State Dept.: Israel’s religious freedom is as bad as Iran’s

The State Department truly is filled with morons. It says that religious freedoms in Israel are on the same level as those of Iran and Saudi Arabia. Yeah, because it’s just like two countries that lop off hands, stone women, require women to have male guardians, or not drive, or not play sports with men—yep, Israel’s just like those states.

Part I of the Executive Summary discusses overall conditions during the reporting period in countries where “violations of religious freedom have been noteworthy.” Israel is listed among 30 nations selected for this category — including Afghanistan, China, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen — due to the emphasis of the Jewish State on maintaining the status quo with regard to respect for Jewish legal standards.

Really? The Jewish state wants to adhere to Jewish law, and so that puts it on the same level as Muslim states adhering to a version of sharia that allows women to be buried up to their necks and have large stones thrown at them until dead?

The report complained, for instance, that three Messianic Jews were denied the right to immigrate to Israel during the reporting period.

“Messianic Jews” are not Jews. They are Christians. Worse, they are generally Christians who are trying like hell to convert Jews to their cause. (Although they mostly fail miserably–something like over 90% of all Jews who get caught under their spell go back to Judaism a short while later.) We’ve been up and down that road on my blog a dozen times. I’d really like to see where it is interfering with religious freedom by not allowing faux Jews to emigrate to the Jewish state.

Other issues of contention included Israel’s unwillingness to recognize conversions performed in the country which do not meet criteria under Torah law, identification cards (Teudot Zehut) that differentiate between Jews and non-Jews, and the authority over marriages and burials exercised by the Chief Rabbinate, which is Orthodox.

Wow, that’s quite a list of things that restrict religious freedom. Oh, wait. In fact, that is actually a list of Jews expressing their religious freedom. (Okay, I do agree on the civil marriages thing, but let’s not get sidetracked.)

So what’s the article have to say about this?

All religions have freedom of worship in Israel — unlike the other countries mentioned above.

Yes, let’s count the number of churches in Israel. Now count the number of churches in Iran and Saudi Arabia. Also, please show me worshippers in Israel being persecuted for their beliefs. Now look at the Bahai in Iran and Christians in Saudi Arabia, as well as Sunni Muslims in Iran and Shia in Saudi Arabia. Also, Zoroastrians.

That’s right, it’s PC gone wild at the U.S. State Department. But Foggy Bottom hates Israel, so we are not really surprised by this report.