Jacobs too left to lead Reform
To the Editor:
The one thing that you don't mention in your piece about Richard Jacobs is the elephant in the room: His appointment represents a sharp turn to the political left for the Reform movement.
A member of J Street's Rabbinical Cabinet, and an enthusiastic supporter of its program, Rabbi Jacobs is proud to have taken part in an anti-Israel demonstration of the Sheik Jarrah Solidarity Movement, which The Jerusalem reported has a manifesto that "calls for an end to the 'occupation' and the 'liquidation or fundamental change of organizations that contribute to the dispossession of Arabs, including the Jewish Agency, the Jewish National Fund, and the Israel Lands Authority."
Rabbi Jacobs has said also that he "agrees with" the thesis of Peter Beinart's controversial New York Review of Books article that young Diaspora Jews don't relate to Israel because it is becoming undemocratic and theocratic,
and doesn't treat Arabs like human beings.
The Union for Reform Judaism has made a serious mistake in picking a leader who is at the leftmost extreme of the movement.
Vic Rosenthal
Fresno, Calif.
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J Street Rabbinical Cabinet,
Peter Beinart,
Rabbi Richard Jacobs,
Reform movement,
Union for Reform Judaism
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Henry Levine
03/24/11 03:37 PM
Jacobs politics—and his views on Israel line up pretty well with those of his predecessor and the majority Reform Jews. And Beinart’s article is viewed by many—though by no means all—Reform Jews as dead on.
I have been a Zionist all of my life and am a very strong advocate of a democratic, Jewish Israel. Expanding settlements deep in the West Bank does not enhance Israel’s security. And taking steps towards the incorporation of millions of individuals who are not citizens and are denied what most in the US would consider basic civil rights is not consistent with advancing the cause of a democratic (or Jewish) Israel.