Well ya got me there on facts. I was reading a lot and for some reason, I read a book entitled "From the Tablets of Sumer" back in 1965 for an Art History class at Chaffey College. The book ignited in me an interest in ancient History in that part of the world, and I got so focused on the subject it lowered most of my grades in other classes. I don't remember the names of authors nor the titles of the other books I would cluster around me like a hen with little chicks, but one of the books I read discussed that an Egyptian mosaic? picture? heiroglyph? with cuneiform printing that the author said was proof that the Egyptians were punishing? persecuting? beating? Hebrew slaves, and from the past, I got the impression that some people found that the story of Moses had actually been verified by this and other archaeologists that found sundry bits and pieces in artworks in stone and dye, paints, or tinted stones that hinted that the story of Moses was true. So pardon my memory, but my belief that the Children of Israel (aka Jacob) somewhere along the line following Joseph's job of helping the Pharoah get through many years of drought and many years after Joseph died, Moses joined the Royal family when his mom placed her infant son in a basket she hoped a childless Egyptian woman would find and raise Moses, since a decree went out to kill all the Israelite newborn sons under the age of two.
Another thing about the children of Israel is that they treasured stories about their ancestors to a science and practiced memorizing stories so well they could tell historical facts acurately even if they could not read and write. Their legends may be just as accurate as a xerox machine. Parents pushed for their sons to recite the torah verbatim in the same words their great greats recited exactly as generations back to Adam and Eve. The reason that makes sense to me is that to this day the best practioners of the law are very often people who learned it well from parents for their entire youth. How could we fail to not at least acknowledge that our Hebrew brethren who speak a language that has remained close to its origin thousands of years ago? How could we not expect them to marry within the parameters of synagogue education? I can't and my protestant heritage goes back further than when my ancestor Will S arrived at Plymouth Rock around 1619.
I just don't get it about anti-semitism. I don't get it at all. They make a concerted try at following their laws without offending laws of the states. They teach their children not only thrift, but charity as well just like us. One of them, Haim Solomon, loaned the Continental Congeress money to feed, clothe, and shoe General Washington's barefoot army. Well formerly barefoot that is. And when things couldn't get any worse, Haim went broke but didn't quit his passion for funding General Washington's faithful caring for his fighters. Haim went to New York City, rounded up 5 or 6 of his generous friends whom he persuaded to fund the Continental revolutionary war because then they'd never have to go back to mean Europe who persecuted Jews even back then. With the money Haim Solomon raised, General Washington and his fed-clothed-and shoed men rocked right straight into the British strongholds and cleaned their clocks. A far better version than my memory of Haim Solomon is better told in Arthur Schleisinger's wonderful book An Almanac of American History. The book is divided into years so I'm guessing the story would be found in the Revolutionary War years which may have started in the mid 1770s and into the early 1780's. I love that book!
