JewsByChoice.Org

Hi all,

As should be apparent by my sudden drop in posting over the last month or two, I’ve been pretty busy lately.  The good news is I’m back, and will be writing more again.  Anyway, I was recently asked by my rabbi to fill a request from a large Episcopal church in Duluth for an “Israel 101″ talk, and I thought my experience with this might be of interest to some readers on the JBC.org site.  So, here it goes…

As visiters and contributers to the site will probably be aware, Israel is very important to me.  While I may not always agree with Israeli policies, I have experienced Israel as a Jew, and I would very much like to live there some day.  Israel is where our Mesora comes alive like it physically cannot anywhere else, and there is something incredibly good for my soul to be in the place where our language is the language, our holidays are the holidays, and the hills in our poetry are visible out the window.  So when I was given a chance to give an intro to Israel talk at the biggest Episcopal church in northern Minnesota, after some initial nervousness I jumped at the chance.

What do you say in a 40-50 minute presentation on Israel?  I struggled with this for a while, but eventually I settled on two points being the most important for me to get across to the attendees: 1) Israel is an extremely complex place, not a monolith; and 2) Even people with progressive, peacenik tendencies have to be concerned about the security of their children before anything else.  I am a pretty left-wing guy myself, but within progressive environments there seems to be a tendency to pontificate about Israel’s responsibilities among people who have never experienced the real security concerns that are everyday reality in Israel.  Western Europeans and Americans have no idea what it would be like to live with the constant possibility of a rocket landing on their homes, or their children being blown up on a bus.  As a result, these folks often miss the fact that even Israelis who are active in peace movements and find themselves on the left of the Israeli political spectrum must maintain an attitude of vigilance with respect to security.  To really understand the Middle East, one must have a clear understanding of this reality.  You can’t just say, “the Israelis should be doing X” if you haven’t experienced the reality Israelis live with on a daily basis.  Or maybe you can say it, but that doesn’t mean you actually understand enough about the situation to have your statement have any meaning for those who live there.

So, with the presentation I spent some time providing snapshots of Israel.  I discussed demographics, the economy, the government, religion in Israel, “settlers” (another common buzzword in lefty camps), and Israeli peace movements.  I then talked about security issues by telling four stories that I either experienced or heard when I was in Israel.  The audience was really engaged, and I spent about 25 minutes answering questions in the group and from individuals at the end.  I was heartened by the willingness of the attendees to think critically about how they would react in situations faced by Israelis, and by the fact that several participants acknowledged that they understood how a person could want peace and a two state solution, while at the same time being unwilling to let occupation be an excuse for continued rocket fire from, say, Gaza or Lebanon.

But perhaps the most important lesson I took away from the experience was that it is truly possible to make coherent, passionate arguments for Israel’s security while also advocating for peace.

kol tuv,

Yair

“A pogrom is a form of riot directed against a particular group, whether ethnic, religious, or other, and characterized by the killing and destruction of their homes, businesses, and religious centers. The term in English is often used to denote extensive violence against Jews — either spontaneous or premeditated — but it has also been applied to similar incidents against other minority groups.”

We commemorate the anniversary of Kristallnacht this week.  As a major component of the increasing cascade of genocide in Nazi Germany, Kristallnacht is an extremely important event to remember and study.  My Jewish Learning has a good primmer on the event as well as other thoughtful reflections.

http://www.myjewishlearning.com/history_community/Modern/Overview_The_Story_19141948/The_Holocaust/Early_Stages_of_Persecution/Kristallnacht.htm

As I took some time to consider Jewish history and its interbeing with the hate and malevolence that often erupted in pogroms, I also thought about the state of our world.

Burma

Tibet

Darfur

Sir Lanka

All are currently experiencing on going strife with genocidal intent. We say “never again” …and I believe (as many do) never again for all human beings. We are experiencing a time of historic proportions, politically, financially and environmentally. I believe  our collective Jewish history is important to know and understand to help all of us be involved and informed and hopefully part of the solution for our world.

I realize it has been awhile since I posted anything to JBC.org, so I apologize for the absence, but I think that I have an acceptable excuse.

For the last couple of months I have been struggling with a serious depression, the likes of which I have not experienced since my senior year in college, and which has left me listless and drifting. The one good thing in my life, the one consistency that has kept me even a little bit grounded to who I am is my Judaism and my temple community. I am not writing this to elicit sympathy or even empathy from readers, rather I want to make a very clear point that I think all Jews by Choice and those considering conversion should take to heart: please remember that Judaism is not just about Torah and Talmud, Halachah and Midrash, Chaggim and Shabbatot. Judaism is about community and I have felt that profoundly over the last few months. My friends at temple worried about me and didn’t just keep that worry to themselves—they took action to help me. My rabbi kicked my butt all over the place to get me to make the choices that would help me and not hurt me. My Religious School kids, while not being aware of the situation, have helped to make things a little simpler, a little better, each time I teach them.

We, as Jews, are called to repair the world, to perform acts of tzedakah, to be a light unto the nations. But, we must remember to take care of our own communities as well, to help repair the people around us and, when necessary, allow others to help you as well. As someone who is fiercely independent is has been incredibly difficult for me to allow others to help and to ask for that help when I have needed it. I have found comfort in the rituals of Jewish prayer and many of the words that have become so familiar to me over the years have taken on new meaning as I attempt to climb out of this darkness.

This year Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and the days leading up to them were incredibly emotional for me and I connected with the services in ways that are much different than previous years. I was frustrated at first because the High Holy Days are my favorite part of the Jewish year and I wasn’t enjoying them the way I usually did. But then I realized that even though I may not have been happy during services and as I thought about the year past and the year to come, the High Holy Days were doing exactly when they are meant to: they helped me reflect and focus and think about my relationship with God and the people that I love. My former therapist (who is my former and not current therapist largely for the following reason) asked me recently about whether or not I have prayed and asked God to help me. I tried to explain to her that I don’t view prayer as a “ask-and-you-shall-receive” transaction, that to I don’t expect God to necessarily answer me when I pray. She kept pushing the subject, saying she felt God had spoken to her before and that she thought I should ask. I stopped trying to explain my view of prayer because I didn’t expect her to understand. When I pray in temple I do pray for strength, but while that prayer is directed at God it is just as much directed inward. During the silent prayer I thank God each week for the friends and support that I have and for the strength to be able to keep moving forward. I don’t expect a solution or a cure to suddenly pop into my head, but I always feel comforted, and perhaps that is God’s way of answering me. I don’t know, and it doesn’t really bother  me that I don’t know

The last time traveled this road I didn’t have the faith in God, the community, or the Judaism that I do now. It isn’t a cure, but it helps.

As a Jew and especially at JBC I’m always struck by the high level of fragmentation within the Jewish community and the isolation which this creates. All too often I and many others seem to over identify with our denomination of choice. In fact so much so that many of us never end up exploring and/or even learning about what the other denominations stand for, never mind taking the time to learn about the common (Jewish) ground which we might all share. I’m not sure why? Maybe it’s part apathy and maybe it’s partly because people are afraid of what they don’t understand or perceive to be contrary to their own spiritual, social or political views. I think at least when it comes to JBC’s part of this is wrapped up in a fear of being rejected or not being taken seriously . Who knows?

Now speaking for myself, In theory, I am a pluralist! I’m a pluralist within a conservative context and I am most certainly a pluralist within the larger Jewish context as well. Of course that’s in theory, my own insecurities, prejudices and numerous other shortcomings often get in the way of my truly being a person who maintains a "Big Tent” attitude in daily life. Regardless, pluralism is what I strive for and that’s why this weekend I was really excited to listen to an excellent panel discussion featuring institutional leaders from the Orthodox, Conservative and Reform movements.

The audio which is titled “Three Movements, One Future: Challenges Facing American Jews ” was this year’s Harold Hoffman Memorial Lecture recorded at Temple Beth El in Stamford Connecticut and features Rabbi David Ellenson, the President of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion; Richard Joel, the President of Yeshiva University, and Dr. Arnold Eisen, Chancellor of The Jewish Theological Seminary. 

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this recording today, I think because it was for the most part extremely honest. Yeah it was an excellent example of how the three largest American Jewish denominations can come together in a spirit of dialogue and common mission. The panelists were obviously coming from their own distinct perspectives however they were still able to engage in what I felt was a meaningful dialogue. No they didn’t agree on everything and no I don’t think they solved any of the major schisms dividing the movements but they made it clear that it was okay to talk to one another and that’s something we could all do well to learn from and replicate in our own daily lives. Namely that it should be okay for us to talk to one another regardless of where or how we came to Judaism. While this doesn’t mean we have to accept everything one another has to say it certainly we should be able to listen to one another and at bare minimum strive to find some common ground.

Wouldn’t you agree?

Anyhow like I said this is an interesting audio and if you have the 70 minutes or so to spare I highly recommend checking it out. More importantly and as usual if you do give it a listen please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Oh also if you’re interested in reading a little bit of the press surrounding this event you can check out two decent articles here and here.

Hat tip to Rabbi Menachem Creditor for bringing this audio lecture to my attention.