God's Forgotten - The Divine & The Mortal

A Journey Through Pro-Israel Substack Newsletters

Dear God,
I hope you got the letter and
I pray you can make it better down here¹

I have been silent for the past 10 days as I decided to take the time to read other Substacks. I thought that I would gravitate to those who were virulently against Israel and what the other side was thinking and writing. I wanted to understand their POV.

An interesting thing happened. I found myself reading Substacks from Jews in other countries besides Israel, and the more I read, the more despondent I became. Not because they were against Israel but because they were gung-ho for it.

Don’t get me wrong. This unwavering support is fantastic. The more, the better. Something else bothered me on a much deeper level. I had to decide if I should write about it or not, as it goes to the root of a moral, ethical, philosophical, and ethical problem that has real consequences.

Though I have no desire to insult anyone, I beg the forgiveness of those I may insult with my words. From the perspective of having been born and raised in NYC and living in Israel for 40 years, it is just one person's perspective. I certainly expect to lose subscribers due to this post.

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An Unnamed Group With No Choice To Join And No Ability To Opt-Out

It seems, due to an incredibly complicated historical change in perspective of those who live outside of Israel and those who live in Israel, that it has become popular for those who support Israel from the outside to be constantly gung-ho about our children going to war. Our family members were wounded and killed.

Make no inferences here. Many families all over the world have children serving in the IDF, and those children have been killed or wounded in terrorist attacks or the 10/7 war. These families I am NOT including here. They have made the ultimate sacrifice and joined the one group on earth that no one asks if they want to join; there is no double opt-in and no unsubscribing. Once you are in - you are in for life. And there is not a damn thing you can do about it. Trust me on this, as I am a member of that group.

Oh, one other thing about this group. No sane individual on this planet would ever voluntarily join it. Admission is forced upon you. You have no say, no free will, no free thought, no ability to argue before a court, no lawyer, no will. You have been chosen, and that is that. There's nothing you can do.

Because of this our hearts are sick,
Because of these our eyes are dimmed.²

Yet there are unabashed gung-ho Zionists in the Diaspora who feel that the IDF belongs to them as well. They write Substacks. They constantly approve, critique, and give their opinion on how Israel should be more aggressive. As a friend of mine

Kenaz Filan

here on Substack is fond of saying, “They have no skin in the game.” It is easy to talk when you do not have to worry about joining that unnamed group.

It bothers me on a deep level. I am not talking politics here. Whether I am for or against the events unfolding after 10/7 is not the point. And 10/7 further justified their gung-ho attitude. Did not antisemitism rage its ugly head worldwide? Were there not mass protests with shouts of “Gas the Jews,” “Kill the Jews,” and “Rape the Jews”?

Jews in the Diaspora were targeted, attacked, vilified, and had no ability to fight back. Free Speech, Free Thought, Free Expression.

So, 10/7 put a spin on things outside of Israel. Many Substack writers worldwide, and writers not only in Substack, now thought they “had skin in the game.” And indeed, they did—in their own countries.

Let us go further here. And in this, I am sure I will piss off quite a few people I am friends with.

The new emerging ultra-orthodox community in the US and Europe often divine themselves as “Charedi though belive in the State of Israel.” This emerging philosophical change in their religious perspective will be the subject of many PhDs for years to come.

Yet they, too, and again I quote from

Kenaz Filan

“Have no skin in the game.” Their progeny come to study in Yeshivot in Israel. They do not join the IDF for the most part, which is still outside the purview of their philosophy and ideological reasons.

Yet they are vociferous in their support, screaming it from the rooftops. It's all a great thing. But again, it is great for PR. To me, it is blowing in the wind.

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The Divine & The Mortal

Day by day, week by week, month by month, we in Israel grow weary, despondent, and full of despair.

We feel that we are God’s Forgotten.

Our children and families are hostages.

Our children and families are fighting.

Our children and families are being wounded and killed.

So my argument is with two sectors. One the Divine, the other the Mortal.

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Dear God:

Why have you forgotten us utterly? Why have you forsaken us for all time?³

I know everyone who wants, needs, or desires begins to talk to you. It is a lot of conversations to handle all at once. I get it. Really, I do get it. But then again, you are God.

I want your ear, if just for a moment. Maybe you will listen, but then again, maybe you won’t. I have a few stories I would like to tell you—stories about what is going down here. They say you are all-knowing, all-seeing, and without end. You rule the world. You rule the Universe. You rule all that was, all that is, and all that will be. At least, that is what they say.

So I ask you to indulge me for a few minutes, even with half an ear. I will not use difficult words, I won’t take up much of your time (though I am told You are beyond time,) and I will try not to be “me” oriented most of the time because this letter is not about me. It is kind of, well, it is about “You.”

What is going on up there, God? What are you doing? Why? Please do not blame this on mankind this time. Please do not blame it on your creations. You have moved farther and farther from all your creations. We are left despondent, despairing, and in grief. Why is this the only way? Why is humankind destined to move from war to war, killing to killing, despair to despair? Is there no way to stop this? And please do not tell me we need to pray more or be better people. What is going on up there, God? What are you thinking?

Dear God, sorry to disturb you, but
I feel that I should be heard loud and clear
We all need a big reduction in amount of tears
And all the people that you made in your image
See them fighting in the street
'Cause they can't make opinions meet about God
I can't believe in you⁴

See where all that leads God? Do you understand it? Of course, you do. You are God. So you put us in impossible situations where our hearts and souls are broken, and you still want us to pray and love you.

I have no answers, God. Maybe you do. If so, please share because You know God (or at least they say You do) how broken we are.

Let me use Your words to explain my dilemma.

Thus, Israel dwells in safety,
Untroubled in Jacob’s abode
In a land of grain and wine
Under Heavens dripping dew⁵

When your brain still holds verse following verse, and Talmudic page after page, and legend upon legend - it is hard not to quote You, God, using Your words against You. I know that is not fair. But God, remember, I am mortal. All your creations are mortal. And we really do not understand. And we all need to understand at least something. Anything. Please don’t abandon us totally yet again.

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Dear GungHo Israel Substack Writers:

The following is written with all my heart. There is no cynicism nor sarcasm involved.

I want first to thank you for all your support. I want to thank your communities for their support. It has been difficult for you over there. With antisemitism on the rise and attacks becoming more frequent, it gets very scary and very real.

Thank you for all your monetary donations to Israel or whatever charity you gave your hard-earned money to help us through this difficult time.

I want to thank you for your political connections and for helping the families of hostages and others be heard in the right forums.

I want to thank you for your unending support of the State of Israel without bending in the wind.

Please continue to write as much as you want about your POV, share it, publish it, and let others read it. I have no problems with this.

However, I also have a request.

If you have “no skin in the game,” please do not flippantly write about how much we need to attack, destroy, and defend ourselves. I realize the State of Israel is protecting you as well as those inside of it. I realize the State of Israel has a responsibility to you as well. Left to right, ultra-religious to completely secular, Zionists non-Zionists, does not matter. The State of Israel has a responsibility to all.

But when you put those fingers to the keyboard, remember, it is our sons and daughters, fathers and mothers, sisters and brothers, family and friends who face those bullets, rockets, and bombs. Remember, talk is cheap. “No skin in the game” allows you to think about anything without understanding the end consequences.

There are consequences. Week after week, I have gone from funeral to shiva calls, from worrying about 1 son and 3 sons-in-law in elite units to friends who have had their sons and daughters killed.

I beg of you to think about this before you want Israel to attack and attack and attack. And again, this is not political. It is about existence, belief, and despair.

Stop claiming you are openly Zionists and proud to be Jews if you have nothing to lose. And by nothing to lose, I mean you do not have a family member that will end up here.

And trust me on this one. That is as real as it will ever get.

1. Copyright ©: Writer: Andrew John Partridge; Song: Dear God • Lawless (2016), Featuring artist: Sydney Wayser

2. Lamentations 517

3. Lamentations 5:20

4. See #1

5. Deuteronomy 33:28