Blog
How the Radical Left Gave Hamas a PhD
By Jimmy Bitton In the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, history is not simply remembered. It is mobilized, weaponized, and deployed. Competing historical narratives do more than explain events. They justify them. They assign blame, sanctify violence, and switch the roles of victim and perpetrator. Since the massacre of October 7, 2023, when Hamas terrorists butchered, raped, and […]
Dreyfus Repaired, Israel Betrayed
By Jimmy Bitton This week, France’s National Assembly voted unanimously to posthumously promote Captain Alfred Dreyfus, the Jewish officer falsely convicted of treason in 1894, to the rank of brigadier general. Framed as an act of reparation, the move is being hailed as a moral stand against antisemitism and a symbol of France’s commitment to […]
Mimouna After October 7: What a Moroccan-Jewish Festival Can Teach Us About Coexistence
By Jimmy Bitton Most people outside the Jewish world have rarely heard of Mimouna—and with good reason. This lesser-known, joyful festival, celebrated by Jews of Moroccan descent at the conclusion of Passover, traditionally sees doors flung open, tables laden with sweet pastries, and an atmosphere in which both Muslim and Jewish neighbors once came together […]
Anti-Israel Zealotry: A Religion of Ruin
By Jimmy Bitton As postmodern thought dismantled the grand narratives that once gave life meaning—God, nation, family—many turned to politics to satisfy their spiritual hunger. Political movements increasingly function as quasi-religions, complete with doctrines, moral hierarchies, rituals, and heretics. Nowhere is this more evident than in the radical and pathological opposition to Israel, where political […]
Sephardi Representation in Jewish Day Schools
By Jimmy Bitton One erev shabbat while I was reciting kiddush, my then five-year-old son made the following untimely proclamation: “Abba,” he pointed out, “you should say kiddush the normal way.” Throughout the rest of the Moroccan-style recitation, which I had been performing in his presence since his birth, I tried to imagine what influenced my son’s conception of normal […]
Antisemitism is Canada’s Warning
By Jimmy Bitton Lord Dr. Rabbi Jonathan Sacks once warned that antisemitism never stops with Jews. His insight—that hatred of Jews is a harbinger of deeper societal decay—has never been more relevant, especially here in Canada. The rise of antisemitism isn’t just a problem for Jews; it’s a signal that our entire society is unraveling. […]
Anti-Zionism is Antisemitism
By Jimmy Bitton Bob Marley’s iconic song “Exodus” masterfully intertwines the biblical motif of the Israelites’ journey to their promised homeland with the profound longing of the Black diaspora. By invoking the image of the Israelites being led by “Jah” (God) to their rightful home, Marley not only draws a powerful parallel between the ancient Jewish […]
Juxtaposing Judaism and the State
By Jimmy Bitton In his book The Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature, William James, the greatest American philosopher and leading thinker of the late nineteenth century suggests that something is true only insofar as it works. In light of the radical change in the Jewish condition brought on by the creation of […]
Confronting the Falsehood of “You Killed God”
By Jimmy Bitton “You killed God.” I have been the target of this ancient libel on several occasions in my life. My earliest memory dates back to my brief enrolment in public elementary school where attention was drawn to my Jewishness in the least flattering of ways. At the time, a common feature of public […]