Rabbi Lerner takes on "the Jewish World"

 

 

Rabbi Lerner and Tikkun magazine have reacted to the barbaric vandalism of Lerner's house in an equally barbaric and irrational manner. They accuse "the Jewish world" of fomenting violence against Lerner and call other Jews, who are presumably not part of "the Jewish world," to make certain that all criticism of Lerner and Tikkun are stopped. Tikkun further claims that Israel and the IDF are at fault for anti-Semitism, and they wish to distance themselves from us evil Zionists, who do not represent the Jewish people according to them.

Below is my response to their article.

Ami Isseroff

Dear Rabbi Lerner and Tikkun magazine staff,
I was shocked to read about the attack on Rabbi Lerner's home, and wrote to condemn it .
 

However, I am dismayed and shocked by your reaction. You reject forthright condemnations of violence and expressions of solidarity, are quick to cast blame on blameless people, seek to use this stupid act of vandalism to discredit legitimate political opposition, and cast vague aspersions on the entire "Jewish world." You have set yourselves up as judge, jury and executioner. You place the blame for the attack on organizations and persons that condemned the attack and obviously had nothing to do with it, and on the "Jewish world" - a fictive anti-Semitic construct. Presumably you and Tony Klug and other saints of spiritual progressivism or progressive spiritualism are not part of the Jewish world in your view. The "Jewish world" of Tikkun consists of dark forces in the person Alan Dershowitz and those who dare to speak out against Judge Goldstone's irresponsible blood libel. And you call for McCarthyite censorship of ideas that are inconvenient for you.

 

You wrote:

"... the response of the Jewish world has been misleading. Some of the Jewish institutions have issued statements like the following that came from the San Francisco Jewish Federation and the local chapter of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL): "We unequivocally condemn criminal acts perpetrated against Rabbi Lerner's home. Political disagreements must be resolved in a civil manner, and not by resorting to violence. Our communities are especially disturbed that this crime targeted Rabbi Lerner at his home, thereby conveying to him the message that he may not be safe there. We are encouraged by the responsiveness of the Berkeley Police Department to this incident, and we urge its officers to investigate this crime as thoroughly as possible. The entire community must send a message to the perpetrators that we reject violence and criminality as a means to express our political opinions."

This is at once a step in the right direction and yet an evasion of the central issue. We didn't expect that they would endorse violence. What we must demand is that these Jewish organizations publicly and repeatedly make attempts to stop the incitement to violence that happens on a daily basis inside the Jewish community and towards tens of thousands of Jews and non-Jews who speak out about Israeli treatment of Palestinians or who organize to try to change Israeli policies."

Tikkun condemns the entire "Jewish World." As usual, the Jews are at fault for everything. If that is not an anti-Semitic thesis, what is? The "Jewish world" of Tikkun is as an invention as pernicious as the "international finance Jewry" invented by certain others.

Evidently, the "central issue" for Tikkun is that everyone should shut up and toe the Tikkun line. Anyone who disagrees with you is guilty of inciting to violence and vandalizing Rabbi Lerner's home in your view, and that includes the entire "Jewish world." In fact, there has been very little incitement to violence, certainly not by large Jewish organizations in the USA or sources in Israel, and those who are doing it are no fans of Alan Dershowitz (whom they consider a liberal wimp) or of the large Jewish organizations.

You wrote:

"As right-wing Zionists proved by assassinating peace-oriented Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin who sought to end the Occupation, there is no way to protect anyone in this world from fanatics bent on hurting others. "

That is true enough as far as it goes. But just as blaming "leftists" for Palestinian terror can incite violence against you, blaming "the Jewish world" for this act of vandalism can and is inciting violence against Jews

We are not all followers of Rabbi Kahaneh, and we are not all guilty of the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin as you imply. How dare you?

The gold standard for reactions to violence in the Middle East was probably set by people like Yitzhak Frankenthal, who founded the Parents' Circle after his son was murdered by Hamas, by the Pearl family who founded the Pearl Foundation after their son was beheaded by Jihadists, by Yehoshua Zamir who was a member of Parents' Circle and a founder of MidEastWeb, and by my friend Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, who has written a book calling for peace after his three daughters were killed by the IDF in the Gaza war. But you have unfortunately not chosen to emulate any of them. You do not extend the hand of peace to enemies, or even to friends. Not only do you return bad for bad, you return bad for good. And think of it, nobody beat you up or bombed you. It was a nasty and silly act of vandalism. What is your loss compared to that of Yitzhak Frankenthal, Judea Pearl or Izzeldin Abuelaish? This is the reaction of people with small hearts and closed minds, cynical people who are trying to profit from conflict and strife behind a veneer of self-righteousness and holier than thou "spiritual progressivism."

My gut reaction is that what you wrote is revolting. It lacks "derekh eretz." It is ungracious, callous and cynical to reject a sincere expression of regret and solidarity. While others are able to rise above political bickering and uphold decency, Tikkun was unable to do so.

What sort of "spiritual progressive" tries to build a message of hate and to shut people up using the alibi of a single act of vandalism, perpetrator unknown ??
 

The Middle East conflict is already replete with martyrs and massacres that "need" avenging. Evil people use this long history in order to generate more massacres: The expulsion of the Jews from Jerusalem, the riots of 1929, Deir Yassin, the Nakba, Koby Mandel, the Hatuel family... You are trying to add to the list it seems.

We do not really know why such attacks occur, or what triggered this attack. It has more to do with the personality of the attacker than with the issues or what anyone says. Nobody has been caught or charged. Wise people refrain from casting blame in those cases. Almost everyone concluded that the bombing of the Federal Office building in Oklahoma City was the work of Islamist extremists, but it was done in fact by Timothy McVeigh.

Until the culprit is caught you certainly have no idea of their motives or what influenced them. Even then, it is not logical to assume that they were motivated by reading speeches or writings of Alan Dershowitz or Abe Foxman. A great many people read those materials, but most of them don't trash anyone's house.

There are real physical attacks against Zionists and Jews living abroad: Jewish students getting beaten up in North America, Jews murdered in Europe. Suppose that pro-Israel groups blamed every attack on Zionists on the rhetoric of TIkkun and "spiritual progressives?" If your logic is correct, then we Israelis can also blame every suicide bombing in the last Intifada on the incitement and demonization that appeared in the pages of Tikkun, which legitimized the fake Palestinian Arab narrative, and on the demonization of Israelis and Zionists in your article about the vandalism.

It is ugly and cheap to try to exploit an act of vandalism, probably done by a disturbed person with a history of violence, in order to smear all those who have a political difference of opinion with you. You do not like epithets such as "self-hating Jew" and "anti-Semite." But you do not consider the effect of the epithets that Tikkun, Goldstone, and others that Tikkun endorses, use against Israelis, Zionists and the IDF. If we are all war criminal monsters, then of course it is OK to beat us up and kill us, isn't it? "Do not do to your friend what is hateful to you."

You wrote:

If everyone who challenges Israeli policy is anti-Semitic (which would include a majority of American Jews but not a majority of those one encounters in most synagogues or official Jewish institutions) then it may (mistakenly) appear to people that it's no big thing to be anti-Semitic.

You exploited the opportunity for a bit of cheap political spin and fabrication. The majority of American Jews, according to every poll, and the majority of Americans, support Israeli policy on Jerusalem and other key issues, in opposition to your stands.

You wrote:

When, for example, Jews are told that they have the blood of innocents on their hands because of the activities of some members of the IDF (Israeli army) in Israel, thereby blaming all Jews for the activities of some, this is racism straight out, just as it was when Blacks were blamed for the criminal activities of some Blacks. The Jewish people never voted in a referendum to give the State of Israel or its army the right to speak or represent all Jews around the world,

Your response to anti-Semitic allegations is not deny them, but to dissociate yourselves. You do not claim that there are bad individuals, but rather that the entire state of Israel is at fault. You are like the German Jews who imagined that the Nazis were not aiming at them, but only at the poor and uneducated "ost-Juden." If the state of Israel does not speak for the Jewish people, then who does? A new age rabbi in California and his yuppy adherents? If ever the Jews are in distress, anywhere, the same Jews that spit on Israel and disown it, will certainly expect that the state of Israel and the Zionist movement will do its best to protect them. It has happened before, and it will happen again. When you spit on Israel and on our army, our sons and daughters, you are spitting on yourself.

You wrote:

And you can demand of the Jewish world that they stop encouraging incitement by allowing people or groups to be labeled as anti-Semitic or "self-hating Jews..."

Who is in this mysterious "Jewish world" and how do we demand things of it? Isn't Rabbi Lerner and isn't Tikkun part of the "Jewish world?" or do you consider yourselves to be either not Jewish or not of this world? On the one hand, you claim that the state of Israel does not represent the Jews and that Jews should not be blamed for what the "evil" state of Israel and the "evil" Zionists do. On the other hand, you claim that there is a "Jewish world" controlled apparently by the "International Zionist conspiracy" or the "International Finance Jewry" or the Elders of Zion, and this "Jewish world" is inciting against Tikkun and poor Rabbi Lerner, who has to represent the "Jewish people" all on his own.

Should we picket the Elders of Zion who control the "Jewish world?" Should we write to them? What is their address? How can it NOT be anti-Semitic to blame the entire "Jewish world" for one act of vandalism?? How can it NOT be anti-Semitic to tell your readers that there is a "Jewish world" that acts in concert and that can be addressed in some way?

You wrote:

So here is what you can do: write and call people in the media to urge them to do a news story (no national American or European media have picked up on this yet), to interview Rabbi Lerner, and to write editorials condemning incitement.

So that is what I am doing, obedient to your call. I am writing this letter, that will be published as an editorial, to condemn Tikkun's incitement against the "Jewish world," and against anyone who disagrees with Tikkun, and against Tikkun's attempt to use this petty incident to get cheap publicity for Rabbi Lerner and to stifle legitimate debate and differences of opinion by labeling it "incitement." I may also mail copies to the list of editors you offer.

And here is what you can do: Look within you and repent, before you ask others to do so. Call a meeting of reconciliation to be attended by representatives of the entire Jewish community - including the hated Zionists. Offer your apologies for the insults and incitement you have heaped on others, including those you have written in the article about the vandalism of Lerner's home, and look for a way to work for peace without demonizing your brothers and sisters.

Sincerely,

Ami Isseroff