[Dialogue] {Disarmed} Fw: Israel Has Crossed a Moral Boundary
jim rippey
jimripsr at qwest.net
Mon Jul 10 01:21:01 EST 2006
Tikkun Community Newsletter
----- Original Message -----
From: RabbiLerner at tikkun.org
To: jimripsr at qwest.net
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 12:00 AM
Subject: Israel Has Crossed a Moral Boundary
Americans Must Challenge Israeli Policy--even as we continue to support Israeli security
Israel has Crossed a Moral Boundary
Rabbi Michael Lerner
In 2003 I was prevented from speaking at a large demonstration protesting the impending war in Iraq because I was deemed too pro-Zionist by one of the sponsoring organizations. My sin then, as now, is that I believe that both sides have acted with insensitivity and have been oblivious to the needs of the other, and both sides need to repent.
I still believe that now, and as late as last week was calling on the tens of thousands of readers of www.tikkun.org to insist to the Palestinians that they would be far more effective if they were to adopt the non-violent strategies of Gandhi, King, and Mandela rather than to imagine themselves capable of militarily defeating Israel. And just as I've critiqued the state terrorism against civilians that the IDF brings to the West Bank occupation, so I've always critiqued the terrorism of some sectors of the Palestinian population.
But this week it's impossible as a Jew and as an American to not notice that a new human rights violation by Israel has taken place which manages to surpass many of its previous violations in cruelty and in the outrage it has generated.
Anyone has ever faced the crippling heat of the desert-like conditions of southern Israel or the Gaza strip knows the desperation for water that comes each summer. So when Israel bombed and destroyed the electricity system for 1.2 million Gazans and thereby made all electric pumps inoperable, they inflicted a collective punishment on the entire Gazan population.
The alleged justification was a desire to punish Palestinians for electing a Hamas government, and more immediately to retrieve a soldier who had been "kidnapped" (the quotes because this was not a civilian but a soldier in uniform, so if Israel sees itself as at war with Hamas, then the only possible description is that their soldier was captured by the other side). The Hamas government, however, has publicly urged the "kidnappers" whom it does not control to free the captured soldier.
Moreover, the outrage in Israel about this "kidnap" reflects a huge level of systematic denial going on in the consciousness of Israelis and many who support its policies-because virtually every human rights group including the various Israeli human rights organizations has chronicled tens of thousands of acts of "kidnap" of this sort by the IDF against Palestinian civilians, who are then kept in detention for as long as six months without a trial, often facing brutal torture, and then released without ever having been charged with any crime. Of course, and I thank God for this because I care for the well being of the people of Israel , and as a Jew I am deeply tied to the success and safety of this particular Jewish society, the Palestinians have never been able to punish hundreds of thousands or millions of Israelis collectively for these systematic violations of human rights. To the extent that they do so through acts of terror, I condemn those acts.
This is a defining moment in our relationship with Israel for all Americans of whatever faith. Just as we need to make clear to our own government that its human rights violations in Guantanamo and Iraq are unacceptable, so we need to communicate to the Israeli people that the mass punishment of a million people for the acts of a few is as unacceptable when it comes from a democratic society as when it comes from the willful oppression of entrenched authoritarian dictators. Even if, God forbid, the captured soldier is murdered by the lunatics who captured him, it is only they and their conscious sponsors who should be punished, not random Palestinians, unless you think it equally appropriate to some day punish the entire American public for the three million Vietnamese killed by American action in Vietnam or for the horrendous acts which continue in Guantanamo and Iraq even today.
Unfortunately, we can't count on our U.S. government to convey this sentiment without qualifying its concerns in ways that essentially communicate that Israel can do whatever it wants and we won't interfere.
So the onus is upon us as ordinary citizens to act and act decisively. We need to communicate our concerns to legislators and media. We need to organize demonstrations in front of the offices of our elected officials, and also outside Israeli consulates and those Jewish institutions which continue to use their influence to support Israeli policy even at this moment (there are a few which have spoken out in critique, but very very few). And we need to write to those in power in Israel, starting with Prime Minister Olmert, telling them that even those of us who love Israel and will never let it be destroyed find this particular action unconscionable, demand that Israel immediately rebuild the electricity system, and that Israel stop trying to impose its will with military might but instead sit down with the Palestinians and negotiate a lasting peace.
Rabbi Michael Lerner is editor of Tikkun magazine, the largest circulation liberal/progressive Jewish magazine in the world. He is rabbi of Beyt Tikkun synagogue in San Francisco, national chair of The Network of Spiritual Progressives , and the author of ten books, most recently a 2006 national best-seller The Left Hand of God: Taking Back our Country from the Religious Right.
Please circulate this widely, post it on websites, and spread the word.
If you wish to help us, JOIN The TIKKUN COMMUNITY at www.Tikkun.org. And read Rabbi Lerner's book Healing Israel/Palestine (North Atlantic Books,2003).
Rabbi Lerner will be teaching a course on Re-Introduction to Judaism that is perfect both for people who have little background (either because they are not Jewish or because they are Jews who essentially stopped studying when they were 13 years old) but also for those who are well-versed but who have never really heard a spiritual/progressive account of Judaism and Jewish history. It will be conducted in Berkeley Ca. from 8 p.m. August 11 to 5 p.m. Aug. 13. More info at www.beyttikkun.org
<!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]-->Reintroduction to Judaism
Whether you've never had any formal introduction to Judaism or whether you have a doctorate in Jewish Studies, this class will present you with a spiritual foundation in Judaism that you've never heard elsewhere.
Date
Friday evening 7 p.m. August 11, 2006 through Sunday August 13,2006 (over at 5 p.m.)
Place
951 Cragmont Avenue
Berkeley, California 94708
Course Description
This course functions as an introduction to Judaism for those who have no previous background or knowledge of the Jewish people, its history, thought and traditions. It can also serve as an exciting stimulus for new creativity among those well-rooted in the tradition. Increasingly aware of the unity of all being and our mutual interdependency with every other person on the planet and with the earth itself, Judaism must evolve in the 21st century in ways that make it sustainable and a voice for global sanity. That evolution will require a willingness to leave behind or transcend chauvinist, ultra-nationalist, and tribalist elements of our past, but to be authentic it must incorporate much of what has been spiritually vibrant and powerful.
a.. Cruelty is Not Destiny: The origins of Jewish visions of transcendence
b.. God--a Jewish Renewal perspective. How can a rational, progressive person possibly believe in any notion of God or Spirit?
c.. Torah--the voice of love vs. the voice of cruelty in our tradition.
d.. Facing death, affirming life
e.. Jesus: a Jewish perspective
f.. The evolution of Jewish thinking through the ages
g.. Kabbalah and Jewish mysticism
h.. Where was God or the spiritual energy of the universe during the Holocaust?
i.. Zionism, Israel and the Palestinians: a progressive, compassionate spiritual perspective
j.. Transcending Chauvinism and Nationalism: what elements of traditional Judaism can be preserved and how can a Global Judaism be authentic?
k.. Global Judaism as a next stage in the evolution of human consciousness
Registration:
Advance registration is required for all classes. The fee is $75. (This does not include food or lodging which you must arrange.) For members of Beyt Tikkun Synagogue, admission is $40. Checks should be made payable to Beyt Tikkun Synagogue and mailed to Beyt Tikkun, 951 Cragmont Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94708. You may also pay by VISA or Mastercard. For more information call our office number at (415) 575-1432 and leave a message as to when we can call you back or write to us at shul at tikkun.org.
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