The value of self-sacrifice is burned into the consciousness of the Jewish nation.
It begins with the sublime example of the tying of Isaac, which brings to the extreme the willingness to give up everything for the sake of God. Over the generations, this has been joined by countless stories of self-sacrifice of Jews who chose to die for the sanctification of God.
However, even though we cultivate and exalt the devotion of the soul, Judaism sanctifies life, not death.
The commandment "Live in the beast" is the guiding principle, and according to it, the preservation of life is the greatest and most important thing, and the entire Torah is abrogated in order to save life (except for three things about which it is stated "He shall be killed and not transgressed").
Sick brainwashing
This is the essential difference between us and the madmen of radical Islam, who cultivate a culture of sanctification of death.
On the surface, there is something here that could resemble self-sacrifice – young people, men and women, with their entire lives ahead of them, going to die for something they believe in.
Fact - they are willing to explode and be killed for the sake of their people's struggle.
But the truth is that the opposite is true. There is no devotion here, but rather a sick brainwashing that presents life in this world as worthless, and contrasts it with the illusion of a pleasurable and delightful life (in a world of crude and clumsy concepts) in the next world.
Preachers of all kinds convey a message to young people – your life is rubbish, it is a shame for you to live, to strive and to suffer. Do a brave deed and in an instant you will become 'martyrs' who enjoy the pleasures of the next world (the extent of the lie and deception in this can be seen in the preachers' refraining from sending their children on suicide missions).
This is the complete opposite of dedication.
The essence of self-sacrifice is sacrifice, renouncing the 'I', giving up everything I have for the sake of higher values. Here it is exactly the opposite: naive young people are offered a magical deal - to exchange their miserable lives for a wonderful life in the next world, so to speak.
They are going to die under the illusion that this act will give them a much better life. There is no concession or sacrifice here, but rather a desire to achieve a better existence (as they imagine).
Such acts of madness can only develop in a culture that has no value for life.
The songs and slogans there proclaim: "We love death." See their lust for murder, directed not only at their enemies, but also at their own people.
This is what a society that doesn't value life looks like. So if life is worthless, why not die and gain fame and admiration?
Life is the purpose.
In contrast, we sanctify life. We know that saving one soul is saving an entire world. We are commanded to do everything so that a person may live another minute, because life here and the fulfillment of the Creator's will in this world are the purpose.
A Jew wants with all his heart to live and not die, and therefore when he gives up his life, he does not do so to gain anything, but rather out of true sacrifice and a willingness to give up everything dear to him for the sake of God.
This is true dedication, like the act of tying the knot, in which there was no hope of any benefit, but rather a total surrender to the will of the Creator.
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