Jewish People/Nation/Religion Like No Other. Maybe That's Why We're Hated?

By BATYA MEDAD
Yesterday, Shabbat, the Jewish Sabbath, in synagogues all over the world, the weekly Torah Portion, Yitro was read.
Yitro, Jethro, was a non-Jew or convert, and there's an irony in that davka in that Torah Portion, named after him we also read the Ten Commandments, the foundation of the Jewish Religion. "The children of Israel camp opposite Mount Sinai, where they are told that G‑d has chosen them to be His “kingdom of priests” and “holy nation.” The people respond by proclaiming, “All that G‑d has spoken, we shall do.”
On the sixth day of the third month (Sivan), seven weeks after the Exodus, the entire nation of Israel assembles at the foot of Mount Sinai. G‑d descends on the mountain amidst thunder, lightning, billows of smoke and the blast of the shofar, and summons Moses to ascend. G‑d proclaims the Ten Commandments, commanding the people of Israel to believe in G‑d, not to worship idols or take G‑d’s name in vain, to keep the Shabbat, honor their parents, not to murder, not to commit adultery, not to steal, and not to bear false witness or covet another’s property.
The people cry out to Moses that the revelation is too intense for them to bear, begging him to receive the Torah from G‑d and convey it to them." (Chabad) In the title I gave this post, I called us not only a religion, because we're also a people and nation and I even left out another two crucial aspects.
•We Jews have a very unique language, Hebrew, which unlike other languages has what can be considered "magic letters." As I mentioned in my book review of "Lashon HaKodesh: History, Holiness, & Hebrew," any combination of them has meaning.
•We Jews are a Land, too. Many of our Mitzvot, G-d given commandments are based on being in the Land He gave us, the HolyLand, the Land of Israel.
No other society or religion or nation or language is like the Jewish one. Is it this uniqueness that is the proof that we are G-d's Chosen People, and the other nations, religions etc are jealous? That could be it, because the two most powerful and ambitious religions Christianity and Islam both attempt to supplant us. Both have stolen the narrative of our Bible, our Land and try to show that G-d has rejected the Jews and chosen them.
In today's lingo it's called "identity theft." And why is, davka, this important Torah Portion named after a man who wasn't born a Jew? That must be because instead of being jealous and hateful of the Jewish People, Yitro accepted and recognized that we Jews are G-d's Chosen People.
Today's world is mirroring many of the events in our ancient past. And just the fact that we Jews are the same People as lived thousands of years ago, while all of our ancient enemies are no longer in existence, troubles those who are trying to supplant and destroy us. The Torah Portion of Yitro stresses that the "righteous gentiles" who accept and support us will always be honored. Shavua Tov uMevorach May the New Week be Good and Blessed
This post was first published on my personal blog, Shiloh Musings, http://shilohmusings.blogspot.co.il/2015/02/jewish-peoplenationreligion-like-no.html, where I post daily.