Fight for the German homeland

I probably would have fought because I know today that so much about Germany is worth fighting for.

By ORIT ARFA
MEN DRESSED up like German World War I infantry soldiers. (photo credit: REUTERS)
MEN DRESSED up like German World War I infantry soldiers.
(photo credit: REUTERS)
Had I lived in Germany in 1914 I probably would have fought for the “Vaterland,” the “Fatherland.” I probably would have fought because I know today that so much about Germany is worth fighting for. No wonder it was able to overcome its criminal period and again become a liberal, free society. Berlin has given me a good life for the past two years, one worth fighting for, even if I’m not always sure the country would wholeheartedly support my homeland, Israel.
While Germany in WWII murdered Jews, in WWI it accepted them, even if not always with open arms. About 100,000 Jews proudly joined the fight as German patriots, a third received the Iron Cross and another 12,000 lost their lives for the Vaterland. Nevertheless, a Jewish census was ordered to determine if Jews truly served at the front – a taste of the betrayal to come. The report proved they served valorously, so it was never published.
The turn of the 20th century proved to be a golden age for Jews in Germany, as well as for the Jewish refugees it accepted from Eastern Europe. Germany’s Jews looked not to their historic homeland, because their German Vater took care of them, sheltered them, in a vast, beautiful land filled with opportunities for spiritual, intellectual and physical growth.
But soon enough, their Vater became abusive, ruling the household through terror and intimidation while promising security and prosperity for the “real” German children – Jews not included. The children of Israel were banished at first and then subjected to torture and death in all countries where Vater brutally staked his claim.
Finally, after destruction and defeat, Germany realized that Vater had become a drunken, abusive brute. The children of Germany became orphans, placed under the care of America, Britain and France, and their mean, demanding uncle, Russia. When Germany reunited and Germans could choose their “head of household,” they looked not for a stern, strict father but a kind, nurturing mother.
The transformation from Fatherland to Motherland became complete with the election of the first female prime minister, who became the matriarch Germany never had.
“Mama Merkel,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel, provided a caring, peaceful environment for the children of Germany and also for the children of Israel. But then she opened her arms to the children of Ishmael, refugees from their own broken homelands. Once, the children of Abraham lived peacefully together in Muslim Fatherlands – until the Israelites returned to Zion.
That’s when the Ishmaelites took inspiration from Germany’s universally hated Father and set out to destroy Israel and its Jewish inhabitants.
When hundreds of thousands of Muslims were welcomed to the Motherland, German boys found they must share their shelter and provisions. Girls got molested.
Some of these newly adopted boys made a mess in the home.
They demanded that some German foods and especially drinks not be served, that some artwork be removed. They told the girls what they should and shouldn’t wear. They even shed blood. Some German children were scared, but Mama did not scold and punish these new children like a strict Papa would.
Some non-German children were also scared, especially among the children of Israel, who finally felt back home in the Motherland and contributed once again to the household. And some children of Israel didn’t know how Germany should handle the children of Ishmael because they didn’t want to prop up another abusive Father.
I feel like I’ve lived in this German house as more than a guest.
I have felt like part of the family, a cousin, who wants to make sure we are all safe, once and for all. I want us to cook, play and talk into the night together, as relatives do.
But I certainly can’t fight for the German Fatherland. I can’t fight for the Motherland either, because it has made me feel unsafe, almost as unsafe as I felt in Israel, where some Ishmaelites regularly harass and even murder the children of Israel.
Germany and Israel now face similar threats, so I plead with my German cousins to fight, too. Not for a Fatherland, not for a Motherland, but for a homeland. Their homeland, a place that fuses the feminine and masculine so that it is whole, balanced and strong.
Because the most stable homes are those with both a father and a mother who love and respect each other. A homeland is a place rooted in a past, present and future, based on lineage, culture and ideals, overcoming severe mistakes and tragedy to achieve moral, spiritual and material fulfillment and perfection.
I’d like very much to continue my stay in Germany. I’d like to forever feel welcome here, joining other family members and guests who recognize the land’s beauty, past evil, and potential for good. But the German “parents” must make sure this home is guarded against intruders, robbers and murderers, even if they claim to need shelter.
Because there is nothing more sacred in life than a safe, loving home. A safe, loving homeland.
The author is an American-Israeli journalist and author based in Berlin.
This article was originally published in German in Burschenschafter magazine.oritarfa.net.