Rabbi Dov Lando, 94, the Rosh Yeshiva of the Slabodka yeshiva in Bnei Brak, was informed on Monday that President Joe Biden, 81, supports his view that Jews should not be allowed on the Temple Mount.
The Temple Mount, 2,981, has been the holiest site for Jews since its construction by King Solomon in 957 BCE.
On August 27, the Haredi daily Yated Ne’eman, affiliated with Rabbi Lando who is considered the leader of the Lithuanian Haredim, ran a furious front-page ad in Arabic and Hebrew, restating the notorious lie that “all the rulers of Jewish law over the generations forbade severely the ascent of Jews to the Temple Mount (called by the Muslims the Al Aqsa Plaza), and that view has not changed and it continues to hold.”
The statement is very misleading, seeing as the late Chief Rabbi of Israel, Rabbi Shlomo Goren Ztz”l, not only allowed Jewish ascent to the Temple Mount but established a small synagogue there, and was planning to establish a yeshiva. He was countered by DM Moshe Dayan who feared the consequent rise of Jewish nationalism and ordered Rabbi Goren to close shop and get off the mountain. Dayan then struck a deal with the Jordanian Wakf that created an Islamist governorship at the heart of the holiest Jewish site on the planet.
The Yated Ne’eman ad (Otzma Yehudit Scores Win in Battle with Enraged UTJ & Leftists over Temple Mount) was a virulent attack on National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who was channeling Rabbi Goren earlier that week when he told Army Radio he was looking into establishing a synagogue on the Temple Mount. Wouldn’t that be nice? Let there be a synagogue for Jews and a mosque for Muslims in the spirit of religious freedom.
Not in Slabodka, and, apparently, not in Washington DC, either. And so, on Monday, the United States ambassador to Israel, Jack Lew, paid a secret visit to the home of Rabbi Dov Lando in Bnei Brak. It was so secret, that Ynet reported it almost in real-time.
During the meeting, the ambassador delivered to Rabbi Lando a personal message from President Biden, thanking him for his efforts to calm the spirits and prevent security unrest throughout the Middle East through his furious objection to Jewish ascent to the Temple Mount.
The Yated Ne’eman ad said Ben Gvir was a “political pyromaniac” who wished to set the entire region on fire. And folks know the only ones allowed to set stuff on fire are Haredi youths objecting to the IDF draft.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken didn’t call Ben Gvir a pyromaniac, but did issue this statement on the harrowing week when the National Security Minister set the Middle East on fire:
“The United States strongly opposes Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir’s visit to the Haram al-Sharif/Temple Mount on August 13, which demonstrated blatant disregard for the historic status quo with respect to the holy sites in Jerusalem. These provocative actions only exacerbate tensions at a pivotal moment when all focus should be on the ongoing diplomatic efforts to achieve a ceasefire agreement and secure the release of all hostages and create the conditions for broader regional stability.”
We checked, and it turns out the State dept. has a thing called the Office of International Religious Freedom, which “promotes universal respect for freedom of religion or belief for all as a core objective of US foreign policy. We monitor religiously motivated abuses, harassment, and discrimination worldwide, and recommend, develop, and implement policies and programs to address these concerns.”
Their website even features this video of Secretary of State Antony Blinken delivering remarks at a reception to celebrate Eid Al-Fitr at Blair House.
The same website even has a Q&A section that declares: “Religious freedom is a universally acknowledged right enshrined in numerous international covenants and declarations such as the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Helsinki Accords, and others. Religious freedom also lies at the heart of American Identity and is the bedrock principle on which this country was founded. The United States recognizes religious freedom as an inalienable right and is therefore committed to its preservation and advancement for all.”
Here’s the State Dept. list of Countries of Particular Concern designations, made by the Secretary of State on December 29, 2023: Burma, People’s Republic of China, Cuba, Eritrea, Iran, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.
Here are the most recent Special Watch List designations made by the Secretary of State on December 29, 2023: Algeria, Azerbaijan, the Central African Republic, Comoros, and Vietnam.
See? No mention of Israel, where Jews are prevented under the Moshe Dayan status quo from worshipping freely in their holiest site.
Yes, folks, Joe Biden, Antony Blinken, and Jack Lew are giving hypocrisy a bad name. As to Rabbi Lando – we wish him many long years and an opportunity to visit the Temple Mount when circumstances in the burning Middle East change radically, God willing.
