Can Liberal
Judaism and liberal Christianity open up a new dialogue on peace between Israel
and Palestinians?
Delivered at
the Chapel without Walls worship Service
Sunday
10-26-2014
As I watch
the national movements of liberal Christianity vote in favor of resolutions
targeting Israel and advocating Boycott Divest and Sanctions against the Jewish
people, I along with many ask; “What happened?” Our friends with whom we have
we shared our values to pursue a more just society in America have now turned
against us and betrayed all those years that we worked together for the common
good.” Many Jews in America are awakening to the impact of Presbyterian,
Methodists and United Church of Christ proclamations, resolutions and sermons
from the pulpit which invoke Christian theological doctrines of prophetic faith
that lead them to identify with the suffering of the Palestinians in the West
Bank. That mounting energy has begun to turn the decades old solidarity between
liberal Christians and Jews on its head.
What is the
dilemma for Jews in light of the increasing political activism against Israel
from liberal Christian denominations? How are Jews understanding the changing
landscape of liberal Christianity in terms of its leadership and the support
that leadership gives to causes that enact policies to punish Israel? Is there
still ground for ecumenical cooperation and resolution for this growing
estrangement between liberal Jews and Christians?
This past
summer’s decision by the Presbyterian movement at its convention in Detroit
sounded a wakeup call for Jews when they passed a resolution to Boycott and
Divest and Sanction Israel by protesting against American companies who do
business with Israel in the West Bank territories. Rabbis, Jewish community
leaders and a growing base of the Jewish community were deeply hurt and
disappointed by this resolution. It is by no means the only example of liberal
denominations of Christianity voting to punish Israel for the settlements but
this time the Presbyterian vote caught the attention of the Jewish community.
What we
learned was that there is a deep gulf between clergy and lay leaders in this
BDS movement and the mainstream Jewish community. We learned that Christian
clergy who are involved in these issues have expressed deep hostility towards
Israel and the idea of Zionism because of the West Bank settlements. We
recognized that we had ignored the facts that many of these clergy have been
involved in outreach to Palestinian Christians in this area and have developed
a deepened sense of empathy and solidarity with Palestinians in refugee camps.
We also learned that we had taken for granted our cherished colleagues and
friends support for Israel while we were working with them on domestic causes
which we shared the same commitments. Now Jews are rethinking those
relationships and questioning what they see from their lens as actions tantamount
to anti-Semitism from the liberal branches of Christianity.
I have
spoken to colleagues from the UCC, Methodists and Presbyterian denominations
and they all disavow that accusation but at the same time they tell me we are
the ones who do not listen and do not see the injustices Israel has created and
fostered by having those settlements which they view as illegal and by the
administration of the territories where Arabs live. This has become a launching
pad for the more leftists elements of these religious bodies to accuse Israel
of being an Apartheid State like the old South African regime. All of these remarks
and ideas are an anathema to Israel and to most Jews. Jews hear those kinds of
accusations as attacks upon not only Israel but upon them as well. In many
cases I see that we are speaking past each other and that each side is
entrenched in their own ideologies.
As I see it now
Jews feel caught in a bind between the mainstream Christian denominations who
they feel betrayed by and the more conservative branches of Christendom in
America who avidly support Israel but who also carry a very different political
agenda that often runs contrary to liberal Judaism’s social justice orientation
in America. The Jewish religious leadership asks, ‘How can we possibly work
together with our cherished friends and colleagues on domestic issues when they
put their efforts to resolutions that we feel are blatantly anti-Israel?
I believe
that Jews feel not only betrayed but misunderstood and that still after all
these decades liberal Christians do not get our connection and ultimately not
just our commitment to Israel but also our fear that criticizing Israel,
especially through the vicious BDS movement, leads to anti-Semitism and
threatens the future of Israel and world Jewry. Jews, it is fair to say, are
not absolutely united in the different ways we all speak about how to make
peace with the Palestinians. What we feel is that despite Israel’s immense and
powerful military infrastructure, it is still vulnerable to Arab terrorism and
especially Iranian nuclear technology. Seven million people living in a region
with over a hundred million Arabs. Those demographics are the lens that Jews
must wear and we wonder why Christians choose not to see that aspect of our
concern? The wars that rage on in the Middle East contribute to the wariness
that Jews and Israelis harbor about how to make an enduring peace. The fact
that Palestinians, many of whom are resistant to peace, resent Israelis and
Jews’ right to be in the land contributes to the ongoing stalemate as well.
Furthermore
what Christians forget is that Israel does an amazing job with its 500,000 Arab
citizens by granting them full citizenship. There is an Arab jurist on the Israeli
Supreme Court. Israel protects holy sites for all religions. There are some
groups like the Druze community who actually enlist in the military for Israel.
Are there Arab Israeli citizens who complain that they have second class
status? Yes, just as there are ethnic and racial groups in America who are
angry and accuse white America of racial discrimination. For a country that is
66 years old it has accomplished a great deal in these areas and it has much
more work to do just like America must do with its minorities. I wonder why
liberal Christians refuse to see this side of the story and only focus on one
narrative of this ongoing dispute.
Jews also
question why Christians, liberal Christians in particular, refuse to raise
their voices to other Christian denominations in the Middle East who suffer at
the hands of Arab terrorism? Why aren’t more Christians angry about and passing
resolutions when the entire Christian population of large cities in Iraq like
Mosul and other cities are exiled by ISIS and forced to convert to Islam if
they want to live? Why aren’t Christians pointing their concern for justice
against Christians who ally themselves with the Syrian President Assad? Why
does it appear that their efforts and attention seem to focus exclusively on
Israel? From our vantage point there seems to be a double standard and a huge
disconnect between what liberal Christians say about prophetic justice and how
it is applied.
We ourselves
struggle with our own values as American Jews who whole heartedly support
Israel and embrace the concept of Zionism with policies that individual Jews
may disagree with the government of Israel. Jews have a hard time offering that
critique for fear others will use it as a justification for their own deeper
agendas to discredit Israel on the world stage. Of course there is a feeling
that Israelis and Jews have around the world that supports Israel to the extent
that we are sometimes blinded to the harsh realities of what justice means and
that it must apply to Palestinians in the West Bank as well.
Jews are
seeing the outbreak of anti-Semitism around the world particularly in Europe
that frightens us. Today Israel is the scapegoat and with the second generation
of Arabs in Europe it only heightens the concern that Jews are no longer safe
not just in Israel but in Europe and ultimately the fear is that could be in
America sooner than later.
We need more
dialogue today than ever before. We need to bring together Jews and liberal
Christians to discuss these issues rather than passing resolutions which only
create more fear, enmity and alienation between long time friends. We share
common Scriptures and we should use them to open up more dialogue to see to it
that we do not have a parting of the ways but a pathway towards greater
cooperation and understanding. I would personally like to see my Christian
colleagues join me in visiting Israel and talking to all sides in this conflict
and not just one sided vitriolic diatribes against one side or the other. What
is tragic is that liberal Christians have missed the opportunity to be a bridge
for peace and instead have taken a partisan position. I do not see it bringing
the parties closer together.
I never, on
the other hand, lose hope and despite the concerns I have presented this
morning I am counting on the idea that leaders will take a step back and
reassess the importance of keeping the communication going and working through
these issues. If we can talk and even visit Israel together there is a chance
we can make a difference. That would signal greater hope that peoples of faith
could do more to advance the peace in this part of the world and prove how
religions can make a difference towards making our world a better and safer
place.