Category Archives: Israel and Palestine

An Arab lawmaker imagines a utopian Israeli-Palestinian state and himself as Prime Minister

03 Friday Mar 2017

Posted by in American Jewish Life, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

There are increasingly more people who are giving up on a two states for two peoples resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and are, instead, supporting a one state democracy that stretches from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea.

In my view, this represents for the Jewish people a defeat of historic proportions.

The State of Israel was founded on the basis of it being a Jewish state that is democratic in character and affirms the principles of justice and equality for all its citizens, Jews and non-Jews alike.

As time passes and the Jewish settlement enterprise continues and as the status quo is maintained a one-state reality becomes more probable. If that is the end result, the question remains as to what kind of state it will become.

The Arab and Jewish populations between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea including Gaza are nearly equivalent (5.5 million Israeli Jews and 5.5 million Arabs of which only 1.5 million are Israeli citizens and the remainder live under occupation in the West Bank or are ruled by Hamas in the Gaza Strip).

There are essentially three options:

  1. Two states for two peoples (Israel and Palestine) with established borders, Jerusalem as a shared capital, Palestinian refugees enjoying the right of return to Palestine and not Israel, Palestinian acceptance of the legitimacy of the Jewish state of Israel and Israeli acceptance of the legitimacy of the State of Palestinian, and assured security;
  2. A one-state democracy in which all citizens share equal rights including the right to vote in national elections and to serve at the highest levels of government;
  3. A one-state undemocratic Jewish State of Israel in which Arab citizens do not share equal rights with Israeli Jews.

The first option preserves the Jewish and the democratic State of Israel.

The second represents the end of Zionism.

The third ushers in a new form of Apartheid in which Israel ceases to be a democracy and risks further international isolation, the weakening of the American-Israeli relationship, and the alienation of large segments of world Jewry from Israel.

Yesterday (March 2, 2017) in the Israeli daily Haaretz there appeared an interview with Member of the Knesset Ahmed Tibi (of the Arab List). The interview offers a realistic glimpse into what a one-state non-Jewish democracy might look like (see link to article below)

A few highlights of Mr. Tibi’s comments:

“I belong to those who support the two-state vision, have fought for it and continue to fight for it. I think it’s the optimal solution for the existing situation. The international community wants it and the majority on both sides wants it, even though that majority is diminishing according to the surveys I see, among both Palestinians and Israelis. And with 620,000 settlers in the West Bank and Jerusalem, and two separate judicial systems, there’s a reality today of one state with rolling apartheid.” …

“[In a one-state solution] We will annul the [Israeli] Declaration of Independence and in its place write a civil declaration that represents all citizens: Jews, Muslims, Christians, Druze. The entire public. It’s untenable for a democratic state to have a declaration of independence that is fundamentally Jewish.” …

“That [the Jewish right of return] would automatically be annulled because the country would no longer be a Jewish state as it is today. The single state will not resemble the present-day State of Israel. It will be something different. Why should Jews be able to return here and Palestinians not?” …

“…With one, equal state, the State of Israel in its present format will not exist. All its symbols will change, and the narrative will be different. The unifying element in one state will be different from what it is today because it will be a state of everyone, not a state of the Jewish collectivity in which there is a tolerated minority that is thrown a bone in the form of gestures like new roads and the establishment of well-baby clinics. In an equal, single state, equality is a supreme value.”

Those who support the status quo in effect are supporting option #3.

According to  American Middle East envoy Martin Indyk who spoke at the recent J Street National Conference in Washington, D.C., the status quo might seem to be sustainable in the short term, but in the long term “there will be an explosion.”

If that happens, the dream of the founding generation of the State of Israel will be lost.

http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.774936)

 

 

 

Friedman’s ‘kapo’ comment should disqualify him as ambassador to Israel” – Dr. Charles Gati

01 Wednesday Mar 2017

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity

≈ 3 Comments

Earlier this week, I was asked to participate with two others in a press conference in Washington, D.C. on behalf of J Street which was convening in its 6th Annual National Conference.

I joined Dr. Charles Gati, Senior Research Professor of European and Eurasian Studies of Johns Hopkins SAI, a former state department consultant and Holocaust survivor, and Dylan Williams, Vice President of Government Affairs for J Street. I was asked as a former co-chair of the Rabbinic Cabinet of J Street and now as the national chair of the Association of Reform Zionists of America.

We were being questioned about President Trump’s nomination of David Friedman to be the next United States Ambassador to Israel. All three of us were strongly opposed to the nomination.

We oppose Friedman because of his long-standing support of the settlement enterprise, his public opposition to the two-state solution, and his assaults against large segments of the American Jewish community that support the two states for two people’s resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

We said that Friedman’s policy positions run counter to the long-held positions of every American President in the last 25 years who have supported the two-state solution, his slander of J Street supporters as “worse than kapos,” his charge that the ADL is led by a bunch of “morons,” and that President Obama and Secretary Kerry are anti-Israel and anti-Semites.

These positions and statements ought to disqualify Friedman’s appointment to any position in the government, let alone as the chief American diplomat in one of the most sensitive regions in the world.

I was asked by Al Jazeera English whether or not I accepted Friedman’s statements at his Senate hearing in which he recanted virtually every position he ever held and every statement he ever made vis a vis Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I said that I do not accept anything he said in the hearings as reflective of his true beliefs and as an indication of how he would conduct himself should he be confirmed by the Senate in the next few days.

In particular, I was moved by Dr. Charles Gati. He was ten years old when the Nazis invaded Budapest in 1944 and ordered the expulsion and murder of all that city’s Jews. Charles was spared being shot and thrown into the Danube River due to pure luck.

His opposition to Friedman was based not only on his policy positions and ill-temperament but because Friedman showed how woefully ignorant he is of Jewish history and the history of the Holocaust when he callously used the word “kapo” to describe J Street supporters.

After hearing Dr. Gati, I told him and Dylan Williams that meetings ought to be arranged this week one-on-one between Charles and every reasonable Republican Senator. I am certain that Charles would persuade any reasonable leader to oppose this nomination.

Read:  Friedman’s ‘kapo’ comment should disqualify him as ambassador to Israel, The Hill

http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/international/321633-friedmans-kapo-comment-should-disqualify-him-as-ambassador

Reform Jewish Movement Opposes David Friedman’s Nomination for U.S. Ambassador to Israel

17 Friday Feb 2017

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Jewish-Christian Relations, Jewish-Islamic Relations, Social Justice, Women's Rights

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This is the first time that all the organizations of the American Reform Jewish movement have ever weighed in on a nomination by a President of the United States. However, we have done so because David Friedman’s qualifications, lack of diplomatic experience, erratic temperament, outrageous rhetoric and attacks on large sections of the American Jewish community, and his policy positions vis a vis Israel are not in the best interests of the American-Israel relationship and do not represent our Reform Jewish values in relationship to the democratic and Jewish State of Israel.

As the national Chair of the Association of Reform Zionists of America (ARZA), on behalf of ARZA’s President Rabbi Josh Weinberg, and with the unanimous support of the national ARZA Officers and Board, I express my own gratitude that our movement of 1.5 million American Reform Jews has made such a clear and strong statement.

Please read the attached statement and note the expansive support of our movement’s national leadership.

http://www.urj.org/blog/2017/02/17/reform-jewish-movement-opposes-david-friedmans-nomination-us-ambassador-israel

Tell the Senate to Oppose David Friedman as US Ambassador to Israel

12 Sunday Feb 2017

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Israel and Palestine, Jewish Identity, Jewish-Islamic Relations

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SENATE HEARINGS are beginning as soon as THIS WEEK on President Trump’s  nomination of his personal lawyer DAVID FRIEDMAN to be the next American Ambassador to Israel.

Friedman has no foreign policy experience. His abrasive and contemptuous temperament is inappropriate as a member of the American diplomatic corps. He is divisive and insulting not only to large portions of the American Jewish community but to the Palestinian people as well.

In an earlier post, I noted that I am a signatory to an open letter sponsored by J Street (an American pro-Israel and pro-peace political organization based in Washington, D.C. that is committed to a two-states for two peoples diplomatic resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict) and Amenu (The American Friends of Israel’s Zionist Union, opposition party in the Israeli Knesset) that included dozens of American rabbis and cantors who strongly oppose Friedman’s nomination as the next United States Ambassador to Israel.

After reading this letter, I hope you will feel moved to contact your two Senators, especially if they are in the Senate majority, and express your opposition to Trump’s divisive and potentially destructive appointment.

Here is the original J Street and Amenu rabbinic and cantorial letter:

We are writing today as rabbis and cantors asking President Trump to withdraw the nomination of David Friedman to be the United States Ambassador to the state of Israel. Failing that, we implore the US Senate not to confirm him.

In this letter, we will address concerns around his denigration of American Jews who believe differently from him and his policy positions that we believe run contrary to the interests of the United States and Israel.

The Rabbis of the Talmud are adamant that we are to speak to and about other people — particularly those with whom we disagree — with love and respect. We are taught that shaming a person is tantamount to shedding their blood (Baba Metzia 58b).

Yet Mr. Friedman seems to have no qualms about insulting people with whom he disagrees.

Mr. Friedman has repeatedly compared members of the Jewish community whose views on Israel differ from his own to “kapos,” who were Jews who collaborated with the Nazis during the Holocaust. He called members of J Street, a pro-Israel organization that wants to see peace between Israelis and Palestinians, “worse than kapos.” He has even questioned whether its more than 180,000 supporters are really Jews — as if he has the right to decide such a weighty matter.

 [Note: Friedman has since said he will walk back these comments, but he has not done so to date nor has he apologized to any individual or group that he insulted. Those close to him claim that he cares deeply about assuring the unity of the Jewish people, but his comments and attitudes suggest that he has no clue about the meaning of and application of the principle of k’lal Yisrael, the “unity of the Jewish people”.]

This is the very antithesis of the diplomatic behavior Americans expect from their ambassadors.

An ambassador is charged with representing our entire nation. It is historically perverse and wildly insulting to characterize Jewish advocates for peace, including many of the signers of this letter, as no better than Nazi collaborators plotting to destroy the Jewish people.

If Mr. Friedman cannot responsibly understand history, he cannot responsibly shape the future.

The situation in and around Israel is volatile. Mr. Friedman’s inflammatory comments about Jews, Palestinians and Muslims and the peace process itself are precisely the type of comments that can ignite further conflict and drive deeper wedges between parties.

While we believe the above should be enough to disqualify Mr. Friedman, we have grave policy concerns as well. Mr. Friedman vocally supports the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which American presidents since Johnson have seen as an obstacle to peace.

Moreover, Mr. Friedman opposes the two-state solution, which has been a policy cornerstone for Republican and Democratic administrations for the past quarter century. We are very concerned that rather than try to represent the US as an advocate for peace, Mr. Friedman will seek to mold American policy in line with his extreme ideology.

We yearn for an Israel that is secure, democratic and the national homeland of the Jewish people. Mr. Friedman’s pro-settler positions and opposition to the two-state solution are in conflict with our views and the majority of American Jews who see settlement expansion as an obstacle to peace and who strongly support a two-state solution. Mr. Friedman’s favored policies would weaken Israel’s security, democracy, and status as the national homeland of the Jewish people.

Mr. Friedman’s apparent inability to speak respectfully about and to people with whom he disagrees and his advocacy of extreme policies which threaten the future of Israel and run contrary to American interests are both sufficient reasons to disqualify Mr. Friedman’s nomination. He is the wrong choice to serve as our nation’s Ambassador to Israel.

I ask you today to contact your Senators and urge them to vote against David Friedman’s appointment as the next US Ambassador to Israel. I also encourage you to contact moderate and reasonable Senate Republicans to register your views.

Note: I speak here only for myself and not on behalf of my synagogue or any Jewish organization.

Ask your rabbis and cantors to sign this letter opposing David Friedman as the US Ambassador to Israel

26 Thursday Jan 2017

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Jewish-Islamic Relations, Social Justice

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I have signed this letter sponsored Ameinu and J Street opposing the nomination of David Friedman to be US Ambassador to Israel and posted this two or three weeks ago. I am repeating the post because of the urgency of this matter.

Please forward the following letter to your rabbis and cantors and ask them to sign on as well (see below for link).

We are writing today as rabbis and cantors asking President Trump to withdraw the nomination of David Friedman to be the United States Ambassador to the state of Israel. Failing that, we implore the US Senate not to confirm him.

In this letter, we will address concerns around his denigration of American Jews who believe differently from him and his policy positions that we believe run contrary to the interests of the United States and Israel.

The Rabbis of the Talmud are adamant that we are to speak to and about other people — particularly those with whom we disagree — with love and respect. We are taught that shaming a person is tantamount to shedding their blood (Baba Metzia 58b).

Yet Mr. Friedman seems to have no qualms about insulting people with whom he disagrees.

Mr. Friedman has repeatedly compared members of the Jewish community whose views on Israel differ from his own to “kapos,” who were Jews who collaborated with the Nazis during the Holocaust. He called members of J Street, a pro-Israel organization that wants to see peace between Israelis and Palestinians, “worse than kapos.” He has even questioned whether its more than 180,000 supporters are really Jews — as if he has the right to decide such a weighty matter.

This is the very antithesis of the diplomatic behavior Americans expect from their ambassadors.

An ambassador is charged with representing our entire nation. It is historically perverse and wildly insulting to characterize Jewish advocates for peace, including many of the signers of this letter, as no better than Nazi collaborators plotting to destroy the Jewish people.

If Mr. Friedman cannot responsibly understand history, he cannot responsibly shape the future.

The situation in and around Israel is volatile. Mr. Friedman’s inflammatory comments about Jews, Palestinians and Muslims and the peace process itself are precisely the type of comments that can ignite further conflict and drive deeper wedges between parties.

While we believe the above should be enough to disqualify Mr. Friedman, we have grave policy concerns as well. Mr. Friedman vocally supports the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which American presidents since Johnson have seen as an obstacle to peace.

Moreover, Mr. Friedman opposes the two-state solution, which has been a policy cornerstone for Republican and Democratic administrations for the past quarter century. We are very concerned that rather than try to represent the US as an advocate for peace, Mr. Friedman will seek to mold American policy in line with his extreme ideology.

We yearn for an Israel that is secure, democratic and the national homeland of the Jewish people. Mr. Friedman’s pro-settler positions and opposition to the two-state solution are in conflict with our views and the majority of American Jews who see settlement expansion as an obstacle to peace and who strongly support a two-state solution. Mr. Friedman’s favored policies would weaken Israel’s security, democracy, and status as the national homeland of the Jewish people.

Mr. Friedman’s apparent inability to speak respectfully about and to people with whom he disagrees and his advocacy of extreme policies which threaten the future of Israel and run contrary to American interests are both sufficient reasons to disqualify Mr. Friedman’s nomination. He is the wrong choice to serve as our nation’s Ambassador to Israel.

http://act.jstreet.org/sign/american-jewish-clergy-reject-david-friedman/?akid=5470.277601.aAUIoK&dm_i=1QES%2C3MVII%2C9Z4S37%2CHQR8K%2C1&rd=1&t=2&utm_campaign=6106122_Rabbi%27s+Friedman+Letter+1%2F25%2F17&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Ameinu

Note: I am speaking only for myself and not on behalf of my synagogue or any Jewish organization.

Mr. Trump – Withdraw your nomination of David Friedman as US Ambassador to Israel

18 Wednesday Jan 2017

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Social Justice

≈ 1 Comment

Note: The following is a letter being signed by rabbis and cantors across the United States. It is co-sponsored by J Street and T’ruah – Rabbis for Human Rights. I am a signatory. I do so as an individual and do not represent my synagogue or any other organization. In addition to J Street and T’ruah, the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism has expressed concerns about this nomination.

We are writing today as rabbis and cantors asking President Trump to withdraw the nomination of David Friedman to be the United States Ambassador to the state of Israel. Failing that, we implore the US Senate not to confirm him.”

In this letter, we will address concerns around his denigration of American Jews who believe differently from him and his policy positions that we believe run contrary to the interests of the United States and Israel.

The Rabbis of the Talmud are adamant that we are to speak to and about other people — particularly those with whom we disagree — with love and respect. We are taught that shaming a person is tantamount to shedding their blood (Baba Metzia 58b).

Yet Mr. Friedman seems to have no qualms about insulting people with whom he disagrees.

Mr. Friedman has repeatedly compared members of the Jewish community whose views on Israel differ from his own to “kapos,” who were Jews who collaborated with the Nazis during the Holocaust. He called members of J Street, a pro-Israel organization that wants to see peace between Israelis and Palestinians, “worse than kapos.” He has even questioned whether its more than 180,000 supporters are really Jews — as if he has the right to decide such a weighty matter.

This is the very antithesis of the diplomatic behavior Americans expect from their ambassadors.

An ambassador is charged with representing our entire nation. It is historically perverse and wildly insulting to characterize Jewish advocates for peace, including many of the signers of this letter, as no better than Nazi collaborators plotting to destroy the Jewish people.

If Mr. Friedman cannot responsibly understand history, he cannot responsibly shape the future.

The situation in and around Israel is volatile. Mr. Friedman’s inflammatory comments about Jews, Palestinians and Muslims and the peace process itself are precisely the type of comments that can ignite further conflict and drive deeper wedges between parties.

While we believe the above should be enough to disqualify Mr. Friedman, we have grave policy concerns as well. Mr. Friedman vocally supports the expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which American presidents since Johnson have seen as an obstacle to peace.

Moreover, Mr. Friedman opposes the two-state solution, which has been a policy cornerstone for Republican and Democratic administrations for the past quarter century. We are very concerned that rather than try to represent the US as an advocate for peace, Mr. Friedman will seek to mold American policy in line with his extreme ideology.

We yearn for an Israel that is secure, democratic and the national homeland of the Jewish people. Mr. Friedman’s pro-settler positions and opposition to the two-state solution are in conflict with our views and the majority of American Jews who see settlement expansion as an obstacle to peace and who strongly support a two-state solution. Mr. Friedman’s favored policies would weaken Israel’s security, democracy, and status as the national homeland of the Jewish people.

Mr. Friedman’s apparent inability to speak respectfully about and to people with whom he disagrees, and his advocacy of extreme policies which threaten the future of Israel and run contrary to American interests are both sufficient reasons to disqualify Mr. Friedman’s nomination. He is the wrong choice to serve as our nation’s Ambassador to Israel.

Israeli Justice Upheld in Two Emblematic Murder Cases

04 Wednesday Jan 2017

Posted by in Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Social Justice

≈ 1 Comment

Two murders that captivated the people of Israel and divided the nation have been resolved in guilty verdicts, thus testifying to the strength and independence of the Israeli justice system.

The first was the murder of a 16-year old Jewish teen, Shira Banki when she participated in the 2015 Jerusalem Gay Rights Parade. She was knifed by an Ultra-Orthodox Jew and died of her wounds. This was the second time this particular Haredi had attacked gay rights advocates.

The second was the killing of a Palestinian terrorist by an Israeli soldier, Sgt. Elor Azaria, who testified that the terrorist “deserves to die.” Azaria was convicted of manslaughter for the lethal shooting. The shooting was “captured on video by a Palestinian human rights activist and widely distributed.” (see article) The video showed the soldier shooting the disarmed and incapacitated Palestinian terrorist who lay wounded on the street after he had attacked and wounded Israeli soldiers in the strife-torn city of Hebron. The soldier’s deed was immediately condemned by both the Israeli Defense Minister and Prime Minister. Now, Israeli politicians from both the ruling coalition and the opposition are calling for a pardon.

The reaction by Israelis across the country to these two events reflects the deep schisms in Israeli society itself. The verdicts affirm that Israel is a nation ruled by law and the court system.

Life sentence for Jerusalem pride parade stabber who killed teen girl 16-year-old Shira Banki – Jerusalem Post, June 26, 2016
http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Life-sentence-for-Jerusalem-pride-parade-stabber-who-killed-teen-girl-457749

Guilty as Charged Israeli Soldier Convicted of Manslaughter for Lethal Shooting of Wounded Palestinian Assailant – Haaretz, January 4, 2017
https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?shva=1#inbox/1596916fb75a7ac9

2 States for 2 Peoples – Secretary Kerry, American Jews, Israelis, and why it hasn’t happened?

01 Sunday Jan 2017

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Social Justice

≈ 3 Comments

There is no more intractable conflict in the world as that between Israel and the Palestinians. When one attempts to understand the conflict historically, ideologically, nationally, tribally, religiously, morally, and contextually, the result is necessarily confusion, anger, exhaustion, frustration, and cynicism.

Why does this conflict continue unresolved? What options are there going forward that will preserve what Israel most needs – security, democracy and the Jewish nature of the state; and what the Palestinian people most need – security, sovereignty, and a state of their own?

When I stand in the Old City Southern Kotel Plaza, look down to the ancient Roman street and see the boulders that were knocked down by the Romans two thousand years ago, I recall the Talmudic explanation for the catastrophe: “Why was the Second Temple destroyed? Because of sinat chinam, senseless hatred of one Jew for another.” (Bavli, Yoma 9b)

There is one antidote to senseless hatred – ahavat chinam, senseless love of one Jew for another, which, of course, will not come easily in today’s polarized environment.

What we Jews so desperately need today is to be able to communicate directly with one another. We need to listen more intently and not presume nefarious motives lurking in the other’s heart. We need to understand what the other says and believes and the merits inherent in his/her position. Even when we disagree we have to resist being disagreeable.

Though we Jews have always had our share of conflicts, this past month President-Elect Trump’s designated US Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, exacerbated the polarization by slandering a very large segment of the pro-Israel American Jewish community by calling them “worse than kapos!”

This comment should disqualify Friedman as US Ambassador and earn a solid rejection by Republicans and Democrats alike in the US Senate. If you agree with me, I urge you to contact your Senators and let them know your view.

Mr. Friedman’s sinister disrespect for fellow American Jews has given license to others to do as he has done. This past week, I myself received an email calling me a “kapo.”

Such myopic demagogic pronouncements are destructive to the fabric of the American Jewish community and to the Jewish people as a whole.

In the spirit of educating ourselves and being current with current thinking by American Jews and Israelis, I recommend the following:

1. Secretary of State John Kerry’s speech at the State Department – https://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2016/12/266119.htm

2. American Jews Divided Over Strain in U.S.-Israel Relations – By ADAM NAGOURNEY and SHARON OTTERMAN – NYT, December 29, 2016

While some Jewish groups have applauded the administration’s efforts in regard to Israel, others have seen the steps taken by a departing president as a mistake. http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/29/us/american-jews-john-kerry-israel.html?_r=0

3. In ‘Red’ and ‘Blue’ Israel, Separate Lives and Divergent Narratives, by PETER BAKER – NYT, December 29, 2016

The reactions to international criticism of Israeli settlements made clear that Israelis are just as polarized as Americans.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/29/world/middleeast/israel-benjamin-netanyahu-john-kerry-speech.html?ref=world

4. The Two-State Solution: What It Is and Why It Hasn’t Happened, by MAX FISHER, NY Times, December 29, 2016

The two-state solution has for decades been the primary focus of efforts to achieve peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Here’s a basic guide.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/29/world/middleeast/israel-palestinians-two-state-solution.html?ref=world&_r=0

 

Note: I represent only my views and not that of my synagogue or any Jewish organization.

I invite you to follow me on Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/RabbiJohnLRosove

Getting to 100 – What Makes for a Long and Healthy life?

30 Friday Dec 2016

Posted by in American Politics and Life, Ethics, Health and Well-Being, Israel and Palestine, Life Cycle, Social Justice

≈ 2 Comments

Today, December 30, would have been my father’s 111th birthday. He made it only to #53, and every year I ponder what he and I would have become together and individually had he lived longer.

My mother, who died a year ago, almost made it to 100. She was eighteen months shy of that millennial milestone.

Their birthdays, yahrzeits, Yizkor, and other significant family events always raise for me the questions “What if…?” and “How do those who live to 100 do it?”

Here are eight responses by people who’ve reached 100 to the question “Why have you lived so long?”

“Eat boiled corn with codfish and cream, and laugh…”

“Smoke a good cigar, avoid alcohol, drink water, stay positive, and sing.”

“Thumb your nose at sadness, turn the tables on tragedy, laugh instead of getting angry, and don’t feel envious of anyone.”

“Find a good wife and drink two scotches every night.”

“Fight injustice, help people in trouble, and keep your mind active.”

“Do something new each day, avoid drama and stay far away from difficult people.”

“Mind your own business, don’t eat junk food, treat others well, and work hard at what you love.”

“Live for God, pray, and surround yourself with nice people.”

So… there you have it – but, not so fast, because even if we do everything right – i.e.  eat well, exercise, manage stress, maintain social connections, and live with faith – there’s no guarantee of anything.

After all, some of us are more prone to disease, accident, and rotten luck than others.

Longevity researchers say that both genetic factors and behavioral factors contribute to longevity. These include health and health behaviors, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, stress, social and environmental support, mental health, and life satisfaction.

Perhaps the most important study on longevity is “The Longevity Project” written by psychology professors Howard Friedman and Leslie Martin of UC Riverside. They culminated an eight-decade-long study, begun in 1921 by Stanford University psychologist Lewis Terman, of 1500 precocious children. Terman died in 1956 so future researchers picked up where he left off, including Drs. Friedman and Martin. (see http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/19/science/19longevity.html)

The 1500 children were followed in meticulous detail throughout their lives. In studying them Drs. Friedman and Martin conclude:

“The best childhood predictor of longevity [is] conscientiousness—the qualities of a prudent, persistent, well-organized person—somewhat obsessive and not at all carefree….It’s not the happy-go-lucky who thrive—it’s the prudent and persistent who flourish through the years.…conscientious people do more … to protect their health and engage in fewer [risky] activities …. are less likely to smoke or drive too fast. They buckle their seat belts and follow the doctor’s advice…They are not necessarily risk averse but they tend to be sensible in evaluating how far to push the envelope. [some are]…biologically predisposed to be …more conscientious and healthier ….less prone to develop certain diseases, … these people have different levels of the chemical…serotonin in their brains [serotonin helps to determine happiness and well-being]…Individuals with low levels of serotonin tend to be much more impulsive… and they eat more and sleep less… Having a conscientious personality leads a person into healthier situations and relationships… happier marriages, better friendships and healthier work situations.”

This study showed that kids described as cheerful and optimistic didn’t live as long as those boring and serious kids (i.e. nerds!?) who worried constantly about school, studied and worked hard.

The one factor that best predicted long life, even more than happiness itself, is purposeful goal-oriented work, whether for a paycheck or for its own sake. People drawn to live their lives with other like-minded, healthy, active, and involved people significantly increase the odds of their living longer and more happily.

Judaism emphasizes that it’s not the number of days or years that we live, it’s the quality of those days that matters and that is the surest way to wisdom (Psalm 90:12).

In this New Year 2017, there’s much about which to be thankful and much cause for  worry – e.g. Israel’s security, its isolation and the lack of a resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict;  epic changes the Trump administration promises; the well-being of our children, grandchildren, extended family, friends, community, nation, people, the world, and the environment.

We cannot know what’s going to occur in the year to come. However, we can control how we ourselves cope – that is our challenge going forward.

I hope that each of us will be blessed with good health, length of years and the knowledge that did all we could to live our lives ethically, compassionately, patiently, and with love.

Note: This is a blog I posted initially on December 27, 2013 with updates.

Follow me on Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/RabbiJohnLRosove

The Venue is all wrong – but it isn’t anti-Israel

28 Wednesday Dec 2016

Posted by in American Jewish Life, American Politics and Life, Ethics, Israel and Palestine, Israel/Zionism, Jewish History, Jewish Identity, Jewish-Christian Relations, Jewish-Islamic Relations, Social Justice

≈ 1 Comment

I offer five important documents and statement that I believe every member of the Jewish community ought to read relative to the recent UN Security Council Resolution 2334, as well as statements from the State of Israel and the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, the American Jewish Committee, the ADL, etc. relative to UN Security Council Resolution 2334.

Three of the following come from liberal and progressive pro-Israel American Zionist Organizations. The other two include the full text of UNSC Resolution 2334 and a review of the history of US abstentions and vetoes in the UN on resolutions critical of Israeli policies and of the State of Israel.

[1] Full Text of UN Security Council Condemnation of Israel, Resolution … http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/full-text-of-un-security-council-condemnation-of-israel-resolution-2334/2016/12/24/

[2] ARZA’s statement on UNSC Resolution 2334
http://www.arza.org/blog/post/arza-response-to-un-security-council-resolution-2334

The Association of Reform Zionists of America is the Zionist organization of America’s 1.5 million Reform Jews. (Note: I serve as ARZA national chair)

[3] T’ruah Statement on UN Security Council Resolution – truah.org/…/805-t-ruah-statement-on-un-security-council-resolution.html

T’ruah – The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights includes American rabbis from across the religious streams.

[4] J Street Welcomes US Abstention on UNSC Resolution – J Street: The … jstreet.org/press-releases/j-street-welcomes-us-abstention-unsc-resolution/

J Street is a pro-Israel pro-peace political and educational organization in Washington, D.C. and is the largest pro-Israel PAC in America. It has a large and growing university contingent called J Street U which is recognized by the Jewish Federations of America and the State of Israel as one of the most effective voices on college campuses against the Boycott, Divestiture, and Sanctions Movement (BDS).

[5] “Abstaining from history – Here’s all the UN Resolutions on Israel the United States Abstained on” – by Seth J. Frantzman

Abstaining from history: Here’s all the UN RESOLUTIONS on Israel the US abstained on