Jewish Federation of Cincinnati

  • Donate now
  • Sign up
  • Connect

    Your Email Address

    Enter your email address to sign up for our newsletter.
  • Donate Now
  • Connect
  • Connect

    Your Email Address

    Enter your email address to sign up for our newsletter.
  • Log In
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • vimeo
 

Ari Ballaban — In Conversation

March 3, 2023 | 1 Comment
Tweet
Share
Share
0 Shares

We Need to Talk About Israel

The past months in Israel have been chaotic.

There have been tensions within the Israeli mainstream about the current coalition’s plan to transfer power from the judiciary to the legislature. There have been concerns amongst those who identify or ally with non-Orthodox Jews, as certain factions within the coalition seek to redefine who counts as Jewish. And, not least significant within this chaos, there have been eruptions of violence between Israelis and Palestinians—recently, this included the heartbreaking murder of two Israeli Jewish brothers who were settlers, then a sickening, large-scale retaliation by settlers against the Palestinian village of Huwara.

Chaos in Israel is hardly new, but this is different. The Jewish Federations of North America even released a rare public letter of rebuke targeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition (although it technically also spoke to Opposition Leader Yair Lapid, it was not Lapid’s legislative proposals which triggered the letter). In it, JFNA called for moderation, effectively begging the coalition not to take any actions that would further jeopardize the relationship between American and Israeli Jews, specifically naming changes that would undermine the country’s democracy. In their attempt to show that JFNA was not issuing a threat, but instead spoke out of care and love, JFNA noted that their “support for the State of Israel [was] unconditional and eternal.”

What concerns me is the following:

Although the above quote may accurately characterize JFNA’s relationship with Israel, I have my doubts that it is true for an increasingly large number of Jews in the United States. Such Jews may have an unconditional and eternal love for an idealized Israel, but that is not true of their feelings for the political reality. As someone who views a healthy and vibrant, just and democratic Israel as essential, I find this alarming—even though I fundamentally empathize with (and even in some cases share) the frustrations and anger that are driving a wedge between the world’s two largest Jewish communities.

There is no easy fix to this problem: if there were, it would have already been deployed. What we can do, though, is continue to engage and push ourselves to keep learning. I am actually less fearful of American Jews who are angered by Israel than I am of those who grow apathetic.

Consequently, JCRC will be rolling out a new series of events in which we will seek to teach and engage members of our community on the topic of Israel and its current socio-political developments. “We Need to Talk: About Israel” has a simple premise: You give us an intimate space (e.g., your living room) and an audience (~10 people) interested in learning and talking more about Israel. We, the JCRC, will come to you and bring content and a moderated conversation in the hopes of moving us all forward.

As fault lines within our Jewish community continue to strain, this sort of person-to-person dialogue truly is one of the best tools we have. I hope that you will consider taking advantage of it and joining us in our effort.
Tweet
Share
Share
0 Shares

you might also be interested in:

  • Why the ‘Testing Your Faith Act’ Matters to Jewish College Students
  • You Will Soon See a Menorah at Cincinnati City Hall
  • Leaders in Light Accepting Nominations for Second Fellowship Cohort
Tweet
Share
Share
0 Shares

Comments

  1. RACHAEL ROSEN says:
    March 13, 2023 at 10:58 pm

    WHAT is the testing faith act? I hate to be stupid,but what is this big split
    Regarding Israel.. What am I not reading??? HELP

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

  • Blog Home
  • Our Bloggers




    Danielle V. Minson
    CEO
    Raising the Bar






    Ari Ballaban
    JCRC Director
    In Conversation






    Debra Steinbuch
    Chief Development Officer
    Your Impact






    Jaynie Levinson
    Jaynie Levinson works to create networking and engagement opportunities that attract and retain Jewish young adults in Cincinnati.





    Israeli Chronicles
    Connecting Israel & Cincinnati


COMMUNITY RESOURCES

  • Career Center
  • Cincy Journeys
  • Community Calendar
  • Community Directory
  • COVID-19 Hotline
  • COVID-19 Resource Hub
  • Create Your Jewish Legacy
  • Interest Free Loans
  • PJ Library

QUICK LINKS

  • 2019 Community Study
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Donor-Advised Funds
  • Jewish Holiday Calendar
  • Make a Gift of Stock
  • Media Resources
  • Online Rules of Conduct

CONTACT US

Jewish Federation of Cincinnati
8499 Ridge Road
Cincinnati, OH 45236

5139851500
info@jfedcin.org

CONNECT

Sign up for updates

The Jewish Federation of Cincinnati has received a 4-star rating of "exceptional," the highest possible, from Charity Navigator. The Jewish Federation of Cincinnati is a 501(c)(3) organization.

Copyright © 2023 Jewish Federation of Cincinnati. All Rights Reserved.

Powered by FEDWEB ® Central Privacy Policy Terms of Use