Israel – Page 83

Sarcophagi returned to Egypt

(photo from Israel Antiquities Authority)

One of two Egyptian sarcophagi covers – one dating to between the 10th and 8th centuries BCE (Iron Age) and the other to between the 16th and 14th centuries BCE (the late Bronze Age) – that were seized by Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) inspectors four years ago while checking shops in the market of Jerusalem’s Old City. In a short ceremony on May 22, they were returned to Egypt. Egyptian ambassador Hazem Khairat expressed Egypt’s appreciation for all the efforts made by the Israeli authorities to return these smuggled antiquities to their country of origin.

Stop negotiating, says Pipes

Gina Faigen, daughter of the late Dr. Morris H. Faigen, who founded the annual Faigen Family Lecture Series, with this year’s speaker Daniel Pipes. (photo by Jocelyne Hallé)

Israel should stop trying to find a negotiated solution that provides a mutually agreeable resolution to the conflict with Palestinians, says Daniel Pipes, and instead declare victory and force the Palestinians into the realization that they have been defeated.

Pipes, a commentator and historian who is president of the Philadelphia-based Middle East Forum, made the comments in Vancouver May 9 at the fifth annual Faigen Family Lecture.

The idea of land for peace, in which Israel gives up concrete real estate for the “ephemeral idea” of peace, has failed, he said.

“We can all agree that the Israelis do not have more peace for giving up Gaza and parts of the West Bank,” said Pipes. “It’s not working.” Instead, he said, Palestinians view Israeli concessions as a sign of weakness and this has led not to increased peace, but to increased hostility.

“Rather than mediation and compromise and painful concessions, such has been the case, how about something different?” Pipes asked. “How about Israel wins and the Palestinians lose? How about Israeli victory?

“Victory is not a term you hear much,” he continued. “People talk about a peace process, negotiations, but this is a conflict, this is a war. It’s been a war for a century. And an end comes to a war when one side acknowledges that it’s lost, that the gig is up, that it cannot win.”

Germany lost the First World War, Pipes said, but they didn’t feel defeated. They wanted another round and they got it in 1939. After 1945, the Allies realized they had to demilitarize Germany and Japan, to demonstrate that they had been conclusively defeated.

“Defeat is sanitary,” said Pipes. “Defeat allows you to move on.… I think that’s what the Palestinians need. Not only for Israel’s sake – obviously for Israel’s sake – but also for the Palestinians’ sake. Only by being defeated can the Palestinians stop obsessing over harming Israel and instead start building their own polity, culture, society. It’s good for everyone, Palestinians as well.”

Pipes clarified: “I’m not calling for killing Palestinians.” The idea is to impose on Palestinians the sense that they have lost.

“There’s no point in getting into the details,” he added.

He would like to see Western governments adopt policies that would urge the Israelis to win the conflict.

“We don’t go to the negotiating table. It doesn’t work. We need to win,” he said. “Let’s give up on this failed, decades-old effort to have the Israelis give more and the Palestinians take more and give nothing in return.”

Questioned by an audience member on what victory would look like, Pipes said: “You’ll know that Israel has won when the Jews of Hebron have no more need for security than the Arabs of Nazareth … when an irate Palestinian writes a strongly worded letter to the editor.”

Pressed on how such a victory would be achieved, Pipes at first demurred.

“I did not talk about how to get there because I would encourage you to see things this way,” he said, before giving some examples.

“The other day there was shooting out of Gaza. The Israelis replied with shooting back into Gaza,” he said. “Wouldn’t it be more effective to cut off the water and electricity for a day? The next time two days? Wouldn’t that send a signal? Why don’t the Israelis do that? Because they don’t have a plan for victory.”

Until 1993, Pipes said, Israel strove for victory.

With the Oslo process that began in 1993, and after, Pipes said, Israel adopted a policy of appeasement. When that failed in about 2000, they adopted a policy of unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon and Gaza.

“And, since about 2006, there’s been no policy at all,” he said. “I think we should return – it’s not my idea – return to the old ways.”

Palestinians need to realize that their strategy isn’t working, he said.

“They’re engaging in suicide stabbings and other atrocities because they think this will help the Palestinians win,” he said. “If you can convince them there’s no chance of this working, why would a sane individual – and these are, they’re perfectly normal – why would they give up their lives? They believe that they are on a path to victory. Convince them that they are not on the path to victory and I think they will be less likely to engage in this kind of violence.”

Pipes acknowledged that people say the Palestinians will never accept defeat.

“But I say, the Germans did, the Japanese did,” said Pipes. An audience member noted that the Palestinians have an international support network that the Germans and Japanese did not.

“They do,” Pipes responded. “All those professors of English.… In the end, what really counts is, for example, water and electricity.”

While Israelis and Americans are trying to find creative ideas to hasten peace, “Palestinians aren’t playing around with creative ideas,” he said. “They’re killing.”

If the Palestinians can be convinced to give up the fight against Israel, Pipes believes that the rest of the Arab and Muslim world will similarly give up. He called Palestinians “the tip of the spear,” saying it’s hard to be more anti-Zionist than the Palestinians.

Though Pipes believes Arab and Muslim states may be tiring of losing to Israel, “I don’t see any fatigue at all” among leftists who are rallying against the Jewish state.

About the United States, Pipes said President Barack Obama seems to think that U.S. foreign policy before him has been a force for ill rather than for good in the world. Obama is making overtures to the traditional enemies of the United States, including Cuba and Iran, and paying less attention to allies, such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia, said Pipes.

Were Donald Trump to find himself president of the United States, Pipes worries that the “consummate dealmaker” would, like all his predecessors, fail at facilitating an agreement between the Palestinians and the Israelis.

“He would call them in, he would give them his instructions, they would reject him and he would blame guess who?” Pipes speculated. “I suspect he would turn against Israel.”

The Faigen Family Lecture Series – which is held in partnership with Vancouver Hebrew Academy – was founded by the late Dr. Morris H. Faigen, who passed away in 2012. The evening was introduced by his daughter, Gina, who said her father wanted a forum for conservative perspectives on Israel but also one where people with a more liberal perspective, like her, could engage.

Noa concert sells out

Achinoam Nini performs for a full house at the Chan Centre on Yom Ha’atzmaut, May 11. (photo from cjnews.com)

Despite the controversy in the months leading up to her Yom Ha’atzmaut performance at the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts on May 11, Noa’s concert attracted a full house and every one of the 1,185 seats was sold.

“After all the harrowing events leading up to this concert, I am so thrilled to be here and truly grateful to the Jewish Federation [of Greater Vancouver] for not folding and the Israeli ambassador for supporting!” the Israeli singer, whose full name is Achinoam Nini, posted on her Facebook page soon after she touched down in the city.

Performing barefoot throughout, the singer thanked the audience, Federation staff and the Vancouver Jewish community repeatedly during her show “for sticking up for me.”

In February, the Jewish National Fund of Canada, an annual sponsor of Vancouver’s community Yom Ha’atzmaut concerts, withdrew its support, saying it would take a one-year hiatus “due to the views of the entertainment booked for this year’s celebration.”

The organization’s chief executive officer, Josh Cooper, said “the entertainer that has been hired does not reflect nor correspond to the mandate and values of JNF of Canada.” Its decision followed an article in the Jerusalem Post, later retracted, that claimed Vancouver Jews were “outraged” over Nini’s performance and alleged that she supports the boycott, divest and sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel. She has repeatedly denied the allegation.

After JNF Canada withdrew, the Israeli embassy and the Consulate General of Israel in Toronto stepped in as sponsors. Irit Stopper, deputy consul general in Toronto, represented the state of Israel at the event. It was also attended by Linda Kislowicz, president and CEO of Jewish Federations of Canada-UIA, Vancouver City Councilor Geoff Meggs and Burnaby-Lougheed NDP MLA Jane Shin.

Outside the Chan Centre, Michael Brosgart, president of the Jewish Defence League in British Columbia, stood with a handful of supporters and a few placards declaring “Terrorists are obstacles to peace; Biblical Zionists are not.”

A folding table held pictures of an Israeli couple murdered by Palestinian terrorists, and Brosgart distributed material to bystanders. The pages contained excerpts from letters expressing objections to Nini’s performance from community member Frances Belzberg and Israel Defence Forces Lt.-Col. Eyal Platek, as well as links to articles about the singer.

“Noa is supporting the most divisive groups in Israel – B’tselem, Breaking the Silence, BDS and JStreet,” Brosgart said. “Unfortunately, Jewish Federation and the Israeli embassy, because they’re funding this, are supporting her. We think this is rotting the Jewish community.”

On JDL’s Facebook page Brosgart elaborated. “This performance will be extremely divisive, distasteful, disrespectful and does not represent the views and interests of the community. Especially at the time we need unity the most. This is not about free speech. Nini can sing her sh—y songs anywhere she wants. However, this is Israel’s Independence Day. To bring an anti-Israel, terror-sympathizing, enemy-strengthening performer on this day is to spit in the face of all who have lost loved ones defending the nation of Israel.”

One Israeli who attended the concert but asked not to be named said she disliked that Nini “does not separate her political views from her artistry. I’m sorry the selection committee didn’t do more research before they chose her, but I think they learned a lesson,” the woman said.

After seeing the Facebook responses of Israelis in Vancouver opposed to the performance, she decided to attend nevertheless. She added that, once Nini was invited to Vancouver, “I think it was the best thing to keep her here instead of canceling the performance.”

The kosher restaurant Shuk Eat & Play hosted an alternative Yom Ha’atzmaut celebration dinner for 110 attendees the same night.

“I heard Noa’s political sayings and I didn’t appreciate it,” said Shuk owner Alon Volodarsky. “So, some people who didn’t like her suggested we hold this dinner for those community members who still wanted to celebrate Yom Ha’atzmaut but didn’t want to attend the concert.”

Lauren Kramer, an award-winning writer and editor, lives in Richmond. To read her work online, visit laurenkramer.net. This article was originally published in the Canadian Jewish News.

A tapestry at the Zack

Valeri Sokolovski’s work forms part of A Tapestry of Cultures, the group art exhibit now on display at the Zack Gallery. (photo by Olga Livshin)

A Tapestry of Cultures opened last week at the Zack Gallery. Run in conjunction with Festival Ha’Rikud, which took place May 12-15, the group show also commemorates the birthday of Israel. As such, I expected it to reflect the blend of cultures that together make the multicultural tapestry of Israeli society, but the exhibit was much more global in scope.

With the exception of a few identifiably Israel-focused pieces – mostly photos by Avie Estrin – the rest of the artwork on display could have been created in any country, by an artist from any part of the world.

The Tel Aviv apartment building in Nancy Stern’s photograph wouldn’t be out of place in Vancouver or Prague. The sandals in a large painting by Rina Lederer-Vizer could have been lying on a beach in Spain or hiding under a park bench in San Francisco. The flapper dress from a small piece by Vladimira Fillion Wackenreuther could have been on sale in any fashion store from Moscow to Tokyo.

The exhibition as a whole announces that we all belong to one nation, cosmopolitan in the best sense, regardless of our country of citizenship or our mailing address. We live on the same planet and share similar values.

The theme of music and musicians appears in paintings by several artists in the show. Eternal and borderless, music wanders where it will, crossing barriers, especially now with the internet. Valeri Sokolovski’s images illustrate the concept perfectly. One could encounter his musicians almost anywhere. Their ethnicity is vague, but their passion soars in his paintings. Sokolovski’s musicians play with such intensity, the viewer can almost hear the notes, the syncopated beats and the soulful melodies.

In between his blue players, Karen Hollowell’s trumpeter introduces a much mellower tune, sunny yellow and flowing. The painting has a romantic quality. Her musician is not here on a street corner, but is somewhere else, behind the veil of imagination.

Not so with Iza Radinsky’s dancers. They strive to twirl off the wall and into the room, their skirts flashing, their feet performing to a jolly rhythm. The artist’s brushstrokes are blurry, but the dancers’ joy is crystal clear, and it transmits outside the frame, sprinkling everyone who passes the gallery.

In contrast to Radinsky’s dancers, Lauren Morris’ image is abstract and colorful, echoing the charm of dreams. Colors splash on the canvas in fanciful profusion and the viewer wonders, Is it a choir singing hymns? Is it a flock of birds on a wire, lost in their lofty trills? Or maybe it’s a flowerbed of exotic orchids, each one a song?

Meanwhile, a crowd of musicians populates David Akselrod’s “Gathering.” The painting is almost a metaphor of the show itself, gleeful and whimsical. The musicians are as cheerful and diverse as the artists who gathered for the exhibit’s opening. They play different instruments and have different skin colors, but they congregate in the same place, they mingle and laugh, and they share the delight of their art with each other and with the viewers.

The motif of unity – of all of us sharing, depending on each other – underlies Orly Ashkenazy’s “The Butterfly Effect.”

“It’s about the 12 tribes of Israel,” said the artist. She even inserted the names of the tribes in Hebrew into the painting. They intertwine with each other like a faint pattern of gold arabesques on a butterfly’s wing, a design mirroring real life, underscoring our own interconnections and effects on each other and the world around us.

It is impossible to mention all of the artists participating in the show in one short article, but all their creations complement and enhance one another.

“In my opinion, the calibre of work in this show is particularly high,” said Linda Lando, the gallery director.

A Tapestry of Cultures is on until May 29.

Olga Livshin is a Vancouver freelance writer. She can be reached at olgagodim@gmail.com.

Prize winners tour Canada

Filmmakers Aleeza Chanowitz, above, and Prague Benbenisty will be in Vancouver for the Sir Jack Lyons Charitable Trust Film Prize and to help the Jerusalem Foundation celebrate its 50th anniversary. (photo from Vancouver Jewish Film Centre)

Two up-and-coming Israeli filmmakers are bringing their films – and themselves – to Vancouver this month.

The Sir Jack Lyons Charitable Trust Film Prize event, being presented on May 16 at the Rothstein Theatre by the Jerusalem Foundation of Canada with the Vancouver Jewish Film Centre and Chutzpah!PLUS, will feature a screening retrospective and the 2016 winning films, followed by a question-and-answer period with the Jerusalem filmmakers, Aleeza Chanowitz (Mushkie) and Prague Benbenisty (Blessed).

The Lyons Prize is awarded annually to two students from Jerusalem film schools. There is a monetary component to the prize and the jury-selected students are also invited to present their films at the Israeli Film Festival in Montreal and other festivals in Canada. “By traveling to Canada and being introduced to established film industry professionals,” reads the prize material, “the award winners are given an important stepping stone in their creative and professional development.”

photo - Prague Benbenisty — Prague Benbenisty *(photo from Vancouver Jewish Film Centre)*

Chanowitz and Benbenisty have presented their films in Jerusalem, and Chanowitz’s Mushkie premièred at this year’s Berlin Film Festival. They started their time in Canada in Montreal, and also presented their work in Toronto. During their stay in Vancouver, the filmmakers will tour Emily Carr University’s 3-D film-capture and virtual reality projects, as well as visit studios.

“I’ve had a couple of face-to-face meetings, a ton of phone calls and emails with Nomi Yeshua since mid-November 2015,” said VJFC executive director Robert Albanese about planning the event. Yeshua, who grew up in Vancouver and made aliyah about 25 years ago, heads the Canada Desk of the Jerusalem Foundation. The May 16 event will also celebrate the foundation’s 50th anniversary.

“Nomi had the plan to bring the winning filmmakers to Canada and I was totally on board to make this happen,” said Albanese.

As for Chutzpah!PLUS, Mary-Louise Albert, who runs the annual Jewish performing arts festival, and Albanese have been running a cooperative series of films for the past two years, so she, too, was on board to co-present, he said.

“We’re looking forward to engaging the whole community, especially young adults,” said Albanese. There is no charge to attend the event. At the reception, Yeshua will make a brief introduction, and then attendees will move into the Rothstein.

“I’ll be making a selection of past year’s winning short films and screening those,” said Albanese, “then bringing up this year’s winners to the stage and, after some brief words, screening both of their films and bringing them back up to the stage for a talkback.”

Both Chanowitz and Benbenisty began their studies at the Sam Spiegel Film and Television School in 2012, and wrote and directed their respective films in their third year of study. Chanowitz, who was born in Brooklyn, made aliyah a couple of months after receiving her bachelor’s degree; Benbenisty was born in Tel Aviv. Their films are very different, in part because of their differing geographies.

Chanowitz’s Mushkie, which runs just over 12-and-a-half minutes, is a day (or two) in the life of two recent olim (immigrants) from the United States, best friends Mushkie and Sari. Chanowitz plays the title character, who is secretly exploring life outside of the boundaries of her religious upbringing, and gets into a little trouble while doing so. Chanowitz’s sense of humor shows not only in the film, but in the credits, where she thanks, among many others, her parents, who, she writes, “… I hope will continue to support me, but never see my work.” Given Mushkie’s sexual explicitness, the sentiment is understandable.

Benbenisty’s 15-minute Blessed offers viewers a glimpse into Sephardi – specifically Moroccan – culture in Israel. While in the biblical story, it is the younger Jacob who steals older brother Esau’s blessing from their father, in Blessed, it is the older, overlooked and unmarried sister, Zohara, who steals – at least initially – from her soon-to-be married younger sister the blessing that is given to all brides before their wedding day. The blessing gives Zohara the ability to see the love that has always been around her, and changes not only her relationship with her sister, but herself.

And there is more to this short film. In attempting to catch Zohara’s attentions, a shy but determined suitor recites to her a poem, “Zohra Al Fassiya,” by Erez Biton. Al Fassiya (1905-1994) was a well-known and popular Jewish Moroccan singer who, when she had to leave her home country, emigrated to Israel in 1962. She fell into anonymity and represents the negation of Sephardi culture by the Ashkenazi majority in Israel until recent years. That Blessed’s Zohara hears and is affected by this poem adds significant meaning to this short film.

The Sir Jack Lyons Charitable Trust Film Prize event starts at 7 p.m. on May 16 in the Zack Gallery.

Helping those at risk

Shai Lazer, chief executive officer of Youth Futures, an organization that aids Israel’s at-risk youth. (photo from Shai Lazer)

Earlier this year, Shai Lazer, chief executive officer of Youth Futures – a program supported by the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver’s annual campaign, among others – visited Vancouver.

A leader in the Israeli youth-outreach movement, Lazer describes himself modestly.

“I am 36 years old, married with three kids, living in Modiin,” he told the Independent. “My hobbies are reading, traveling around the country and sports. My military service was very meaningful, as was studying in university at the Mandel Institute.”

Lazer’s modesty is deceiving, as he presides over a national organization with outposts in 36 Israeli communities.

Youth Futures endeavors to help vulnerable children, their families and their communities cope with the painful and/or challenging aspects of their daily lives. Started in 2006, Youth Futures works with all demographics of Israeli society, including every manner of Jew, Arab, Bedouin and Druze. Working with more than 12,000 people throughout Israel, Youth Futures designates around 300 professional “mentors” to facilitate the majority of the organization’s outreach. Ultimately, Youth Futures’ mission is “to give every at-risk child in Israel’s geographic and social peripheries the confidence, opportunities and skills to realize their inherent potential.”

photo - Shai Lazer, right, with Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver chief executive officer Ezra Shanken — Shai Lazer, right, with Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver chief executive officer Ezra Shanken. *(photo from JFGV)*

But, as Lazer explained, the organization is continually expanding. On his mid-March visit to Vancouver, he spoke with his Canadian counterparts about the direction in which Youth Futures and similar organizations are heading.

“I was received incredibly well,” said Lazer. “I felt there was a real and honest dialogue about what’s currently happening in the field, future endeavors, and meaningful conversation in private and in groups. All in all, the main feeling was that of partnerships.”

Lazer is no stranger to partnerships. Under his direction, Youth Futures’ Kiryat Shmona branch currently benefits from Vancouver (22%), the Jewish Agency (35%), the Ministry of Education (38%) and the local municipality (5%) in partnerships and investment. The organization has grown dramatically since Lazer became director of the program in 2008, and even more since he became CEO. One of his achievements has been securing more government financial backing.

Lazer became a part of Youth Futures when he was in university.

“The program was just started while I was in the second year of my studies in Mandel Institute,” he said. “I was approached to join the staff. I remember thinking that it was an interesting educational concept, and was drawn to the newness – the opportunity to create something new and redefining our approach to helping at-risk children.”

Youth Futures uniquely uses the model of having a mentor reach out to the youth and families in their national outposts. Lazer believes that the idea of the mentor is the key to the success of the organization.

“I define a professional mentor by their ability to learn,” he said. “To be able to stop, have some personal reflection and increase their learning curve – that and passion. Youth Futures chooses this model because it’s the only thing that works.”

Youth Futures has the statistics to show its effectiveness. For example, 78% of the youth showed increased self-confidence and ability to cope and 74% showed improved social skills; its alumni have a negligible school drop-out rate and 84% of them have shown the higher motivation required to qualify for more elite army units or to perform civil service. Lazer maintains that such positive numbers are directly because of Youth Futures’ role in these children’s lives.

“I think it’s because someone believed in them,” he said. “When someone believes in you, your confidence grows and you want to become part of the community. It gives you a sense of responsibility over the world you live in.”

Lazer is adamant that his organization’s model could be used in other countries to help at-risk children and the families and societies that surround them. And Youth Futures is actively looking to expand into North America.

Building on his organization’s momentum, and the foundation of 10 years of solid community outreach, Lazer believes the next decade for Youth Futures will be busy and successful.

“Ten years from now, Youth Futures is still here, constantly expanding to more communities and to new populations – early childhood and high school,” he predicted. “We’re currently in the midst of planning the celebrations of 10 years of Youth Futures and launching the next decade. We’re working on a ‘journey book,’ which will include interviews and showcase all different localities, a film, a big national event to celebrate with our participants and their families, a professional seminar, a reception to be held at the General Assembly of the Jewish Federations of North America in November, and many more. We’re also launching two new initiatives, expanding into intervention with early childhood parents, as well as starting an organization to help our alumni. It’s an exciting time and we’re looking forward to many new things coming our way.”

Jonathan Dick is a freelance writer living in Toronto. His writing has appeared in the Canadian Jewish News, and various other publications in Canada and the United States.

Talking about Israel as a family

Sixty-eight years ago, when Israel was born and became the state of the Jewish people, a family was created. As with any other family that has a complex history, there is love and arguing, support and fallings out in the Israel mishpacha. To make things trickier, Israel is what we would call a blended family, whose members come from wildly varying geopolitical, socio-cultural, ethnic, religious and linguistic backgrounds.

This variety makes for a richness you would be hard-pressed to find elsewhere – the intensity and vigor of which those visiting or missing Israel so often speak. However, the blended Israeli family is fraught with tensions brought about by both the baggage each member has and the difficult neighborhood in which they live. Because Israel is the only Jewish state in the world – our only “family home” – each discussion about it feels of utmost consequence, even to Israel’s extended family of Diaspora Jews, who feel strongly about their connection to that familial home and the relatives living in it.

Not long ago, the announcement that singer Achinoam Nini (Noa) had been invited to perform at our community’s Yom Ha’atzmaut celebration on May 11 set in motion a heated debate about where we draw our red lines when it comes to criticizing Israel. The Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver made a decision to welcome Noa despite the objections of individuals who disagree with the artist’s political views, and Ezra Shanken, JFGV’s chief executive officer, expressed his hope that our community would continue the Jewish tradition of welcoming diversity of opinion and embracing respectful debate. As we celebrate Israel’s 68th birthday, I think it would be worthwhile to take a look at how our blended family handles conflict and disagreements when they arise from within, and do a little cheshbon nefesh, soul searching, about how we each might be contributing both to the family’s well-being, as well as to internal friction and divisiveness.

With Israel, we so often focus on the external conflicts, sometimes at the expense of looking at what is happening in our own backyard, and this is something we cannot afford to do any longer. For our blended family to thrive and prosper, it is not enough anymore to stand united against enemies. The strength of a tight-knit family depends less on the extent to which its members agree on every issue, and more on how they communicate their disagreements and live with differing points of view under one roof. We all share a moral obligation to set an example for the children and youth in our community, and show them that the Israeli family of which they are a part is strong and confident enough to welcome and even encourage different opinions and points of view.

So, how do we have disagreements and important discussions without engaging in the kind of destructive behavior and accusations that tear at our familial fabric? Is it possible to have difficult conversations from a place of mutual respect, even when we don’t see eye to eye? I speak from experience when I say that, while not easy, it is, in fact, possible. I have friends from across the political, national and religious spectrums, and I cherish the ongoing, sometimes challenging, conversations I have with them about Israel. With those conversations in mind, I would like to offer a few points to consider and some basic strategies I have found helpful when discussing Israel.

We have something important in common. Whenever you engage in a discussion with a fellow member of the tribe who holds different opinions about Israel than you do, remember that you wouldn’t be having that difficult conversation if it weren’t for the fact that you both care enough about Israel to take the time and argue. If you are not sure this is the case, ask the person a simple question: Do you care about Israel? If they answer yes, then, as surprising as it may sound, you have some common ground – a starting point for a respectful exchange of ideas. It is not always comfortable to accept that someone who holds a political view we disagree with comes, as we do, from a place of caring about Israel. But that is a discomfort we should learn to lean into and work with if we want to help foster within our community the democratic value of free speech – the same value that sets Israel apart from other countries in the Middle East.

Respond rather than react. Yes, there is a difference between the two. When we react, we re-act specific lines, roles and dialogues, just as a well-rehearsed actor in a long-running play would do. Unsurprisingly, reaction-based discussions usually feel like rather irritating déjà vus. When we respond, we do so from a sense of responsibility (response-ability): we know that we are not merely actors with memorized lines, and that we have the freedom to improvise, to choose to keep an open mind in those conversations where our default mode is to be judgmental, get defensive or go on the offensive.

Next time someone says something about Israel that makes you want to yell at them, “You have no idea what you’re talking about!” or “How can you say something like that?!” ask instead “Can you tell me more about what you just said?” It won’t feel natural at first because improv moves us out of our comfort zone. Nevertheless, try it. Be curious. We all have a human need to be heard and we all know how unpleasant it feels when our words are ignored or dismissed. Really hearing someone out is a beautiful, positive way to practise what Rabbi Hillel believed to be the essence of the Torah: what is hateful to you, do not do unto your neighbor.

Respect the importance of our personal histories. So much of who we are, what and how we think and how we feel about any given issue is a result of our personal history. When and where we were born and raised, our family’s past, our religious background, the influential people and key experiences in our lives – all of these and more also contribute to how we relate to Israel. If we understand that each one of us has such a personal history that affects our worldviews and that these histories differ from person to person, we move a step closer to accepting that it is inevitable for a variety of opinions about Israel to exist within our community. Once we accept this truth, we can choose to find it in ourselves to treat with respect even those with whose opinions we disagree.

In Hebrew, the words kavod (respect), kibud (honoring/acknowledging) and koved (weight/difficulty) all stem from the same root. Truly respecting “the other” and acknowledging from where they come and their right to hold different opinions to ours can, indeed, feel difficult and burdensome at times. Yet, if we want to help create a strong community that honors the histories and diversity of all its members, we should view this effort to respect the other as a blessed weight that we choose to carry, like that of an unborn child.

If you are a regular reader of the Jewish Independent, it is safe to assume that you, too, care about Israel. As we celebrate Israel’s birthday this year, I invite you to envision the kind of legacy or family heirloom we want to leave for the next generations in our community. In my mind, I see a vibrant, warm, colorful, imperfect and unique patchwork quilt to which each of us can add a symbolic piece of ourselves as the dialogue about our beloved Israel continues to unfold. What is your vision? And what are you willing to do to make it a reality?

Pirkei Avot (Ethics of Our Fathers) teaches us that “it is not upon us to complete the work, but that neither are we free to desist from it.” Our work as fellow members of the extended and blended Israeli family is to do tikkun olam (repair of the world). And tikkun olam begins with us, at home and in our community. So, in our conversations about Israel, let us all commit to being a bit more curious and a little less judgmental. Let’s treat one another with kavod and remember that the strength of our family is directly proportionate to our ability to be kind to one another.

Yael Heffer is an educator who has been working with children and families in the Vancouver Jewish community for close to 10 years. She is currently completing her master’s in child and youth care, is involved in social emotional learning research and is training as a clinical counselor. She grew up in South America, Germany and Israel and is a strong advocate of nonviolent communication.

Increasing organ donations

Leading up to the provincial election in Manitoba in April, activists, family members of organ recipients and those waiting for organs pushed the topic of organ donation as an election issue. They reached out to many prominent people to help them spread their message, including Prof. Arthur Schafer, founding director of the Centre for Professional and Applied Ethics at the University of Manitoba.

The centre’s purpose is to promote research specifically in applied ethics across different professions, such as medicine, engineering, pharmacy and nursing. Schafer further described it as “ethics as it applies to controversial, moral, social and political issues in society.”

Organ donation, while supported by most segments of the population, has been an issue with which many countries struggle. As there is most often a gap between supply and demand, some countries are coming up with new ways to tackle the problem.

photo - Prof. Arthur Schafer — University of Manitoba’s Prof. Arthur Schafer. *(photo from Arthur Schafer)*

“Israel used to have just about the lowest organ donation rate of all the Western countries,” said Schafer. “So, historically, and rather embarrassingly, more people died waiting for an organ donation in Israel than anywhere else.”

According to Schafer, the lack stemmed from the common misconception that Jewish law prohibits organ donation.

“But, the very low donation rate in Israel changed after a new law was passed in 2008,” he said. “The new law gave priority [to certain people]. It was still true, after the new law was passed, that medical need was the most important criteria. Someone faced with imminent death would have priority over someone whose need was less urgent but, when patients had comparable need, the 2008 law gave priority to those who’d signed an organ donor card or whose family had donated an organ.”

The policy was nicknamed, “Don’t Give. Don’t Get.” Schafer said what this meant was that, if someone, for religious or other reasons, would not sign an organ donor card, they might end up dying themselves as a result of having a lower priority on the list of waiting patients.

“I suppose it’s the dual moral justification … first of all, a principle of justice or fairness,” said Schafer. “If you aren’t willing to give, you don’t deserve, you could argue, it’s not fair for you to take when you’re not willing to donate.

“Then, there’s also the principle of maximizing benefit, because this law seems to have resulted in saving many lives – which, according to Jewish law, is supposed to be of the highest priority. Jewish law says that saving a life is more important than anything else. Yet, many Orthodox Jews refuse to sign an organ donor card.”

Schafer said that, while the supply gap in Israel is still significant, it has narrowed dramatically since the passage of this new law.

Meanwhile, in Canada and its provinces, there is no priority given at present to those who sign an organ donor card.

As for the current local situation, the Province of Manitoba has passed a law – called Required Consideration – that requires physicians to consider whether someone dying or near death is a suitable candidate for organ donation, and to ask them or the family about donating.

Other provinces, like Ontario and British Columbia, have taken it a step further, passing a law known as Required Request. Doctors must discuss organ donation with dying patients. In both of these provinces, doctors can take themselves out of the process by alerting an organ donation coordinator to the situation.

“Many physicians are quite squeamish about the topic, by the way, especially when a younger person has died tragically in a car accident,” said Schafer. “Their organs might be a potential source of numerous healthy organs that could save lives but doctors feel, due to the severe family grief resulting from the death of a young person, that they don’t want to add to the burden by asking for an organ donation. That’s a fairly understandable reaction. But, I think it’s profoundly wrong. I think that, if your child has died in an accident or suffered from an untimely death, the family might welcome the opportunity to make something morally significant by agreeing to have other lives saved through organ donation. I think many people actually feel this way and that doctors who are reluctant to ask the families about it are depriving them of an opportunity.”

Schafer went on to say that, in many provinces, there is a big push to change the system of organ donation so that it would be a choice of opting out as opposed to one of opting in. The current situation is that, if you do not tick the box or tell your family you want to donate, your organs will not be harvested. Schafer contends that reversing the onus is a good option, as it still gives individuals a choice, but they have to choose not to do it rather than to do it.

“Many European countries have adopted opting-out systems, such as Spain,” he said. “Their donation rates have gone up considerably.”

Another option Schafer suggested is to tweak the compensation system for doctors, giving them further incentive to talk to people about organ donation when there is not the option of referring the matter to an organ coordinator.

“Many people die in community hospitals, nursing homes or in their own homes,” he said. “The family doctor, rural doctor or community hospital doctors are often unwilling to take the time filling out the forms to arrange for organ donation. I think the medical profession itself has been a big impediment to an increase in cadaveric organ donation.

“If you’re in a teaching hospital where transplant operations are occurring, you’re more likely to approach the family or individual and arrange organ donation,” he continued. “If you’re in a community hospital, it takes time. You have to fill out forms, you have to speak to people, and you’re not reimbursed. I think part of the solution to the dramatic gap between the supply and demand for organs requires a change in the medical profession itself or making it a requirement for doctors.”

The possible downside to a change in the compensation system for doctors, however, is to ensure that they still do all they can to save a patient.

For information on becoming an organ donor in British Columbia, visit transplant.bc.ca/be-donor.

Rebeca Kuropatwa is a Winnipeg freelance writer.

The story of Miriam Peretz

Those of us who live and work in Israel as journalists and book reviewers for international publications often have to wait until an Israeli bestseller is translated from Hebrew into English. I, for one, am very excited when this occurs, and especially for a biography like Miriam’s Song: The Story of Miriam Peretz (Gefen Publishing House, 2016) by Smadar Shir.

Shirat Miriam was published in Israel in 2011 and became a bestseller, with more than 20,000 copies sold. It is Peretz’s story, as recounted to Shir, who is a prolific author and composer, as well as a senior journalist at the newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth.

Peretz was born in Casablanca, where her family lived until she was 10 years old. In 1963, they immigrated to Israel, initially living in an immigrant camp in Beersheva. After graduating high school, Peretz went to Ben-Gurion University and became a teacher.

When she was 21, she met Eliezer Peretz, who was 31, also Moroccan. They married, and he returned to his work in Sharm el-Sheikh. She eventually joined him there, until the city was evacuated. Meanwhile, she began teaching, and they started their family, ultimately having six children.

In November 1998, Uriel, their 22-year-old son, a Golani (special forces) officer was killed in Lebanon, while in the army. Peretz kept going.

“My husband was overcome with sadness and wouldn’t go to work, but I had no choice but to continue functioning,” she says.

Peretz got a master’s degree in educational administration. Her second son joined the army, while she and her husband continued processing their grief for Uriel. She began visiting schools and military bases to talk about her son.

In 2005, her husband died – only 56 years old. And then, in March 2010, her son, Eliraz, married with four children, was killed while in the army.

In December 2010, then-Israel Defence Forces Chief of General Staff Lt.-Col. Gabi Ashkenazi awarded her a medal of appreciation. He said: “Miriam’s ability to continue to express her deep pain and channel it into a contribution to the education and formation of future generations, serves as an example and model of inspiration for us all.”

The next chapters of Miriam’s Song are told by each of Peretz’s four surviving children.

Miriam left her principal position after 27 years to become a Jerusalem district supervisor with the education ministry. After Miriam’s Song was published in Hebrew, Peretz began to travel to the United States for the organization Friends of the Israel Defence Forces. In 2014, she was a torchbearer on Israel Independence Day.

For a feature on International Women’s Day this year in the Jerusalem Post, Peretz was interviewed and photographed along with two other mothers who had each lost a son. Journalist Tal Ariel Amir writes, “these three courageous women have risen from the ashes of their despair.”

People ask what it is like to live in Israel. Although Miriam’s Song is replete with courage, faith and commitment, it is also about tragedy and sacrifice. It is a book to read to understand what it means to be a woman, a wife, a mother in Israel today.

Sybil Kaplan is a journalist, foreign correspondent, lecturer, food writer and book reviewer who lives in Jerusalem. She also does the restaurant features for janglo.net and leads weekly walks in English in Jerusalem’s market.

Anti-tunnel technology

(screenshot of IDF Twitter page via israel21c.org)

Smugglers of drugs and illegal migrants using tunnels along the U.S.-Mexico border may want to keep an eye on Israel. The American government, after all, is co-sponsoring the tunnel-detection technology now being developed by Israeli engineers.

Described by the Hebrew media as the underground equivalent of Iron Dome anti-missile defence system, this latest innovation made world headlines upon the announcement that the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) uncovered a two-kilometre-long, concrete-lined tunnel on Israel’s Gaza border.

While the Israeli government has been funding its development for five years, few details about the new system have been reported until now. News reports say that up to 100 companies – including Iron Dome’s developers, Elbit Systems and Rafael Advanced Defence Systems – are involved in assembling the detection system. Military units, Shin Bet security agency officers, civilian engineering, infrastructure contractors and tunnel construction experts are also credited with helping.

“The search for tunnels is at the top of our priority list … and we will not spare any efforts,” said Defence Minister Moshe Ya’alon, following the IDF announcement that it found a tunnel extending from southern Gaza into Israeli territory.

The fine details about how the anti-tunnel technology works are still under wraps but, according to Yedioth Ahronoth, dozens of Israeli-developed sensors gather information from the field and transmit it to a control system for analysis using advanced algorithms. The system, says the report, can identify the length of the tunnel and its exact location without false alarms.

“We do whatever we can to find a technological solution,” Maj. Gen. Nitsan Alon, head of the IDF operations directorate, said at a briefing. “Dealing with the phenomenon of tunnels is very complex, and the state of Israel is a world leader in this field. This battle demands from us persistence, creativity, and also responsibility and good judgment.”

According to a report in Defence News, Israel’s Ministry of Defence has invested more than $60 million in anti-tunnel technologies. In February of this year, the Financial Times reported that the United States will provide $120 million over the next three years to help develop complementary technologies.

An Israel Today report says Israel is building a counter-tunnel barrier along its Gaza border that “will also feature a state-of-the-art fence, complete with sensors, observation balloons, see-shoot systems and intelligence gathering measures, as well as an underground wall.”

A video of the IDF discovering a Hamas tunnel in southern Israel can be found at youtube.com/watch?v=yETrQXh2FZU.

Israel21C is a nonprofit educational foundation with a mission to focus media and public attention on the 21st-century Israel that exists beyond the conflict. For more, or to donate, visit israel21c.org.