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WARNING : This site is not for you if you cannot see the otherness of other and sufferings of both sides of the party in the conflict. Security for Israel and Justice for the Palestinians are interdependent, one will not happen without the other. My view focuses on building cohesive societies where no one has to live in apprehension or fear of the other. I hope and pray a sense of justice to prevail. Amen. Website www.IsraelPalestineDialogue.com | Also Check Israel Palestine Confederation a pragmatic solution

Showing posts with label Palestine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Palestine. Show all posts

Thursday, November 9, 2023

Gaza: Jews and Americans called to take action

 

The actions of the Israeli and the US leadership must be held accountable by the Jews and fellow Americans. Biden and Netanyahu are responsible for increasing Anti-Semitism around the globe. It’s time for Jews to speak up. The Holocaust of 6 million Jews will continue to haunt us. If we don't stop and speak up, these two will wipe out 6  million Palestinians. Shame on us for blindly believing the propaganda of these two men; they have lied to us before and will continue to do that. All I ask is to take time to see another point of view in addition to their propaganda. 

Thanks to JVP, Not in my name, and other organizations for speaking up.  We need to prevent another genocide
Also, check out the dangerous statements made by the Israeli leaders. 
https://israel-palestine-dialogue.blogspot.com/2023/11/6-million-palestinians.html



A Call to Action

NOV 9
https://dlieb10gmailcom.substack.com/p/a-call-to-action/comments?utm_source=substack%2Csubstack&publication_id=1568924&post_id=138649264&utm_medium=email%2Cemail&isFreemail=true&comments=true&utm_campaign=email-half-magic-comments 
 
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For 75 years and still counting, on each day and in full view to the world, the Zionists have progressed with their plan of a more racially pure state that includes the genocide of the Palestinian people. For 75 years, no effort has halted the destruction and, from contemporary events in Gaza and the West Bank, no power or movement is available to prevent the inevitable.  

A Zionist-controlled media reaches out to hundreds of millions in the Western world, each fortifying the newspeak of the other, all paralyzing the minds and actions of an innocent world. How many Americans are aware of the reality of apartheid Israel’s actions?

The Zionists have determined how to construct a more racially pure state and extinguish the Palestinian presence in the country without the world reacting to the genocide — break their bones and break their will to live.

Words cannot halt the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people. Only decisive and well-planned actions can reclaim the world for the billions of honorable, just, and peace-loving people who contend a relative minority of racist murderers that create victims by playing victim. If xenophobe assassins carry out their genocide of the Palestinian people, the world will remain unsafe and in turmoil until collapse.

Let the world peoples, who have knowledge and interest in the Middle East strife, vote on who is the aggressor and who needs to be contained; assuredly, at least 70 percent would cite the Israelis as the aggressor that has to be contained. Yet, a relatively small minority controls the information and decides the outcome. How can that be?

I felt the full impact of this information and mind control while viewing the PBS News Hour. The interviewers beat the drum for apartheid Israel’s aggression and acted snide with those who defended the Palestinian position. The most upsetting moment came when a PBS commentator displayed an image on an outside wall at George Washington University where Students for Justice in Palestine had projected, “Free Palestine, From the River to the Sea.”

The commentator then asked another commentator, “How do you feel when you see they want to destroy Israel from the river to the sea and all Jews?” The reply to this fabricated and twisted remark should have been that the message does not remotely intimate that sentiment and the truth is that the Zionist Jews have destroyed Palestine and are seeking to destroy all Palestinians from the river to the sea.

The initial deception led to the next deception ─ that the projected image is part of a pattern of anti-Semitism that is growing in the world. If this slogan is an example of anti-Semitism, then anti-Semitism is a good thing and all those who believe in justice are anti-Semites. Time to distribute tee shirts displaying the words, “I am a proud anti-Semite.”

Apartheid Israel calls itself the Jewish state, contains one-half of the world’s Jews, and Jews throughout the world support Israel’s genocidal policies. Is it unusual for some people to identify Jews with the atrocities committed against the Palestinians and feel justified in verbally and physically attacking them? Muslims were unfairly attacked after the violent attacks on 9/11, but there was no identification of the Muslim street with the attacks and indications of sympathy with the al-Qaeda cause. Not so with the Jewish street, most of whom celebrate apartheid Israel and the Zionist cause. Zionism, Israel, and Jews are linked together.

Despicable comments by Israel supporters reinforce the harsh attitude toward Jews. Here are some.

“God will protect the Jewish state from horrible Islamic rats.”
 “Who in their right mind would support a Palestinian agenda that seeks death and annihilation of a tiny Jewish nation, using lies and the death of their own children to further their evil cause?”
“The people of Gaza made their bed by OVERWHELMINGLY electing terrorist Hamas as their leaders, they knew what they wanted even though the billions that flowed to Gaza were wasted on weapons, anti-Semitic education, terrorism not making lives of the people better, no tears for them.”

Nowhere in the contemporary Western world have leaders uttered the repulsive words attributed to the leaders of the “Jewish state,” words expected from leaders of ISIS and al-Qaeda.

Rationalizing the slaughter of innocent Gazan civilians by connecting them with the quasi-Hamas government backfires. If the Gazan citizens are responsible for the violent actions of Hamas and deserve to be killed, then Israeli citizens are responsible for the genocidal actions of their elected officials and also deserve to be killed. The Israeli citizens are the children of the Zionists who stole the land, pillaged the resources, murdered the inhabitants, and ethnically cleansed the land of Palestinians, and they are directly involved in the continued oppression of the Palestinians and the intended genocide. Not much innocence there.

A third part of the deception package that diverts the world from recognizing that “demolishing Hamas is an excuse for Israel's excessive bombings of innocent civilians and driving the Palestinians into psychological defeat with traumas that cause the children to lose a sense of security and a will to live is the significant reason for the carnage,” ties the attack on Israelis to the World War II Holocaust. Images of Hamas’ devastating attack and interviews with relations of the captured Israelis capture the eyeballs, sounds of exploding rockets hitting Israel capture the audio senses, and repetitive references to “this was the worst loss of Jewish life since the Holocaust,” tugs the emotions.

Investing time, money, and energy to bring the 80-year-old Holocaust into everyone’s breakfast, lunch, and dinner must give the Zionists dividends. Attending to the dead and ignoring those they kill, placing one genocide above all other genocides, avariciously seeking compensation from the death of those who cannot be compensated, and miserly extending it to therapy for grandchildren have brought hatred to Zionist Jews from those who react with scorn at the use of the Holocaust victims for monetary, military, and political gain.  

An unholy trinity of bludgeoning public relations that

(1)    Circulates outrageous disinformation that has Israelis playing victim, has a nuclear-armed Israel and its mighty army defenseless against a loose bunch of Hamas fighters who are prepared to eradicate Israel (Can Nicaragua conquer the United States?), and convinces the world that the Middle East crisis is solved by liquidating the people in crisis. U.S. Secretary of State, Zionist Anthony Blinken, “Meets With Palestinian and Iraqi Leaders in Bid to Contain Gaza War,” meaning that Tony Blinkers strives to ensure that nobody intervenes to assist the hapless Palestinians until Israel has completed its vicious deed. Secretary Bonkers, which is preferred for solving the problem ─ slaughtering the oppressed people so they are no longer a problem or halting the oppression and bringing about a just solution so the oppressors are no longer a problem?

The slick pro-Israel constituency always wants those who condemn Israel’s actions to condemn Hamas’ actions, intimating that the condemners have an agenda that favors Hamas. Big difference. Condemning Hamas cannot reverse Hamas’ criminal actions, condemning Israel is meant to prevent Israel’s criminal actions. By having simultaneous condemnation, the pro-Israel lobby expects that the genocidal pattern of Israel’s actions will be subdued and not given its warranted attention.

(2)    Makes anti-Semitism the issue, a trick that has fooled the public for centuries; a clever arrangement and an elegant winner. By regarding every attack on Jews as anti-Semitism, the words anti-Jewish have been eradicated from the lexicon. Being anti, or against someone, even an ethnicity is not necessarily evil — people honestly believe the religious right are ignorant hypocrites, Mormons follow illicit practices, Catholics have weird ceremonies, and Jews' reference to being God’s chosen people is offensive and a deceptive means to exercise control. During the time Russian Jews inhabited the Pale of Russia, local citizens accused Jews of controlling gambling, usury, alcohol delivery, and prostitution, and causing bankruptcy of Russian peasants. Because anti-Jewish has morphed into anti-Semitism and the latter is only associated with mean-spirited hatred, no words have been available to criticize offensive practices by Jews. Challenging the practices elicits the counter charge of anti-Semitism and that dominates the discussion.  

A recent byline in the November 6 New York Times verifies how legitimate actions are used to make Jews the victims.

Dagestan Riot: A New York Times analysis of Telegram posts shows how a false rumor about the resettlement of Israelis in Dagestan that led to an antisemitic riot at an airport was shared online for longer and more widely than previously reported.

A legitimate protest by Dagestan Muslims who do not relish Israelis coming to their territory is turned into an anti-Semitic riot. Planes have flown into Dagestan from Israel without incident for years. What was different on that particular day? Could it be that the people in Dagestan do not sympathize with those who represent a country that commits genocide on others? How did anti-Semitism creep into the conversation?

Zionist Jews love anti-Semitism; the more anti-Semitism the more Jews they can attract to apartheid Israel and the easier it is for them to deceive people into believing their criminal actions have justification.

(3)    Continually emphasizes the almost century-old Holocaust to emotionally capture new generations and further Zionist interests. What purpose has the intensive concentration on the World War II Holocaust served; the excessive attention has not prevented other genocides. Why aren’t we equally aware of the multitude of other genocides that occurred in Africa by German colonists, in Asia by British colonists, and in the Americas by Spanish colonists? Why is one of a multitude of genocides favored? Could it be because every time Israelis commit aggression against Palestinians, we need another Holocaust headline and cover-up story to lessen the impact of the aggression?

The Holocaust industry has crowded out news of other genocides — Rohingya and Rwanda Tutis — and played a role in preventing the world from adequately approaching those genocides. Zionists and their allies have used the World War II Holocaust to purposely disguise the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people. Israel’s supporters have a decisive role in attacks on Muslims.

Examine the stabbing of a 6-year-old Chicago-area boy who, officials say, was killed because he was Muslim. What personal relation did the assailant have with foreign Israelis in the Hamas attack that prompted him to punish an American Muslim child for the attack? Evidently, he had been nurtured to react aggressively when he learned that Jewish people had been killed and Muslims were involved in the attack. It takes a lot to create a Pavlovian response and this incident is indicative of how much the Zionists have invested to shape American minds and trigger a violent response from a distorted mind. In addition to banning guns, we should include banning Zionist propaganda.

A Call to Action
Huge demonstrations and protests that specifically highlight apartheid Israel’s decimation of the Palestinians have charged the world community into action. Already, President Joe Biden, whose principal attribute, when compared to adversary Donald Trump, was his decency, no longer has that appearance. Biden’s support for the Israeli killing machine has shifted his appearance from decent to murderous; he has lost his advantage and, according to polls, has no chance of winning the next election, even if Marjorie Taylor Greene runs.

That swing heralds a new look at what results from catering to The American Israel Political Action Committee (AIPAC), the most significant contributor to skewing the American public into ardent support for Israel. Other elected officials may now realize that support for apartheid Israel is more of an election liability than an asset and these officials may be reexamining their dedication to the apartheid state.

The demonstrations, especially by Jewish peace and justice groups have accomplished much, and the momentum cannot stop and must grow. Despite the valiant efforts, no truce is in sight, and apartheid Israel, aided and abetted by the U.S. government continues to pulverize the helpless Palestinians. Time is running short. Previously mentioned and not sufficiently distributed are the words, “The Zionists have determined how to construct a more racially pure state and extinguish the Palestinian presence in the country without the world reacting to the genocide — break their bones and break their will to live.” It would be encouraging to learn that Palestinian heroism is able to survive all threats. The reality is that In both Gaza and the West Bank, the psychological damage to the inhabitants, overlooked in the discussion, has been enormous, and reduced many lives to a crawl for survival.

The street has taken the call to stop the genocide to the halls of government; it is advisable to take it to the institutions that advance the genocide — to the Arlington, Virginia headquarters of public Broadcasting, whose WETA and WGBH stations promote the genocide,  to the German Embassy that has been prominent in arming Israel and suppressing demonstrations that favor the Palestinians, to the institutions that behave as Israel’s spokesperson, the Anti-defamation League (ADL) and synagogues that proudly boast. “We stand with Israel” in its destruction of the Palestinian community.

Missing in the response to apartheid Israel’s violence is countering the most powerful tool for converting and controlling the masses ─ repetitive propaganda that shapes minds and controls actions. Why do football fans at a National Football League game take a minute of silence for killed Israelis and not a second grieving for the Syrians, Rohingya, Armenians, Mexicans, and populations in almost every African nation who have suffered greatly in the last years and continue suffering today?  

Why do Americans give deference to Israelis when Israel insults American leaders, uses Americans to die in wars that advance Israel’s interests, causes havoc that brings injury to U.S. relations with other nations,  and sucks money ($3.1 billion) from U.S. taxpayers to support its apartheid and oppressive policies? Look at the record.

·         On June 8, 1967, during the 5-day war, Israeli torpedo boats and airplanes attacked the intelligence ship USS Liberty in international waters, killed 34 Americans, and wounded 171.

·         In the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the U.S. supplied arms to Israel that reversed the course of the war. Arab nations responded with an oil embargo that caused huge inflation in the United States, punished the American consumer, and harmed the American economy.

·         Israel’s 1982 invasion of Lebanon prompted the U.S. administration to quickly resolve the conflict. The U.S. offer of assistance did not stop the Israelis from advancing into Beirut and resulted in a suicide bombing of the Marine barracks and the killing of 241 American service personnel. Ignoring the U.S. pursuit for peace, the Israelis allowed Maronite militiamen to enter the Sabra and Shatilla camps and massacre Palestinian civilians.

·         Completely hidden from public knowledge is that America’s support for Israel was Obama bin Laden‘s principal argument with the United States. The al-Qaeda leader revealed his attitude in the opening sentences of a “Letter to America.”

·         George W. Bush’s uncalled-for war against Saddam Hussein’s Iraq is the best example of sacrificing U.S. lives to advance Israel’s interests. The cited reason ─ destroying Hussein’s weapons of destruction, whose evidence of developments the U.S. based on spurious intelligence ─ was a farce that no sensible person could believe. This “made for consumption” and fabricated story detracted from the real reason for the U.S. invasion of Iraq — to prevent Iraq from becoming the central power in the Middle East and being able to threaten Israel.

·         The U.S. has problems with Iran but they can be ameliorated. Due to Israel’s oppression of the Palestinians and incursions into the Haram al-Sharif, Israel has problems with Iran which cannot be ameliorated until the oppression stops. In a cunning manner, Israel has tied its problem with Iran to the U.S. problem with Iran and uses the U.S. to combat Iran.   

·         In defiance of U.S. restrictions and the U.S. supplying Israel with advanced military equipment, Israeli companies sold weapons to China ‘without a permit.’

·         The U.S. gives Israel the sum of $3.1 B every year to purchase advanced weapons, from which Israel has become a major exporter of military equipment and is able to compete effectively with its patron.

·         Israeli governments have scoffed at all U.S. entreaties to halt settlement expansion, even insulting then Vice-President Joe Biden by authorizing settlement expansion one day before Biden arrived for talks.

·         Israel undermined efforts to change South Africa’s apartheid policies by being the only Western nation to have close relations with the Botha government and aided South Africa in secret accords.

NATO gathered its forces to crush Serbia, subdue the Taliban, and depose Moammar Gadhafi in counterproductive exercises that killed wantonly and brought no peace. Where is the mighty defender of freedom and justice when Israel, by word, deed, and subterfuge, and without compunction, decimates the Palestinian community? Why is Israel and its ultra-national, racist, and militarist Zionist leadership protected?       

The elephant in the room is the Jewish people. It is not said but obvious that the Jewish people in Israel, who are one-half of the Jewish world, are oppressing the Palestinians. They have allies in Jewish communities throughout the world, a large segment of the evangelical community, and the far right of the Republican Party. Western Jews have also been accused of controlling the media and acting as Israel’s enabler. The world does not seem to realize it, and nobody mentions it, but the facts show that a major part of the world is anguished by the Jewish community and considers it committing genocide. False charges of anti-Semitism will not rescue that community from its suicide. The world is in a lose-lose situation.

The Substack from dlieb10@gmail.com is free for an indefinite time. If you welcome this post, you can tell dlieb10@gmail.com’s Substack that their writing is valuable.

Wednesday, May 16, 2018

Massacre in Gaza highlights Zionism's double standards

If Israeli children and their children live in insecurities, and the Palestinians live without hope in an apartheid state, they should blame all of us; the Israelis and Americans for not doing anything and blaming one or the other, usually the Palestinians. Blaming anyone does not solve the problems your grandchildren face Mr. Netanyahu, you may be sadistic and draw pleasure out of oppressing, bombing and showing Palestinians their place. Down in the history, you will be considered a villain not only by the Palestinians, but the future generation of Israelis, and indeed the people of the world.

Mike Ghouse



As Trump celebrates his embassy in Jerusalem, a massacre in Gaza highlights Zionism's  double standards

A moral and principled position would require us to apply to Israel at least the same standards that we apply to the Palestinians.

Courtesy NBC NEWS
May 14, 2018

While Palestinians are being massacred — over 50 killed and 2,700 wounded as demonstrators are being met with live fire — Israel and America celebrate the move of the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem. That juxtaposition is revolting, but it is also revealing. The double standards of occupation and dispossession have never been clearer.

Since March 30th, which marked Land Day — a day mourning the deaths of Israeli-Palestinians killed while protesting in 1976 — Gazans have repeatedly massed at their border with Israel, demanding the right to return to lands they were expelled from during the formation of Israel. They have been met with tear gas and live fire.

While some of these Palestinians intended harm, they have been remarkably few and far between, a minuscule percentage of the tens of thousands of unarmed protesters. That is part of a historic pattern: Israel claims it only uses force when absolutely necessary. The evidence suggests otherwise. A hugely disproportionate number of Palestinians die, while few if any Israelis ever do (in this case: zero). Still Israel claims it is defending itself.

It is a curious line of defense, one which reveals the very (troubled, and troubling) logic of Zionism itself.

Zionism, broadly speaking, is the belief that the Jewish people deserve the right to self-determination, to define themselves collectively as so many other peoples do.

Zionism, broadly speaking, is the belief that the Jewish people deserve the right to self-determination, to define themselves collectively as so many other peoples do. This, and the undeniable historic tie of Jews, and Judaism, to what is now Israel and the West Bank, is used to buttress the legitimacy of Israel.

Now, these are important points. Why shouldn’t the Jews have the right to self-determination? And there are plenty of anti-Israel voices who do deny the historical connection of Jews, and Judaism, to what is now Israel and Palestine. Such voices are frequently anti-Semitic and, flatly, wrong. But the problem isn’t self-determination.

It's not historical connection, either.

It’s that the Palestinians are indigenous. They were already there. Foreign settlers, whether they arrived before 1948 or after 1967, sought to enter that land — in order to transform that land into their own.

Thus, if Israel is justified in using live fire against Palestinian civilians trying to re-enter territory they were literally expelled from by that state, then shouldn't Palestinians have an equal right to indiscriminately use violence against Israeli settlers? Settlers, after all, aren’t just trying to encroach on the meager rump state that is now purportedly on offer to the Palestinians, but are creating facts on the ground — cities, roads and checkpoints — that make a contiguous Palestinian state impossible.
Of course, that idea strikes us as outrageous, and rightly so. So why the double standard?

This conflict does not have a military solution, and a moral and principled position would require us to apply to Israel at least the same standards that we apply to the Palestinians. Such an approach itself is an injustice (if even unavoidable): This is not a conflict between two equal and competing narratives. The Palestinians were already there.

Sadly at this point, even to be evenhanded approach would be progress. We see the incredibly insensitive spectacle of America's elected leaders feting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the president of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) tweeting a selfie while dozens of miles away, a slaughter of the defenseless unfolds.
Quite a victory it is.
Relations between American and Israeli Jews are already in decline; the spectacle of anti-Semitic religious fundamentalists sharing the stage with a right-wing Israeli prime minister deeply hostile to the lived religious experience of most American Jews is certainly not going to help. Organizations like the ADL, with its already checkered record among Arab and Muslim Americans, might not want to ask after today why movements such as Black Lives Matter have successfully turned away.

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h in as Palestinians clash with Israeli soldiers at the border fence with Israel as mass demonstrations at the fence continue in Gaza City, Gaza on May 14, 2018.Spencer Platt / Getty Images
Americans have every right to reject this alliance, and propose in its stead a foreign policy that serves our interests, as well as our values. That means ceasing to hypocritically advocate in the Middle East what we would never tolerate at home for ourselves.

The only future for Israelis and Palestinians that offers both security and dignity is a single state which shares some higher functions, and delegates others to its constituent peoples. Some might say this is a fantasy. Others might argue it undermines Zionism itself. My response is simple: Actions have consequences, and rectifying the wrongs inherent in building a nation on someone else’s land requires, at the very least, sharing that land in pursuit of a reasonable peace.

And that is not delusional: While the lived experience of Native Americans and African Americans in the United States remains very troubling, we have made substantial progress in transforming the narrative of our nation to recognize the wrongs of history and policy. Israel’s leaders and supporters never tire of telling us how the country represents values shared by Americans. Well, our foundation values are equality and democracy.

Israel is welcome to try them.

Haroon Moghul is a commentator and author of three books. His most recent is a memoir, "How to be a Muslim: An American Story."

Nakba - How did the Nakba happen?

Sunday, May 13, 2018

Israeli Flag

DESECRATION OF ISRAELI FLAG NOT ACCEPTABLE 

I am entirely against the apartheid oppressive policies of Israeli leadership, and so is the world, but I’ve nothing against Israel and Jews; they are my fellow beings, and I will stand up for their rights just as much as I would stand up for the Palestinians. 

Video: 

As people who believe in democracy, the disagreement has to be aired continuously, however desecration of the Israeli flag is not acceptable, especially Muslims. We should not even cheer and circulate this, that is not what Islam is all about. The role of Muslims is to mitigate conflicts and nurture goodwill to restore justice, peace, and harmony in the world. 

Mike Ghouse
www.IsraelPalestineDialouge.com

www.WorldMuslimCongress.org 

Wednesday, January 10, 2018

Jewish Denominations Fight Israel


The more I learn about stick-in-the-mud-Jews, the more I see that with stick-in-the-mud-Muslims.  They are mirror images of each other when it comes to orthodoxies in both faith traditions, and they stick to singular interpretations and believe that God is on their side.

I am working on a book about the mistakes Muslims have made, the Jews and Sikhs can relate to the incidences.

I am calling for the separation of culture and Islam, they are two different things. What one does, the other does not.  Paul Gherkin in the following article writes, “Leading rabbis of JVP and J Street – all non-Orthodox – called for a divorce between Judaism and the Jewish State, and between the holy land and Jews.”

Obviously, the writer has leaned towards the right when he wrote, “The lunatic rabbinic fringe even held fasts for the people of Gaza, but not for anyone in Israel.”  He should have appreciated the humanity of those Jews who observed the fasts.

For the ultra-Stick-in -the -mud Christians, Jews and Muslims (and of course you will find that in other traditions as well ) – Life is less important than God’s words as understood by them.  What kind of God do they cook up that does not value life?

Mike Ghouse
www.CenterforPlrualism.com


Courtesy – JewishPress.com
 
{Originally posted to the author’s FirstOne Through blog}

The tensions between the non-Orthodox Jewish denominations and Israel seemingly became tense over the Israeli government’s decision to postpone plans for an egalitarian prayer space at the Kotel, the Western Wall. In truth, the relationship between the Reconstructionist, Jewish Renewal and Reform branches of Judaism (the 3R’s) and the Jewish State have been terrible for a long time.

There are a number of Jewish organizations that actively seek to harm Israel in public fora. As detailed in “Unity – not Uniformity – in the Pro-Israel Tent,” the largest and most noxious of the left-wing organizations are: the Jewish Voice for Peace that advocates for a global boycott of Israel; J Street that advocates for sanctions against Israel at the United Nations; and the New Israel Fund, that supports organizations that go on global tours bad-mouthing Israel and groups that seek to destroy the Jewish character of Israel.
What that article did not convey and will be discussed and explored here, was that these anti-Zionist groups are uniquely backed by non-Orthodox rabbis.
Jewish Voice for Peace
Arguably the most proudly vocal anti-Zionist group is the Jewish Voice for Peace, JVP. The rabbis of JVP have supported the Gaza flotilla; written books demonizing Israel as a modern day blood libel; and arguably promoted the murder of Israelis.

JVP post supporting convicted terrorist Rasmeah Odeh
JVP’s rabbinic leadership almost exclusively comes from the Reconstructionist and Jewish Renewal branches of Judaism. At their core, they seek a Judaism that has nothing to do with Zionism. Many are proudly anti-Zionist.
Rabbi Joseph Berman (Non-Denominational)
Rabbi Linda Holtzman (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Buzz Bogage, Denver, CO
Rabbi Brant Rosen, Evanston, IL (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Linda Holtzman (Reconstructionist)
Student Rabbi Leora Abelson
Rabbi Rebecca Alpert (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Lev Baesh (Reform)
Rabbi David Basior (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Haim Beliak (Jewish Renewal)
Rabbi Joseph Berman (Unaffiliated)
Rabbi Andrea Cohen-Kiener (Jewish Renewal)
Rabbi Meryl Crean (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Michael Davis (also backed by the Students for Justice in Palestine whichh has supported terrorist groups)
Rabbi Art Donsky (Non-denominational)
Rabbi Michael Feinberg
Rabbi Ari Lev Fornari (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Sarah Bracha Gershuny (Egalitarian)
Rabbi Shai Gluskin (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Borukh Goldberg
Rabbi Lynn Gottlieb (Jewish Renewal)
Rabbi Julie Greenberg
Rabbi Edward Klein
Rabbi Alan LaPayover (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Eyal Levinson (Jewish Renewal)
Rabbi Jeremy Milgrom (Conservative)
Rabbi David Mivasair (Progressive)
Rabbi Dev Noily (Progressive)
Rabbi Alexis Pearce (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Michael Ramberg (Progressive)
Rabbi Ken Rosenstein (Jewish Renewal)
Rabbi Shifrah Tobacman (Jewish Renewal)
Rabbi Brian Walt
Rabbi Lew Weiss (Reform)
Rabbi Alissa Wise (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Joey Wolf (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Laurie Zimmerman (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Rain Zohav (Jewish Renewal)
The Anti-Defamation has essentially labeled JVP a hate group stating:
“JVP has consistently co-sponsored demonstrations to oppose Israeli military policy that have been marked by signs comparing Israel to Nazi Germany and slogans that voice support for groups like Hamas and Hezbollah. JVP has not condemned or sought to distance itself from these messages.”
The rabbis of these communities put politics front-and-center of their religion. And their politics are anti-Zionism.
J Street
J Street officially states that it is not in favor of the BDS movement, but has supported many speakers who do call for the boycott of Israel. More, J Street actively lobbied the Obama Administration to allow the censure of Israel at the United Nations and enabling the resolution labeling Israeli territory east of the Green Line to be deemed illegal.
The rabbinic core of J Street is slightly more “traditional” than the rabbis from JVP, counting many Reform rabbis. The list of hundreds of rabbis is too long to review here, but a sample highlights the trend:
Rabbi Ellen Lippmann, Brooklyn, NY (Reform)
Rabbi Lauren Henderson, Chicago, IL (Conservative)
Rabbi Alexander Kress, Abington, PA (Reform)
Rabbi Marisa Elana James, New York, NY (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie, New York, NY (Conservative)
Rabbi Amanda Schwartz, New York, NY (Conservative)
Rabbi Scott Aaron, Pittsburgh, PA (Reform)
Rabbi Alison Abrams, Deerfield, IL (Reform)
Rabbi Ruth Adar, Oakland, CA (Reform)
Rabbi David Adelson, New York, NY (Reform)
Rabbi Katy Z. Allen, Wayland, MA (Independent)
Rabbi Rebecca Alpert, Philadelphia, PA (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Thomas Alpert, Needham, MA (Reform)
Rabbi Steven Altarescu, Bronx, NY (Reform)
Rabbi Camille Shira Angel, San Francisco, CA (Reform)
Rabbi David Ariel-Joel, Louisville, KY (Reform)
Susan J Averbach, San Francisco, CA (Humanistic Judaism)
Rabbi Benjamin Arnold, Evergreen, CO (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Melanie Aron, Los Gatos, CA (Reform)
Rabbi Arik W. Ascherman, Jerusalem, Israel (Reform)
Rabbi Aura Ahuvia, Woodstock, NY (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Larry Bach, Durham, NC (Reform)
Rabbi Lev Baesh, Lexington, MA (Reform)
Rabbi Chava Bahle, Suttons Bay, MI (Jewish Renewal)
Rabbi Justus Baird, Princeton, NJ (Reform)
Rabbi Rachel Evelyne Barenblat, Williamstown, MA (Jewish Renewal)
Rabbi Benjamin H. Barnett, Corvallis, OR (Pluralistic)
Rabbi Bernard Barsky, Dayton, OH
Rabbi Lewis M. Barth, Encino, CA (Reform)
Rabbi Geoffrey Basik, Baltimore, MD (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi David Dunn Bauer, San Francisco, CA (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Renee H. Bauer, Madison, WI
Rabbi David Baylinson, Atlanta, GA (Reform)
Rabbi Micah Becker-Klein, Hockessin, DE
Rabbi Martin Beifeld, Richmond, VA (Reform)
Rabbi Anne Belford, Houston, TX (Reform)
Rabbi Marc J. Belgrad, Buffalo Grove, IL (Reform)
Rabbi Arnold Mark Belzer, Savannah, GA (Reform)
Rabbi Jordan Bendat-Appel, Highland Park, IL (post-denominational)
Rabbi Karen Bender, Tarzana, CA (Reform)
Rabbi Olivier BenHaim, Seattle, WA (Reform)
Rabbi Allen Bennett, San Francisco, CA (Reform)
Rabbi James Bennett, St. Louis, MO (Reform)
Rabbi Philip J. Bentley, Hendersonville, NC (Reform)
The Reform movement isn’t explicitly anti-Israel the way that much of the Reconstructionist and Jewish Renewal movements are currently. However, the current head of the Reform movement, Rabbi Rick Jacobs is particularly political and claims that the official stance of Reform Judaism is anti-settlements. How he declared that his personal anti-Jews living in Judea and Samaria politics should frame the entire movement is something that members of Reform Judaism need to address.
New Israel Fund
The New Israel Fund gives money to groups like Adalah that have a stated purpose of ending any Jewishness in Israel. It lures people to donate money stating that it is about equality in Israel – and by that it means ending the Jewish Law of Return; the Hatikvah; Jewish star on the national flag, et cetera.
The international council of NIF features a number of non-Orthodox rabbis:
Rabbi Rachel Mikva (Reform)
Rabbi Bernard Mehlman (Reform)
Rabbi Anson Laytner (Reform)
Rabbi Daniel Weiner (Reform)
Rabbi David Levin (Reform)
Rabbi Morris Allen (Conservative)
Rabbi Norman Cohen (Reform)
Rabbi Alexander Davis (Conservative)
Rabbi Shosh Dworsky (Conservative)
Rabbi David Freedman
Rabbi Yosi Gordon (Conservative)
Rabbi Michael Adam Latz (Reform)
Rabbi Cathy Nemiroff (Reform)
Rabbi Debra Rappaport (Reform)
Rabbi Alan Shavit-Lonstein (Conservative)
Rabbi Adam Stock Spilker (Reform)
Rabbi Sharon Stiefel (Reconstructionist)
Rabbi Aaron Weininger (Conservative)
Rabbi Marcia Zimmerman (Reform)
Rabbi Sharon Brous (Conservative)
Rabbi Rachel B. Cowan (Reform)
Rabbi Jerome K. Davidson (Reform)
Rabbi Marion Lev-Cohen (Reform)
Rabbi J. Rolando Matalon (non-denominational)
Rabbi Aaron Panken (Reform)
Rabbi Gordon Tucker, White Plains (Conservative)
Relative to JVP and J Street, the New Israel Fund has many more Conservative rabbis joining its leadership ranks. But still, none of these anti-Zionist organizations that have thousands of rabbis in leadership positions have a single Orthodox rabbi.
Why?
Beyond Liberal Politics
There is no question that some of these forms of Judaism revolve around liberal politics more than religion. Many of the synagogues state clearly on their websites that they are focused on tikkun olam (repairing the world), and they do this not through Torah-inspired commandments like helping the widow and orphan, but in new imagined ways like raising the minimum wage and saving the planet.
But there are many liberal rabbis in the Orthodox community too, and they support the Jewish State. They are proud to point out that Israel is one of the most liberal countries in the world, and certainly within the xenophobic, antisemitic and misogynistic Middle East. When liberal Orthodox rabbis find a need to criticize the Israeli government, they do it directly with the government in a constructive manner, not through antagonistic actions on the global stage.
Therefore, the issue cannot be simply attributed to the politics of many rabbis in the non-Orthodox world. There must be something systemic in the religious philosophy of those denominations that make them embrace Israel-bashing.
Who Is a Jew
The key Jewish prayer Shemoneh Esrei recited several times every day begins with the blessing of “our God and the God of our fathers.” It encapsulates the notion that Judaism is both a religion of being, passed down physically from our ancestors, as well as one of choice – “our God” – in which each person takes ownership of his faith.
In regards to being a Jew, Orthodox Judaism (and Conservative Judaism, at this point in time) have held the line on using traditional halacha in critical life events that define “who is a Jew.” Two of those are birth and marriage.
Both the Orthodox and Conservative movements believe that the child of a Jewish mother is a Jew, regardless of the religion of the father. The other denominations believe in patrilineal descent, that religion can be passed down via the father’s religion. This is a fundamental breakdown between the religious denominations regarding “who is a Jew.”
Similarly, Orthodox and Conservative rabbis do not perform interfaith weddings. The rabbis in the other movements are very proud to perform such ceremonies and openly advertise their services.
These two life events are obviously interconnected. An interfaith couple will have a non-Jewish parent, and about half of the time, produce a non-Jewish child according to the traditions of matrilineal descent practiced by Orthodox and Conservative Judaism. Sanctioning interfaith marriages has produced a chasm between the Reform/Reconstructionist/Jewish Renewal (3R) movements with other Jewish denominations, AND with Israel itself.
Israel created a Law of Return in 1950 that allowed any Jew to move to Israel. In 1970, the law was amended to clarify that a Jew “means a person who was born of a Jewish mother or has become converted to Judaism and who is not a member of another religion.” While the 1970 amendment made provisions for the non-Jewish spouse and children of a Jew to move to Israel, the Law of Return used a definition of matrilineal descent that only Conservative and Orthodox used, upsetting other denominations that support patrlineal descent. However, the law’s clause on conversion did accept non-Orthodox conversions performed outside of Israel, as decided by the Israeli Supreme Court in March 2016.
Universalism versus Particularism
Being a Jew is simply part one. The actions and demands of the religion, the mitzvot, are part two, and the breakdown between Orthodox Judaism and the branches that seek to harm Israel are profound.
Orthodox Judaism believes that the Torah has 613 commandments for a Jew to live by. Some are clear-cut, like “Do not kill,” while others are subject to broader interpretation like “keep the Sabbath holy,” as there may be many different methods of keeping the Sabbath holy. Conservative Judaism basically follows the concept of the 613 mitzvot, but interprets them differently (for example, Orthodox Jews will not use electricity on Sabbath to “keep it holy,” while Conservative Jews will often use electricity.)
In contrast, the 3R branches of Judaism have revamped the mitzvot in a way that fits a “new age” rewriting of the laws. They have made the commandments about human-centered spirituality that spreads out to God and all mankind, rather than commandments that are passed down from God to man.
The Jewish Renewal site makes its mantra clear, stating it’s “a transdenominational approach to revitalizing Judaism.” Its reach is to everyone: “Renewal is an attitude, not a denomination,” with “an emphasis on accessible spiritual experience.” In other words, this is a movement without demands, such as only eating kosher foods. It is more akin to a yoga retreat. Not only is there no need to be Jewish, a person needn’t perform ancient rote rituals. Just engage in new age meditation.
Reconstructionist Judaism is more traditional than Jewish Renewal, but far from “traditional.” Its emphasis is on “Jewish Identity,” as its website states: “what primarily gives Jews our identity is not belief but rather the feeling of belonging to the Jewish civilization itself. We observe Jewish holidays, rituals and customs, not because a divine being commanded us to, but because it is our primary method of reinforcing Jewish identity.” In other words, God’s commandments are not really commandments (or God doesn’t exist) for Reconstructionist Jews. The basis for observing any tradition is simply a matter of keeping the “Jewish identity” around, not because of any higher authority.
These days, the Reform movement has put the world front and center. Its mission is to build “communities that transform the way people connect to Jewish life, building a more whole, just, and compassionate world.” It does this through Tikkun Olam, “repairing the world.” The movement’s leader, Rabbi Rick Jacobs, speaks of Reform Judaism as operating in concert with the global community: “the heart of a Tikkun Olam that embraces always both the universal and the particular.”
These three branches of Judaism approach religious practice very differently than Orthodox Judaism. Their Judaism is centered on global mankind’s yearning to connect – to the planet and the people around the world – to achieve a personal fulfillment of serenity. Jewish rituals are props to achieve that state of zen. Similarly, non-Jews bring their own props to their encounters with God and mankind. Universalism and particularism (of props) coexist in a human-centered meditative state of bliss.
This 3R approach towards religion is an inversion of Orthodox Judaism that is premised on a top-down philosophy. The Bible and Ten Commandments began with God, not man. The 613 commandments given to Jews were just that – commandments – not guides to validate one’s own sense of social justice. These commandments were uniquely given to Jews, as Orthodoxy believes that non-Jews were given only seven commandments which relate to universal morality.
The orientation of particularism of Orthodox rabbis extends broadly: to Jewish people (they do not perform interfaith weddings); the Bible (with unique commandments only for Jews); and to the holy land itself, which they believe was given to the Jewish people. According to a Pew poll in 2013, 84% of Orthodox Jews believe that God gave Israel to the Jews. That compares to only 54%, 35% and 24% of Conservative, Reform, and non-denominational Jews, respectively. By way of comparison, 55% of Christians believe that God gave Israel to the Jews. How remarkable is that? Christians are more Zionistic than non-Orthodox Jews.
This dichotomy between Orthodox and non-Orthodox denominations is at the core of different approaches to the Jewish State and the holy land. For Orthodox Jews, the Jewish State is particular, just like the bible and Jewish people. In contrast, the non-Orthodox denominations focus on universalism, and shun particularism as a form of tribalism and nationalism, with more than a whiff of racism.
It is therefore not a surprise that Jewish denominations that shun particularism in favor of universalism also denounce Zionism.
Whereas Orthodox liberal Jews can call out for rights for Israeli Arabs and Palestinian Arabs without vilifying Israel, non-Orthodox rabbis seemingly cannot. Orthodoxy can approach equality within the rubric that the holy land as special and unique for Jews, while the non-Orthodox only see tribalism and racism.
The Current Dynamic
The universalism / “anti-tribalism” movement within the 3R denominations often attacks both Orthodox Jews and the Jewish state. It has sometimes provoked a backlash.
In September 2015, the Reconstructionist movement announced a new policy to allow rabbis to marry non-Jews as a reaction to the movement’s conclusion that “many younger progressive Jews, including many rabbis and rabbinical students, now perceive restrictions placed on those who are intermarried as reinforcing a tribalism that feels personally alienating and morally troubling in the 21st century.” With such declaration, several Reconstructionist rabbis became fed up.
In April 2016, twenty Reconstructionist rabbis left the denomination to form Beit Kaplan, as they felt that the Reconstructionist movement had lost its way. They said that “the decision to form the association was sparked, in part, by the recent RRC policy shift that muddled the definition of what it means for a rabbi to have a Jewish family. Other contributing factors include a desire to return the focus of liberal Judaism to Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan’s vision of Jewish peoplehood and a desire to affirm connections to the Jewish people globally, including in Israel.”
Several Reconstructionist rabbis became infuriated with the official positions of Reconstructionist’s universalism. Their new assembly felt compelled to clarify that not only did it think that sanctioning rabbis intermarrying was a destructive force on the Jewish family, it said that it “unequivocally reject[s] any movement to delegitimize Israel in the community of nations,” because the Reconstructionist movement had become a haven for demonizing the Jewish State.
In short, Beit Kaplan felt that the Reconstructionist movement had lost the basic concept of the definition of being a Jew and the special nature of the Jewish State.
The 3R rabbis’ Israel-bashing had started to gain momentum during the 2014 Gaza War, when many non-Orthodox rabbis actively vilified the Jewish State. The lunatic rabbinic fringe even held fasts for the people of Gaza, but not for anyone in Israel.
Consider Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum, the leader of an enormous gay Reconstructionist congregation, member of J Street and listed in Newsweek’s list of 50 Influential Rabbis. Her radical left-wing politics were mostly blessed by her members, but her tirades against Israel became too much for many to bear. In 2014, one of the board members of her congregation resigned, publicly stating the “recent [2014 Gaza War] events have demonstrated that CBST [the gay synagogue] is far more committed to a progressive political agenda than to the Jewish people….  I don’t want to raise my kids in a synagogue that’s praying for people firing rockets.”
The attitude was pervasive. Leading rabbis of JVP and J Street – all non-Orthodox – called for a divorce between Judaism and the Jewish State, and between the holy land and Jews.
Consider Rabbi Brian Walt, a member of JVP and coordinator of the Jewish Fast for Gaza, who gave a talk entitled “Affirming a Judaism and Jewish identity without Zionism,” in which he declared: “political Zionism violates everything I believe about Judaism.” Or Rabbi Ellen Lippmann, on the board of J Street and signatory to the fast for Gaza who penned a letter for Code Pink to support the BDS movement, stating she “saw the destruction that is wrought by too many Israeli settlers,” making her change “my mind about the purchase of products made in the Jewish West Bank.”
Non-Orthodox rabbis comfortably argued that there are too many Jews in the holy land because they segmented the religion, the people, the land and their identity. As they believe that religion is defined solely by identity, there is no need for a particular land, and no narrow definition of the Jewish people, as identity is self-selected.


Non-Orthodox rabbis wrap themselves in a tallit as a mere Jewish prop in a universalistic and humanistic approach towards meditation, while they shudder at the particularism of the God of Orthodox Judaism and the Jewish State.
Supporting Israel is not a battle of political orientation between liberal and conservative Jews. It is a philosophical break in the Jewish community with a fault line regarding the uniqueness of Jews and the Jewish State. The non-Orthodox denominations’ religious philosophy will only let it embrace an Israel that is: about people, not God; about rights not rituals; more secular than religious; more democratic than Jewish; and more universal than particular.


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