As political unrest again grips Israel, a lasting peace depends on each and every one of us
I bid shalom to the travelers with me on our tour to Israel while I stayed behind to attend the convention of the Central Conference of American Rabbis. We have spent the last four days in Jerusalem and then are heading off to Tel Aviv.
In my last column I wrote about how everyone says before discussing an issue in Israel that it’s “complex.” Now we go to the next level of complexity by listening to the actual politicians on all sides of the issues of West Bank settlements and so-called Judicial reform.
I also had the chance to meet with the American ambassador to Israel Tom Nides and listen to his perspective on the current events that have drawn hundreds of thousands of protesters to oppose the new government’s efforts to change the authority of the Supreme Court, let alone build more settlements in the West Bank.
There is a Hebrew word Balagan, which means a total mess of a problem that aptly describes the political fight going on in Israel. It is a battle not just about policy but it is a deeper schism that goes to the heart of Israel’s identity and the direction it has taken toward resolving conflicting visions of what the state of 8 million people are supposed to embrace. Right now, I don’t see resolution but maybe an attempt in the near future to compromise.
So when I say, “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem,” I am quoting scripture to ask us all to pray for the Israeli Knesset to find the pathway toward compromise, and that the conflicts that have torn this nation apart politically will heal soon.
We listened to Ambassador Nides speak of his appeal to Prime Minister Netanyahu to put his foot on the brakes until all sides in this process can meet and forge an agreement. Right now it feels like to me the day my travelers and I were all on military Jeeps on the Golan driving on rocky surfaces on our way to survey Israel’s border with Syria. It was bumpy to put it mildly.
Yes, Ambassador Nides reaffirmed America’s unshakable commitment to Israel and discussed that covenant relationship between the two nations. He focused not just on our sharing relations to keep peace in the Middle East or to fight Iran. Instead, Ambassador Nides spoke about values and that Israel as a democracy was the core of those values that unites Israel and America.
Clearly Ambassador Nides was signaling to 240 rabbis that what was going on with legislative efforts to completely redesign the Supreme Court so that the Knesset and the Prime Minister would control who serves and strike down any decision the Court makes with a majority vote of one was not in Israel’s interest and would hamper America’s ability to support Israel in forums like the United Nation.
He also reaffirmed this current administration’s support for a two-state solution. Many in Israel say that that vision is no longer practical or desired by Israel regardless of political affiliation. Note this week’s U.N. Security resolution criticizing Israel for approving the construction of nine new settlements in the West Bank. Needless to say that Israel was disappointed in the U.S. for allowing that to happen. Welcome to the politics of the Middle East.
Admittedly we met with Knesset members who are in the minority coalition, and their anger was on display to us. From their perspective the boisterous and non-violent crowds coming from all over Israel to the gates of the Knesset was the best sign of the vibrancy of Israel’s democracy. So don’t count out Israel yet and assume that its democracy is sinking. Protest and freedom of speech are a part of what makes democracy a success. The center moderates and the left are all struggling with their intense emotions as they see something sacred in Israel’s democracy slipping away, which is why so many hundreds of thousands of people have protested from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
When I return home, I will not only lead a prayer for peace in Israel with regard to its Arab neighbors throughout the Middle East but now I shall make reference to the peace between its own citizens that is absolutely essential to Israel’s standing in the world and its stature as a beacon of light from the Bible to today.
Mr. Nides reminded us that President Biden said back in the summer of 2022 when he visited Israel, “You do not have to be a Jew in order to be a Zionist.” I checked that out on the White House record and, indeed, he said it in greeting Prime Minister Netanyahu. I thought about it this week because we all know that Israel is a state for the Jewish people. Zionism, whose roots go back to the Biblical prophets, is a modern movement begun in the 19th century to resettle Jews from around the world to have a homeland in Palestine.
We have all come a long way since the first Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland in 1897. The president of the United States today tells us that supporting Israel and the Zionist dream to reclaim Jewish sovereignty and dignity is open to Christians. too. I couldn’t tell you what he means by Zionism but his love for the Jewish people and support for Israel is heartwarming.
The political waters are choppy right now but I hope that all of us in America can hold on and pray that Israel can find the consensus that it takes in politics to carve out peace in the political process. For a small country like Israel it never ceases to amaze me how much attention it receives and how so many want to share their viewpoints.
Often times it appears that many in the world act as if they are citizens of Israel. That is reassuring as much as it is annoying and down right hateful to listen to the antisemitism cloaked in political rhetoric.
As I read from the prayer book, “Pray as if everything depends on God and act as if everything depends on you.” So let us pray for the peace in Israel and that its leaders will do the right thing for the nation and not just for particular interests.
