From: banerjeeadda1234@gmail.com   
      
   On Wednesday 17 January 2024 at 02:26:00 UTC+11, Ilya Shambat wrote:   
   > In The Merchant Of Venice, Shakespeare writes about a Jewish merchant named   
   Shylock. Shylock gives this speech:    
   >    
   > “Hath not a Jew eyes? Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses,   
   affections, passions; fed with the same food, hurt with the same weapons,   
   subject to the same diseases, healed by the same means, warmed and cooled by   
   the same winter and summer    
   as a Christian is? If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we   
   not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not   
   revenge?”    
   >    
   > Then he loaned out money, and when it was not returned demanded as his bond   
   a pount of flesh. He keeps demanding that pound of flesh, until a judge named   
   Portia called him on his hypocrisy.    
      
   No, Portia said that the bond was about getting a pound of flesh. Nothing more   
   or less. Shylock had to get his pound of flesh without shedding a drop of   
   blood. If he took one miligram more or less, shed one single drop, then the   
   full weight of the law    
   would descend upon Shylock. Then Shylock said forget the pound of flesh, let   
   me have my money back. But that was denied, for Portia argued that as he was   
   most malevolently engaged in harming the life of a Venetian, by Venetian law   
   he had to be punished    
   by severe fining, and also let his daughter Jessica marry a Christian. Shylock   
   was not being hypocritical, for he was admant about getting revenge for the   
   slights and abuses cast upon him. Antonio was prepared to die, but he was   
   spared that fate by the    
   wit of Portia. This scene went down very well with the anti-Jew audiences of   
   Shakespeare's time. Malory was even more anti-Jew.   
   >    
   > There is in fact a merit to this story. If one is to demand tolerance from   
   others, then one must practice compassion toward others as well. And we as   
   Jews need to learn how to treat non-Jews rightfully.    
      
   There is always a difference of opinion between what is right and what is not.   
   It is right for Jews to kick Arabs out of Palestine, it is right for Hamas to   
   kick Jews out of Israel.   
   >    
   > There is now a lot of anti-Jewish agitation around the world, and that calls   
   for two things. One is confronting the false arguments and false claims that   
   are being presented. More important is to show by our actions that our   
   accusers are wrong. It is    
   to hold ourselves to a high standard while dealing with non-Jewish people and   
   to treat them rightfully.    
      
   At the moment they are murdering innocent civilians, which is probably   
   rightful treatment so far as Jews are concerned.   
   >    
   > That does not mean not being loyal to the Jewish heritage. It means seeing   
   where others have done the right thing and where they deserve respect. It   
   means respecting what's good in people who are not of Jewish heritage. It   
   means following Moses'    
   commandment to be good to foreigners, as we have ourselves been foreigners in   
   Egypt.    
      
   What is good about Jews?    
   >    
   > So that while much work does need to be made by way of confronting slanders   
   against Jews, even more work needs to be made by way of making these slanders   
   non-credible. And that calls upon us to be good to the Gentiles whatever we   
   may think about their    
   beliefs.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)