YK Drash by Ayal Marek

Ayal Marek

ARZA

Drash by Ayal Marek on Yom Kippur at the Leo Baeck Centre in Melbourne
I was asked to speak today about ARZA and Israel. Before I get to this topic I would like to take this opportunity to talk about SHALOM.

As you would all know, shalom is the common greeting word in Hebrew. It means peace. When Israelis meet they often say “Shalom” or “Ma Shlomcha” (meaning: how are you) – literally meaning: “how is your peace.”  The quest for peace is fundamental to Jewish tradition. It is very common in many of our prayers, We all know the prayer:
Ose Shalom Bemromav hu Yaase shalom aleinu Ve Al Kol Israel.

This is just one of many references for peace in our prayers, in the Torah, Jewish prayer books, the Talmud and other Jewish sources.

Some refer to full peace in the context of Judaism to include justice and compassion as represented by the concept of Tikkun Olam ( healing the world ) that is used today in the context of improvement of society and the pursuit of social justice. Tikkun Olam is a great aspiration that has been woven through centuries of Jewish culture and should continue for generations to come – to be an aspiration for a better world.

As Rabbi Ralph Genende, notes: “Peace in Jewish literature and tradition is not merely the absence of war or conflict. It is rather the bringing together of opposing forces or ideas, the harmonising of diverse people or principles. shalom, is intimately related to the Hebrew word for wholeness shelemut.”

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks suggested that shalom is the harmonious coexistence of otherwise conflicting individuals, tribes, and nations, each with a distinctive nature and unique contribution to the totality of humankind. Shalom, he says, it’s not about uniformity but integrated diversity.

With all the adversities we are facing as individuals and as a community, I believe that we ought to maintain hope, we must continue to aspire for peace – forever yearning and working towards tikun Olam, this value is embedded in our culture.

It seems that over recent decades and generations, living in the diaspora we may have forgotten the emphasis on the 2 other related elements that are tikun Azmi ( healing of self ) and Tikun Am – healing the people.

On Yom Kippur we reflect on ourselves, how we can be better as individuals, – we are practising חשבון נפש – ( “accounting of the soul” )

I believe most of us here have been doing our individual heshbon nefesh for many years – and have been working  on tikun azmi – how we can be better individuals and make the world around us a better place.

I would like to reflect today – on the first Yom Kipur after the horrific massacre of October 7th and the tsunami of antisemitism and anti Zionism that followed, on the third element of tikkun am (healing of our people).

Am Israel – we are of many colours , we live in many countries, we are accustomed to having been a minority under the rule of different empires, kings, and Sultans over many centuries since being expelled  from our ancestry homeland.

I think that it is critical for our future that we maintain our unity as people while keeping our diversity. Ultra orthodox should respect the secular Jew and the pluralistic Jew. The Pluralistic Jew should respect the Orthodox Jew. Diaspora Jews and israelis should support each other. We do not have the luxury of internal divisions, which sends signals of weakness to those that are plotting our destruction.

The 7th of October was a painful reminder of the real and imminent threat Israelis are facing should those aiming to exterminate us have the means to execute their plans.

It was also a real reminder and wake up call to all Jewish people in the diaspora that the hatred is vast , antisemitism is widely spread and just needs a spark to ignite the flames.

The majority of people massacred on. 7 October were from the left side of the Israeli political map, peace activists, people believing in coexistence. This was a reality check for us all. The fanatics do not distinguish between religious or secular, Israelis or diaspora Jews, Right or left, progressive or orthodox .

We saw this in the demonstrations in Australia and around the world that started on 8th of October – only one day – ONE DAY – after the most horrific massacre of Jews since the holocaust  . Demonstrations, not against the perpetrators of these atrocities, but against the victims –  Israelis and Jews around the world. Israel had not even reacted yet.

The Progressive Jewish community was hoping that Progressive allies would stand with us. Instead, we found ourselves being cancelled, doxed, and harassed, and lost friendships within Organisations and by people in the fields of Human rights, The arts, Feminism, the environment, social justice, and academia. Deafening silence came from the Muslim community that were part of interfaith groups attempting to build bridges over decades.

These experiences represent a larger global phenomenon of the The Red-Green alliance – between Islamists and the Radical Left an alliance that poses a real threat, not just for Jews around the world and for the Jewish state, but for Western civilisation at large.

Changing this reality requires effort and work on the de radicalization of extremist communities, both in the western world and in Arab and Muslim countries. This is not work for a year or a decade but for generations – moving from demonization of Israel and Jews, to an approach of tolerance and peace.

We, as p\Progressive liberal Jews, should not compromise our way of living or our values. We need to fight for our values – as proud liberal Jews yearning for peace, equality and inclusion.

Turning to Israel in particular, this means fighting against attempts within Israeli society to undermine its democratic foundations, and fighting against discrimination on the basis of race, religion or gender.

At ARZA we have been working hard through the world Zionist Congress and the institutions related to it to progress equality for women, LGBTQI people, public transport on Shabat, separation of religion and state and recognition of pluralistic Judaism by the State.

Many of you may not be aware of what ARZA is or does. So let me provide a brief explanation:

ARZA stands for the Australian Reform Zionist Organisation. We are a small body of volunteers from different states, who strongly believe in the imperative of liberal Israeli society. ARZA is the affiliated political arm of the Union for Progressive Judaism. ARZA advocates for the values of democracy, social justice, human rights, equality for women, LGBTQI, religious pluralism and disadvantaged groups for all residents of Israel, regardless of their religion or ethnicity. While maintaining the links of our community to Israel.

Together with our global affiliates, we are the voice of our Progressive Jewish and Zionist values in the World Zionist Congress. With your membership and support, we can block resolutions of the extremist Orthodox and extremist right-wing groups on social and political matters, and pass resolutions reflective of our community values.

During the past year ARZA has been involved in a variety of activities to support Israel and our local community in light of the events of 7 October and the following aftermath.

ARZA Australia initiated and held the events “Kites for freedom” and “postcards of hope” to help increase awareness to the fate of the hostages held in Gaza, and provide a source of support for Australian Jewish communities trying to come to terms with the atrocities and the rise in Antisemitism that followed. These events attracted hundreds of participants and received good publicity in (both Jewish and mainstream) newspapers, television and radio.

With the support of KKL (The JNF) and ARZENU, ARZA has been developing resources to support and empower younger members of our community, which we intend to launch by the beginning of the next University year, hopefully with support of ZFA and uptake from across the community.

Throughout these past 12 months we have also:

• Supported and promoted participation in delegations and solidarity missions to Israel;
• Attended and participated in the World Zionist Council Vaad Hapoel conference in Jerusalem in February;
• Conducted a mental health support forum for young adults;
• Supported and participated in Erev Yom Hazikaron held by Zionism Victoria;
• Supported the formation of TAMAR a young Progressive adults forum to strengthen Jewish identity and relationship to Israel within an age group that is often less engaged;
• Updated community members on events via articles and analysis  in Jewish media and our ARZA newsletter, covering issues such as: the flaws of UNWRA, the risk of abuse of democratic freedoms by those attempting to undermine it, the rise in Antisemitism and anti Zionism (and the risk it poses to Israeli society);  as well as raising awareness to the danger that extreme right groups in Israeli society pose to its democracy.
  2 years ago we had the First Progressive Taglit delegation to Israel.

During the coming year we intend to continue our efforts to support and inform our community, and hope to strengthen relationships within our community. If you are not subscribed to our newsletter please get in touch.
In 2025 we have an election to the World Zionist Congress.

We get one vote per member. Your membership can make a REAL change, providing us with an extra vote at the upcoming election this coming year. Your donation will assist us to send delegates, run programs in Australia to build connections with our progressive Jewish communities, and send young Progressive Jews to Israel to experience its diversity and create a connection to their ancestral homeland.

As Progressive Zionists, we know that, post-October 7 and the attempt to undermine Israeli democracy in the name of “Judicial reforms”, supporting a strong, pluralist and egalitarian Israel is more important than ever.

On a more personal note, over Rosh Hashanah, Karen and I visited our daughter Gali, who is volunteering with Arab children in Israel. We spent time in a safe room while 180 missiles from Iran landed all over Israel – we heard the missiles and had a glimpse of what Israelis are dealing with on a daily basis.

It was a sombre experience. It has been a very difficult year which Israelis are still trying to process, while tens of thousands of people are displaced from their homes, and tens of thousands are serving for many months in the reserve troops, torn from their families.

Yet it was also very heart-warming to see the solidarity of the Israeli community during this time – people volunteering food, clothes, transport and donations, helping in whatever way they could. It has been inspiring to see the young Israeli “Tik Tok” generation, who people doubted, with determination and resilience, and an amazing spirit coming together and fighting to defend their families’ lives.

In the Diaspora Jewish community, we witnessed coming together in a similar way. In Caulfield there were huge warehouses filling multiple airplanes with goods for the Israeli communities, participation in vigils and assemblies to support one another. We had several unprecedented occasions of Progressive rabbis sharing the stage with Orthodox rabbis in formal community events.

On this Yom Kippur, I am urging you, my liberal Jewish friends, to do our cheshbon nefesh – Kol Israel arevim Ze La ze – All of Israel are responsible for one another. In fact the word in Hebrew is closer to guarantee for each other. We know that Israel will always be there for us, let us be here for her.

Remember our brothers and sisters in Israel, remember and pray for the safe return of 101 hostages still in the Gaza tunnels and the soldiers fighting for Israel’s survival, and lets stand in solidarity to support one another. At the same time, we must not forget the suffering and devastation that has befallen innocent Palestinians as a result of the Jihadists’ genocidal actions and the ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza. Let us continue with our efforts for Tikkun Azmi, Tikkun Am and Tikkun Olam, advancing peace in the Middle East and Around the World.

We can do this by visiting Israel, attending more inter-community events, exposing ourselves to challenging opinions and views, reading widely and consuming media beyond our own worldview; entering conversations with open ears, hearts and minds, and finally, by finding strength and pride in one another – Progressive, secular, Orthodox and everyone in between.

Gmar chatima tova – Am Israel Chai,

Ayal Marek
President, ARZA
Vice President, Union for Progressive Judaism

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