Australia cultural festival opens in Israel
June 23, 2009 by Steve
June 21, 2009
SYDNEY, Australia (JTA) — The first Australian cultural festival opened in Israel.
G’day Shalom Salaam, highlighting a robust Australia-Israel relationship, launched Saturday night in Jerusalem with the opening of the Australian Film Festival featuring "Tackling Peace," a documentary about Israelis and Palestinians who came to Australia last year to compete in an international Australian Rules football tournament.
Among the highlights of the festival, an initiative of Australia Israel Cultural Exchange Chair Albert Dadon, is a two-day leadership forum featuring some 40 high-profile Australians. The forum is led by Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard, the highest-ranking member of the Labor government to visit Israel since the 2007 election.
Among the more than 30 Israelis attending the forum are Education Minister Gideon Saar, and Industry and Trade Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer. The Australian delegation, which also includes former treasurer Peter Costello, will visit Ramallah and meet Palestinian leaders.
Cultural highlights of the six-day festival include a concert by piano prodigy David Helfgott — made famous by the Oscar-winning film "Shine" — and concerts by Australian jazz giants Paul Grabowsky and Joe Chindamo. Guillaume Brahimi, the critically acclaimed head chef at the Sydney Opera House, is flying in to take over the kitchens of the King David Hotel for a night.
More than 150 Australians had signed a petition urging Gillard to cancel her trip and slamming Israel’s human rights record. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s nephew, artist Van Thanh Rudd, was among the signers.
"We reject the oft-touted cliché that Israel is a democracy like Australia,” the petition said.
But Gillard, who will meet senior Israeli and Palestinian leaders, said her visit will highlight the strong Australia-Israel ties.
"I intend to reaffirm Australia’s ongoing support for Israel’s right to live in peace and security within defined borders," she said. "I will also reiterate that a just and lasting peace in the Middle East must be based on a two-state solution to the conflict."
[This article was re-printed with thanks from the JTA website]
Update from Wednesday, June 17, 2009 High Court of Justice hearing re: Miri Gold
June 19, 2009 by Steve
The High Court of Justice severely criticized the State, and that after four years of the petition pending, the State still has not given an accepted response. The proposal included in the Committee’s report also does not provide a solution to the problem, because it discussed the general topic of the rabbis in regional councils instead of giving a practical solution as the state was required to do.
The State’s attorney stated that while the State is prepared to consider providing financial support to the Reform Movement, the State will not create a specific post for non-Orthodox rabbis in regional councils. The attorney claimed that it is too symbolic for the State to directly fund non-Orthodox rabbis, rather he raised the possibility of giving general funding to non-Orthodox communities to be distributed as the community sees fit.
We replied that we are not arguing about the symbols, but we insist on our right to receive support in our religious and rabbinical activities and we oppose to the suggestion that the State will give general financial support that can be changed or revoked at any time instead of allocating an official post.
At the end of the hearing, the court gave the State a period of 4 months, during which negotiations will take place between us and the State regarding the parameters according to which non-Orthodox services will be funded.
We will insist on intensive negotiations with the State, and if we do not reach an agreement, we will return to court.
“We are pleased with the Court’s attitude, which implicitly told the State that it is not possible to accept the continued discrimination of non-Orthodox rabbis.”
– IRAC Attorney Orly Erez-Likhovski
“Following the conversion classes case, it is quite clear that the State has a lot of homework to do in order to create the system for which non-Orthodox congregations will be financially supported. We look forward to fruitful discussions with the State as was decided in today’s hearing.”
– Attorney Einat Hurvitz, Director of the Legal & Public Policy Department
Reprinted from the website of IRAC www.irac.org
US Reform rabbis back Obama on settlements
June 11, 2009 by Steve
By Eric Fingerhut · June 10, 2009
WASHINGTON (JTA) — The Reform rabbinate is backing President Obama’s position on Israeli settlements.
The Central Conference of American Rabbis, which represents nearly 2,000 Reform rabbis, said it believes the president’s call for a stop to all Israeli settlement activity and his "outspokenness" on the issue is "in the best interest of the United States, of the State of Israel, and of peace."
"The CCAR has also long seen settlements in the West Bank as potential obstacles to peace," said the statement from Rabbis Ellen Weinberg Dreyfus and Steven Fox, president and executive vice president of the organization. "Repeatedly, we have called for freezing settlement activity. Establishing new settlements or ‘outposts,’ or continuing to expand existing settlements, even by ‘natural growth,’ does not serve the cause of Israel or of peace."
The group, though, also emphasized that "Israeli settlements in the West Bank are not the greatest threat to Middle East peace." It said the "Iranian regime’s ongoing nuclear threats against Israel and its support for Hezbollah, Hamas, and other terrorist groups pose the single greatest threat to peace, to the United States, to the Middle East, and to Israel today."
In addition, the CCAR said, "Israel cannot be expected to make significant concessions when it remains under terrorist attack."
[reprinted with thanks to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency]
World Union replies to controversial comments by Yeshiva University head
June 1, 2009 by Steve
By Dr. Philip Bliss, Vice Chair / Advocacy
The irony with the premature kaddish for the non-Orthodox movements as proposed by Dr. Norman Lamm (The Jerusalem Post; May 10, 2009) is that the main problem that certainly affects the Progressive movement is finding enough funds to support the ever-increasing demand for Reform/Progressive services around the world.
Every year the World Union for Progressive Judaism helps fund summer camps in the FSU for over 1,200 children. With more resources this number could easily treble. There are hundreds of fledgling Reform communities around the FSU and Eastern Europe that are crying out for support so they can develop and expand their Jewish communities with a welcoming and inclusive attitude that is promoted by Progressive Judaism. Progressive movements around Europe, Britain and Australasia are thriving.
Every year in Israel, thousands of Israelis utilize the services of Progressive congregations for b’nai mitzvah, marriages and other life cycle events. The demand is huge and the only thing holding back an explosion of the Progressive movement both in the FSU and Israel is the problem of raising enough funds to support the needs.
The reason is simple: so many families who wish to either re-unite with their Judaism or families where one partner may not be Jewish but wish to raise their children in a Jewish environment see the Progressive movement as being inclusive, warm and welcoming. We would rather welcome a non-Jewish partner with the future hope of conversion than risk alienating the Jewish spouse. There are thousands of families who bring their children up as Jews in a Jewish home but where one partner may not be Jewish. We see this as part of the mission for our movement so we can unite families and help and support with any future conversions.
The Progressive movement led by the World Union for Progressive Judaism sees no advantage in excluding Jews whether by sexual orientation or who feel themselves on the fringes of the Jewish world.
Jewish education, Tikkun Olam and a recognition of Jews living in a modern society have all helped to develop the Progressive/Reform movements around the world. If only more Progressive members could help support this work then Progressive Judaism will enjoy unlimited years of success and growth.
Rabbi Dr. Norman Lamm, chancellor of New York City’s Yeshiva University. Inset: Dr. Philip Bliss, the World Union’s vice chairman for advocacy.