(A presentation given at St. Martin-in-the-Fields Church, Philadelphia, St. Nicholas Day, December 9, 2012)
THOU SHALT NOT BULLDOZE THY NEIGHBOR’S HOUSE
By Susan Landau
Thank you for inviting me to be here with you on St. Nicholas Day. The Church of St. Martin in-the Fields is an inspiring example of how a community of faith can promote awareness and respond to injustice in Israel-Palestine. Your ongoing commitment to the American Friends of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem makes life livable for so many Palestinians in need. The extensive scope of your work in supporting hospitals, health clinics, schools, parishes, and service organizations in Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan demonstrates humanitarian aid at its very best.
As Christians and Jews, we are in this together. I have come to understand that it is important for Christians to hear Jews talk openly about the injustice in Israel-Palestine. Many of you have Jewish friends with whom it is difficult for you to have these conversations. They may disagree with the perspective I will offer. I know that. And you know that there is no consensus within the American Jewish community on Israel. Marc Ellis, renowned Jewish liberation theologian, refers to people like me as Jews of conscience. We, Jews of conscience, count on Christian allies like you to speak truth and move this work forward.
Toward that end, know this: It is NOT anti-Semitic to criticize the policies and actions of the Israeli government and to demand that Israel comply with international law.
I was raised in and embraced the ethical tradition of Judaism. The concept of mitzvoth, that commands we love all our neighbors as ourselves, is the bedrock of Judaism. The Torah teaches that human beings are created B’tzelem Elohim – in the image of God. That’s how I see the world. You do, too, right? Our interfaith work is grounded in our common humanity. All human beings are equally worthy of respect, dignity and love.
For Jews, the overarching framework for social justice is found in two Hebrew words: g’milut hasadim and tikkun olam. G’milut hasadim, is defined ‘acts of caring’, such as direct help to people in need. Tikkun olam, literally translated means ‘repair of the world’, which entails advocating for structural (political) change. We make a distinction between these two ways to respond to injustice.
Some examples may help to illustrate how this works: Providing temporary shelter such as through the Interfaith Hospitality Network, offering food as do programs like Meals on Wheels and soup kitchens are examples of g’milut hasadim. On the other hand, Heeding God’s Call, anti-fracking advocacy are examples of tikkun olam. The New Sanctuary movement has elements of both. Escorting immigrants to detention hearings (accompaniment) would be g’milut hasadim; advocacy to pass the Dream Act would be an example of tikkun olam.
With this in mind, I’d like to use our time together to consider how faith informs one’s relationship to the peoples and place of Israel-Palestine. Three questions emerge:
Question Number One: What do you see? Whether or not you have been on a delegation and seen the situation first-hand, and/ or participated in the Steadfast Hope course...
In November the world watched in horror as images flooded the newspapers and television –targeted assassination, rockets fired into southern Israel, Israel’s bombs descending on Gaza, destruction, death, terrorized children, under-equipped overly-crowded hospital rooms, grief, pain, and suffering for Israelis and Palestinians. Humanitarian need in Gaza, already off the charts due to the blockade, rose exponentially. Without question, humanitarian aid was and is essential to maintain even a modicum of level of subsistence for the people in Gaza.
Now zoom out, the context is political. Two nationalisms competing for land and resources, an Israeli military occupation of Palestine well funded by US tax dollars, resistance by Palestinians.
Violence on all sides. And the land is holy. And the people are, too. All the land and all the people.
Question Number Two: How do you frame what you see? A frame is a way of seeing the world, of making sense out of information, a worldview. I offered a values frame of G’milut hasadim and tikkun olam. Consider others:
Question Number Three: How does your understanding inform the choices you make about if and how you will respond to the situation? Given your frame, how do you respond to the suffering in Palestine?
Humanitarian aid is straightforward and uncomplicated. It’s g’milut hasadim. Providing food, medical aid, and insuring education absolutely alters lives. Yet humanitarian aid falls short of altering the relationships of power that control people, land, resources, and the economy. These are political issues; they too must be addressed.
It is our responsibility to understand and to acknowledge what is at the core of the problem - political realities of occupation, collective punishment and siege. As people of faith, we readily identify basic rights and respond to basic needs- the right to education, the need for blankets, books, and medicine. But borders and bombs must also find their way into our conversations.
Here’s why - as Americans, we provide tax aid to Israel that builds and maintains the infrastructure of occupation that creates the humanitarian crisis. We are complicit. U.S. military aid given to Israel is used to oppress Palestinians. U.S. aid builds illegal settlements, the wall, provides cluster bombs and white phosphorous for assassinations and warfare, and electronic surveillance at checkpoints. Private corporations such as Caterpillar and multi-national corporations such as Hewlett Packard profit from Palestinian suffering by providing everything from bulldozers for home demolitions, to high tech systems used to monitor and control Palestinians at checkpoints, and more.
Unless we address both human need and the political context, we maintain the status quo. Consider the Free Gaza Movement’s repeated attempts to Break the Siege of Gaza by sending flotillas - ships such as the Free Gaza, the Liberty, Mavi Marmara. Their mission was not only to deliver humanitarian aid to an imprisoned population starving under brutal Israeli policies of occupation and blockade, but also to create an international spectacle.
For example, in South Africa the strategy “If people see what is going on, they will act” was used by the international community in supporting the ANC to bring apartheid to an end. The popular slogan “The whole world is watching,” galvanized ordinary citizens to act in support of the rights of black South Africans. Similarly, the global movement for a just peace in Israel-Palestine uses media to draw public attention to Israel’s violations of international law. It took a long time, but apartheid ended. And churches were at the fore of that movement.
How does faith shape our response to the people and land of Israel-Palestine? My answer is “Thou shalt not bulldoze thy neighbor’s house.” Let me explain… In 2003 twenty-three year old American peace activist and International Solidarity Movement member Rachel Corrie died in Gaza. She was murdered by an Israeli soldier commandeering a Caterpillar bulldozer as she was protesting a policy of the Israeli government - the demolition of Palestinian homes. Rachel wasn’t in Gaza providing food or blankets. House demolitions are a violation of Palestinian human rights. Rachel’s protest was a political act.
Tikkun olam – fix what is broken in the world. I stand with the Israeli Committee against House Demolitions, ICAHD, in advocating for the fundamental rights of Palestinians by vehemently protesting the policy of home demolitions. And I promote the boycott of and divestment from Caterpillar, the company that sells the bulldozers that knowingly will be weaponized in Israel for precisely this purpose.
Guided by Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel’s teaching, “Few are guilty, all are responsible,” my faith inspires me to stand for justice. My response to a world that is broken is Tikkun olam. Being an activist for justice for all people in Israel-Palestine is a sacred expression of what it means for me to be a Jew.
Today many Christians are mobilizing their communities around Kairos Palestine, 2009, a document to the world from Palestinian Christians about what is happening in Palestine. This again follows in the tradition of the South African Kairos document launched in 1985 as a significant tool in the struggle against oppression. Kairos South Africa, “A Challenge to the Church,” begins, “This is Kairos, the moment of grace and opportunity, the favorable time in which God issues a challenge for decisive action.”
Likewise, Kairos Palestine is a word of faith, hope, and love from the heart of Palestinian suffering. It is an appeal to Christians to support initiatives proposed by Palestinians, such as the 2005 Call by Palestinian civil society for boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel until it complies with international law. Bishop Dawani is an original signatory to this document. A more recent initiative, Kairos USA, 2012, is intended to mobilize churches in the United States to respond faithfully and boldly to the situation in Israel-Palestine. Among its authors is Rev. Cotton Fite of the Episcopal Peace Fellowship/Palestine Israel Network.
These are some brave initiatives within the Episcopal Church: In addition to the American Friends of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, The Palestine Israel Network of the Episcopal Peace Fellowship provides valuable resources. Among its projects has been promoting and making available the Steadfast Hope curriculum.
However, there is still much work to be done. A few weeks ago, a number of concerned U.S. religious leaders wrote a letter to Congress asking for scrutiny into how US aid is used, specifically whether Israel is in violation of the Foreign Assistance Act and the US Arms Export Control Act. The gist of the letter was that U.S. military assistance given without accountability or conditions maintains Israel’s military occupation of Palestine. Both laws prohibit assistance to any country which engages in a consistent pattern of human rights violations. The Arms Export Control Act further limits use of U.S. weapons to internal security and legitimate self-defense, both of which have been questioned in Operation Cast Lead and Pillar of Cloud, the recent invasions into Gaza. Sadly, the Episcopal Bishop did not sign this letter.
How is this to be understood? What is to be done? As American citizens it is essential that we hold our government to the standard of its own laws. As people of faith, we are called to respond to injustice. Communities of faith must hold leadership accountable. The church has a critical role in Israel-Palestine, as it did in the civil rights movement and in ending Apartheid South Africa. Different situations, yes - but in each situation, injustice necessitated a political response.
What do you see? What is your frame for understanding what you see? And, what will be your relationship to this injustice?
Susan Landau is an activist, organizer, and founding member of Christian-Jewish Allies of Greater Philadelphia. Susan participates in interfaith teaching teams offering The Steadfast Hope educational curriculum on Israel-Palestine in local church communities. She helped to found American Jews for a Just Peace and its Philadelphia chapter, Philadelphia Jews for a Just Peace (PJJP). Through her work with the Philly BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) coalition, she helped to launch the local boycott against Sabra Hummus and Tribe Hummus. In addition to her longtime career as a psychotherapist, Susan has worked as a Jewish educator, committed to creating honest curriculum on 1948 and the Nakba which makes the distinction between Judaism and Zionism. She is an involved member of Congregation Mishkan Shalom in Philadelphia, PA.
Wow! Thank you so much for this amazing piece. I have just returned from Palestine where I saw the spirit of the people rise above the occupation and apartheid. I learned so much from them about my own faith and direction. I met Jean Zaru, Rabbi Arik Ascherman, Jonathan Cook and Sam Bahour. I visited Beit Arabiya, Palestinian Susya, Al-Walaja, Tent of Nations, check points and refugee camps. I was brought to tears and to my knees. I have returned home with many stories to tell and a Palestinian heart. Thank you for keeping the message alive.