Israel Matzav

Surprise: Most of the 340 'rabbis' for Iran came from Iran-supported J Street

After the 98 'Hollywood Jews for Iran' letter, the Obama-Kerry junta has produced 340 'rabbis' Iran. I'm sure you'll all be shocked to see this Zionist Organization of America press release disclosing that the vast majority of them are affiliated with Iran-funded J Street (Hat Tip: Liz B).

ZOA Analysis Shows "340 Rabbis For Iran Deal" Are From Groups Hostile to Israel, Including J Street (Which Works With Apparent Iranian Regime Group NIAC), BDS Group "Jewish Voice for Peace," and Israel-Bashing "Rabbis for Human Rights"

94% of U.S. Rabbis Did NOT Sign Pro-Iran Deal Statement, While American Jews Oppose Deal by 2-1, Israelis 7-1, and All Americans by 2-1

NEW YORK, August, 18, 2015 -- The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA)'s analysis shows that the overwhelming majority of the "340 Rabbis for Iran Deal" come from groups that routinely take positions and engage in activities that are hostile towards Israel and inimical to American interests. The "340 Rabbis for Iran Deal" are a small fringe group. There are over 5,000 Rabbis in the United States. In other words, 94% of American Rabbis did not sign the statement supporting the Iran deal.

The majority of the Iran Deal Rabbis come from the Soros-funded J Street. (George Soros is a self-described anti-Zionist billionaire.) Liberal Professor Alan Dershowitz explained that J Street "always seems to be taking positions that are anti-Israel." J Street U's new student board president is an anti-Israel Muslim.

J Street has financial and other ties to the National Iranian American Council (NIAC), an apparent arm of the Iranian regime. Dissident journalist Hassan Daioleslam revealed that NIAC serves as a lobbying group for Iran, and that NIAC's president and founder, Trita Parsi, has a long-term close relationship with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif. J Street's financial filings revealed that J Street's initial funders included NIAC board member Genevieve Lynch. J Street's first national conference held an Iran panel with NIAC head Trita Parsi and Iran apologist Hillary Mann Leverett, who insisted that no sanctions be placed on Iran. At the J Street event, Leverett also condemned anyone who did not trust the Iranian regime as "reinforcing stereotypes of Iranian duplicitousness" and asserted that such "stereotypes" of Iran's Mullahs were "fundamentally racist." Leverett also compared Iran's mullahs to Israeli rabbis. See Trouble on J-Street, by James Kirchick.

J-Street has a long history of supporting the Iran regime's interests over those of America and Israel. For instance, J Street lobbied Congresspersons to simply "believe in Iran" - despite the Iranian regime's responsibility for murdering hundreds of Americans, Israelis and others, and history of undeclared sites for carrying on its nuclear weapons program. Former Congressman Allen West, who noted that J-Street was a "Pro-Palestinian Jewish organization," related that J-Street told him that he should just "believe in Iran."

In addition, several months ago, J Street ran and touted a phony poll to falsely claim that Jews support the Iran deal. The poll asked about a hypothetical Iran deal that would only give Iran "modest relief from sanctions," and that would only reduce sanctions gradually as Iran met compliance benchmarks, in exchange for enrichment restrictions to civilian use and full time inspectors at Iran's nuclear facilities "to make sure Iran is not developing nuclear weapons." This loaded polling question is a far cry from the actual Iran deal, which gives hundreds of billions of dollars of sanctions relief and economic windfalls to Iran, allows enrichment in excess of the amounts needed for civilian use, and delays and places all sorts of roadblocks in the way of obtaining inspections of Iran's undeclared nuclear activities. In addition, no Americans are allowed to inspect Iranian facilities, and inspectors must first be approved by Iran officials before they can even enter Iran.

Moreover, Ameinu (which is the group promoting the "340 Rabbis for Iran Deal") is closely tied to J Street. Ameinu appears to be serving as a front group for J Street here - since J Street has been so discredited. Ameinu National President Kenneth Bob doubles as J Street's Treasurer. Ameinu Vice President and Executive Committee Chair Judith Gelman is a member of J Street's Montgomery County, MD steering committee. Ameinu and J Street recently ran together on the same election slate.

Other "340 Iran Deal Rabbis" include a board member of Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP). JVP is featured on the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) list of the "Top 10 Anti-Israel Groups in America," and actively promotes anti-Israel boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS).

The Iran Deal Rabbis also include over a dozen significant contributors to the so-called "Rabbis for Human Rights" (RHR). RHR participates in anti-Israel demonstrations and, along with other anti-Israel groups, launched a website with false testimonies accusing Israel of human rights violations in Gaza. ZOA members witnessed an RHR Rabbi invent and widely publish false stories to demonize pro-Israel young people at the Israel Day Parade Concert in New York several years ago.

ZOA's comparison of the names and locations on the 340 "Rabbis for Iran Deal" list with lists published on the websites of hostile-to-Israel groups showed the following:

187 (the majority) of the Iran Deal Rabbis are members of the "J Street Rabbinic Cabinet."

12 of the Iran Deal Rabbis are members of the "J Street Rabbinic Cabinet Executive Council"

The Iran Deal Rabbis also include 2 (out of 3) of the J Street cabinet's co-chairs

13 of the Iran Deal Rabbis are significant donors to the falsehood-purveying "Rabbis for Human Rights."

Iran Deal Rabbi Linda Holtzman is on the Board of Directors of the anti-Israel BDS group, "Jewish Voice for Peace." Rabbi Holtzman is known as a "pioneer lesbian Rabbi." As a homosexual, she should be the first to condemn Iran's horrendous human rights record, which includes Iran's brutal executions of hundreds of innocent individuals for the sole reason that they are gay. Incredibly, she is fostering a deal that will give the Iranian regime hundreds of billions of dollars to continue its brutal oppression of gays and minorities.

Iran Deal Rabbi Arthur Waskow [pictured - CiJ] states that the people at the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) are "people I trust and admire and respect." CAIR is an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation case (the case against groups that sent funding to Hamas). CAIR is also among the top groups that ADL has frequently condemned for its anti-Israel activities.

ZOA President Morton A. Klein stated:

"The Rabbis signing the Ameinu letter do not in any way represent the viewpoint of American Rabbis. To only be able to get 6% of U.S. rabbis to sign this statement supporting the catastrophic Iran deal clearly indicates that Rabbinic leaders are deeply concerned about the Iran nuclear deal. This is especially true when 75% of American Jews voted for President Obama. More importantly, reliable polls show tremendous opposition to the Iran deal. The Quinnipiac poll shows that Americans oppose this dangerous deal by a margin of 2 to 1, and the Israel Project poll shows that American Jews also oppose the Iran deal by the same 2 to 1 margin. In addition, a poll conducted this week by Israel's Channel 10, reported in the liberal Israeli newspaper Haaretz, shows that Israelis oppose the Iran deal by a margin of 7 to 1."

"Almost every major Jewish and pro-Israel group strongly opposes this disastrous Iran deal. These major groups opposed to the Iran deal include: the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC); the Anti-Defamation League (ADL); the Zionist Organization of America; the American Jewish Committee; the American Jewish Congress; B'nai Brith; Christians United for Israel (CUFI); the Orthodox Union; over 100 organizations who are members of the StopIranRally.org Coalition; and Jewish Federations across the country including in Los Angeles, Boston, Miami, Houston, Phoenix, Chicago, New York, and many more."

Labels: anti-Israel rabbis, J Street, J Street funding, J Street U, Jewish Voice for Peace, Zionist Organization of America

Far Left 'rabbis for human rights' faked an attack on 'Palestinians'

The radical Leftist 'rabbis for human rights' (or perhaps that should be 'rabbis' for 'human rights') organization has been caught faking attacks on 'Palestinian' olive groves... can you guess where? Yes, right near Eish Kodesh. This is from the first link.

The far-left group Rabbis for Human Rights, accused in the past of inciting Arab violence and recently of distributing anti-Semitic materials, was exposed Monday for falsely reporting cut down olive tree branches at the Arab village of Jaloud in Samaria, right next to the Jewish town of Esh Kodesh.

An IDF patrol that arrived on the scene detained several Israeli youths who were in the area and fled towards the community of Shvut Rachel.

However, upon checking the scene, the IDF found there were no signs on the olive trees of being cut down, and consequently the Israelis were released. The far-left group has previously used olive harvests to stir up controversy and disputes.

The recent false claim of cutting down olive trees plays upon accusations of "price tag" vandalism, an accusation that was used last week to justify the attempted lynch by an Arab mob of 25 Jews as they walked from Esh Kodesh to Givat Hayovel.

'Rabbis' for 'human rights' is a great group of community organizers, but they are apparently clueless about real human rights.

Labels: anti-Israel rabbis, anti-Israeli Israelis, Rabbis for Human Rights

Meet 'rabbis for Obama' member Lynn Gottlieb

This is an example of the kind of 'rabbi' that's supporting the reelection of Barack Hussein Obama (Hat Tip: Jack W).

The problem is that the world thinks that this 'rabbi' is representative of authentic Jewish thought.

The bigger problem is that too many Jews think that this 'rabbi' is representative of authentic Jewish thought.

Labels: anti-Israel rabbis, Barack Hussein Obama, BDS, Campaign 2012

Young (Conservative) rabbis turning on Israel

A report on a survey of rabbinical students at the Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS - Conservative Judaism's seminary) shows an astounding number of young rabbis and future rabbis adopting anti-Israel positions because they have difficulty reconciling support for Israel with liberalism.

At first blush, the report purports to show what one would hope to find among the rabbinate: a solid Jewish identity and strong attachment to Israel. On closer examination, this identity appears increasingly filtered through a universalistic and liberal political perspective. Among American Jews as a whole, according to the Pew Forum, 38 percent identify themselves as liberal; 39 percent call themselves moderate. In contrast, 58 percent of the Conservative rabbis surveyed—and 69 percent of the rabbinical students—called themselves liberal. It's hard to defend the center when you're not in it.

These rabbis and rabbinical students are "pro-Israel," but they are redefining what "pro-Israel" means. As liberals, they hold an optimistic view of human nature: Though Palestinian leaders see their conflict with Israel as a zero-sum game, it seems hard for the rabbis to acknowledge this grim fact. Instead, they get their understanding of events in Israel from ideologically reinforcing left-oriented sources: liberal media outlets, Facebook posts, and Haaretz. These sources help explain the conspicuous disconnect between the next generation of Conservative rabbis and mainstream American Jews on the subject of the Arab-Israel conflict. More than three-quarters of American Jews, according to the latest American Jewish Committee survey, believe that the Arabs' goal is not merely the return of the "occupied territories" but the actual "destruction of Israel." Only 30 percent of the JTS rabbinical students agreed with a similar statement.

Indeed, fully 12 percent of the rabbinical students are "uncomfortable" with Israel's being a "Jewish state." To individuals with this universalistic bent, moral relativism comes more naturally. Most of the future rabbis—all of whom have studied in Israel—do not see Palestinian leaders as their enemies. A majority, 56 percent, say the Palestinian side is no "more to blame" than Israel for the ongoing conflict. Sure, Hamas dominates Gaza. Yes, the West Bank Fatah leadership refused to negotiate with the Netanyahu government during a ten-month settlement freeze. Even so, a majority of the rabbis wants an Israeli withdrawal to the 1967 borders, with "land swaps" and a freeze on any "expansion of settlements in the West Bank."

Compare these views with the position of most American Jews in the face of unremitting Palestinian intransigence: 55 percent, according to an AJC poll, oppose a Palestinian state. In equally stark contrast, most Israelis, regardless of their political views, simply do not believe that today's Palestinian leadership is capable of making peace with Israel.

The JTS survey elicited the opinion of 68 percent of the rabbinical students that the "settler movement"—not just extremist settlers, mind you—is a "threat." The survey did not bother to ask whether the Palestinians should be required to accept Israel as a Jewish state (the position of 96 percent of American Jews) or whether Mahmoud Abbas should abandon his demand for a Palestinian "right of return." The survey tells us that 72 percent of the rabbinical students have engaged in efforts at dialogue with Arabs: Some head to Ramallah for the opportunity to socialize with Palestinians, while others take excursions to West Bank Arab villages with New Israel Fund-supported activists. The survey says nothing about any commensurate efforts by the rabbis to understand the "settler mindset." Many report having visited a "settlement"; but the definition of "settlement" and the auspices under which the visits were made are left to our imagination.

We can guess the reasons for the disparate treatment of Palestinians and settlers. The rabbis believe AIPAC is not liberal enough. J Street, whose platform practically mirrors that of the Palestinian Authority, is closer to their hearts, with 58 percent approval. At 80 percent approval, the New Israel Fund is the absolute cat's meow.

The 63-year-old Zionist enterprise is a work-in-progress. No Israeli would suggest it is beyond criticism. But 30 percent of Reform rabbinical students return from Israel feeling "hostile" or "indifferent" toward the Jewish state; now we learn that 53 percent of JTS rabbinical students are "sometimes" or "often" ashamed of Israel. Is it the ultra-Orthodox stranglehold on state-controlled religious life that alienates them? Too bad, then, that so few future Conservative rabbis volunteer extensively at Conservative-affiliated Masorti congregations in Israel.

Seminaries and professors have been unable or unwilling to provide their students with the moral compass needed to navigate between worthy universalistic values and particularistic Jewish standards. By the time they get to seminary, it may be too late. Most of today's rabbinical students did not attend Jewish elementary or high schools, though they are likely to have attended Camp Ramah. The attitudes revealed in the JTS survey hammer home the need, now more than ever, for the community to find ways to provide its youth with, yes, a parochial education.

While I am strongly in favor of Jewish (i.e. parochial) education for all Jews, I'm not sure I buy the line that this happens before they get to JTS. If that's true, why do rank-and-file Conservative Jews (unless their views are radically different from other American Jews) hold such radically different views than the rabbis and rabbinical students? Who is running their Israel program and what is their political affiliation?

There's a lot to be investigated here. The question is whether anything can be salvaged before these people are placed in charge of the Conservative movement.

Labels: anti-Israel rabbis, Conservative rabbis, Jewish Theological Seminary, liberalism