Richard Silverstein on Tikun Olam - Promoting Israeli democracy, exposing secrets of the national security state

By Dilip -
Tikun Olam is a Mishnaic term meaning “repair [or mend] the world.”
“The day is short, the task is great, the master is insistent. It is not your duty to complete the task, but neither are you free to desist from it….” Pirkei Avot, 2:21
 Palestine-Israel Dove
I’ve been writing Tikun Olam, one of the earliest liberal Jewish blogs, since February, 2003.  It focuses on exposing the excesses of the Israeli national security state. I also created the Israel Palestine Forum, a discussion forum for progressives about the I-P conflict. Israel Palestine Blogs aggregates 50 peace blogs writing about the conflict. I wrote a chapter for the Independent Jewish Voices essay collection, A Time to Speak Out. I’m a regular contributor to Truthout and contributed to Haaretz, Christian Science Monitor, Jewish Forward, Los Angeles Times, Comment Is Free and Al Jazeera English. My work has also been in theSeattle Times, American Conservative Magazine, Beliefnet and Tikkun Magazine. I’ve done several segments for Al Jazeera TV’s Listening Post and Israel’s Channel 10 Tzinor Layla news program.  The NY Times featured my reporting about the Shamai Leibowitz FBI tapes on its front page... 
Unlike some religious traditions, Judaism comprehends evil as something inherently human. In the Zohar, it is this evil or impurity which causes the sacred keylim (“vessels”) to break. Performance of mitzvot (“commandments”) are the means to repair the vessels and so transmute evil into good. A Kabbalist would have no problem understanding that hatred and violence between Israels and Palestinians are evils that pollute the world. Likewise, I’d like to think such a Kabbalist might look favorably on efforts like this blog to repair this battered region with acts of gemilut chesed (“loving kindness”).
Support Tikun Olam: This blog is a no-profit enterprise done for love and passion. I gratefully accept donations from those who find value in what I do (see Paypal link above). Another way to support the site is by buying books and CDs through the Tikun Olam Store or links in individual posts. If you visit Amazon through this site, anything you buy there will provide a 5% fee back to me.
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