of exile by any physical means. We are forbidden to engage in mass immigration to the Holy Land, to rebel against any nation, or to wage wars against any people. We are required by our religion to be loyal citizens and peaceful neighbors in whichever country we live.

This basic Judaism was accepted by all Jews throughout all generations with no exception, doubt, or disagreement until just over a hundred years ago, when the movement of Zionism started. Zionism is forbidden according to Judaism even without any crimes committed to anyone. But when this happens in Palestine, there are so many crimes—killing, stealing, this ridiculous occupation going on for decades. This is unacceptable in Judaism.

A Message to Netanyahu

I have no message for Netanyahu because he clearly states he will not listen to anyone. Netanyahu and any people supporting the movement of Zionism and the state of Israel need to go back to the tradition of their grandparents and return to the Judaism of earlier generations. Otherwise they are rebelling against God. The verse in Numbers says: "Why are you violating the Word of God? You will not be successful." This is what we are seeing. After decades of all attempts, all wars, and all peace agreements, they have no peace. This is no wonder and no accident. Our religious leaders predicted this from the very beginning, and here we are—they have proven right. If you rebel against God, it will never be successful.

The Third Temple: Religious Concept, Not Political Tool

In the Jewish religion, the concept of the Third Temple is a true concept, as are many other concepts in Jewish religion. But when they are being misused for political gains and nationalism, this is true hypocrisy. They show you one side of the coin but not the other. There is a concept of the promised land—God promised the land to the Jewish people. But there is another side: the same Jewish religion teaches that the land was taken from the Jewish people by God, and there is a decree of exile that we are forbidden to end. The same applies to the Third Temple. Yes, there is a concept of the Third Temple and a concept of ultimate redemption. But the question of how, when, where, and by whom is crucial.

The ultimate redemption that Jewish people yearn and pray for is one that will not come about by any physical means. This is very clear in Scripture and in Talmudic sources. In Judaism, ultimate redemption will happen by Almighty God alone. Just a couple of days ago we were commemorating Tisch'a B'Av, the saddest day in the Jewish calendar—the day of the destruction of both temples. On that day we say a prayer, and once a year in the middle of that prayer we say: "Hashem, it is You, God, who destroyed the temple in fire, and it is You, God, who is going to rebuild it." This is how Judaism views the Third Temple. The Third Temple is something that will not be built by physical means. This is a temple which is going to be built by Almighty God. We do not understand how that is going to look, but this is what our teaching and our religion teaches us. Transforming all of this into material, ridiculous, painful criminal wars and conflict is an embarrassment and a desecration of our religion.

On World Politics and Peace

We are religious Jews and we do not go into world politics. We pray for the safety and security of all human beings around the globe, and we hope that there will be peace for everyone.

About Neturei Karta

I am Rabbi Dovid Feldman. More information about our organization can be found at www.nck usa.org.