When Hands Speak Louder Than Politics
We live in an era dominated by the spirit of Korach.
Open any Israeli news site, scroll through social media, or sit in the Knesset gallery during a standard session, and you are bound to witness the same toxic phenomenon: arguments driven by self-aggrandizement, political posturing, and the systematic delegitimization of the opposing side. Especially now as we lead up to elections, our public square has increasingly become a zero-sum arena where shouting down the “other” is mistaken for leadership.
But just as this week’s Torah portion, Parashat Korach, reminds us of the destructive power of toxic conflict, a rare, beautiful “moment of grace” occurred in the Knesset plenum that demonstrates what happens when we choose a different path.
On Monday, the Knesset passed a historic bill giving Israeli Sign Language (ISL) official state recognition as a “natural language.” The law is a monumental victory for justice, equality, and human dignity, validating the culture and identity of over 50,000 deaf and hard-of-hearing Israelis.
Yet, the magic of this moment lay not just in the content of the law, but in the context of its passing. Sponsored jointly by MK Avichai Boaron of the Likud coalition and MK Chili Tropper of the opposition’s National Unity party, the bill passed its final readings with cross-factional support and absolutely zero opposition. In a political landscape fractured by profound disagreement, the passage of the ISL bill stands as a towering counter-narrative to the rebellion of Korach.
To understand why this is so profound, we have to look at........
