This summer, the Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI) presented a set of recommendations on genetic testing to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (left) and the Israeli cabinet (pictured here at its weekly meeting on June 29, 2014). JPPI recommended that the Israeli government, Jewish communities, and Jewish organizations provide information and points of connection for individuals who have discovered some Jewish ancestry through direct-to-consumer DNA testing
When Noah Slepkov started using online genealogical tools to build a family tree, little did he know that his personal exploration might have significant implications for all of the Jewish people including those not even aware of their Jewish roots.
But when Slepkov heard from a colleague about 23andMe - a genetic kit that performs a DNA test on saliva to learn what percent of a person’s DNA comes from different global populations, and then provides contacts of potential relatives - he was hooked.
“I was fascinated by the ability of normal genealogical tools to find relatives,” says Slepkov, an associate fellow of the Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI) think tank in Jerusalem. “When I realized the potential of combining that with DNA techniques, it is quite amazing what can be done.”
Slepkov proposed including a chapter in JPPI’s annual assessment that explores different dimensions of the Jewish people: geopolitics, demography, and identity. The ensuing report he authored, titled “Crowd Sourced Genealogy and Direct-to-Consumer DNA Testing: Implications for the Jewish People,” was the basis for a set of recommendations presented to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the entire Israeli cabinet this summer. JPPI recommended that the Israeli government, Jewish communities, and Jewish organizations provide information and points of connection for individuals who have discovered some Jewish ancestry through direct-to-consumer DNA testing.
“I thought this was appropriate for Jewish identity because of all the people doing these tests without doing it for Jewish purposes or an interest in their Judaism,” Slepkov tells JNS.org. “When they do the tests and find out they have Jewish-sounding relatives, it might spark their interest.”
Slepkov says this DNA testing “has huge geopolitical consequences.”
“Doron Behar wrote in his article that DNA tests confirm the Zionist narrative of Jews once living in the historic land of Israel and going through an exile,” he says. A graph included in Behar’s article shows where different Jewish communities fit genealogically within the global population. The graph also includes the Palestinians, who have more African ancestry in their genetic data than do Ashkenazi Jews.
This data, suggests Slepkov, sheds an interesting light on a much-debated topic at JPPI - the delegitimization of Israel and how to combat it.
“One of the narratives you hear is that Jewish people have no business being in the Middle East, and that they are European and should go back to Europe,” Slepkov says. “With the exception of one scholar who has tried to suggest that Jews are really descendants of the Khazars, most scientists would agree that there is in fact evidence within the genome of the Jewish people that different Jews from around the world do come from the Middle East.”
These findings give Slepkov some ammunition in conversations with left-wing Jews who may reject Zionism and are surprised about why he made aliyah. The Canadian-born Slepkov tells them, “One of the reasons I made aliyah is because I believe I am actually from this area, and I do feel like I’m returning home.” Now, in response to the typical reaction he gets to that assertion - “You don’t believe that!” - Slepkov can inform the skeptics about the results of his DNA test.
“Judaism has always been a huge part of who I am and my identity,” he says. “Being one of three Jews in your cohort really defines who you are, in my opinion.”
After a Conservative movement upbringing, Camp Ramah, Jewish studies at Toronto’s York University, and Israel advocacy work, Slepkov was primed for aliyah - for three reasons. One is Jewish continuity for his familial line.
“After flirting with being religious, I found myself being more and more secular in my ideology and my view of the world, and I decided the best place to be a secular Jew and remain a Jew and live a ‘Jewish life’ is in Israel,” he says.
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Apparently, race does not exist - unless you're Jewish; then race is all that matters. When Zionist-Jews discuss any given topic, there is no "reality," there are instead merely competing "narratives." And the "truth" of any given "narrative" is directly proportional to the extent to which it serves the Zionist-Jew agenda; when the Zionist-Jew agenda changes, the "narrative" changes, and "reality" changes along with it.
Sometimes there are two "narratives" running simultaneously, each with its own corresponding "reality" and associated "truth"; for example:
- If you're Jewish, the "truth" is that race exists, and the Zionist-Jews have no problem conducting an ongoing "narrative" that seamlessly dovetails with this "reality";
- If, however, you're not Jewish, then the "truth" is that race does not exist, and the Zionist-Jews effortlessly do a 180 degree turn and, with a straight face, look you right in the eyes and force-feed you a "narrative" that asserts the "reality" that we are all the same and that perceived racial distinctions are illusory phantasms of a racist mindset.
HEADS THEY WIN; TAILS WE LOSE:
That's the "reality"
That's the "narrative"
That's the Truth
