Herzog to General Assembly: Israel-Diaspora divide is existential threat
Chairman of the Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI) Isaac Herzog said that the distancing of the Jews in the Diaspora from those in Israel constitutes an “existential threat,” which could lead to “a significant part” being lost if efforts are not made to address the divides.
Speaking in his keynote address at the General Assembly of the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) in Tel Aviv on Tuesday, Herzog said that he would promote Hebrew-language education in the Diaspora, and would establish avenues of dialogue between Israeli and Diaspora Jews to help bridge the ruptures.
Israel’s main challenge, he argued, was to preserve its status as “a Jewish-democratic state,” but also expressed concern over “the identity crisis of many North American millennials” that threatens the success of Jewry on the continent, and addressed the tensions that have beset relations between the two groups of late.
“If Israel and the Jews of the Diaspora do not seek common ground in order to
courageously confront together the challenges of this new age, we are in danger of losing a significant part of the Jewish people,” declared Herzog, for whom the JFNA General Assembly was his first major public appearance as chairman of the Jewish Agency.
He said that the central challenge facing Israel is how to ensure its longterm existence “as a Jewish-democratic state,” which requires reaching a two-state solution with the Palestinians, dealing with Israel’s societal divides, and renewing and updating the Zionist identity.
The challenge facing North American Jewry, said Herzog, is “to find a balance between singularity and universalism,” by engaging with Jewish youth, “revitalizing” Jewish organizations
for 21st century challenges, and satisfying the “thirst” for intellectual and spiritual content.
He continued that a shared challenge is to tackle “the existential threat… of the Diaspora distancing itself from Israel — and Israel distancing itself from the Diaspora,” said the JAFI chairman.
“I see the growing rift between our communities, and I am shaken to my core. In Israel there are those who shamefully refuse to recognize the great non-Orthodox Judaism of North America. In North America, there are those who disavow the centrality of Israel to Jewish life,” he stated.
“I’ll be frank: if Israel and the Jews of the Diaspora do not seek common ground, in order to courageously confront together the challenges of this new age, we are in danger of losing a significant part of the Jewish people.” Herzog added that Jews could no longer pretend that they are all the same or that there are no major disagreements.
Therefore, a new “pluralistic” form of unity is required, where the differences between the various groups are respected amid “a new spirit of loving critical discourse,” Herzog said.
To help reconnect Israeli and Diaspora Jews, Herzog called on the government to allocate “a substantial budget” for teaching Hebrew around the Jewish world which could serve as a “common denominator” for Jews of all types and increase mutual understanding.
He said he would also establish “hundreds of faction-crossing, stream-crossing and continent-crossing dialogues,” so that “Israelis will learn to appreciate and know the magnificent civilization of world Jewry, while world Jewry will learn to appreciate the achievements of Zionism and the beauty of Israeliness.”
Addressing the conference later on Tuesday, JFNA president Jerry Silverman insisted that Israel’s government should listen to the input of world Jewry on issues that affect all Jews, but also acknowledged that the perspective of Israelis on many issues sharply differed from Jews in the Diaspora.
“I believe that yes, we do have a role to play in having influence on Israeli policies that affect us as a people. Because Israel is more than a piece of land, more than a sovereign nation. It is a concept, an ideal, of what defines us as a people, and the result of God’s covenant with all the Jewish people,” he said.
Silverman reiterated, “Israel needs world Jewry. It is strengthened by having partners that model vibrant Jewish life outside her borders. We don’t have to agree but we do need to appreciate and respect our differences and more importantly we need to find new ways to move forward together.” •