Parshat Hashavua: April 30/May 1, 2010
April 29, 2010 by Steve
Vacations, Volcanos, Anzac Day, and Freewill Offerings:
A D’var Torah on Emor Offered by Rabbi Sheryl Nosan-Blank
Temple David, Perth Australia
I was so happy to see my friend as I walked my son to his pre-primary class. She and her family had gone on a sort of pilgrimage to Germany with her elderly in-laws who had pre-war roots in Berlin. As they were driving to the airport for their return flight to Australia, they heard the announcement on the car radio “due to the volcanic eruption in Iceland, all airports are now closed.” Like so many other travellers, their world was thrown into turmoil. How would they get home? Where would they stay? When could they leave? What would the cost be in days, dollars, stress and strain?
The adventures began. Should they drive south to Spain to be nearer their destination? No room on the trains…what about a ship to New York then a flight back Down Under? How to get out of Europe … eerie echoes of the past came to the surface. Ultimately, unknown friends of friends became generous hosts offering home-hospitality. A few days later an acquaintance in London sacrificed some time and space to provide a couple nights’ accommodations. The last several nights were spent with a prior co-worker, now 36 weeks pregnant, managing a two year old and wondering if her husband, stranded in Hong-Kong, would make it back by the time of their baby’s anticipated birth. This last hostess was happy to have my friend as company, cook, and carer - and my friend said in the end they all had a great time.
Mayhem turned to mitzvahs. Iceland’s ashes brought out the best in the people near my friend as strangers were supportive, co-workers were kind, and acquaintances were angels. Those surrounding my friend were not responsible for her well-being, but sacrificed time, space and energy for the well-being of near-strangers. K’elu - in the Shadow of Yom Hashoah, we can only wish K’elu - if only that had happened so much more six decades ago.
I recently spoke to a female-priest friend, comparing notes on our ANZAC weekend activities and teachings. Here in Australia and New Zealand, ANZAC Day is a time of solemn, earnest and intense appreciation of those Australian and Kiwi soldiers who gave the ultimate gift - their lives - in defence of our freedoms and highest ideals.
“During the sermon, I asked the people in the pews to empty their pocket and pocket books and give everything they were carrying to a stranger nearby” she said. “They looked shocked, but I reminded them that our soldiers had sacrificed far more for their neighbours, for strangers, and for us.”
In this week’s parashah, Emor, we read of required sacrifices of various types, as well as free-will offerings.
Those are the set times of the Eternal that you shall celebrate as holy celebrations bringing offerings [various] sacrifices to the Eternal…apart from Sabbaths of the Eternal and apart from gifts and [various] free-will offerings (Lev 23: 37-38).
While some may quickly turn from these texts, as Progressive Jews, we would be wise to use these passages as inspiration to reflect on the free-will offerings and sacrifices we have, or have not made. How often do we freely offer to open our hands, hearts or homes? When presented with an opportunity to sacrifice for the sake of an ideal we truly embrace or for the sake of others in genuine need, do we? Will we?
This week, studying Emor, we’re challenged to question how differently our Jewish history might have progressed if additional Righteous Gentiles courageously and of their free-will, reached out more offering support to those in need. Simultaneously, we shudder to imagine the greater losses our world would have faced if fewer ANZACs and other soldiers were willing to offer the ultimate sacrifice.
Near the end of Emor, we are taught “You shall have one standard for stranger and citizen alike, for I am the Eternal your G-d” (Lev. 24:22). May we give and sacrifice as freely for strangers as for “our own” thereby enabling G-d’s blessings to flow through our world.
Social Action
April 26, 2010 by Steve
An active involvement in Social Action and Social Justice is a cornerstone of Progressive Judaism. As the voice of Progressive Judaism in Australia, New Zealand and Asia, the UPJ works to develop and support a broad range of social action initiatives and programs.
We promote social action projects that can be adapted by congregations and individuals in all fields of social justice including interfaith, refugees, helping indigenous communities, Israel projects and many more. We look to foster understanding within the Jewish community and with the wider community. We provide a focus for joint religious and social action.
OSIM (in Hebrew “doing”) is an acronym for Organisation for Social Initiatives and Motivation
As the voice of Progressive Judaism in Australasia and Asia, the UPJ works to help foster understanding across the Jewish and non-Jewish community. We provide a focus for joint religious and social action. We promote social action projects that can be adapted by congregations and individuals in all fields of social justice including interfaith, refugees, helping indigenous communities, Israel projects and many more.
Contribute Now To Nothing But Nets!
Click below to donate now! You can also make a donation in someone else’s name. Once you have completed your payment through Paypal below, you will receive an email acknowledgment from the UPJ. This which will allow you to send an e-certificate to the person you are honouring. That person will receive notification that you have made a donation in his/her name, together with the link to the certificate.
Remember you can buy a malaria net for only $10! Buy a net, save a life
Parshat Hashavua: April 23-24, 2010
April 22, 2010 by Steve
Acharei Mot/K’doshim
Rabbi Dean Shapiro
Beth Shalom, the Progressive Jewish Congregation of Auckland, New Zealand
The double portion Acharei Mot/K’doshim brings us the Holiness Formula, that paradigmatic charge to the Jewish People (”Speak to the whole Israelite community and say to them: ‘You shall be holy for I, your God YHVH, am holy,’” [Leviticus 19:2]). It also presents an extensive litany of prohibited sexual relations.
While some religious folk cite Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13 in their condemnation of homosexuals, Progressive Jews see the matter differently. We consider those verses in the context of the Book of Leviticus, that is, the maintenance of Priestly category distinctions (Eskenazi, Tamara Cohn, editor, The Torah, A Women’s Commentary, p. 713, n. 13), and understand them to have little bearing on the realities of modern gay and lesbian people. In our times, sexuality is constructed very differently than in ancient days, and the verses do not justify homophobia.
On the contrary, gay men and lesbians are welcome in our communities. Progressive Judaism is an open tent, and seeks to provide an enriching environment in which all Jews can live and grow. In keeping with our affirmative Progressive values, we seek not to exclude, but to engage: in our communities, we gay, lesbians and bisexual people can be honest about our lives, as can our parents, children, brothers and sisters. The contributions of all members of the congregation are sought and valued in our class rooms, board rooms, and on the bimah. Gay, lesbian and bisexual people also have the right to be treated with dignity and respect by our clergy and fellow congregants, and to be safe in our synagogues. In this, we are just like any other Jews.
This is not to say, however, that there are no differences between us. Gay, lesbian and bisexual people do not usually construct our lives in the very same ways as straight people. Our life cycle is not the same; it includes milestones like coming out, for example. We may constitute our families in different ways. If we become parents, our processes for having children and our parenting constellations are not likely the norm. We may ask different questions of our tradition and authorities. At its best, Progressive Judaism is responsive to these realities, providing the resources, environment, and encouragement to help us make meaning of our own, Jewish lives, that is, to help us progress on our unique Jewish journeys.
In recognition of the equality of gay, lesbian and bisexual people, the Moetzah, the Progressive Rabbinic Council of Australasia, now permits its members to officiate at same-sex commitment ceremonies. This is a huge step forward, and we are right to be proud of it.
Now let our synagogues take the next steps: ensuring physical and emotional safety for our gay-identified and questioning young people, marking the myriad milestones of our lives, learning about Gay and Lesbian Jewish history and scholarship, inviting gay and lesbian Jews and Jewish organizations into the fold, and mobilizing for full political equality. Then we will truly live up to our mission as Progressive Jews.
“Speak to the whole Israelite community,” God tells Moses, not to selected divisions within it. Male and female, rich and poor, young and old, gay and straight-all these comprise our people, and each one of us, in our own ways, strives after holiness.
Israeli and Aussie sterotypes
April 19, 2010 by Steve
by: Anat Baruch - pictured at the 2010 Yom Ha’atzmaut celebration in Sydney, with Emanuel Synagogue CEO Allan Glazerman (left) and UPJ executive director Steve Denenberg (centre)
This month we are celebrating Yom Ha’atzmaut; our state is turning 62. For those 62 years, Israelis are constantly changing both their self-definitions and the way they are seen from abroad.
A few decades ago, if you met an Israeli, he was most likely an immigrant, defined by his country of origin, its stereotype and its language. Domestic definition would be: Polish, “Yeke” (German), Moroccan, Iraqi, Kurdish, Romanian etc. The “special one” that was born in Israel would have been called “the Sabra”. Meanwhile, as years went by and more and more kids were born in Israel, we became less labelled by our ethnic descent, and more and more were referred to as Israelis.
I decided to conduct a bit of research to uncover what the Israeli stereotype is according to the Jewish community here in Australia. My email list was asked to respond to two questions:
“What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear that someone is an Israeli?” and “What is an Israeli?”
According to Jewish Australians, an Israeli is someone who was born in Israel or made aliyah, someone who identifies with Israel’s culture, who is strongly opinionated, cares about family and doesn’t take orders from anyone (at least, other than the army). An Israeli is most likely to be direct and honest, yet sleazy with no manners (OUCH), but very friendly and hospitable. An Israeli is a traveller who speaks English with an Israeli accent, and loves to talk about Israel at any occasion. You would probably find them wherever you go, as they are the loudest.
It’s good that Israelis like to talk, as many of you wish to practice your Hebrew with Israelis you meet. You feel a strong connection to them, as they are probably Jewish and you share similar experiences and celebrate the same holidays. The deep connection is also reflected by the fact that you think of this stranger as mishpoche (family), and often invite Israelis for Shabbat dinners. For some, Israelis bring a bit of nostalgia, reminding you of times spent in Israel, and wishing you were in Israel yourself.
Sometimes, by defining someone else we are actually defining ourselves. By seeing someone as bad or dirty, we reflect our wish to be good and clean. That is why I presented my Israeli friends the same questions regarding Australians:
“What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear that someone is an Australian?” and “What is an Australian?”
The most significant answer was: “kangaroo”! The second one was “Crocodile Dundee” and the third one was “far, far away”.
Many Israelis described the Australian as a manly tanned figure, good-looking and blond, walking around with his surfboard - very calm, with no worries, isolated, laid back and easygoing; someone who comes from the land of freedom, thongs and beer. That is the first Australian stereotype. The second is a farmer with khaki short trousers and a big hat who likes animals - or in other words - Crocodile Dundee again. There was only one feminist referring to a female - Kylie Minogue.
Does anyone recognise himself in this description? Israelis are jealous of this Australian, who comes from a beautiful place with never-ending beaches, savage landscape, good weather and nothing really important to worry about, with newspaper headlines usually about sports. Many think that it is lucky to live in Australia, which is far away; in fact, if it wasn’t so far away more Israelis would probably come and visit.
As I did not get the chance to meet Crocodile Dundee yet, I suspect the Israelis are defining the Australians as the calm, easygoing people they wish they were: craving to escape a bit from the headlines and the day-to-day worries, go to the beach more often to surf, drink a beer and have a barby.
Well, even if not all year around, Israelis definitely do that on Yom Ha’atzmaut. In fact, following every Yom Ha’atzmaut, a part of the news is dedicated to summing up how much meat was consumed during the holiday. The day is also called the Chag Hamangal (BBQ holiday).
As we see, we all have a lot of stereotypes in our minds - some of them are sometimes accurate and some of them can be very far from reality. Defining one can be dangerous if we let this unavoidable act affect how we see individuals, what we think about them and how we treat them. In other cases, it can bring us together.
Thank you to all participants. It was funny and interesting reading your replies and it definitely warmed my heart.
Happy birthday Israel!
Parshat Hashavua: April 16-17, 2010
April 15, 2010 by Steve
Leviticus 12:1 – 15:32
Etz Chayim Chumash: p. 649
Drash on Parshat Tazria/Metzorah
by Rabbi Jeffrey B Kamins,
Emanuel Synagogue, Woollahra, New South Wales, Australia
Nearly all who come upon these two parshiyot find them among the most difficult due to the subjects treated; however, in the past, our rabbis have managed to turn the unpleasant into the meaningful. The combined reading of Tazria/Metzora covers a broad swath of material related to issues of ritual purity and impurity. Tazria begins with the regulations concerning women who have given birth (Leviticus 12); Metzora concludes with a description of a variety of genital afflictions and conditions (Leviticus 15). In the middle, chapters 13 and 14, there is much material concerning a variety of disturbances erroneously considered together as “leprosy” - “tzara’at” in Hebrew. Tzara’at can affect not only skin, but also contaminated fabrics and leather as well as plastered or mud-covered building stones. The general principle learned through all of this is the interconnection between the world of matter and energy, body and soul.
The description of tzara’at and its various treatments concludes parashat Tazria and forms the opening half of parashat Metzora. The priests are the ones responsible for the diagnosis and treatment of tzara’at, highlighting the ancient wisdom connecting physical maladies with spiritual condition. Today we recognize the interface between the physical and spiritual realms, the way in which our mental and emotional state affects our physical well being and vice-versa.
This physical/spiritual interface forms the rationale for the opening of Tazria concerning a woman’s ritual impurity at childbirth. “When a woman at childbirth bears a male, she shall be ritually impure for seven days. …She shall remain in a state of blood purification for thirty-three days: she shall not touch any consecrated thing, nor enter the sanctuary until her period of purification is completed. If she bears a female, she shall be ritually impure for two weeks …and she shall remain in a state of blood purification for sixty-six days.” For many these verses are challenging and the traditional responses of the rabbis not necessarily satisfying. Why should a woman be in a state of ritual impurity after giving birth, a natural act? Why should this impure state last twice as long for giving birth to a female?
Many responses in the tradition connect the ritual impurity to the sin of Eve in eating from the Tree of Knowledge, after which women were condemned to give birth with pain. The double period of impurity for bearing a female is that the newborn female lives under this curse as well. While this explanation fits within the model of physical actions having spiritual consequences, another explanation also does – however it celebrates, rather than condemns, the female.
According to rabbinic tradition, a fetus takes 40 days to form before it is considered a viable being. Rabbi Michael Graetz has written that this status of being viable requires the combination of physical form with a soul. He notes that a kabbalistic tradition, based apparently on the Zohar, teaches that 33 days are required for the soul to settle in the body. These are added to the seven days that represent the completion of a physical cycle to come up with the viability of a fetus at 40 days. Similarly, the newborn child develops its physical/spiritual core during its first 40 days, mirroring its first 40 days as an embryo. The Torah’s isolating the mother from ritual and communal life allows her to bond with her newborn and nurture its physical and spiritual development. But why should this be doubled when the newborn is female and not male? The doubling of the period for a female newborn teaches us of the gift of having a baby girl, for the female has the live-giving role, and this new girl carries within her the potential for mothering, physically and spiritually.
With these thoughts, we wish Rabbi Paul Jacobson and his wife Lisa Mazal Tov on the birth of their baby daughter Hannah on the 24th of Nisan, corresponding to April 8th. May she and all our children grow with the physical and spiritual well being hinted at in this week’s parasha. As our sages taught about the Torah, “keep turning it over and you will find everything in it.”
Rabbis: Crisis with US Jewry looming
April 13, 2010 by Steve
By Yitzhak Benhorin, YNet News, April 4th, 2010
WASHINGTON – While Israel is rightfully concerned by deep breach in trust between the Obama administration and Netanyahu’s government, many ignore the growing crisis between the State of Israel and US Jewry. A source familiar with the goings-on told Ynet that the situation "is like a ship heading towards an iceberg."
It is in this context that Jewish leaders warn against incurring damage to Israel’s security.
Avigdor Lieberman and Eli Yishai have recently brought the age-old question of who is a Jew to public consciousness once again, plotting what seems to be a legislative deal that includes Yisrael Beiteinu’s civil marriage bill in exchange for granting exclusive control over conversion to Shas and Orthodox rabbis.
In Israel, a vast majority of religious people are Orthodox. However, in the US, 85% to 90% of Jews are Reform, Conservative, or some other denomination and are furious with Israel over its said religious policies.
The legislation is meant to solve genuine hardship, and Lieberman would like to uphold his campaign promise. However, it seems that Shas has pinpointed a golden opportunity. For US Jewry, this is a tie-breaker in a game that has gone on for years over defining who is a Jew and joins other events happening in Israel that keep the younger generation of US Jews away from Israel.
Many believe that if Israel were to lose the support of these Jews, it would ultimately lose White House support, regardless of the current diplomatic squabble between Netanyahu and Obama.
Executive President and CEO of United Synagogue for Conservative Judaism, Rabbi Steven Wernick explained in a conversation with Ynet, "If Israel wants to be the country of the Jews, it needs to start being a country for all the Jews."
Conservative Rabbi Julie Schonfeld went a step farther, and said that passing such law will damage Israel’s security. Rabbi Schonfeld is among the most important Jewish leaders in the US, and currently serves as the executive vice president of the Rabbinical Assembly, the association of Conservative rabbis worldwide.
The RA has existed since 1901 and represents a group of pro-Israel Jews who contribute political and financial support the country needs.
"What is happening is damaging to Israel’s security, and I am not saying this as a metaphor," said Schonfeld to Ynet. "Most of the representatives in AIPAC are Conservative and Reform who work day and night for Israel in the US. But when these people arrive in Israel, they are treated as non-Jews. Chairs are thrown at them at the Kotel. The police arrest them. You need to understand that a threat to our relations with Israel is a threat to the resilience and security of the country."
An article written by Rabbi Schonfeld in the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, which was published in nearly every Jewish newspaper throughout the US, has caused quite a stir. She wrote that Israel is being conquered by small, extremist ultra-Orthodox parties, but American Jewry has kept quiet on the assumption that "silence on religious coercion equals unity and thus also equals Israel’s security."
Now, Schonfeld warned, "The young generation sees Israel as a society with growing religious zealotry and oppression. We must change the growing alienation of young Jews in the Diaspora, who are unwilling to accept a society that allows a religious minority to contemptibly threaten their religious values."
The Jewish Federation in the US sent letters to Netanyahu and Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky warning that passing the conversion law will push them away and will affect conversion. Israeli Ambassador to the US Michael Oren received more emails in the past few days than all letters received at the embassy in the past decade on any issue, including the Second Lebanon War and Operation Cast Lead.
Rabbi Wernick wished to make it clear to Ynet readers: "We are Zionists. Fifty percent of the participants in the last AIPAC conference at which PM Netanyahu spoke are Conservative. We are pro-Israel. For us, Jerusalem is our capital, not a settlement. Everything we do stems from a love of Israel."
Following this disclaimer, he charged, "It is about time that the state and Israeli society deal with the question of Jewish pluralism."
Though the conversion law is a death blow for them, even without it, US Jews are crushed by the country’s conduct on issues of law, justice, and democracy in general, and by the country’s treatment of them in particular, the rabbi says. They are angered that it turns out the Western Wall apparently does not belong to all Jews, but to ultra-Orthodox who have taken over the Western Wall pavilion and are awarded police support.
They are outraged when a Reform rabbi is arrested at the Kotel for donning a prayer shawl or when women seeking to pray there are gruffly pushed aside. Reform and Conservative Jews find it hard to understand why a sovereign democracy does not protect their right to pray at the Western Wall, Wernick explains.
PM Netanyahu said in his speech to the Jewish Federation conference held last November in Washington that Israel is the country of all Jews. However, in the throes of the oncoming crisis with the US, he has yet to find time to meet with Union for Reform Judaism President Rabbi Eric Yoffie, the leader of the largest denomination in Judaism, with some 40% of US Jewry affiliated with it.
Rabbi Yoffie says he does not have any gripes towards the prime minister on this matter. He understands he is a busy man. Instead, Rabbi Yoffie spent his time in the Knesset speaking with 15 Knesset members who he says had no idea what he was talking about. For US Jewry, Yoffie explained to them, the Law of Return is the main and most vital connection between Jews and the State of Israel.
In a conversation with Ynet, Rabbi Yoffie explained, "The State of Israel is not the country of Israelis. If so, then I have no connection with the country. What connects me is the fact that this is the country of the Jews. This is the essential point. Zionism is a movement for Jews. Whoever doesn’t understand this has no idea what the State of Israel is."
Damaging this essential value, he claimed, damages the country and its security: "There is nothing in the world more important to the State of Israel than good relations with America. This is the top-most value. Only here can we help defend the country and ensure its future. There is no chance that these relations continue to be strong without American Jews."
"We are a force in both parties, and they know it. The moment Israel becomes less important to Jews and it is felt in Washington, this will affect relations between the US and Israel," Yoffie explained.
He admitted that his generation is committed to Israel, but warned that we do not have the young Jewish generation in our back pocket. "Whoever thinks that he can pass a law that my Judaism is not Judaism is risking a harsh response," he said.
Parshat Hashavua April 9-10, 2010
April 9, 2010 by Steve
Sh’mini: Leviticus 9:1 – 11:47
The Torah: A Modern Commentary, pages 798 - 823
Revised Edition, pages 707 - 717
Haftarah Sh’mini: II Samuel 6:1 – 7:17
The Torah: A Modern Commentary, pages 986 - 990
Revised Edition, pages 729 – 733
Saturday 10 April 2010, Shabbat Nisan, 26 5770
From Rabbi Dr John Levi, Emeritus Rabbi, Temple Beth Israel, St Kilda, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
“Alien fire” (Leviticus 10:1)
Two words and four personal names stand out as we read this week’s parasha. The names are Moses and Aaron, Nadav and Avihu. The two ominous words are esh zarah-alien or strange fire.
It is impossible to ignore that this year our Torah reading precedes Yom Hashoah. Time and again the testimony of the Auschwitz-Birkenau survivors begins with their sense of total disorientation. As night fell in their barracks they could see the bright strange fire that came from the crematoria and smell the unforgettable stench of burning flesh.
All Jews now live with that knowledge. It lies deep in our collective memory. Elie Wiesel explains “ The red flames that lick the sky inspire neither fear nor memory…There is nothing left to say. Another Kaddish? And another one? How many prayers can one say for an entire world? How many candles must one light for mankind? So as not to betray ourselves by betraying the dead, we can only open ourselves to their silenced memories. And listen.”
Tomorrow the sirens will sound throughout Israel and a nation will be hushed. It is a profound silence that touches adults and children alike. Quite simply, a nation acknowledges the fragility of life and the hatred apparently engendered by the covenant begun at Sinai. It would be foolish not to do so. The insane Iranian threat to exterminate the Jewish State resonates within us all. It is a silence which speaks louder than words. Words are unnecessary. Vayidom Aharon . Aaron, the father of Nadav and Avihu, is silent. What can he say as he sees his rebellious children die following the fire that they have kindled on the altar ? And so it is with us. Life is fragile. Perhaps our prayers should wait in a week or so when we can celebrate life at Yom Ha-atzmaut.
The unfolding relationship of Moses and Aaron is the other major theme of the parasha. Moses is chosen to ascend the mountain of the Lord and receive the commandments but Aaron is ordained to serve in the Tabernacle. In fact, by the end of the book of Leviticus, it is taken for granted that Moses must stay outside the sanctuary while within the Tent of Meeting his brother officiates at the altar. Leviticus is a priestly document whose message is based upon proscribed ritual and inherited authority and attempts to solve the problem that supports a priestly system while at the same time, accepts the tradition that it is Moses who hands on the inspired Law. This tension between lawgiver and priest, and later priest and prophet, will never be clearly resolved within the biblical texts and our tradition. There will always be an ongoing dialogue between opposite points of view within the same religious tradition.
This polarity demands debate and is the endlessly productive source of study and inspiration. There are powerful forces at work. Is the Jewish religious civilization inherently subversive to those who prefer to follow religious and political systems that are rigid and incapable of change? Year after year the story of Nadav and Avihu and their awesome fate leaves us with a host of unanswered questions. Within the text the nature of the “strange fire” kindled by the wayward brothers seems to have been deliberately left vague. In his grief Aaron is unable to speak. We are familiar with that experience of being struck dumb by our confrontation with history. As Elie Wiesel suggests on to us on this weekend before Yom Hashoah our parasha asks us to think and to listen.
Conversion law amendment – the middle part of the wedge?
April 7, 2010 by Steve
[The following article is an ‘Op Ed’ printed in the Australian Jewish News March 2010]
If looked at in isolation the proposed amendment to the Conversion Law in Israel is little more than a clumsy attempt to prevent migrant workers in Israel seeking to return and claim Israeli citizenship. However, on closer viewing it can be seen that not only is it another attempt by the religious right in Israel to monopolise all aspects of religious life but it is also a major challenge to the unity of the Jewish people world-wide.
In warning the Israeli Government to stop the legislation, Jewish Agency head Natan Sharansky likened it to the confrontation Israel has with neighbouring countries “The last thing Israel needs is to open a front against the many Jews who live in the Diaspora,” he told the Jerusalem Post. “The fact that changes entered [the bill] through the back door is worrying, especially since there’s no doubt someone did this on purpose. We’re invited to talk about the role of municipal rabbis [on conversion courts], and suddenly we find [the right to] citizenship up for discussion.”
The manipulation of this bill to give more power to the Orthodox rabbinic courts has created a furore around the world. In addition to complaints by groups like ours, including the Progressive and Conservative movements, the Jewish Federations of North America, the powerful umbrella organization representing 157 federations, delivered a letter of complaint to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The result of this unusual move by Diaspora Jews to influence Israeli internal policy has been for the bill to be delayed until a full dialogue with Diaspora Jews takes place.
The reason for such a strong reaction by so many groups is the real concern that this is just part of a slippery slope and that the proposed legislation will lead to a situation in which Jews-by-choice would be treated differently and denied recognition as Jews under the Law of Return, in direct contradiction of Israeli Supreme Court rulings. There is also a real fear that it may lead to the delegitimisation of all non-Orthodox conversions performed outside of the State of Israel.
Seen in conjunction with the growth in segregated busses, the refusal of Government ministers to implement Supreme Court decisions relating to funding for conversions, the increase in funding for ultra-orthodox institutions while the Progressive and Conservative movements receive none, and numerous other discriminatory moves, it is not surprising that there is such a strong reaction.
A demonstration in Jerusalem just last week called on all Israelis to look carefully at the electoral system that has created a coalition in which small, anti-democratic, reactionary parties are able to exert such control over the country and its policies, including the recent deliberate attempt to undermine peace negotiations with the Palestinians.
At a recent conference in Herzliyah, Prime Minister Netanyahu spoke of his commitment to ensuring that Jewish youth, in Israel and around the world, are reconnected with the Jewish values that helped create the Jewish State. Such an initiative must also include Israel looking at its failure to implement the crucial part of the Declaration of Independence that stated that the State would “guarantee freedom of religion, conscience, language, education and culture.”
Israel is indeed at the crossroads – and this small piece of legislation is at the heart of the question to determine whether Israel is indeed the homeland for all Jews. The failure of the State of Israel to accept Progressive and Conservative Judaism as ‘authentic’ is already leading many Jews in America, where Progressive Judaism is by far the largest denomination of Judaism, to turn their interest, and support, away from Israel.
We are determined to do all we can to avoid such a situation arising here. However, it is now time for the people of Israel to stand up against the small minority of right-wing religious groups and to call for the democratic, egalitarian and pluralistic State dreamed of by Herzl and the Zionist pioneers; promised by Ben-Gurion and the founders of the State; and longed-for by the vast majority of Jews around the world, including most Israelis. It is now time for the people and the Government of Israel to renew the vital link between all Jews by unequivocally declaring their acceptance as part of Am Yisrael, the Jewish People, regardless of denomination and regardless of whether they are a Jew by birth or a Jew by choice.
Steve Denenberg
Executive Director
Union for Progressive Judaism
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April 1, 2010 by Steve
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April 1, 2010 by Steve
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