They care more about preserving Israeli impunity than opposing sexual harassment, combatting anti-Muslim bigotry, or even defending American democracy.
Thanks, Peter, for this powerful reminder. These leaders are working against the interests of their own constituents—including their children's futures here in the USA.
History shows us that when bigotry and white Christian nationalism go unchecked, no minority remains safe. Jews will not be exempt.
When loyalty to any state reaches idolatry, what's left of the faith?
This applies to so many Evangelical Christian leaders. Idolatry has been growing in all religions among their conservative leaders & followers in order to maintain a supremacy order.
Peter, you’re the only one with a platform who’s said what I’ve been thinking: how could Cosgrove and all these others tell their congregants to vote for a serial harasser of women and rank islamophobe like Cuomo? These leaders are hurting all Jews by taking these unethical (and yes, fundamentally idolatrous as I learned from reading your book), positions, including their own congregations as you eloquently point out. Thank you so much voicing these truths. 🙏🏻
I cannot express strongly enough my admiration for your intellectual honesty and moral authority, and for the consistency and courage you have held to during this grave crisis in Gaza. You stand for something, and at a time when so many have abandoned their principles for political (basically personal) advantage. There are still the heroic among us, and we need them more than ever. Thank you Mr. Beinart.
I concur with the core, but I also think "unconditional support " is over the top. I know some of the rabbis about whom you write. Many made agonizing decisions for the reasons you write . We can agree they made the wrong choice. But characterizing them all as one-dimensioal idolaters is totalist and authoritarian in a different way
Maybe the decision was agonizing for some of them, but in the end, they acted from a place of fear and bigotry. I don’t respect or sympathize with that. Why should Jewish women ever trust these so-called leaders who ask them to vote for a misogynist? These leaders could have stayed in their lane as clergy instead of inserting themselves in this destructive way, widening an already big rift in the sacred places we pray and seek community.
I agree with you, Sara. My point was not to encourage sympathy, but to discourage one-dimensional caricatures. Some of those dimensions, as you suggest, are fear and biogtry. That is contemptible and kumbaya has limits. But I think it serves us to know the opposition in a not cookie-cutter way.
The greatest drives of antisemitism in American society are AIPAC and the JDL. I can't figure out whether their leaders are fools, power hungry, corrupt, or all three. Perhaps they should reread the famed poem by Martin Niemoller:
As antisemitism continues to grow, there are those in our community that continue to double-down on supporting Israel's abhorrent behavior. What are we doing?? Israel being a safe space for Jews is a complete fairytale. Without funding from the US, Israel would fold in weeks.
“Love of Israel” is indeed a form of idolatry that has committed many Jewish people and organizations to bigotry. I am 79, and cannot remember a time when uncritical support of the political nation-state was not embedded in every sermon, congregational plan and High Holidays fundraiser. It may be that the vast majority of my fellow Jews believe they can’t trust a Muslim, although history illustrates that the inverse would be more appropriate.
We used to speak with pride of American Jewish leaders of the fight for the civil rights of Black Americans. Are we at all the same people who led with MLK across the Edmund Pettus Bridge? Or are we more truly those who cruelly cheered every Israeli victory over people defending their own land?
Zohran Mamdani is a man of ideals and a commitment to try to make life better for others. That he is viewed as a threat to Jews simply because his culture and faith—like ours—are different shows the prominent and powerful Jewish organizations and lobbies to be nothing more than agents of their own self-interest and bigotry.
After Israel passed the clearly supremist nation -state law in 2018 I asked a couple rabbis when would they speak out against the sins of Israel. My question was met with silence.
Since then any questioning or criticism of Israel has been met with hostility by my children's whole zionist side of our family, mostly in the form of silence and ostracization.
As a lapsed Lutheran raising my kids Jewish as their Jewish mother requested I feel I'm raising them in a burning house. Voices like Peter's and Jewish Currents give me hope there are others in America Jewish community to put out the fires and build something better from the ashes.
Beinart is NOT the only thought leader speaking out, though he certainly one of the most consistent and passionate Jewish voices in America. Jeremy Ben-Ami with J Street is another. Check out his substack if you haven’t yet.
At my large synagogue, our clergy has been challenged very strongly by people who just couldn’t stay silent about the treatment of Palestinians in Israel and the Gaza war any longer. So even though congregants have diverse opinions about the Israeli government, more people are feeling less isolated in their own thoughts.
Particularly since the Citizen’s United SCOTUS decision in 2010 one of the Nazi party’s strategies has been has been with their megawealthy business interested coalition to swamp election campaigns with so many dollars that an election win is expected
But despite the Muskrat spending $20M in the weeks before the Wisconsin Supreme Court race to support the Nazi candidate who lost Now the billionaires are at it again outspending the Mamdami campaign $8 to $1 Obviously the billionaires don’t want to see NY city taxes increase under Mamdami This isn’t about disagreement with policy it’s about the megawealthy avoiding paying their fair share And Muskrat, Theil, and their billionaire buddies are planning to use their mega$ to influence future elections so they can harness political power with Cheeto at the helm, pouring millions of dollars into the Virginia and New Jersey gubernatorial races
It’s now gotten to the point of greed Nazi billionaires not wanting to pay their fair share in a society that has given them more than enough to live comfortably And Americans are waking up to the wealth inequality as measured by an ever expanding income gap in the country
as many wise Jewish commentators have written after 1967. Judaism became Zionism and the state of Israel became the modern golden calf,an idol unworthy of ultimate fealty.
The great rabbis connected to the American council of Judaism in the early 40s men like Berger,Reichert snf Lazaron warned fellow Jews, not to turn the prophetic religion of the prophets
into Jewish nationalism.
zionism as the great secular prophet Gideon Levy reminds us has become the national religion of Israel
serious Jews like Peter Beinart see bravely warning other Jews to embrace a Judaism beyond Zionism,
Thanks, Peter, for this powerful reminder. These leaders are working against the interests of their own constituents—including their children's futures here in the USA.
History shows us that when bigotry and white Christian nationalism go unchecked, no minority remains safe. Jews will not be exempt.
When loyalty to any state reaches idolatry, what's left of the faith?
Peter. As you know, I’m not Jewish, yet your post makes it clear why I follow you. Your
“Stand” is against those who still don’t dare to speak against “Israel.” Guys like
Schumer who won’t join the
huge group of Democrats who signed a letter demanding an end to Israel’s
genocide. I actually called him and asked him why he
didn’t sign. He said he didn’t
have time to talk about.
Thanks Peter for your brave
stance against the genocide
in Israel. I also want to mention the amazing Israeli
group “Standing Together”
who are traveling here in US
to speak against the “regime”.
Linda Snider
This applies to so many Evangelical Christian leaders. Idolatry has been growing in all religions among their conservative leaders & followers in order to maintain a supremacy order.
Not just unconditional support for the state of Israel, but for a specifically Jewish supremacy version of Israel, which is what it is today.
Peter, you’re the only one with a platform who’s said what I’ve been thinking: how could Cosgrove and all these others tell their congregants to vote for a serial harasser of women and rank islamophobe like Cuomo? These leaders are hurting all Jews by taking these unethical (and yes, fundamentally idolatrous as I learned from reading your book), positions, including their own congregations as you eloquently point out. Thank you so much voicing these truths. 🙏🏻
👏 👏 👏
I cannot express strongly enough my admiration for your intellectual honesty and moral authority, and for the consistency and courage you have held to during this grave crisis in Gaza. You stand for something, and at a time when so many have abandoned their principles for political (basically personal) advantage. There are still the heroic among us, and we need them more than ever. Thank you Mr. Beinart.
I concur with the core, but I also think "unconditional support " is over the top. I know some of the rabbis about whom you write. Many made agonizing decisions for the reasons you write . We can agree they made the wrong choice. But characterizing them all as one-dimensioal idolaters is totalist and authoritarian in a different way
Maybe the decision was agonizing for some of them, but in the end, they acted from a place of fear and bigotry. I don’t respect or sympathize with that. Why should Jewish women ever trust these so-called leaders who ask them to vote for a misogynist? These leaders could have stayed in their lane as clergy instead of inserting themselves in this destructive way, widening an already big rift in the sacred places we pray and seek community.
I agree with you, Sara. My point was not to encourage sympathy, but to discourage one-dimensional caricatures. Some of those dimensions, as you suggest, are fear and biogtry. That is contemptible and kumbaya has limits. But I think it serves us to know the opposition in a not cookie-cutter way.
Understood, Hank. And agreed.
The greatest drives of antisemitism in American society are AIPAC and the JDL. I can't figure out whether their leaders are fools, power hungry, corrupt, or all three. Perhaps they should reread the famed poem by Martin Niemoller:
First they came for the Communists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist
Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist
Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist
Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew
Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me
As antisemitism continues to grow, there are those in our community that continue to double-down on supporting Israel's abhorrent behavior. What are we doing?? Israel being a safe space for Jews is a complete fairytale. Without funding from the US, Israel would fold in weeks.
“Love of Israel” is indeed a form of idolatry that has committed many Jewish people and organizations to bigotry. I am 79, and cannot remember a time when uncritical support of the political nation-state was not embedded in every sermon, congregational plan and High Holidays fundraiser. It may be that the vast majority of my fellow Jews believe they can’t trust a Muslim, although history illustrates that the inverse would be more appropriate.
We used to speak with pride of American Jewish leaders of the fight for the civil rights of Black Americans. Are we at all the same people who led with MLK across the Edmund Pettus Bridge? Or are we more truly those who cruelly cheered every Israeli victory over people defending their own land?
Zohran Mamdani is a man of ideals and a commitment to try to make life better for others. That he is viewed as a threat to Jews simply because his culture and faith—like ours—are different shows the prominent and powerful Jewish organizations and lobbies to be nothing more than agents of their own self-interest and bigotry.
Love Peter Beinart. A man of moral courage and integrity- well said.
After Israel passed the clearly supremist nation -state law in 2018 I asked a couple rabbis when would they speak out against the sins of Israel. My question was met with silence.
Since then any questioning or criticism of Israel has been met with hostility by my children's whole zionist side of our family, mostly in the form of silence and ostracization.
As a lapsed Lutheran raising my kids Jewish as their Jewish mother requested I feel I'm raising them in a burning house. Voices like Peter's and Jewish Currents give me hope there are others in America Jewish community to put out the fires and build something better from the ashes.
Beinart is NOT the only thought leader speaking out, though he certainly one of the most consistent and passionate Jewish voices in America. Jeremy Ben-Ami with J Street is another. Check out his substack if you haven’t yet.
At my large synagogue, our clergy has been challenged very strongly by people who just couldn’t stay silent about the treatment of Palestinians in Israel and the Gaza war any longer. So even though congregants have diverse opinions about the Israeli government, more people are feeling less isolated in their own thoughts.
Cheeto And Nazi Billionaires Buying Elections
Particularly since the Citizen’s United SCOTUS decision in 2010 one of the Nazi party’s strategies has been has been with their megawealthy business interested coalition to swamp election campaigns with so many dollars that an election win is expected
But despite the Muskrat spending $20M in the weeks before the Wisconsin Supreme Court race to support the Nazi candidate who lost Now the billionaires are at it again outspending the Mamdami campaign $8 to $1 Obviously the billionaires don’t want to see NY city taxes increase under Mamdami This isn’t about disagreement with policy it’s about the megawealthy avoiding paying their fair share And Muskrat, Theil, and their billionaire buddies are planning to use their mega$ to influence future elections so they can harness political power with Cheeto at the helm, pouring millions of dollars into the Virginia and New Jersey gubernatorial races
It’s now gotten to the point of greed Nazi billionaires not wanting to pay their fair share in a society that has given them more than enough to live comfortably And Americans are waking up to the wealth inequality as measured by an ever expanding income gap in the country
as many wise Jewish commentators have written after 1967. Judaism became Zionism and the state of Israel became the modern golden calf,an idol unworthy of ultimate fealty.
The great rabbis connected to the American council of Judaism in the early 40s men like Berger,Reichert snf Lazaron warned fellow Jews, not to turn the prophetic religion of the prophets
into Jewish nationalism.
zionism as the great secular prophet Gideon Levy reminds us has become the national religion of Israel
serious Jews like Peter Beinart see bravely warning other Jews to embrace a Judaism beyond Zionism,
Moral clarity. Thanks Peter