Unconditionally Loving Israel and Jewish Values

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Press Contact: Mark Pelavin, 202/841-0617 (Cell) mpelavin@urj.

1 Press Contact: Mark Pelavin, 202/ (Cell) Unconditionally Loving Israel and Jewish Values Rabbi Rick Jacobs President, Union for Reform Judaism J Street Conference 2015 Washington, D.C. March 21, Nisan 5775 KEY QUOTES My love for Israel is unconditional as is our responsibility for Israel s well-being. And at the very same time we are equally committed to living our other core Jewish values. At key moments, as in the past few weeks, we are challenged to hold fast to both commitments. Some have let go of one of these, but I, and hopefully many of you, refuse to stop loving Israel or to cease living our demanding Jewish values of equality, justice, truth and dignity for all of God s children. If we hope to succeed in defending and protecting the kind of Israel we think she should be, we, the Jewish community, must first become who we think we should be: honest, humble, generous and open of heart and mind We see adversity as a call to action. This is no time for progressives to withdraw. In the next few years, as the leaders of Israel, the Palestinians, and America make crucial decisions on issues related to the future, our voices must be heard. And, simultaneously, we must stand against those whose aim is to delegitimize and isolate Israel on the world stage. Israel has real and deadly enemies against whom we must close ranks. Iran presents an existential threat to Israel, a challenge to American national interests, and a blow to global stability. In addition to its repeated efforts to build nuclear weapons that can threaten all countries in the region and beyond, Iran s fingerprints are on almost all of the lethal weapons aimed at Israel specifically, from Lebanon, Syria and Gaza. We dare not minimize the danger Iran poses, so let us not stop pressing for the most effective, international coalition to keep Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. I believe that when the organized Jewish community draw lines that exclude J Street, it fosters the perception of a one dimensional approach to Israel that will be our undoing. What happens in Israel truly affects Jews all over the globe very much including young adults on our college campuses. Better talking points will not resolve this situation; nor would a new Israeli government erase the enmity that is growing in places that are supposed to be bastions of free thinking FULL TEXT FOLLOWS

2 AS PREPARED. CHECK ON DELIVERY P age 2 Unconditionally Loving Israel and Jewish Values Rabbi Rick Jacobs President, Union for Reform Judaism J Street Conference 2015 Washington, D.C. March 21, Nisan 5775 We gather at a pivotal moment in the history of Israel. It is precisely at such a time that the North American Jewish community is in desperate need of an open, honest and serious conversation about the Jewish state. I believe that this 5 th J Street conference is fertile ground for such dialogue. Hear the words of the poet Yehuda Amichai: From the place where we are right, flowers will never grow in the spring... But doubts and loves dig up the world like a mole, a plow. Indeed, righteous certainty leads to closed -mindedness and stalemate; self-doubt and love open up real possibilities for peace. So let us voice our differences and speak our minds without casting aspersions upon each other s motivations, aspirations and ahavat yisrael love of Israel. American Jews and Israel American Jews have a complicated relationship with Israel. We are lovers of Israel, but we are not always in agreement with specific policies of her government. The majority of us support a peace process that results in the creation of a viable Palestinian state next to a secure Israel. We favor this out of love for Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, and out of an acknowledgement that Israel will only be secure when a diplomatic solution of this crisis is achieved. Do the settlements make Israel more secure? According to the most recent Pew survey, just 17% of American Jews think that the continued building of settlements in the West Bank is helpful to Israel s security, while 44% say that settlement construction hurts Israel s own security interests. Has the Israeli government made a sincere effort to establish peace with the Palestinians? Only 38% of American Jews agree with that statement. Staring us in the face are declining rates of Jewish engagement with Israel in general and among young Jews in particular, as well as on college campuses and in the progressive community. These trends are deeply disturbing to be sure, but we Jews are ever-hopeful. We see adversity as a call to action. This is no time for progressives to withdraw. In the next few years, as the leaders of Israel, the Palestinians, and America make crucial decisions on issues related to the future, our voices must be heard. And, simultaneously, we must stand against those whose aim is to delegitimize and isolate Israel on the world stage. A case in point. This past June in Detroit I addressed the Presbyterian Church USA s General Assembly which was debating a call to divest from certain Israeli companies. Divestment, I argued, would not bring the two-state solution we seek any closer; it would only strengthen the rejectionists on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian divide.

3 AS PREPARED. CHECK ON DELIVERY P age 3 Just before I arrived in Detroit, Rachel Lerner, J Street s not-so-secret weapon, had given a compelling talk making the case for Israel and arguing against the divestment resolution. When Jewish communal and Israeli leaders ask, is J Street truly pro-israel I send them Rachel s talk. As we demonstrated in Detroit that week, our Jewish community is so much stronger and effective in our pro-israel advocacy when we embrace a diversity of pro-israel views. One dimensional definitions of pro-israel should be put to rest now and forever. Democracy, Israel, Jewish Values I come here proud and honored to lead the Reform Movement that has long opposed Israeli settlement policy on the West Bank. The occupation threatens the very Zionism that we hold dear the living expression of a Jewish democratic state; it causes pain and hardship to the Palestinians and alienates Israel from friends and allies around the world. Only two states for two peoples living side by side in peace will bring this tragic conflict to its long-awaited end. But favoring a two-state solution is not the same as bringing it about. Broadness of goal can only be hurt by narrowness of approach. Alas, no single party to the debate has a monopoly on narrowness. Too often the Israeli and American Jewish establishment holds Palestinian leaders alone responsible for failed peace initiatives. But progressives are equally at fault for labeling Israel as the sole culprit in scuttling peace initiatives. We are quick to find scapegoats, but wild goats abound on both sides of the divide and we ought at least to round them all up before mouthing platitudes that blame one side and whitewash the other. Sadly, we are further from the goal of two states for two people than we were a week ago, giving an opening to those both on the right and the left --who are pushing for a single-state alternative, an alternative that is completely unworkable and unsustainable. My Jewish values insist that a non-democratic state is inherently un-jewish. But a democratic state that is not Jewish would be a betrayal of our people s two-thousand year-old dream to restore Jewish sovereignty in Eretz Yisrael. And now more than ever let us remind President Obama and Prime Minister Netanyahu that the U.S./Israel relationship is a partnership between nations, not between individuals. It transcends partisanship, and belongs equally to Democrats and Republicans, to Likud and Labor. It reflects fundamental values and strategic priorities of both nations. It is, appropriately, both broad and deep. Criticism of J Street Much of what J Street stands for accords with my own views and with those of the majority of Jews. Yet, I have not always agreed with J Street, and I fully expect we will have disagreements in the future. But I am, frankly, stunned at the vituperative criticism of some who seem to imply that the greatest threat facing Israel and the Jewish people is not Iran, Hamas, or Hezbollah s missiles but rather this propeace, pro-israel group known as J Street. Let me be clear: I believe that when the organized Jewish community draw lines that exclude J Street, it fosters the perception of a one dimensional approach to Israel that will be our undoing. I insist on the right to speak my mind responsibly. But I insist equally on others doing the same. Last April, the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations voted not to admit J Street into this 60-year-old umbrella organization. I, on behalf of the Union for Reform Judaism, the largest Movement in Jewish life, raised our collective voice in strong opposition. It wasn t simply a referendum on J Street; it was a test of the integrity and cohesiveness of our Jewish community.

4 AS PREPARED. CHECK ON DELIVERY P age 4 The Conference of Presidents has now reformed its structure and streamlined its admission procedures for membership in a way that no longer places unwarranted barriers to entry. I was proud to join Conference leaders in negotiating these important changes -- a modest victory, but a victory nonetheless, moving us in the direction of the essentials of honesty of dialogue and decency of debate. External Threats to Israel, Iran My friends, I am a proud Zionist, unshakably committed to Israel s strength, security and vitality. Until now, I have been discussing the need to foster honest debate within our own ranks. But make no mistake about it: Israel has real and deadly enemies against whom we must close ranks. Iran presents an existential threat to Israel, a challenge to American national interests, and a blow to global stability. In addition to its repeated efforts to build nuclear weapons that can threaten all countries in the region and beyond, Iran s fingerprints are on almost all of the lethal weapons aimed at Israel specifically, from Lebanon, Syria and Gaza. We dare not minimize the danger Iran poses, so let us not stop pressing for the most effective, international coalition to keep Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Threats From Within Israel also faces threats from within. Consider the story of Samer Mahfouz and Amir Shwiki, Palestinians from Beit Hanina, a neighborhood in East Jerusalem. I met them this past summer, during the war. I had been visiting wounded Israeli soldiers at Tel Hashomer Hospital and decided to stop also at Hadassah Medical Center where I encountered Samer and Amir. They, too, were wounded. But not from the war. They had been savagely attacked and beaten unconscious by a group of fanatical young Jews filled with hatred for all Palestinians. As I entered Samer s hospital room, I could tell his family was nervous to see us. With me were Rabbi Noa Sattath, director of the Israel Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, and a delegation from Tag Meir, a group of 40 organizations protesting a spate of Jewish assaults on Palestinians. We were the first Jews to visit Samer and Amir since the brutal attack. Bearing flowers and food to mark their Ramadan break-fast, we expressed to these distraught Palestinian families how ashamed we were by the attack. We wanted them to know that the majority of Israeli and Diaspora Jews were praying for the men s speedy recovery and were determined to see that their attackers were brought to justice. We will do our part, we told them, to uproot such hatred as we work to create a society that respects the other. Samer spoke to us in beautiful Hebrew, telling us that both men have ties to their Jewish coworkers and neighbors. It s too easy to let one s heart close during a time of war; our goal must always be to keep our hearts open. The 19 th- century teacher Rabbi Yizhak Meir Alter taught that a stork is called "Chasidah" or kindly one, but is not kosher. Why? Because it will only give food to a creature of its own kind. The lesson here is that limiting goodness and kindness only to ourselves is not the Jewish way. Yes, even in times of war we must not lose our deeply honed capacity for spiritual empathy, for it is this authentically Jewish approach that will most likely move us forward toward true peace. Working for the rights of its Arab citizens makes Israel more secure. In contrast to the cynical rhetoric we heard on Election Day making Israeli Arab voters a bête noir, the Jewish tradition and the democratic core of Israel demand the equality and dignity of all citizens. No exceptions.

5 AS PREPARED. CHECK ON DELIVERY P age 5 Tomorrow night I will be giving a talk in Boston with Ofir and Bat Galim Shaer whose son Gilad was one of the three Israeli teens who were kidnapped and brutally murdered by terrorists this summer. Gilad, Naftali and Eyal were remarkable teenagers whose lives were cut short by blind hatred. So many Israeli and Palestinian families have buried their children in that blood soaked corner of the earth. Until our hearts break at all of their deaths, peace will not come. American Jews are Active Partners The American Jewish community is not merely an audience to the drama of Israel. We are active partners. And as partners we must tell each other our truths. What are those truths? We will never back down from our commitment to a secure Israel. We will never stop fighting for an Israel that grants all of its citizens, Arabs and Jews, fundamental and equal human rights. We will never stop working for an Israel that grants equal rights to Jews no matter their spiritual practice or belief. We will never stop advocating for the U.S. to remain Israel's staunch ally. We will not back away from our commitment to a two-state solution, in which Israelis and Palestinians live side-by-side in peace and security. I can think of few audiences that understand those truths better than the J Street U "Town Hall" I participated in last year. I was impressed by the deep commitment of its leaders to the state, people and ideals of Israel. Many of our student leaders occupy the ramparts in their own frontline battles over Israel. Verbal rockets fly regularly across your college campuses. You are bombarded by voices that question Israel s legitimacy on the world stage. And let us be clear: Antipathy towards the Jewish State too easily morphs into hatred of Jews. A few weeks back at UCLA, a young Jewish leader was initially rejected from student leadership because she was Jewish. As you probably know, she was ultimately seated but there was a question as to whether her Jewishness would keep her from being fair. I doubt the same presumption would have been made of any other ethnic or religious group. In the recent Trinity College study, 54% of US Jewish college students reported witnessing or experiencing Anti-Semitism. But lest you think there is an exemption for progressive Zionists, half of J Street members on campus also report Anti-Semitism. It s one thing to disagree about Israeli policy; it s another thing to condemn all expressions of Zionism as inherently offensive, to deny to the Jewish people the right of national self-determination accorded to others. Between Purim and Passover What happens in Israel truly affects Jews all over the globe very much including young adults on our college campuses. Better talking points will not resolve this situation; nor would a new Israeli government erase the enmity that is growing in places that are supposed to be bastions of free thinking. Tonight we find ourselves between Purim and Passover. On Purim we recalled the precariousness of Jewish life in the face of existential threats. And we were reminded that even the most unlikely of Diaspora Jews can find themselves in leadership roles that save the entire Jewish people as Esther did. Although intermarried and not strictly observant of ritual laws, when it mattered most Esther stepped up and we are here today because of her courage.

6 AS PREPARED. CHECK ON DELIVERY P age 6 And next week, on Pesach, with the symbols of slavery before us, we will sit with our four children: the wise, the apathetic, the naïve and those who haven t learned to question. We will eat the dry bread of poverty called Matzot while we retell our master narrative of liberation a reminder that we have been called upon as a covenantal people to shape a more just, peaceful and compassionate world. My love for Israel is unconditional as is our responsibility for Israel s well-being. And at the very same time we are equally committed to living our other core Jewish values. At key moments, as in the past few weeks, we are challenged to hold fast to both commitments. Some have let go of one of these, but I, and hopefully many of you, refuse to stop loving Israel or to cease living our demanding Jewish values of equality, justice, truth and dignity for all of God s children. Yes, my friends, we join together tonight at a pivotal moment in which the fate of Israel hangs in the balance. If we hope to succeed in defending and protecting the kind of Israel we think she should be, we, the Jewish community, must first become who we think we should be: honest, humble, generous and open of heart and mind. Pesach commands us to sit with even our divided families at seder. Especially this year we must find a way to sit and debate with our family members who may not share all of our views but let us anchor our deep discussions on the deeper love that binds us to one another and to our Jewish homeland. In a world filled with many more than 10 plagues our haggadah commands us to taste the bitterness of our experience while not losing hope.

just past and to let its experiences influence our immediate future. This is no less so for the

Rosh Hashanah 5778 By Rabbi Freedman An integral part of Rosh Hashanah and the Days of Awe is to review the year that has just past and to let its experiences influence our immediate future. This is no