''Moshka the Jew' was the nickname of Jacob Katzburg. And there was no mention of the name 'Moshe' in his name, or in that of any of his family members, but as a Jew who leased a plot of land from the Fritz of Dushan Ha'An, it was natural that over the years his name would change to 'Moshka the Jew'. Indeed, the Fritz had been leasing the evergreen forests surrounding the town to the Katzburg family for many years, son after father, governor after predecessor.
And one bright day, with the pickaxe on his shoulders and the sweat of labor dripping down his face as he walked through the thickets of trees in the dense forest, Yankel's feet came across a sturdy iron arch firmly embedded in the ground and forest soil. The man understood what was before him and began digging in the ground with all his might. Piles of dirt were pushed aside and there was an ancient iron box, sealed and locked. Yankel's imagination and his desire to find what was in the box drove him deep into the forest, and there, among the thickets of trees and under the cover of darkness, the man began to hit the box with all his might and try to open it. And indeed, his efforts bore fruit, and the creaking of the hinges of the opening box sounded to his ears like the trumpet of Messiah. Clouds of dust were lifted and occasional boulders were pushed aside, and before the eyes of the surprised tenant were revealed treasures of gold and emeralds whose value will never be estimated.
But where joy throbbed, sadness emerged, Yankel's thoughts now gave way to finding the fateful answer he would have to give his wife to the question: "Where from?" The man realized that if the honorable Fritz knew about his find, he would not hesitate to go to him and plan with him the arrangements for transferring the box and all its contents. He also believed that if his wife knew about the source of the treasures, all the townspeople would be partners in the classified information, including the Fritz. And while he was racking his brain until he almost considered leaving the box in its place, "and the main thing is that the Gentiles will benefit," a brilliant flash of genius flashed in his mind that could now be taught in political schools.
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The man buried the box well in the forest soil, covered it with twigs and old branches, marked the spot, and returned home as if nothing had happened. "My wife, Tsifpa," Yankel turned to his partner at dinner, "Would you like to come with me to my work tomorrow to observe the trees of the forest and be amazed by the wonders of creation?" he asked. And when he received the woman's positive answer, he immediately packed a loaf of bread, salted fish, and a clay pot containing old, fine wine in his bag, left his house, and hurried to the forest. He did what he had to do and returned home tired, weary, and looking forward to what was to come.
In the morning, the couple are walking in the depths of the forest. The man's senses are sharpened, and he turns to his wife and says to her: "A gypsy folk legend tells that there are places deep in the forest where living, healthy food grows on the trees, which is eaten as it is and revives a person's soul." While the wife looks at her husband like a monkey looks at humans, calculating the seasons and trying to reconcile why her husband's mind had gone haywire just now, a cry of shock was heard, and it was from her own mouth, "Look, Yankel, look, real challah is blooming in the forest trees." And indeed, fresh, fragrant challah stood on the branches of the tree, tied and ripe, the work of the man's hands to boast about. And when the wife 'found' the other branches bearing challah and the salted fish, Yankel realized that the time had come and turned to his wife, shouting: "Here is a treasure chest!" And when the two left, shocked and exhausted, the tenant knew that from now on he had an answer for the greedy Fritz.
The news of the sudden enrichment of 'Moshka the Jew' reached the ears of the village governor at lightning speed, who immediately ordered him to appear before him. And when the Fritz vehemently demanded that he return the treasure chest he had found in the forest, as Moshka's wife himself had told him, Yankel smiled dryly and asked the master to call the woman here and ask her to tell him where the treasure in question came from. The woman told Fritz the sequence of events from finding the miraculous forest trees to finding the treasure chest, and the latter looked at Yankel's sorrowful face and dismissed him, offering Moshka a decent loan that would help him pay for the cure for his delusional wife.
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Confusing facts - that's the whole story. Instead of denying them, the facts, you can present them in a different light and thereby be saved.
This week, the news was about the assimilation wedding in Rishon LeZion of Mahmoud and Morel. For some reason, opinions on the story were divided between the extreme right, which opposes it, and the moderate left, which supports it. The issue of assimilation, which was compared at the time by then-Prime Minister Golda Meir to the extermination of the Jewish people during the Holocaust, was completely sidelined, and talk of 'cultural pluralism' and equal rights represented the moderate side. The real problem of the departure from the Jewish religion of the Daughter of Israel and her Jewish children until the end of all generations, from the framework of the chosen people in favor of the people who rose up against us to kill us, is the one that should have been stated openly. There is no racism here, nor is there 'over-chosenness' before our eyes. Shame and disgrace for the Jewish state in which the Minister of Health sends out words supporting the Semitic extermination of the Jewish people. Because if not in religion, what is our Judaism?
