On Jewish Hearts and Minds: A Reponse to Daniel Gordis
Just read Rabbi Daniel Gordis’ recent op-ed in the Jerusalem Post – and am still recovering from the decidedly patronizing way he analyzed the gulf between the American Jewish community and Israel – or as he termed it, American Jewry’s “growing abandonment of Israel.”
Gordis’ main premise: American Jewry’s newest generation is essentially self-centered (tainted “with the ‘I’ at the core of American sensibilities”) and simply cannot relate to the national sense of duty embodied by Israel:
In America, the narratives of immigrant groups are eroded, year by year, generation after generation. In America, we are oriented to the future, not to the past, and if we cling to some larger grouping, it is to a human collective whole rather than to some “narrow” ethnic clan…
Similarly, the recreation of the State of Israel is truly powerful only against a backdrop of centuries of Jewish experience, and is spine-tingling only if my sense of self is inseparable from my belonging to a nation with a past and a people with a purpose.
In today’s individualistic America, the drama of the rebirth of the Jewish people creates no goose bumps and evokes no sense of duty or obligation. Add the issue of Palestinian suffering, and Israel seems worse than irrelevant – it’s actually a source of shame.
It’s not clear to me if Gordis is interested in winning over the hearts and minds of young American Jews, but if he is, I’d suggest that talking down to them from an Israeli ivory tower is not the way to do it. I’m afraid that record just doesn’t play any more.
Gordis is correct when he posits that the old narratives simply aren’t working on American Jews the way they used to. But that’s only because a new, more complex narrative is now being written by the current generation. It’s compelling in its own right, though this may be difficult to understand when viewed from the conventional Israeli vantage point.
I work with a great number of American Jews – particularly the 35 and younger demographic that Gordis cites – and from where I sit they look nothing like narcissistic, self-obsessed Americans he describes. On the contrary, most are engaged, seriously seeking Jews. Yes, it’s true, unlike previous generations they don’t necessarily understand their Judaism in traditionally tribal terms anymore. But that doesn’t make them self-centered. Rather, they are increasingly viewing their Jewishness against a larger, more universal global reality. In short, to be a Jew and a global citizen is what gives them “goose bumps.”
If, as Gordis suggests, American Jews are abandoning Israel, I’d suggest it’s not due to the lack of a sense of Jewish “duty or obligation” – I believe it’s because they are left cold by an Israeli national culture that appears to them to be overly tribal and collectively self-centered.
Indeed, while most young people today seem to be interested in breaking down walls between peoples and nations, Israel often appears determined to build higher and higher walls between itself and the outside world. It’s a poignant irony of Jewish history: while Zionism was ostensibly founded to normalize the status of Jewish people in the world, the Jewish state it spawned seems to view itself as all alone, increasingly victimized by the international community.
Gordis himself exemplifies this “it’s us Jews against the rest of the world” ethos in the opening paragraphs of his article:
About one thing, at least, the world seems to be in agreement: Israel is the primary culprit in the Middle East conflict, the cause of relentless Palestinian suffering and the primary obstacle blocking the way to regional peace.
The international chorus of opprobrium is growing by the day…It’s relentless, this ganging up, but it’s also not terribly new. The momentum has been building for years, and though we may not like it, we cannot honestly claim to be surprised.
While I understand the psychology of this world view, I don’t think it helps make Israel’s case for young Jews today – nor do I think it promotes a particularly healthy Jewish identity. It seems to me to be the product of self-pity, more than pride – a victim mentality that’s not likely to get us anywhere with newer generations of Jews who are feeling increasingly comfortable with the “outside world” and who don’t particularly identify with the claim that when push comes to shove, all the world really does just hate the Jews.
I will also predict that Gordis’ two cynical references to “Palestinian suffering” will not resonate for growing numbers of Jews who are legitimately troubled by Israel’s treatment of Palestinians. I understand full well that our criticism sounds galling to most Israeli ears. And no, I don’t believe that we American Jews can even begin to understand how Israelis feel – on so many levels.
But whether Israelis like it or not, there is a steadily growing demographic in the American Jewish community: proud, committed Jews who are deeply troubled when Israel acts oppressively, who feel implicated as Americans and as Jews in these actions, and who are galled at being labeled as traitors when they choose to speak out.
At the very least, I hope that Gordis will understand that if American Jews are identifying with organizations that protest Israel’s oppressive policies, their affiliation does not come from a shame-filled desire to “bash” Israel. It comes from a deeper and much more Jewishly authentic place than that.
I realize that all of this may be too much to ask for. It’s long been clear that the American Jewish and Israeli Jewish communities are two very different animals with two decidedly different ways of understanding what it means to be a Jew in a rapidly changing world. (Sociologists Steven Cohen and Charles Liebman pointed this out with great insight in their book “Two Worlds of Judaism” twenty years ago).
But it seems to me if we truly want to facilitate the Jewish future, we’re going to have to do it together. And to do that, we’ll need to meet one another with openness and understanding, not dismissal and judgment.
SR – this is not a US/Israel divide: it is your classic right/left divide, which some (like Rabbi Gordis) choose to frame in terms of nationslism, preaching to the (American) choir in the Post.
There are leftists and rightists in both communities, and equal shares of national pride and individualism in each, and neither has anything to do, necessarily, with your political choices. A nationalist could believe it is in Israel’s best interest to turn its tail and run from the territories. An individualist could believe that it is his interest to live on a hill and grow organic wine and burn olive trees.
R. Gordis, you’re much smarter than that.
Unfortuntely, your post concedes Daniel Gordis’ main points.
For example, referring to many younger Jews you state: “Yes, it’s true, unlike previous generations they don’t necessarily understand their Judaism in traditionally tribal terms anymore…” Yet, they “feel implicated as Americans and as Jews in (Isreal’s)actions.”
These Jews have redefined the essence of what is has meant to be Jewish for 3000 years. They no longer feel a sense of responsibility and belonging to a Jewish nation (you use the somewhat pejorative term “tribe”) but they are annoyed that they are judged poorly by those who still do. It sounds pretty narcissistic to me.
Many of these Jews dream that they will live in a permanent utopia as sophisticated, urban citizens of the world. In essence, they hope to recreate the Jewish experience of Weimar Germany. Be careful what you wish for.
Sorry about the typo…It’s spelled “Israel”.
Traitor.
Oh not, the insensitivity!
Go feel galled.
Like many of you, I speak to Israeli Jews, some to the right, some to the left. The sense of abandonment by the American Jewish community is growing among them, everywhere. 94% of Israeli Jews, left, right and center, agreed about launching Cast Lead. 94%! Hamas rockets are not a left or right issue in Israel. The Iranian threat is not a right or left issue in Israel. This was made clear when the rising star in Meretz, a female fighter pilot, was invited to speak by JStreet and brought up the Iranian threat, much to the chagrin of her sponsors.
Yet, as the fourth and fifth generation of Israelis give their sons and daughters to the army, to protect the country with blood and bullets, their counterparts in America bend in the slightest winds like twigs. Progressive American Jews have lost the nerve to fight for Israel. It’s over.
Surprisingly, most Israelis I talk to are not alarmed at this. American money is nice, they tell me, but the country will be stronger without it. As for Israel, the Arabs will have to pry it from their cold dead hands, no matter how hyperventilated self-flagellating progressive American Jews get.
Avidgor-
I’ve received the same feeling from Israelis I speak with. But the fact is that while politically, it may be that Israel could potentially be stronger without a sinking America, let’s get real. US tax dollars keep the entire Israeli economy afloat (at least as long as the dollar remains afloat). The grants and aid that comes toward Israel allow them to keep the military budget they do and still focus so heavily on agri and tech industries. It’s not that Israel will crumble without American money, but they’d be squeezed to be certain. So, if that’s the case, and I believe it to be, the “hyperventilating” American Jews might actually matter, because if enough American Jews encourage our government to no longer support the Israeli government with money then policy could change. Now, I also believe that American policy in Israel and the ME have more to do with corporate and military interests than anything else, so I don’t know if constituency matters in this case. I don’t think it’s so simple as “Progressive American Jews have lost the nerve to fight for Israel.” I think it’s more that many American Jews have moved away from the belief that Israel is always the victim. It’s a recognition that policies in the territories have as much if not more to do with Israel’s reception in the world than does anti-Semitism. I think it is very true that Israelis really do not care what their reception is in the world–for better or worse. But what this does is create a dichotomy between Israel and most of the global community. I think this was shown during the Bush years, even at his most popular here he was never more popular than in any country than he was in Israel. Even at his least popular ratings here, less popular than any other recorded approval rating of any president, he was still maintaining solid popularity levels in Israel. In this way, Israel is very much out of step with the rest of the world. Now, some say the world is out of step with reality and the US and Israel and a handful of politicians and military people in Britain are the ones who see things for what they are. I don’t know the reality, I just know what I feel and what I’ve seen.
I’m not sure it’s liberal squeemishness or progressive pacifism or whatever you want to call it. I don’t believe it’s a lack of nerves at all, but a lack of identification and a lack of camaraderie. I can only speak for myself when I say that I realized very strongly that the trauma of Israelis is not my trauma. And while I’m connected to Jews and all humans all over the world, and while I love all people of all varieties, Israeli culture is not my culture. We are connected by faith and certain cultural and linguistic elements, but I do not feel like Israel’s fight is my fight to fight. I was raised to believe it was, and I did believe it was for most of my life, but I think rather than a loss of will or nerves, it can be attributed to a recognition and a realization that things are more complicated than “us and them” or “fight to the death”, “the Arabs” and “the Jews”. This conflict has transcended the old adages and the old narratives. I’ve met a quite a number of Palestinians who have given me the same trope “we have no problem with Jews, just Israelis.” To Jewish ears that means something very different than what they intend, but what it says to me is that at least these Palestinians make a distinction between me and my friends who live in Israel. Everyone involved in this conflict is irreparably and irresponsibly guilty and wrong all the time, and it’s been like this for enough years now that we’re lost in the narratives, both of which are equally invalid in most ways and somewhat valid in others. It’s not that I don’t want to believe or don’t want to identify–it’s that I cannot believe in or identify with the entity that I see represented in the contemporary State of Israel (as I’ve said on a number of occasions, this would go for any national affiliation or identification). I just can’t see this change in the American Jewish community like you seem to be framing it, unless I’m misreading you. It almost sounds like you’re saying, “they just don’t make ’em like they used to.” I see it as people standing up and saying “we don’t want to make ’em like that any more.” Maybe this is just my story. who knows.
And it disturbs me a little that you would attribute political criticism of Israel, or perhaps even apathy, to “self-flagellation”. Could you elaborate on that more? How am I abusing myself if I criticize or disagree with a political policy or political nation as a whole?
Justin, i couldn’t have put it better. But just one more point: if rabbi g is not surprised that the entire world hates us, if zionism is not the cure for anti semitism like it was supposed to be, then why bother with the whole idea in the first place? Either it is a solution to the jewish problem, or it is a problem which demands a solution. Take your pick, rabbi g, but don’t tell me to fight to the death against anti semites. That is not the jewish way.
Justin,
Of course, I was responding to the writer, not to you. However, you and he both bring up a thread that resonates profoundly with me:
You:
“we have no problem with Jews, just Israelis.” To Jewish ears that means something very different than what they intend, but what it says to me is that at least these Palestinians make a distinction between me and my friends who live in Israel.
I know exactly what they mean when they say that, and so do you. They have no problems with Jews, so long as we Jews are not exercising our national rights, in our land. That they make a distinction between you and your Israeli friends is not an accident, Justin, it is purposeful, and that you take pride in this, is shameful. I apologize, I can’t shame you. I can only tell you that I would be ashamed.
And he:
proud, committed Jews who are deeply troubled when Israel acts oppressively, who feel implicated as Americans and as Jews in these actions, and who are galled at being labeled as traitors when they choose to speak out
There it is again. It’s not us American Jews who are the problem, the author implores. We’re the good Jews, the humanitarian Jews. It’s those Israeli Jews who make us feel implicated in their actions.
I remember once when I was at university I was walking past the Muslim Student Association to put up some fliers on a nearby bulletin board. They were having a noisy meeting about something. No, one of them told the others, you don’t understand. Not all Jews are like that. Some of them are good and don’t believe in the Talmud.
There have always been good Jews, Justin. The Greeks had their good Jews, the Romans had their good Jews, the French and Spaniards and Germans and English and Turks and Arabs and Soviets and yes, even Americans… the world has always found some good Jews. I’m a bad Jew. I come from a long line of bad Jews. I will raise my children to be bad Jews. That’s just who I am, bad, and I might even open Berachot tonight to prove it.
You are right, of course. The dissociation from the Jews of Israel is real. It is not present in the American Orthodox community, but it exists, grows and flourishes in the Reform and Conservative, so far as I can tell. We can get into why it exists, of course – the crude childhood brainwashing at BBYO and Young Judea seems to have backfired – though I don’t think that matters much. There is nothing to be done about it.
Having friends in Israel, Justin, you must know the following. The Jews of Israel are not dissimilar from you and me. They are not stupid, and they are not cowards. The idea that they haven’t tried hard enough for peace, that they haven’t worked enough for peace or hoped for peace or, yes, bled enough for peace is patronizing. The idea that they have elected the wrong leaders is patronizing. The idea that they don’t know what’s good for them is patronizing. The idea that they need to be saved from themselves, or that they need some “tough love” is PATRONIZING.
Listen to Shalom Rav…
And no, I don’t believe that we American Jews can even begin to understand how Israelis feel – on so many levels.
Oh how sweetly those words careen from his keyboard. I don’t understand you, he says. I don’t understand how you feel, and I don’t understand what has caused you to feel this way, and frankly, I couldn’t give a damn. I’m sick and tired of taking flack for your noisy protest at being led to slaughter. Just sit still and die already, and be quiet about it, my pro-peace interfaith group starts in 15 minutes.
So yes, some American progressive Jews waking up tomorrow and finding that Tel Aviv is a nuclear wasteland… eh, there’s always hunger in Africa to keep one busy, right? Tikkun Olam!
Six million Jews in Israel think you are wrong, Shalom Rav. Six million Jews in Israel think you are wrong, Justin. The question isn’t why they are out of lockstep with the world. It’s why are those like you out of lockstep with them? You’ll find an answer, and another, and another, and you’ll find a support group to reinforce your beliefs in a social setting (hey, Jewschool!). You’ll come away more confident and strident in your beliefs, and emphatic, all along, that you know what’s best for six million Israeli Jews, who obviously couldn’t think or feel their way out of a paper bag. Obviously.
There’s nothing to be done about it. Perhaps we are fighting for different things. I am not fighting for Israel the socialist paradise, or technological powerhouse, or even for the land, powerful as that may be, but for Jews, as simple as that. I don’t need another reason. It’s the tribe mentality, as some here call it, except I wasn’t brought up in America and didn’t experience all the fantastic Zionist brainwashing you all went through. It’s me and six million Israeli Jews, and whoever else feels that it can be no other way. It will always be that way, no matter how much fellow Jews piss me off, and no matter how many arguments I am drowned out or how lonely a voice I am, or what happens to me. I am for Jews.
By the way, the fact that you found a way to bring Bush into this conversation is disturbing… come on, Justin. Really? Really?! You’re holding a grudge against Israeli society for being supportive of Bush? Honestly? It’s almost 2010, buddy. Let it go.
Right on. Though I suspect statehood was never a real answer to the Jewish question. The right answer was – Torah, unchained from the Middle Ages. Go Elmer Berger!
First off, I didn’t say almost half of the things you said I did. Second, I didn’t bring up Bush because I hold a grudge. A), it was only a year ago that the man was still in office. B) it was to prove a point that politically Israel and the world are not in line, it functions as a sort of litmus test. And if you think that there is no dissociation from Israel amongst the Orthodox world, well, that’s insane. There’s ALWAYS been dissociation amongst the Orthodox world. And if you think the Conservative Movement (I can’t speak for any other) is losing it’s Zionist bent, well, that’s perhaps even more insane. And rather than chalk it up to, “the world likes their Jews weak,” maybe we could benefit from a new approach to understanding the situation. What my Palestinian friends (and I never said I felt any pride in it) meant was that they make a distinction between politics and religion. It’s not that they have a problem with Jews expressing their “national rights” in “their land” it’s that the expression of those national rights has translated to the oppression of others national rights. ugh. now i’m having this argument. this is why i stopped reading and discussing Israeli news.
i stopped reading and discussing Israeli news
It’s for the best. I’ve tried it as well, for weeks on end. You end up healthier, happier, but something always draws you back in, eh?
politically Israel and the world are not in line, it functions as a sort of litmus test
The Palestinians are the only Arab nation who supported Saddam when he invaded Kuwait. Saddam! The Gulf Arabs still hate their guts for it. Let’s not start creating national litmus tests for who is in tune or out of tune with “world opinion”.
And rather than chalk it up to, “the world likes their Jews weak,”
It’s true. Not uniquely true of us. The world likes Americans weak. The world likes the Europeans weak. And yes, the world likes its Jews weak. The world is a fucked up place that chews and spits out life like sesame seed husks. As long as we have nukes, the world can shove what it likes up the you know what. I have no intention to be doing listening sessions with barbarians.
Palestinian friends… make a distinction between politics and religion
No, they don’t. They simply don’t know enough about the Jewish faith. They’ve lived and worked and spit on and threw stones at weak Jews for centuries. And maybe, just maybe, they had wonderful relations with their local Jews, but it was always understood that the Jews were weak and subservient, because they were. There is no easy way to understand the Arab shock at 1948. It’s like the Native Americans coming out of nowhere and carving out Nevada, and then successfully defending it against the entire American Army. They’re still shocked and trembling. We were supposed to be the passive, tax paying drunkards, living on our reservations, serving the Arab children as rock throwing target practice.
the expression of those national rights has translated to the oppression of others national rights
This is like saying that someone running out into traffic ahead of a speeding truck is having his right to life trampled on. The Palestinians could have chosen partition 5 times now. They could have chosen to follow the Druze and Bedouin and made structural, fundamental peace with the Jews. They could have chosen to flee to Jordan and build a state there. Their oppression is a direct result of jumping into traffic and then crying that they got sideswiped.
And don’t tell me the Palestinians would feel comforted if they knew more about the Jewish faith. Not only would they discover that they are, in fact, stealing our land in glossy detail, but that “…for the shedding of Jewish blood I will not forgive them…” That’s G-d talking. Rambam doesn’t have nice things to say about nations that attack the Jews and how we must deal with them. We’ve had these discussions before, and I’ll be happy to whip out my Hilchos Melachim on request – they can surrender and flee, or die.
I wonder what they’ll think about Jews then. My guess is they’ll run to the “Israelis” with open arms.
Blood boiling yet? Welcome back, Justin 😉
Natan Sharansky has just written an op-ed worth of a look. He covers some of the issues we’ve discussed. He’s really one of the few people in the Jewish world seriously looking at the big picture – the challenge to Jewish identity in the modern era (read the book!).
I’ve always supported him strongly, but haven’t been following him as closely as I would like since he took over the Jewish Agency. There is a settling in, policy review, bureaucratic realignment period that’s taking place which is quite weary. The one thing I’m aware of him actually accomplishing so far is actually getting all the major Russian Jewish orgs and funders to talk to each other, which was no small feat. Even Chabad gave him a reception there, which speaks to the power of his personality in the Russian community.
The FSU is definitely the first area where he could make a serious impact. Still, I would like to see him take on more public engagements in the US, do a circuit of American, Canadian and European campuses, have dinner with Obama, flesh out his vision for the future growth of worldwide Jewry.
Yes, of course, Sharansky, what a wonderful man. Puh-Lease. He hasn’t done one single productive thing since the Soviets let him out of jail.
They could have chosen to follow the Druze and Bedouin and made structural, fundamental peace with the Jews.
…and they, of course, have the same education and infant mortality rates as the Jews, and are afforded equal opportunity in the workplace and the equal protection of the police. They are let into bars and clubs along with everyone else. Their national heritage is not trampled on and they have electricity and running water. They are so happy – all they do all day is sing the praises of the Jewish state.
and look how well that arrangement is working out for the bedouin!
Patriotism has been replaced by Greed. The ones with the most money win in the end. Country of origin has little to do with it.
They are so happy – all they do all day is sing the praises of the Jewish state.
The Druze are truly a model minority in Israel. Yes, they have faced harassment and racist policies. Somehow, however, this never resulted in a single Druze going on a killing spree in Jerusalem. Why is that? Why are the Druze willing to work, calmly and patriotically, within Israeli society, to achieve the betterment of their community, while others resort to savage violence? However you look at it, long term, the moderation of their leadership has paid off.
Regarding the Bedouins, I was just reading how in the 80s or 90s Sharon (Sharon!) kept trying to push through the plan to settle them in a number of new cities, which to this day hasn’t been done. I think one of the cities is still under construction. The abandonment of promises made by successive Israeli governments is a travesty that must be corrected.
There is no question that there has been a lack of vision in integrating Israeli minorities into the social fabric of the state. To suggest, however, that violence against Jews is a better option is no less sad or shortsighted. At the end of the day, the Druze, Bedouin and those pockets of Israeli Arabs who choose to make peace with a Jewish Israel will achieve success as individuals and communities. The same cannot be said of those who choose not to make peace.
If I remember correctly, and perhaps I don’t (but perhaps I do), despite resigning over disengagement, Sharansky led a consortium of individuals that invested $200mil in Gaza after the Jews left, including $1mil of his own money.
Sharansky may not be a political heavyweight fist fighter like Sharon or Olmert or Netanyahu or Barak or Livni or Peres. Yet, despite serving in Israeli governments in various capacities, and being an activist in Israel for some 25 years, you’d have to do some super heavy duty googling to scrape together any dirt on him. The man lives his ideals and remains uncompromisable, which in Israel is no easy feat.
The Jewish Agency is his now. It is a legendary institution with enormous potential – the closest that world Jewry have to a transnational leadership. What he does with this platform is up to him.
“These Jews have redefined the essence of what is has meant to be Jewish for 3000 years.”
Because the past 3000 years of Jewish history there was never any diaspora, ever.
Avigdor, your “Native Americans taking Nevada” analogy is COMPLETELY off, because that’s not how the Arabs see the Israeli presence. Sure, Jews have had a presence there since ancient times, but the first Zionists in the late 19th century were outsiders, bringing with them a completely alien culture. Israel is still in many ways a European country, and the common epithets “colonist” and “imperialist” in the Arab world are a reflection of that. It’s not that Israelis are “al-Yahud” per se, but that they’re outsiders who don’t belong.
On the other hand, if the first Zionists were from Damascus and Beirut, your analogy would fit. But sadly, as Sephardic communities are all too aware… they weren’t.
The Jewish Agency is his now. It is a legendary institution with enormous potential – the closest that world Jewry have to a transnational leadership. What he does with this platform is up to him.
Avigdor, are you being paid, or are you sniffing glue? The agency is defunct, corrupt, and irrelevant (except for funneling money to the territories and bleeding thriving Jewish communities dry).
Rambam doesn’t have nice things to say about nations that attack the Jews and how we must deal with them. We’ve had these discussions before, and I’ll be happy to whip out my Hilchos Melachim on request – they can surrender and flee, or die.
… a work written while hiding from all those arabs throwing rocks at him, in Fustat.