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Religious Pluralism Scores a Major Victory in Israel-- For Jews

Over the past three years, I have posted multiple times on the subject of religious discrimination and intolerance BETWEEN JEWS in Israel.  In America, this is a widely under-reported problem which, in my view, strikes at the heart of the socio-religious problems in the State of Israel and also threatens the future of Judaism in mainstream society.  In America, where tolerance and pluralism are central pillars of our society, it is a given that there is more than one way to be a Jew.  In Israel, which heretofore has only recognized Orthodox Judaism, there are the Orthodox and Ultra-Othrodox (which account for roughly 15% of the country's Jews vs. 6% of Jews in America), there are emerging Conservative and Reform Jewish congregations that receive no State support, and then, of course, there is the vast majority of unaffiliated or so-called 'secular' Israeli Jews.

I suport a vibrant Jewish State of Israel that embraces religious pluralism-- and we can now score a major victory for the forces of pluralism in Israel, thanks to the Israel Religious Action Center ("IRAC").  The following excerpts are from IRAC's most recent weekly newsletter:

"In Israel, where there is no separation between religion and State, the government cultivates and supports Jewish life and Jewish institutions. From the beginning of the State, and in fact up until last month, the government of Israel had granted land and buildings to hundreds of Orthodox synagogues, but never to a Reform or Conservative congregation. Kehilat YOZMA, a vibrant and rapidly growing community in the modern suburban city of Modi'in, is the first in a group of young Reform congregations who will now, thanks to IRAC, receive synagogue buildings from the State.

The year 2008 marks the beginning of a change in the attitudes of the National Authority of Religious Services, the Ministry of Construction and Housing, and several municipalities with respect to the rights of non-Orthodox Jews. ...  In 2008, at least four non-Orthodox congregations will proudly erect their synagogues with the help of governmental funds. This is the first time since the establishment of the State of Israel, that the State is funding the construction of non-Orthodox synagogues. This is a groundbreaking accomplishment which sets a precedent for future cases of similar background. Public funding is an irrefutable sign of recognition by the State, which indicates a desire, however restrained, to move forward towards reconciliation between the various streams of Judaism in Israel.

The importance of this event can not be underestimated - the transportable synagogue in Kehilat YOZMA is the very first non-Orthodox synagogue being subsidized by the state in all of Israel's history."

Why We Need to Find Common Ground With Islam Through Education

Babar Ahmed is a talented up-and-coming movie director ("Royal Kill") and the son of Professor Akbar Ahmed, who first taught me about the history of Islam at the Aspen Institute's Socrates Society.  Babar recently spoke about Islam at a gathering in Palm Beach.  The Palm Beach Post reported on his remarks:

"And so why are we seeing suicide bombings if Muslim history is so good?" he asked.

Because Islam is divided into three groups, Ahmed theorized, the conservative, the moderate and the extremist, the latter of which is "growing every single day."

In the aftermath of the Soviet Union's occupation of Afghanistan, Ahmed said, orphans were driven over the border to Pakistan, where they were taken in and educated by the most primitive tribal schools, run by illiterates who could not read or properly interpret the Koran.

"In driving the Soviets out of Afghanistan," Ahmed said, "the United States developed relationships with military dictators which continue to this day. That may have worked in the short term, but it left the orphans poor, desperate and angry, without any skills except how to use a gun."

The current movie, Charlie Wilson's War, makes the same point, he noted.

The solution, Ahmed said, is education, because the majority of Muslims are young. In Pakistan alone, he said, 40 percent of the population is under 16, and more receptive to radicalism.

"One half of the world's population is Muslim, Christian or Jewish," Ahmed said, "and if we don't start finding this common ground, we are going to be heading for a very turbulent century."

Babar is right on point.  One of the few successful models of bilingual interfaith educational success in the Middle East is Hand in Hand in Israel-- the madrassas have a long way to go, but there is light at the end of the tunnel, and we can act to make sure that it is not on oncoming train...

Hand in Hand Update-- New Students, New Campuses, Continued Growth

Amin Khalaf, co-founder of Hand in Hand, the groundbreaking, highly successful, bilingual Jewish-Arab school system that educates close to 1,000 students in Israel, reports on the achievement of several major major milestones:

"*A dream came true on January 13th when students, teachers, and staff moved permanently to our new Max Rayne campus in Jerusalem. The journey has been a long one, and we will take many fond memories of the old campus with us as we settle in at the state-of-the-art Max Rayne School. A two-story library, a large indoor gymnasium, improved computer connectivity, and dedicated spaces for the arts and music are among the many highlights of the new campus. My thanks go to the Jerusalem Foundation for assisting Hand in Hand to construct the multimillion dollar facility.

*Hand in Hand worked with Merchavim and the Abraham Fund to prepare a position paper advocating the strengthening of bilingual education that was presented at a special conference held in Jaffa on December 27, 2007. Among those present was Education Minister Yuli Tamir, who expressed her personal support for expanding bilingual education options in the country.

*In February, Hand in Hand will organize Israel’s third annual conference on bilingual education in the multicultural city of Haifa. The international event, to be realized in cooperation with the University of Haifa, will bring together experts to discuss the mechanics and theory of bilingual education, one of the fundamental pillars of Hand in Hand’s work.

*Hand in Hand’s new fourth school in Beer Sheva has been operating with great success. Our 49 students in pre-kindergarten and kindergarten are enjoying their studies, and we are currently planning an expansion to the first grade next year. Kudos to the Hagar parents’ group for helping make the Beer Sheva School another Hand in Hand success."

The continued growth of this educational organization in a highly segregated society that experiences emotional stress and turmoil on a daily basis shows the integrity of the vision that inspired it over a decade ago.  Bravo!

Young Adult American Jews Can Reverse a Trend of Indifference and Alienation by Visiting Israel

An increasingly large proportion of American Jews under the age of 35 is becoming increasingly indifferent to and alienated from Israel.  Why?  Primarily because these people have not visited Israel. 

According to a new white paper- Beyond Distancing: Young Adult American Jews and Their Alienation from Israel, by Steven M. Cohen and Ari Y. Kelman, “the erosion on Israel engagement has taken place over the entire age spectrum, from elderly, to upper-middle-aged, to lower-middle-aged, to young adult. … We see a pattern of shifting (declining) attachment to Israel stretching over 50 years, from those who are now 65 and older down to those in their 20s.”

Funded by the Jewish Identity Project of Reboot and the Andrea and Charles Bronfman Philanthropies, this paper’s conclusions are based on a survey of 1,828 Jewish respondents between December 2006 and January 2007 and focuses on non-Orthodox respondents.
    
What does Jewish American alienation from Israel mean?  It means that the majority of American Jews under the age of 35 do not believe that the destruction of Israel would be a personal tragedy and do not talk about Israel to non-Jewish friends.  Over 40% of American Jews under the age of 35 and almost 40% of American Jews under the age of 50 describe their level of Israel attachment as Low.  60% of the respondents have never been to Israel, and only 15% have been more than once.  48% of respondents believe that there is either a moderate amount of anti-Semitism in the U.S. today; 38% believe that there is a great deal of anti-Semitism in the U.S. today (62% believe there is a great deal of anti-Semitism in Europe today).  More importantly, 47% believe that anti-Semitism will increase in the U.S. over the next several years (62% believe so in Europe).       

Among the paper’s most important observations, intermarriage has an important influence on the distancing of American Jews from Israel.  However “contrary to widely held beliefs, left-liberal political identity is not primarily responsible for driving down the Israel attachment scores among the non-Orthodox.  If left-liberal politics were influential, we should see significant differences between liberal-Democrats and conservative-Republicans.  The absence of such a pattern, and their inconsistent variations within age groups, run contrary to the assertion that political views are the prime source of disaffection from Israel.”

I am the son of a Holocaust survivor with a strong Jewish religious education, but I was largely indifferent to Israel for much of my life because I didn't have the perspective that you gain from actually going there.

I first visited Israel in early 2002 and have now been there 11 times.  Going there has completely changed my perspective about the importance of the State of Israel.  Today I am actively involved in direct philanthropic initiatives in Israel that promote religious pluralism.  I care deeply for Israel while being highly sensitive to the country’s many faults and contradictions.  I care about preserving the Jewish State of Israel in the face of great challenges, and I respect the deeply passionate people who make the commitment to live in Israel, even though I may not share their social or political views.

If you are a Jew who is indifferent to or alienated from Israel, you should visit the country and see for yourself why it is the center of so much global controversy.  Don’t be a bystander in this developing story.  The Business Leadership Council of the San Francisco Jewish Community Federation is leading a business professionals Mission to Israel next April 30—in my view, this is a great opportunity to gain a new perspective on Israel and on your Jewish identity.       

How Do We Prevent Religion From Degenerating Into Fanaticism?

Many people are asking this question today and not finding any satisfying answers.  To my surprise, Maimonides answered this question concisely 800 years ago.

Kenneth Seeskin's analysis of Maimonides' positions on religious fanaticism and false prophets is profound and refreshing:

"... Maimonides had firsthand experience of religious intolerance.  He knew that Jewish people are not immune to to ignorance or superstition.  His answer is that our prime criterion for deciding who speaks for God is truth (Guide 2.40).  If we are presented with a body of law which inculcates true beliefs, which encourages intellectual growth and critical reflection, which makes sound recommendations for personal health and social harmony, then, and only then, do we have a basis for believing that the message may be divinely inspired.  So the criteria for deciding who is a prophet are just as rigorous-- indeed, more so-- than those for evaluating expertise in other walks of life. . . . only the most extraordinary individuals have the right to claim that they speak for God.  And the only way they can earn this right is to provide both a vision and a rational defense of it. . . . the more a person asks us to make leaps of faith, the less likely it is that he or she is carrying a divine message."

Maimonides' approach is so basic that it is novel: Question the messenger.  Raise the credibility bar.   Ask yourself if the message makes sense and if it is in harmony with moral absolutes. 

Seeskin continues:

"God does not want people to starve themselves,  torment themselves, take vows of celibacy, or endure physical deprivation.  What He wants are honest dealings with our fellow human beings, moderation of the passions, respect for the poor, the sick, the widow, the orphan, and the stranger, rest on Sabbath, and in general a life in which we grow to our fullest potential."   

Maimonides has been criticized by some as being an elitist, and he is certainly not popular among ultra-Orthodox Jews (or among fanatics of any brand).  In my view, these critiques fall far short.

I strongly agree with the view that not everyone can be a prophet, just as not everyone can become a brain surgeon or a semicondutor designer.  In Maimonides' philosophical construct:

"True prophecy is instructive; it teaches us about God and calls us to our highest moral ideals and aspirations.  It is founded on a thorough understanding of the universe and human efforts to grasp the principles thatr underlie it.  A person ignorant of those principles, whose only claim on our attention is an intuitive feeling or dreamlike image, cannot speak for God.  Allow such people to determine our religious practices or beliefs and we are certain to get chaos."

Why does this seem so reasonable and yet sadly true in the context of current global affairs?  It is because unscrupulous people continue to manipulate religion to their will for power.  Unfortunately, these manipulators are not held to a higher standard of accountability.  Why? In my view, these answers have more to do with the weaknesses of man than the weaknesses of religion and the shortcomings of faith.

Kenneth Seeskin's Maimonides: A Guide for Today's Perplexed, was first published in 1991.

Religious Intolerance Drives Moderate Jews Out of Jerusalem

Greg Myre of The New York Times published an important story about the demographics of Jerusalem today.

The article analyzes some of the implications of the statistics illustrated in the graph at left:

"In a 1967 census taken shortly after the war, the population of Jerusalem was 74 percent Jewish and 26 percent Arab. Today, the city is 66 percent Jewish and 34 percent Arab, with the gap narrowing by about 1 percentage point a year, according to the Jerusalem Institute for Israel Studies.

Jerusalem’s profound religious and historical significance makes its status perhaps the single most explosive issue in the Arab-Israeli conflict. And that status clearly would become even more contentious were the balance of the population to tip toward the Arabs. This is a specter that worries Israelis, even as the 40th anniversary of their victory in the June 1967 war approaches."

The article goes on to describe the well-known fact that Jerusalem remains highly segregated, in fact, it remains two separate cities-- West Jerusalem, which is largely Jewish, and East Jerusalem, which is largely Arab.  While the author mentions the city's weak economy, he does not state clearly that Jerusalem is, in fact, the poorest city in all of Israel.

The article also notes that the large majority of Israelis treasure Jerusalem but would not want to live there:

"A poll released last week captured the Israeli ambivalence over Jerusalem. More than 60 percent of Israelis said they would not want to give up Israeli control of the city’s holy sites, even as part of a peace agreement with the Palestinians. Yet 78 percent of Israelis said they would not consider living in Jerusalem or would prefer to live elsewhere in Israel."

One anecdote from a Jewish woman who decided to leave Jerusalem after being harassed by an ultra-orthodox woman who disapproved of her attire captures some of the angst that people feel about living in Jerusalem, but, in my view, this brief story only scratches the surface of the intolerance that ultra-Orthodox Jews, the haredim, have toward other Jews, not to mention anyone else of a different persuasion or ethnicity.

In my own experiences visiting Jerusalem on eleven occasions, I have felt unwelcome at the Kotel (this is the general description of the site of the Western Wall) almost every time that I go to pray at the Western Wall.  I've been harassed by the ultra-orthodox on multiple occasions.  Unlike many non-Orthodox Jews who now avoid going to the Wall to avoid being harassed, I've developed my own way of dealing with it:  I make sure to go to the Western Wall as many times as possible in order to assert the fact that the Holiest place in Judaism is not the exclusive territory of the haredim.

According to the article, Jews are leaving Jerusalem because a minority of Jewish fundamentalists are, in effect, chasing them away.  Unfortunately, this trend will only have the residual effect among Jews of leaving more polarized and intolerant people in Jerusalem.

The haredim are not likely to change their ways anytime soon.  If the Israeli government would officially recognize the legitimacy of Conservative and Reform Judaism and take concrete steps to officially allow greater religious pluralism among Jews in Israel, perhaps more Jews in Israel would want to live in Jerusalem and this would not be the poorest city in the State of Israel.  Such contructive change might have a positive ripple effect across a wide range of the socio-economic issues that plague Jerusalem.  Well, I can at least dream...   

The Domari Gypsy Society Community Center in Jerusalem is in Danger of Closing-- How You Can Help

I've written about the Domari, the gypsies of East Jerusalem, on numerous occasions in this blog.  The Dom are gypsies of North Indian origin who have lived in East Jerusalem for approximately 800 years.  They currently number about 3,000 people, and a courageous woman, Amoun Sleem, leads a group of the Dom who want to break the shackles of illiteracy and subsistence living through efforts at building a community, keeping alive their ancestral shared language, and teaching adults and children computer literacy and basic self-help business skills. 

I've visited Amoun on numerous occasions over the past five years and met her extended family.  I celebrated my most recent birthday in Jerusalem with Amoun and Anat Hoffman of the Israel Religious Action Center. Anat and her colleagues at the IRAC have actively helped the Dom for years and originally introduced me to Amoun.

Amoun and her clan have impressed me as honest, resilient people who would like to be self reliant but have fallen through the cracks of the Israeli social system.  Rejected and ignored by Israelis and Palestinians alike, most of the Dom are beggars.

I've attached their most recent newsletter Download domari_newlsetter_4_07.pdf which describes their current situation and how you can help.  The newsletter notes that a $10,000 matching challenge grant to help the Domari is waiting for anyone to make a tax deductible gift to help them....

The Domari are at the absolute bottom of the socio-economic ladder in Israel and they could use a helping hand.  Please join me in helping them to stand on their own. 

To find out more about how to make a tax deductible gift, you can contact drc@domresearchcenter.com or Rachel Canar at the Israel Religious Action Center at rachel@irac.org .

Experiencing a Hate Crime on Passover

Last night my family and I returned from a wonderful Passover Seder at the home of close friends.  Ten children, six of them teenagers,  participated in the Seder.

Last week, my friend, David, who hosted the Seder, and I got together to discuss preparations for the reading of the Haggadah, and we agreed that it would be both relevant and educational to prepare some questions for the teens that relate Passover to contemporary issues.

We emailed the children in advance and asked them to think about these questions before the Seder:

Passover celebrates the end of Jewish slavery in Egypt; can you think of an example of slavery that exists in the world today?

The seder is filled with rituals (cups of wine, parsley, breaking matzoh); are these rituals relevant in your life today?

During the seder, we remember the ten plagues that fell upon the Egyptians; do we face any plagues in our life today?

What does Hillel mean when he says: “Do not unto others what you would hate them to do unto you.  That is the whole Torah.”

We leave the door open for Elijah as a sign that nobody is shut off from his fellow man; what else can you do tomorrow to demonstrate the same thing?

When I returned home I turned on the local news and saw a screen shot of our synagogue, Temple Emanu El, where I served on the board for six years, and listened to a news reporter explain that a blue swastika, the universally recognized symbol of anti-semitism, had been painted on the wall of Temple Emanu El yesterday at 11AM.  For news coverage of the incident, please click here.

In a statement Monday, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom said, "San Francisco's largest Jewish temple was defaced with a symbol of hatred on the eve of Passover. San Francisco is known as a city that embraces people of all faiths. We strongly condemn this act of hatred and intolerance."

It is a hard slap in the face to religious tolerance to see this happen in our local community, and I am very distressed by it.  Could this be the thoughtless act of a young person? If so, I wonder what questions are being asked at that family's dinner table?

A Very Special Shabbat

Today is a very special Shabbat because we are celebrating my son's Bar Mitzvah-- the first in our family in 30 years-- and the last such milestone after our daughter's Bat Mitzvah of two years ago.  As the son of a Holocaust survivor I feel very proud to have now successfully passed the torch of the Torah, the moral and legal framework of Judaism, on to the next generation.

Considering this observance of Jewish faith and ritual in a larger context, particularly the secular vs. religious debate that occupies so much of the media, I feel that many critics of religion and of religious observance are missing a very big point.

In a column on religion in the New York Times on March 3rd, Peter Steinfels takes to task Richard Dawkins' book, The God Delusion, which so many people continue to read.  Steinfels notes that the new wave of books on atheism, including, of course, Sam Harris' "Letter to a Christian Nation", is being criticized primarily by avowed atheists, philosophers, and scientists writing in publications like The New Republic and The New York Review of Books.

Critics, such as Marxist Terry Eagleton, make a very simple point that I find amply evident--

Referring to Dawkin's book, Eagleton observes:

"In a book of almost 400 pages, he can scarcely bring himself to concede that a single human benefit has flowed from religious faith, a view which is as a priori improbable as it is empirically false. ... The countless millions who have devoted their lives selflessly to the service  of others in the name of Christ or Buddha or Allah are wiped from human history-- and this by a self-appointed crusader against bigotry."

Today, as my wife and I embrace our son and celebrate with our family, friends, and our Jewish community the coming of age of another generation of Jewish men, we are also celebrating the passing of the mantle of knowledge that inspires people to do the right thing in the name of humanity.  I thank God for that.

   

Orthodoxy's Negative Impact on Israeli Society

Moni Mordechai, who served as public relations advisor for the Tzohar forum of rabbis and for Rabbi Michael Melchior when he served in ministerial posts, has written an important opinion piece in YNet News.com titled "Unworthy Rabbis". 

This article is a concise critique of the negative social and political impact which the ultra-orthodox haredim are having on Israeli society.  In my view, it exposes a root cause of much of the internal conflict and contradiction which plagues Israel's policymakers and ripples through the country's socio-political infrastructure.

I quote a section of the article below:

"As a Jew who belongs to the broad branch of Judaism and refuses to view religious practice as the only important thing, and as someone who views Judaism as an important cultural source, and who defines himself as a secular traditionalist, the word "rabbi" is a romantic one, possessing charm and power.

However, to my regret, today it is empty of meaning. I met very few truly relevant rabbis, who were leaders. In my mind rabbis are more closely associated with shady deals, religious enforcement, efforts to convince Jews to become religious, and racism.

An example of this can be found in news reports from recent weeks: Rabbis in Bnei Brak ruled that apartments must not be rented out to Arabs and foreign workers. At this time, ultra-Orthodox rabbis are trying to overpower El Al because it was forced to fly on the Shabbat and were able to defeat bus companies Dad and Egged, who ran an advertising campaign that included a bare male chest.

Leading religious-Zionist rabbis decided that in order to address the rift between religious Zionism and the rest of the people, all of us should be made to become religious.

Those are not my rabbis. In fact, no kippah-wearing rabbi can be referred to as my rabbi, not because the term is simply irrelevant for modern life, but rather, because most of those people hold on to a conservative, anti-democratic worldview that is sometimes racist and anti-humanitarian, all under the guide of kindness."

Forced ritual in religious practice, racism, discrimination... and these are rabbis? 

When we consider the unresolved Israeli-Palestinian question, when we consider the foreign policy challenges that Israel faces at multiple levels, let's not forget that a minority of politically empowered fundamentalists in Israel effectively deny the right to worship to the vast majority of Jews in Israel, that they do not recognize the legitimacy of Reform or Conservative Judaism in Israel or in America, and that they do not tolerate diversity.

It is hard for me to see how Israel can resolve conflicts with others when it cannot resolve fundamental conflicts of Jewish identity in the State of Israel in order to embrace the 13.3 million Jews that are all that remain of global Jewry.  I hope that will see more progress in the direction of religious pluralism in Israel in 2007.