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The Rosh Hashanah sermon on Fire Island

Fire Island NY
Fire Island, NY

I keep wanting to get to this story, and today I will.

At the Penn BDS conference earlier this month, there was a panel of Jews speaking on “BDS, Hillel, and the Question of Anti-Semitism,” and Rebecca Vilkomerson of Jewish Voice for Peace began her remarks with a wonderful story:

Rebecca Vilkomerson
Rebecca Vilkomerson

It wasn’t that long ago that there were quotas on the numbers of Jews at universities, covenants to keep Jews from living in certain neighborhoods, and places of employment where Jews need not apply. So it’s really a bit of a balancing act of being sensitive to Jewish history and trauma without pulling punches about today’s reality. And while Jews in the United States have more political, economic, cultural and intellectual status than perhaps ever before, the Jewish narrative is still about vulnerability.

I just want to tell a little story. For Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, I was invited to spend it in Fire Island, a little island off the coast of New York City where people have summer homes. They did a beautiful job. They opened up the fire house in the town, and we were sitting, and some guy who was a cardiologist was playing the role of the rabbi, and the yoga teacher was playing the role of the cantor.

And I was sitting in the service and really enjoying it, looking out at the ocean and sort of congratulating myself on this do it yourself service that I was in. And then they announced that someone was going to come up and give a little sermon. And this was at the end of September, shortly after the [Palestinian Authority’s] UN bid on Palestinian statehood. And this guy, I don’t remember exactly what he was, but he was the chair of the department at Columbia University. And he got up and he gave a talk about how the fact that this vote could come up at the UN was proof that the Jews were not considered fully human in this society and never would be.

So you know my head was exploding. Also I started looking around and saying, Here is a guy who is at a pinnacle of American intellectual success preaching to a group of people who by virtue of the fact that they were in this synagogue for a day were there because they were rich enough to have second homes, or being invited by other people rich enough to have second homes, people who live very comfortable, very successful lives, and there they all were nodding along.

So you know I think that’s part of our job as progressive Jews, those of us who are Jewish, is taking responsibility for challenging that narrative. And I think as a coda to that story, afterwards there was a little Kiddush, like a little reception with food, and someone asked me what I thought about the sermon, as people are wont to do, and I thought, oh God I don’t feel like dealing with this right now, having all these strangers mad at me. But if have to, I have to. I started talking about why I didn’t like it at all. And why I thought he was totally wrong.

And a bunch of them came up to me, and said, thanks so much for saying that, that was so important, I felt so uncomfortable when he was talking but I didn’t know exactly why.

So it’s not that hard once you start talking about it, but if you don’t talk about it then that narrative sort of stands. So it really is a process within the Jewish community of having to talk about it.

But we do all need to hold I would say collectively, and that means all of us in the BDS movement, the idea that anti-Semitism in our society is still real, maybe not very potent at the moment, and at the same time recognize and fight how accusations of anti-Semitism are being used as an effective though I would say less and less so weapon to silence the debate on Israel. And of course it would be hard to choose just one example of how participating in the BDS movement for example is equated with anti-Semitism.

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No one wants to be the first to say what everyone knows everyone is thinking.

The moral of the story: We need to take the risk to be the ones to stand up and say something.

Creating a safe space and giving others “permission” to say what’s on their minds is invaluable.

Courage is contagious.

what an amazing story. so simply told, so clear.

the fact that this vote could come up at the UN was proof that the Jews were not considered fully human in this society and never would be.

such a contorted viewpoint.

it’s not that hard once you start talking about it, but if you don’t talk about it then that narrative sort of stands.

she’s beautiful.

I’m disinclined to rapture about this article. She is a wonderful beautiful human being. But to, seemingly, always have to be sensitive to the absurd ,view of anti -semitism that the gentleman from Columbia espouses shows the , not so much ignorance of the charge, but the inability of the vast, majority of the Jewish people, here and in Israel, to confront the reality. The reality that is the ethnic cleansing , persecution, destruction of the Palestian people, its history and its present. So what is the reason for such an intelligent, prosperous to a large degee, particularly in the US , people, the Jewish community, cling to such support of the racist, violent , humiliation of the Palestinian people by its co-religionists in Israel. Why is the grotesque Dershowitz allowed to spread his hatred and venom to anything Palestinian or anyone supporting justice to the Palestinian people. Why do sweet Jewish school chidren write on the missiles and bombs that “this is a gift from the children of Israel to the children of Lebanon”? Why can Jewish adults stand on the hills overlooking Gaza as Jewish planes reign rockets and bombs and missiles at the defencelss people , men , woman and children, while they drink coffee, tea and soft drinks, laughing, happily, saying ” should kill them all”? I don’t have the answer. As a human being I cannot understand the celebration of violence and hatred that transform a people, a nation, be it the US , or Israel or any other nation into messengers of death. The truth of the Palestinian Nakba is well represented and known throughout the world. now. When is the Israel and the Jewish community going to accept their responsibilty , ask forgiveness and move on? That small group on Fire Island should not “be afraid ” to speak out. One should be anxious to speak out against sucj injustice .

Nice write up Phil.

this Israel Palestine issue must help jews to better understand how the world was silent during wwii for as long as they were as “things were happening”, i guess similar discussion were under way all around the world back then also among intellectuals of the world.

today while your community pontificates about the crimes against palestinians such as the white phosphorus assaults among the many thugish crimes that run-a-muck govt’s usually carry out against helpless populations these fireside chats are taking place over a glass or two of some good wine and maybe even after a religious service, how nice, it must warm the hearts of the palestinians to know these things.

it just makes it easier to understand how crimes against humanity can be carried out and later generations find it so difficult to understand how it could have been.

at least it will be said by later generations that some did care as it can be also said about the wwii experience that some did try to save lives.

the ball is on the 20 yard line and the defense is holding strong, only eighty more yards to go.

It would be interesting to know at which of the Fire Island communities this took place. I know religious services at Fire Island Pines (one of the two gay communities on Fire Island, and within pretty easy walking distance of the other one of the two, Cherry Grove) are held in the fire house. But perhaps that is also true of some of the other communities.

It would also be interesting to know of what department at Columbia University the speaker was the chairman.