B'nai Elim
B'nai Elim, or Bnai Elim (translation: "Sons of the mighty") is a right-wing, Jewish activist organization based in the United States. Bnai Elim is a non profit 501(c)(3) organization. Bnai Elim’s mission statement states, "Bnai Elim is dedicated to the protection and defense of the Jewish people. To that end, there will be no sanctuary for those who threaten or attack Jewish people, Jewish Institutions, or Jewish interests." According to Bnai Elim, the organization acts according to Jewish principles in the Torah. Jews and non-Jews are allowed to participate in their activities and become members. B'nai Elim was founded by ex-Jewish Defense League members Robert Turk, Jim Nutting, Ian Sigel, and Bill Maniaci.
Five Principles
- Ahavat Yisroel – Love of the Jewish People, indivisible and united.
- Hadar - pride in Jewish tradition, history, and culture.
- Barzel - Courage and an iron will.
- Mishma'at - Discipline, dedication, and unity.
- Bitachon - Security and Faith in G-d.
Views and Stances
"Bnai Elim promotes peace between Jews and Arabs and that the best and only way to bring peace in the is to transfer the hostile Arab population out of the Land of Israel. Bnai Elim maintains that the Land of Israel as defined by the Torah belongs to the Jewish people exclusively." Bnai Elim supports the creation of a Palestinian State, outside of the Land of Israel; preferably Saudi Arabia, Egypt, or any other Arab country.http://bnaielim.org/#
Bnai Elim supports the United States of America's "War on Terror".
Havat Gilad
B'nai Elim participates in a program of the The Shomron Liaison Office, in which its "adopts" a Jewish community in the West Bank. Bnai Elim "adopted" the Havat Gilad community in August 2009. As part of the program, news about the members and the community is posted on the B'nai Elim website.
Major Events
Past Events
Around November 16 of every year, a commemoration ceremony of the Yarzeit of their late spiritual leader, Rabbi Meir Kahane is held. At the 2008 18th Yarzeit of Rabbi Meir Kahane held on November 16th, Robert Turk, Robert Unger, Rabbi Melvin Burg, Rabbi Dr. Chaim Bomzer, Julian Rapaport spoke at the ceremony. They all had diverse connections to Rabbi Meir Kahane.
Hundreds of people came to the 19th Yarzeit of Rabbi Meir Kahane held on November 15th, 2009, the fourth in a row of such events. The keynote speaker was Pastor James David Manning from ATLAH Church, in Harlem. Many congregants from his Church came with their families. Pastor Manning spoke extremely well and highly praised Rabbi Kahane, but also apologized for the past Jewish-Black relations. Another speaker, Meir Zolovitz, spoke of how Palestine should be built in the twenty two Arab states, and not in Israel. Other speakers were Rabbi Chaim Bombzer, Rob Muchnic, Yosef Alon, Anna Goldberg, Bob Unger, and Gennadiy Baruch Faybyshenko.
Future Events
B'nai Elim is planning to gather supporters to Lobby in Washington DC at Capitol Hill on September 10, 2009. The central agenda of the event will be to propose, "Palestine State in Saudi Arabia" as the solution to the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict. Yet, it appears by the removal of the event from their website, that this event was canceled, most likely due to lack of of supporters.
See also
- Jewish Defense League
- Meir Kahane
- Kahanism
- Jewish Task Force