Harry Liberman
By Chadica from Jerusalem, Israel – Another shofar, CC BY 2.0, Link
In Cecil B. DeMille’s 1956 cinematic epic, The Ten Commandments, there is a scene of profound moral collapse that serves as a timeless mirror. Moses descends from Mount Sinai, cradling the law of God, only to find his people spiraling into chaos. At the center of this betrayal stands Dathan—played with chilling, self-serving malice by Edward G. Robinson.
Dathan, the ultimate collaborator, dances around a false idol and scoffs at the heavy price of freedom, essentially weaponizing the sentiment that the material comforts and “fleshpots of Egypt” were preferable to the arduous journey toward self-determination. When Moses throws the stone tablets, it is an act of righteous fury against those who chose to appease their oppressors for temporary safety, social standing, or favor.
Today, a tragic modern iteration of this scene plays out across the cultural and political landscapes of the West.
In the wake of October 7, the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust, the world has witnessed a virulent, unprecedented surge in global antisemitism. Yet, uniquely bewildering is the sight of prominent figures of Jewish heritage—from wealthy progressive donors like George Soros to political figures like Senator Bernie Sanders, alongside a vocal cohort of elite Hollywood insiders—siding with the very ideological movements that seek the dismantling of the Jewish state.
Like Dathan, who chose Egyptian patronage over his own flesh and blood, these modern critics offer validation to anti-Israel and anti-Zionist factions.
They distance themselves from the collective survival of their people, seemingly trading historical solidarity for acceptance in elite cultural circles. In doing so, they ignore a fundamental truth that history has proven time and again: the hatred aimed at the Jewish people has never been contingent upon the actions, policies, or existence of the State of Israel.
Antisemitism is an ancient, shape-shifting virus.
For over three thousand years, Jews have faced relentless persecution, systemic pogroms, malicious blood libels, and the fabrication of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, culminating in the industrialized horrors of the Shoah. This hatred existed long before the modern restoration of Israel—a restoration, ironically, foretold and acknowledged within the prophetic texts of both Christian and Islamic traditions.
The historical amnesia of today’s detractors is stark.
The Jewish people did not originate in Europe; they were violently uprooted from their indigenous homeland in Judea.
Following the destruction of the Second Temple, the European Roman Empire dragged them west as enslaved labor to build monuments like the Roman Colosseum, carrying off the plundered treasures of Jerusalem. This exile was a continuation of an agonizing cycle that began by the rivers of Babylon, where the weeping prophet Jeremiah once mourned an displaced nation.
Yet, the defining characteristic of Jewish history is not defeat; it is an unparalleled, miraculous resilience. Against every civilizational threat throughout millennia, the Jewish people have consistently beaten the odds. Even today, facing multifaceted threats from hostile regimes and regional terrorist proxies, the endurance of Israel defies conventional geopolitical logic.
There remains an enduring hope that those who have drifted from their community will look back at their own history to rediscover this profound legacy.
The survival of the Jewish people through thousands of years of exile and adversity stands as powerful evidence of an enduring purpose. History shows that kingdoms and empires built on hostility toward them have crumbled, while the nation of Israel continues to persevere, look to the future, and find reasons to celebrate.
The enduring lesson of Jewish history remains a testament to resilience: while ancient empires and regimes built on hostility have vanished, the nation of Israel continues to endure, remember, and look forward.
As the Jewish world approaches Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, this resilience carries a profound message for the global community. Rosh Hashanah is a solemn yet hopeful time of reflection, renewal, and a declaration of existence:
We are here.
Yet, even a sacred calendar can be twisted by ancient malice. In the digital age of instant misinformation, malicious voices may look at the calendar and claim, “See, the Jews are celebrating on September 11.“ Let this preemptive slander be met with the unyielding truth: Rosh Hashanah is a thousands-of-years-old biblical holiday, driven by the lunar cycle, not a political statement.
To twist this holy day into a modern blood libel ignores a shared tragedy. September 11 remains a day of profound mourning for the entire civilized world, and the Jewish community shares deeply in that grief.
On 9/11, hundreds of Jewish Americans were among the victims murdered in the Twin Towers—a brutal assault on the free world that directly mirrors the horrors inflicted upon Israeli civilians decades later on October 7. Both days represent unparalleled tragedies of modern terrorism aimed at innocent lives.
Rosh Hashanah serves as a powerful reminder to the world that Jewish celebration is never rooted in malice or the suffering of others.
It is a celebration of life, survival, and renewal against all odds. As the shofar sounds, it serves as a universal wake-up call to reject hatred, stand firm in the face of terror, and recognize that despite thousands of years of exile and adversity, the Jewish people continue to move forward into a new year with hope, dignity, and strength.
This milestone stands as a powerful testament to Jewish resilience and indigeneity: Jews are from Judea, and despite over 3,700 years of exile, forced relocation, and persistent attempts to erase their identity, their calendar remains unbroken.
Far from being a localized or insular celebration, Rosh Hashanah prayers and traditions explicitly focus on universal peace, cosmic harmony, and the recognition of dignity for all of humanity:
The Birthday of All Humanity: Rosh Hashanah does not mark a specifically Jewish historical event; rather, it is celebrated as the birthday of the world and the creation of the first humans. The liturgy emphasizes the shared origin and equal dignity of all human life under God. [1]
Prayers for Universal Peace: The High Holiday prayer book (The Machzor) repeatedly asks for a time when “all people will form a single coalition to do Your will with a perfect heart.”
The central focus is the ultimate eradication of tyranny, hatred, and arrogance from the entire earth, wishing for a world united in justice and peace.
The Calling of the Shofar: The blowing of the ram’s horn (shofar) serves as a universal wake-up call. It is intended to pierce through human indifference, shatter false pretenses, and call upon individuals to look inward, take moral responsibility, and seek reconciliation. [1, 2]
As the Jewish year 5787 begins, it serves as a reminder that the enduring survival of the Jewish people is fundamentally linked to a vision of universal peace and dignity for the entire world.
Ultimately, the modern crusade against Israel collapses under the weight of its own historical hypocrisy. As author Douglas Murray observes, those who condemn Israel as a “colonial” state are almost always projecting their own history into the mirror. Western protesters in nations like Canada—built on the lands of the indigenous Kanata—and critics across the fifty-plus states of the post-conquest Islamic world live on territories forged by true empires, conquest, and displacement.
By contrast, the Jewish people cannot colonize a land that bears their own name; the very word “Jew” is derived from Judea. Returning to their ancient, unbroken homeland is not an act of foreign occupation, but the ultimate reclamation of indigenous identity—a return that the Very Holiest Texts of Both Christianity and Islam Explicitly Affirm.
The production history of The Ten Commandments exposes a chilling cinematic paradox: The corporate betrayal of Jewish heritage by Hollywood’s own elite. In the shadow of the Holocaust,and October 07 , the largely Jewish heads and actors of major Hollywood studios are the modern-day Dathans.
Terrified of jeopardizing their hard-won assimilation and social standing, they initially rejected the epic tale of Jewish liberation out of a desire for political self-preservation. They actively chose the psychological safety of the “fleshpots of Egypt”—the cultural status quo—rather than risk public backlash by producing a film unapologetically affirming Jewish identity.
It remains a profound historical irony that it took a devout Christian director, Cecil B. DeMille, to defy this executive cowardice.
By championing the narrative of Exodus and providing employment to displaced European refugees, DeMille forced Hollywood to look into a mirror of its own systemic hesitation. The monumental success of the film ultimately proved that while the institutional elite sought to suppress their own history for temporary security, the eternal narrative of resilience prevailed over corporate compromise.
Moses declares, “Woe unto thee, O Hollywood ! You have sinned a great sin in the sight of God!”
As the shofar sounds to usher in the Jewish year 5787, it delivers a definitive answer to both ancient blood libels and modern projections:
We are eternal!
The enduring survival of the Jewish people defies the empires of the past and the proxies of the present, standing as an unyielding testament to resilience, truth, and an eternal path forward.
The people of Israel live !
“Am Yisrael Chai”
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