Rabbi-Pastor Seminars

The Board of Rabbis and Fuller Theological Seminary host an ongoing series of interfaith seminars that brings together pastors, rabbis, scholars, students and professionals interested in exchanging ideas and perspectives:

Searching for Common Ground:
Christians and Jews Talk about Israel 

"For The Sake of Heaven"

By Rabbi Mark S. Diamond
Executive Vice President
Board of Rabbis of Southern California

On June 21, 2011, a memorable event took place at the Jewish Federation Goldsmith Center. More than 60 Jewish and Christian leaders--rabbis, pastors, priests, academics, seminary students, high school teachers, community and business leaders--gathered in the Sanders Board Room for a two-hour seminar entitled "Searching for Common Ground: Christians and Jews Talk about Israel." Fuller Theological Seminary and the Board of Rabbis of Southern California/Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles were proud to co-sponsor the program, a project of the Federation's Interreligious Action Center generously funded by Guilford and Diane Glazer.

Federation President Jay Sanderson welcomed guests and opened the program, after which Fuller President Dr. Richard Mouw and I delivered presentations on our respective views of Israel. Following our remarks, participants engaged in roundtable dialogue with formal responses from Rev. John Huffman, a retired Presbyterian pastor, and Dr. Tamar Frankiel, Dean of Academic Affairs at the Academy for Jewish Religion, California.

In my introductory remarks, I noted that the guiding principle of the seminar, and all of our interfaith projects, is the precept known in Hebrew as mahloket l'shem shamayim--a dispute that serve a higher, sacred purpose. This week's Torah portion tells the sordid tale of Korah and his rebellion against Moses. According to Jewish tradition, that controversy is the paradigm of a disagreement that was not for the sake of Heaven. In contradistinction to Korah, the lively debates of the sages Hillel and Shammai were for the sake of Heaven. Why? At the end of the day, they lived amicably in the same communities. They broke bread together. They honored and respected one another.

How rare and precious is the spirit of Hillel and Shammai in our world today. Civil discourse is critically important in our society, within our respective faith communities, and in interreligious encounters between faith communities. Civility is not about being nice. It is not about the quiet corner. It is about sharing what is in our hearts and on our minds. Civil discourse means we listen to and learn from one another, and we do so with civility and respect.

Our discussions were frank, passionate and lively. Several participants voiced support for boycotts and sanctions against Israel. Their comments met with strong opposition from rabbis and other Jewish leaders in attendance, who implored them not to see the Israeli/Palestinian conflict as the oppressed versus the oppressor, or the powerless versus the powerful. One speaker expressed his outrage that a prominent Jewish institution had accused him of being an anti-Semite for his opposition to Israeli policies. A rabbi from that institution vehemently disputed the speaker's assessment of that incident and the facts of the matter. By the end of the evening, they shook hands and agreed to meet again to discuss their differences.

I could not have fully anticipated the sharp twists and turns of the thoughtful and thought-provoking seminar. However, I could not have been more pleased and proud of the spirit that prevailed throughout the program. The animated discourse, and especially the disagreements, reflected honor and respect for one another. In so doing, they were truly for the sake of Heaven.

I am pleased to share below excerpts of my presentation at the seminar:

As a Jew, I believe that Israel is the Jewish state and the Jewish homeland. It is the answer to more than 2000 years of prayers, dreams, visions, blood, sweat and tears.

Israel is Herzl: "I believe that a wondrous breed of Jews will spring up from the earth. The Maccabees will rise again. The Jews who will it shall achieve their State."

Israel is Ahad Ha-Am: "We must revitalize the idea of the national renascence, and use every possible means to strengthen its hold and deepen its roots, until it becomes an organic element in the Jewish consciousness and an independent dynamic force."

Israel is Rav Kook: "A valid strengthening of Judaism in the Diaspora can come only from a deepened attachment to Eretz Israel. The hope for the return to the Holy Land is the continuing source of the distinctive nature of Judaism. The hope for the Redemption is the force that sustains Judaism in the Diaspora; the Judaism of Eretz Israel is the very Redemption." Israel is all of these Zionist visions, and in some respects none of them. Israel is a young, imperfect nation, but also she is raysheet tzemihat ge'ulataynu, the beginning of the dawn of our redemption.

 The Bible is not a real estate deed for Jews, Christians, Muslims or anyone else. By this I mean that the boundaries of modern nation states should not be determined by Scriptural promises made to any of our ancestors. Some of my Jewish and Christian brothers and sisters disagree with me on this point. Frankly, I think they're wrong, and their projection of Biblical texts onto the Israeli-Palestinian dispute impedes the peace process.

Solidarity with Israel does not imply negation of the legitimate rights of Palestinians. Indeed, I would argue that in order to be advocates for Israel, we need to be advocates for a two-state solution--a free, democratic state of Israel and a free, democratic state of Palestine. No one has yet devised a more just and comprehensive solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Criticism of Israel is not inherently anti-Semitic. If that were the case, we would have to call hundreds of thousands of Israeli citizens anti-Semitic! However, one who denies the legitimate right of statehood to the Jewish people, and no others, is indeed espousing views that are not only anti-Zionist, but also inherently anti-Semitic.

 Trading stories of anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, hateful propaganda, and atrocities has done little to advance the peace process. Israelis and Palestinians alike have suffered too much violence, bloodshed, death and destruction. We do well to end this counter-productive strategy of "my pain in greater than yours." We need active listening and reflecting, rather than angry, noisy rhetoric.

We need to avoid the temptation to search for easy answers and quick-fix solutions to this conflict. The issues are complex and come in shades of grey, not black and white. Do not believe anyone who argues that justice is wholly on one side, that peace can spring forth overnight, that anything less than intensive, arduous, protracted negotiations between the parties can achieve peace.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a dispute between relatives/cousins, between the children of Abraham, the children of God. What does God want us to do? God wants us to strive for peace and justice. God wants us to pray and work together for a just sharing of the land, and for a democratic state of Palestine and the democratic state of Israel living side by side in peace and security. God wants us to strengthen the voices of moderation and reconciliation in their struggle against hatred and extremism. If we do these things, we will serve as God's partners in shaping the destiny of the birthplace of our faiths. For this is the right path--the only path--that brings the promise of redemption.

June 9, 2009

As part of a regular series, The Board of Rabbis hosted a luncheon with Fuller Theological Seminary for pastors, rabbis and other religious leaders to discuss what these difficult economic times mean for clergy.

Keynote speakers Rabbi Elliot Dorff, of American Jewish University, and Dr. Kurt Fredrickson, of Fuller Theological Seminary, offered substantive reflections on faith, community and giving.