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Israel: Improve It, Don't Forsake It

Dear Friends,

Land – one particular land – is fundamental to our Jewish story, our history, and our relationship with God. God’s very first communication to the very first Jew, Abraham, discusses the Promised Land.

It is fascinating that we are a people deeply connected to that small strip of land, and yet we have spent so much of our long history beyond its borders.  

Our return to that land and the establishment of the state of Israel is a modern miracle. The fact that it was achieved through diplomacy, realpolitik, violence, and war – and that some gained and others lost land – does not make it less miraculous.

This complicated world yields conflicting truths. Israel’s problems are real, but they in no way diminish our attachment to and support for the state. Israel’s new governing coalition threatens fundamental values. I can be concerned; I can critique; I can decry. But I will not forsake.

Democracy is messy. Autonomy is messy. Problems are real; they are serious. Our task – a sacred task – is to be steadfast in our support for Jewish autonomy while being no less steadfast in our support for those who labor to employ that autonomy in the most humane and just way possible.

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Jeffrey Weill

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