“mindmap” was created by Ward Shelley
Lee Diamond -The Jewish Diaspora and Israel
Not the Israel diaspora
Not Israelis who live abroad
Who have relatives, parents, siblings, children
Who have served or do still serve in the IDF
But the Jewish diaspora
Jews who prefer to live abroad
Away from the daily trials and tribulations
Of the Jewish State
They love us! They care for us!
They support Israel in every way.
But they are NOT here.
They speak In our name
They are vocal about Our cause
They protect us
But they are elsewhere
Actually they don’t quite understand us
We’re Jews of a different stroke
They really don’t ‘get” Us
Most of us are Secular!
Few of us are conservative or reform
Yet we’re Jews — not Jew “ish”
Jews through and Through
We wear the skin of Jews
Not the clothing of synagogue Jews
Or The suits of Shabbat Jews.
We a different kind of Jew
24/7 Jews
We have our problems
Israel is imperfect still
We have our politics–
They are maddening
No separation of “Shul and State”
We have our enemies
“Out for our throats”
Who by and large want us
In the sea,
But we are here and will never leave
Yet we seek acceptance
In this hostile environment
Only we,
We —means Israeli Jews—
Can deal and solve
With the reality of the Jew in Israel
The Jewish diaspora owns the right
To the Law of Return
To the Jewish homeland
Welcome home
But Israeli Jews must be the sole
Decision makers of our young Jew State.
It’s insulting I know
But we’re not you and you’re not us.
We’ve done well in a Short History
Of 69 years
With your loving support
So please Keep loving us
BUT LET US BE
