Rabbi Dov Fischer of Orange County has taken a strong interest in the controversy here regarding the Olive Tree Initiative at UCI and the question of Jewish support for this program. With his permission, I am posting his message below. (I have linked Rabbi Fischer's blog, "Young Israel of Orange County" to my own.)
"Hi, everyone.
I live in a place where, at the local university, Arab Moslem students and radical liberal Jewish professors often compare Israel to Nazi Germany, and Zionism to Nazism and racism. Perhaps you live near such a place, too. My place is called “earth.”
I write as a section in northern Israel is ablaze with the worst forest fire in Israel’s history. Trees can be re-planted. Lives cannot be replaced in this world. I note that the deaths in Israel occurred almost exclusively from an effort by the Government of Israel to save the lives of incarcerated criminal “Palestinians” (i.e., Arabs who were living in Judea and Samaria). The “Palestinian” Arabs would have burned to a crisp in their prison. Israel risked and lost dozens of precious Jewish lives to try saving those people, “Palestinian” criminals one and all.
Let us set aside for now the Jew-haters of Europe, Africa, Asia. Rather, there are students in America right now trying to boycott “Sabra” hummus at Princeton University in the Ivy League and at some other universities because that brand is connected with Israel, “a racist Nazi state.” As a result, our shul no longer will use any brand of hummus at kiddush and Seudah Shlishit except for “Sabra” brand. Meanwhile, the Orange County Jewish Federation gives thousands of dollars in money grants to UCI Jewish students to help assist with the cost of their tuition and airfare to attend “Olive Tree Institute” (“O T I ”) programs in the Middle East, where those Jewish students travel along with Arab Moslem students, Druze, and Christian students, and are brought to “Palestine/ The West Bank” to hear trained and skilled world-class anti-Israel Palestinian Arab propagandists like George Rishmawi explain the Palestinian viewpoint, with the presentations tailored to the nuanced ear of the American students, aimed at sending back confused young people better sensitized to Palestinian aspirations. (Adding to the students’ confusion, while half the OTI program feeds them Palestinian propaganda inside the Arab villages of the “Palestinian West Bank,” the other half brings them within Israel to hear a diversity of views ranging from stronger Zionist to left-wing Israeli views. They then come home, courtesy of the Orange County Jewish Federation, believing they have heard “balance” and that they now are better informed than they had been before their OTI trip.) And the Orange County Hillel endorses this Olive Tree Institute program.
That is the crazy world in which we live.
I am reminded of the Zionism-racism canard. In the world of reality, outside this “topsy-turvy world,” Israel stands as the only country in world history that undertook to evacuate masses of Black people from the heartland of Africa for the purpose of bringing them from oppression to equal-status citizenship and freedom. Now dozens of Israeli lives have been lost saving “Palestinian” Arab criminal prisoners who were in harm’s way. It is something to think about, something to teach our children.
And, if you are going to plant an olive tree, plant it in Israel."
Rabbi Dov Fischer
Rav, Young Israel of Orange County
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15 comments:
I would cheerfully eat Sabra humus, but I don't like humus, no matter where it came from. Israel is not a Nazi state. There are strands of racism in its culture and politics, as there are in most parts of the world. The rabbi neglects to mention that students participating in the Olive Tree Initiative also hear from many Israeli viewpoints. True peace in the middle east will be established by people who can rise above the conflict, while having a sound insight into the limited and virulent concerns of people on all sides of the conflict, coming up with a solution everyone can (however begrudgingly) live with. This rabbi's drumbeat of propaganda, infused with a sense of self-righteous racial pride, is not helpful.
To be truthful, 43 lives have been lost so far, not all Jewish. To save those prisoners 40 cadets were kill, many were Druze. These brave men and women are equal citizens of Israel. They serve in the IDF (Drafted like Jewish Israelis.), have and enjoy the full privileges of a free people, and are living in the only place in the Middle East where they are treated like equals and full citizens.
No other nation in the Middle East treats its minorities such. Not one of those so-call "enlightened" nations. Instead they systematically destroy those who do not conform to Islam.
They are the true Nazi states. And they know it too!
No other nation in the Middle East treats its minorities such. Not one of those so-call "enlightened" nations.
Who the hell is calling them "enlightened"?
Not all ideas or points of view are equal. Just because someone thinks something, doesn't make it valid or correct. One wouldn't send their children to spend some time listening to Nazi propaganda and then say its okay because they also got to the chance to hear FDR.
Also, just because a viewpoint is Israeli does not make it right. Plenty of Israeli's have views that the mainstream Jewish community would not want their children to be associated with.
Thank you Rabbi Fischer for pointing out the truth about the real Israel and how its people put themselves in harms way to save other individuals, who have death to Israel and its citizens in their hearts. Hopefully, those saved will understand the true nature of Israel and its citizens. Moreover, as the good Rabbi points out, look to this example in order to judge Israel and its people. Let this be the story that counters the UCI/MSU hate speech against a righteous nation.
Squid
There is no righteous nation, just as there is no "Christian" nation. Either adjective is an oxymoron when linked with the word "nation."
Anonymous might have a point, if the goal in 1940 was for some neutral party to bring the U.S. and Nazi Germany together to live in peace and amity. However, neither nation shared a border, and the policies and the war that ultimately developed between them was an ideological one, not a war over territory. Germany had its hands full seeking "Lebensraum" in Russia.
Ultimately, we dismembered Nazi Germany, and subjected the German nation to a period of occupation, during which we restructured its government and, (although we would never use the phrase) re-educated its people and its social institutions in significant ways.
The conflicts in the middle east COULD be resolved either by Israeli occupation of all significant Arab territory surrounding Israel, OR by Arab occupation of Israel. The former seems a bit too much for Israel to pull off successfully, while the latter would be unacceptable for reasons eloquently set forth by others already.
So, that leaves some sort of mutually acceptable settlement.
It is embarrassing to see one of our local Orange County Rabbis take part in this defamation campaign against a good-willed non-partisan organization like the Olive Tree Initiative.
Rabbi Fisher, you should be ashamed of yourself.
The current disputed territories came into Israel's possession during the defensive war of 1967. After the war, Israel offered to return the territories in exchange for peace. The Arab League responded by the famous 3 No's of Khartoum, "no peace with Israel, no recognition of Israel, no negotiations with it."
As this example(one of many) shows, the conflict is not about territory. The conflict in the middle east is in fact an ideological one. Possibly a more dangerous ideology than Nazism, as Nazism was secular, where the radical ideology of the Arab world that is against Israel is rooted in religion. That is far more difficult to combat.
Anonymous.
"It is embarrassing to see one of our local Orange County Rabbis take part in this defamation campaign against a good-willed non-partisan organization like the Olive Tree Initiative."
Which is worse, when an individual (Rabbi Fischer) attacks an organization (or two) or when an organization (or two or three) attacks an individual private citizen?
This controvesry began when a private individual (not the rabbi) criticized the OTI and the support coming from the OC Jewish Federation and Hillel due to the involvement of George S Rishmawi and other suspect characters. In return, she was vilified by name in front of the community by these entities.
So I ask you; which is worse?
Either Anonymous is schizophrenic, or one of them is an imposter.
Arab hostility toward Israel has not always been rooted in religion. The Grand Mufti certainly tried to whip up religious pretexts and emotions, but Yassir Arafat was not notably observant, and then there were the rhetorically "left wing" secular Arab national socialist groups, before Hamas and Hezb-i-u-Lah moved a religious program back to center stage.
Israel could have stolen a march on the Arab League by simply announcing that it had recovered Palestinian territory from illegal Jordanian occupation, in defiance of the 1948 UN resolutions, and then invited the Palestinian population to form an independent government, under IDF protection.
"Arab hostility toward Israel has not always been rooted in religion."
It may not have always been rooted in the kind of radical Islam we see today, but it certainly has always been rooted in religion, hatred of Jews.
I would like to know who on the "other side" you would suggest to get a balanced view. Who would be an acceptable choice for you. The OTI group is always open to suggestions of who to meet with. In fact, the meet with the Jewish Federation to get suggestions. Why don't you email them and make some instead of this unhelpful condemnation. Are we not trying to move on to a deeper, more constructive way through this conflict (locally and in the region)?
Katherine,
I'm not sure who you are addressing the comment to , me or a reader. The OTI does meet with people on both sides. Last night, they hosted the Israeli Minister for Diplomacy and the Diaspora.
I am trying to keep an open mind, and I have been cautious in dealing with the split within the Jewish Community as it pertains to individuals.
The controversy over the OTI will rise or fall over the question of just who are the pro-Palestinian figures involved in OTI-such as Geo S Rishmawi. Certainly, the students can be exposed to other points of view. However,if these so called peace activists support or are linked to ISM and the BDS movement and their real goal is the delitimization of Israel-and eventual dissolution of Israel, then these are legitimate points of discussion-especially for those who fund it.
As for the Federation, I have posted some links on their site (OC jewish experience) that give additional info about Rishmawi et al. I don't think they are much interested in my point of view.
Gary, your well-intentioned critique of the Palestinians and Palestinian viewpoints that OTI introduces people to misses an essential point of diplomacy. Peace requires that enemies sit down and talk with each other, not merely that nice uninvolved parties talk about how nice it would be if the bad guys put down their guns.
The struggle against apartheid in South Africa ended when the leader of an avowedly and viciously racist party sat down and hammered out a deal with a man serving a life sentence for terrorism.
On both sides, there were people who sincerely considered that series of meetings to be an unprincipled sellout. Indeed, it can be argued that it left many problems unresolved, and many people suffering. But as Joe Slovo, the man who always wore red socks, candidly told the press "We didn't win. I wish we did, but neither side could overcome the other."
Siarlys Jenkins has it wrong. Yes, peace requires that enemies sit down and talk with each other but it must begin with the truth.
When an enemy is intractable and constantly acts in a capricious manner and never respect any agreement they sign. There is a time when one must realize that there is nobody to talk to or sit down with, sadly.
These Arabs/Palis should be reinstated and integrated in the 22Arabs States that were created also after WWI with the same mandate that Israel was reborn. That will be the only solution if we ever reach peace in the Middle East. It is time to realize so.
The Arabs only discovered Palestine in the 1920's most came from the Arabian Desert to seek work, skill and freedom when the Jewish people came to reestablish their ancestral and legal homeland, in Palestine.
And in fact, there is no such people-hood called Palestinians even as we speak, they are Arabs. Palestine was never a sovereign power. And in spite of it all, the Arabs now called “Palestinians” have had ample opportunities to create their own state, but they rejected it repeatedly. Why? Because they don’t want a state; their main goal is to destroy the one tiny state of Israel as a Jewish state. Make no bones about it.
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