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From: Dovid Ben Chaim
To: heb_roots_chr@hebroots.org
Subject: Christians Aren't the Enemy

[Below, an Op-Ed from the inestimable Wall St. Journal. There's a real irony and a real lesson here. For decades fostering Christian/Jewish relations was a pet project, and one of the highest goals, of the Jewish and Christian left: liberals "dialoguing" with liberals. But now that America's (conservative) Christians have come forward en masse to support a Jewish state in its hour of need, Jewish liberals are viciously on the attack. Moral of the story: Jewish liberals are driven by liberal ideology not Jewish values. The Left is hopelessly depraved, insidious and hypocritical, "a thorn in our side."]

WSJ, 8/16/02

Christians Aren't the Enemy

By YECHIEL ECKSTEIN

Last week Saudi newspapers launched a concerted attack on American Christians, who, in their eyes, are too anti-Saudi and pro-Israel. "Christian fundamentalism is no less dangerous to international peace and security than extremists in other religions," the al-Watan newspaper, which reflects Riyadh's thinking, stated. "Rather it is more dangerous, especially if it controls the policy of the United States."

Ironically enough, this might be the first time that many American Jews would find themselves nodding in semi-agreement with the virulently anti-Semitic, anti-Israel press of Saudi Arabia. For although conservative Christians are Israel's most steadfast friends in America, many Jews remain deeply suspicious of them.

The Jerusalem Report warned of an "apocalyptic foreign policy" that, while superficially pro-Israel, was designed to "bring on doomsday and, by the way, the conversion of the Jews." The New Republic decried what it termed the "Messianic" and "Manichean" nature of Christian support for Israel, concluding harshly, "Ultimately, if you don't love Israel for what it is, you can't be trusted to love it at all." Columnist Frank Rich of the New York Times promised to be "paranoid" about Christians and their "theological self-interest" in the Second Coming of Christ. And the executive director of the American Jewish Committee charged that "to affirm their own beliefs," conservative Christians "have to deny the beliefs of others."

As a rabbi who has worked for 25 years to build understanding between Christians and Jews, I have found that these unfortunate sentiments are neither new nor well-founded. I have not yet found any evidence that Christian conservatives threaten American Jews, but I have found plenty of evidence that they support Jews both in Israel and elsewhere.

The Southern Baptist Convention this year passed a resolution heralding the "historic connection" between Jews and Israel. Led by House Majority Whip Tom DeLay, and with strong backing from religious conservatives, the House of Representatives passed a resolution urging America to stand firmly behind our ally Israel. Perhaps most significantly, President Bush, himself a devout evangelical, has emerged as a strong backer of Israel and a critic of terrorist violence directed against it. Less visibly, but no less importantly, during the past seven years American evangelicals have donated well over $100 million in humanitarian assistance for Jews in need worldwide, for such things as resettlement costs, housing, food, and medical aid.

Christian solidarity with Israel, while much commented upon recently, is not a new phenomenon. It traces all the way back to 1948, when President Harry Truman defied the foreign policy establishment to recognize the new state of Israel. Truman's desire to win Jewish votes no doubt played a part in his decision. But much more significant was his own Christian conviction, steeped in years of reading the Bible, that supporting Israel was a moral imperative.

Reinhold Niebuhr, perhaps the most influential American theologian of the 20th century, was also a tireless proponent of the Jewish state. Niebuhr persistently admonished his fellow Christians of the need to create and sustain a Jewish homeland, and rallied support for Israel during the dark early days, when the young nation's very survival was at stake -- just as it is now.

Today America and Israel, Christians and Jews, find ourselves allies in a struggle for the soul and survival of our civilization. It is time to bury old suspicions and fears, and unite in a new moment of solidarity. I do not mean to suggest that we gloss over or compromise the integrity of our very real theological differences. But American Jews must realize that we share a common moral inheritance with our Christian friends. The Judeo-Christian ethic is grounded in respect for the dignity of the person, the sanctity of life, the pursuit of justice, and the call of peace. Our mutual allegiance to liberty binds us together, even while leaving us free to maintain our distinctive identities.

In this crisis moment, it is time for the Jewish community to shed some of its prejudices, to reflect on just who really are its true adversaries -- and its true friends -- and to seek genuine reconciliation with the American Christians it has maligned. So doing would provide one more powerful basis for Jews and Christians to stand together, and to look ahead.

It is true that some Christians have firm views on the end-times as they relate to Israel. Perhaps these Christians need to consider carefully just how they voice their support, and do so in a manner grounded in respect, prudence and compassion. In a nation as theologically diverse as the U.S., one would expect nothing less than a range of religious opinions; indeed American Judaism has its own pluralism.

But after my 25 years of working closely with American evangelicals, I am more than ever convinced that the overwhelming majority of Christian support for Israel is based on the simple admonition of Psalms: "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: may those who love you be secure."

Rabbi Eckstein is founder of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, and co-chairman of Stand for Israel.

Shabbat Shalom!

--
Dovid Ben Chaim

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