| Having just spent face to face time with the leadership of the Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism (IMPJ) in Jerusalem as partners with ARZENU (the world Reform Zionist movement) at the World Zionist Congress, I wanted to forward this message from Rabbi Gilad Kariv, the Executive Director of the Israeli Reform movement, in memory of the late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.
It has become so very clear that PM Rabin’s assassination was a destructive turning point in the quest for peace with the Palestinians, and though hopes for a settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are now low in the near-term, we cannot stop advocating for a two-state solution. Rabin’s memory will forever be tied with hopes for mutual recognition and peace. |
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Dear John, The IMPJ remembers and mourns the assassination of Prime Minister Itzhak Rabin, 20 years ago. Upon recognizing 20 years to the assignation, MARAM – the Reform Rabbinic Council in Israel put out a public statement. following is an excerpt from it: Our hearts bleed as we recall the fact that this heinous murder was supposedly committed in the name of the Torah. We condemn any attempt to hinder the democratic fabric in Israel in the name of our Jewish tradition… only in a truly democratic society which respects and defends human rights, will our timeless Jewish values be fulfilled; only the fortification and reinforcement of Israeli democracy will ensure the future of the Jewish people and all Israeli citizens, in their sovereign homeland. May his memory be a blessing. Sincerely, Rabbi Gilad Kariv |
Yizkhak Rabin 20-Year Memorial – A Message from The Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism
26 Monday Oct 2015
Posted in Uncategorized
Rabbi John Rosove's Blog 
I do believe that the Rabbi is correct in his allegation that “…only in a truly democratic society that respects and defends human rights…” will our Jewish Values be fulfilled. But it is getting harder and harder to maintain that faith. The chaos in the middle east seems to be disseminating antisemitism across Europe . It is being carried by the migrants who are being forced from their homes by the wars….and in protecting their human rights we are threatening our own. I don’t have an answer for this and it doesn’t seem as if anyone else does either. It is a problem that needs addressing.
I received this message from a friend just this morning and am reproducing here to show that the awareness of the problem is growing, but no one has yet to offer a solution that provides any real hope. I am a dedicated pacifist and it looks to me as if again we will be fighting for our very lives in the not so far off future. Thanks, Dr. Robert.
{Germany’s intelligence agencies expressed alarm over the influx of refugees and migrants who harbor radical Islamic views and hatred of Jews, according to a Sunday report in Welt am Sonntag.
According to a security document obtained by the paper and read by top-level agency personnel, “We are importing Islamic extremism, Arab anti-Semitism, national and ethnic conflicts of other peoples as well as a different societal and legal understanding.”
The newspaper wrote that security sources warn that “the integration of hundreds of thousands of illegal migrants Germany is no longer possible in light of the number and already existing parallel societies.”
The term “parallel societies” in Germany is frequently defined as insulated Muslim communities that have little or no contact with mainstream society.
The document, called “the non-paper” because it was not signed, stated: “German security agencies…will not be in the position to solve these imported security problems and thereby the arising reactions from Germany’s population.”
A senior level security official told the paper that, “The high influx of people from all parts of the world will lead to instability in our land.” The official added, “We are producing extremists through immigration. Mainstream civil society is radicalizing because the majority don’t want migration and they are being forced by the political elite.”
He predicts that many Germans “will turn away from the constitutional state.” The paper’s exclusive information came from the four major security agencies in Germany – the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, the Federal Intelligence Service, the Federal Police and Federal Criminal Police Office.
According to the paper, the agencies raised pressing security concerns about the wave of migrants entering Germany.
The dire warnings from the security agencies and officials appear to be the first governmental statement about Arab anti-Semitism. In early October, in a meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel, the head of Germany’s Central Council of Jews in Germany, Josef Schuster, raised the community’s concern about Jew-hatred from immigrants and refugees from Muslim-majority countries.
He told Die Welt daily, that “among the people, who have sought refuge in Germany, many come from countries in which Israel is an enemy and are raised with this hostility toward Israel.”
He said the migrants “frequently carry over their resentments toward all Jews in general.”
Merkel assured Schuster for that reason, “We must take care of that.” She offered no specifics.)