New MKs – the importance of your American cousins

Friends,

Today I write to share with you my recent op-ed in The Jerusalem Post.

Do you think Knesset members fully appreciate the importance of understanding the diverse perspectives of American Jews on Israel? If not, why not?

–Jay Ruderman

New MKs – the importance of your American cousins

By JAY RUDERMAN

The Jerusalem Post , 1/28/2013

As the American Jewish community’s connection to Israel evolves and changes, the people who will be our future leaders must understand these changes because Israel continues to rely on this most important community for our security.

The votes have been counted.

It appears that almost half the members of our new Knesset will be serving in the Knesset for the first time, and that there will be several new ministers in Israel’s next government. The faces of Israel’s elected officials are changing, and with that comes the prospect – and hope – that there will be broader understanding on the Israeli government’s part of the American Jewish community’s role in ensuring Israel’s security.

Much of the recent election campaign was focused on the significant social problems facing Israel.

Both new and returning MKs may confidently assume that the United States will continue to send Israel $3 billion every year in military aid.

Trends in the United States, however, lead to real concern about potential challenges to American support for Israel. Moreover, Knesset members – both new and returning – tend take the support of the American Jewish community for granted and do not fully understand the vital role this community plays in ensuring the US government’s continued support for Israel.

Many MKs both travel to the United States and meet American Jews visiting Israel, but the discussion is always a one-way conversation focused on Israel’s external threats and internal challenges.

Very rarely are Israel’s leaders presented with an opportunity to learn about the nature and concerns of the American Jewish community and how its connection to Israel is evolving.

DURING THE previous Knesset, Israel’s current homeland security minister, Avi Dichter, along with 10 other MKs from five different parties, visited the US as part of our Ruderman Family Foundation’s Ruderman Fellows Program. Minister Dichter remarked that, “After all of my years representing the State of Israel in key positions, this is the first time that I was truly exposed to the richness and complexity of American Jewry, its organizations, leaders and [the] challenges facing the community.”

He was shocked to find out that there is a debate in the US on the size of the Jewish population, with one organization claiming there are 5 million Jews and another stating the number is 6.2 million – a 25 percent difference.

There will be challenges to the US-Israel relationship in the near future. United States Senator Rand Paul, who recently visited Israel and has been talked about as a presidential candidate in 2016, advocates for a reduction in American foreign aid. While Senator Paul would like to see all foreign aid reduced, this action would have an outsized effect on Israel, which receives so much aid in relation to other countries.

In addition, Senator Chuck Hagel, President Obama’s new nominee for secretary of defense, has in the past been critical of the role of the “Jewish lobby.”

President Obama’s second-term team and Israel’s new administration may see Israel’s challenges very differently and these differing world views may be the cause for new stresses in the vital relationship between the United States and Israel. It seems clear that Israel will face challenges in the US political system, and must be prepared to deal with these challenges.

WHAT OUR new MKs need to understand is that America’s military aid to Israel, the $3b. that has been provided year after year, cannot be taken for granted and that the best way to ensure that this vital aid continues is through the political work of the American Jewish community. Despite senators Paul and Hagel, the vast majority of Members of Congress are strongly supportive of Israel and foreign aid.

These strong supporters of Israel in Congress have been educated and supported by the American Jewish community.

The Knesset must internalize the vital role that the American Jewish community plays in ensuring Israel’s security and spend time understanding how this important community connects to Israel.

Knesset members must understand how the assimilation of the American Jewish community will impact Israel and what they can do to speak to and strengthen Israel’s ties to this growing part of the Jewish community in the United States.

They also need to understand how American Reform, Conservative and even modern Orthodox Jewish communities relate to Israel and understand that when Israel decides issues such as “who is a Jew” it impacts these important relationships.

American Jews and their Israeli counterparts differ in many ways and live in different realities, but the two communities are interconnected and interdependent, and this cannot be overlooked.

As the American Jewish community’s connection to Israel evolves and changes, the people who will be our future leaders must understand these changes because Israel continues to rely on this most important community for our security. We need our American Jewish cousins because we cannot face our future challenges alone.

The writer is the president of the Ruderman Family Foundation.

The U.S. Isn’t in Our Pocket

Friends,

Today I want to share with you a recent op-ed I wrote for Haaretz on the relationship between Israel and American Jewry—a topic of special interest to me and the Ruderman Family Foundation.  I believe it’s particularly critical not to take this relationship for granted as we move toward elections later this month in Israel. As in any good relationship, we would only benefit from listening more and assuming less.

–Jay

The U.S. Isn’t in Our Pocket, Haaretz, December 30, 2012

By Jay Ruderman

Over the years, we’ve grown accustomed to seeing our longtime best friend, the world’s greatest superpower, support Israel to the tune of billions of dollars every year via aid funds that are used to buy sophisticated planes and weaponry and finance important defense projects. Just recently, we discovered how critical America’s support was in developing the Iron Dome antimissile system and acquiring additional batteries, which are needed to provide a defensive envelope covering the entire State of Israel.

There are some who take this money for granted, acting as if it were given to us automatically. But that isn’t the case. American Jews are the most important players in the battle for Israel’s security. Yet their support for us isn’t as assured as it was in the past.

Let me explain to you how things really work, far from the media and the public: Members of Congress and candidates running for Congress are obliged to raise enormous sums of money in order to get elected. The people who raise this money for them have the ability to influence the candidates on issues dear to their hearts.

American Jews work together to raise substantial amounts of money for Congressional candidates whom they believe will support Israel. Pro-Israel members of Congress receive broad support from the Jewish community, and this assures Israel of support in Congress.

But the connection between American Jews and Israel has been weakening in recent years. This is one of the greatest threats facing Israel’s security. American Jewry is changing, and those who once felt a supreme commitment to the State of Israel see themselves today as less and less committed to it.

The Reform Movement is one of the most important branches of American Jewry. Last month, Rabbi Rick Jacobs, who heads the Union for Reform Judaism, warned that internal disputes in Israel over issues of religion and state are causing American Jews to view Israel as a country that doesn’t reflect their values.

This statement ought to be keeping Israeli leaders awake at night. They must devote serious efforts to strengthening these fraying ties before we reach the point of no return – before it’s too late.

The state’s leaders must learn to view the American Jew from his own perspective. They must understand what significance Israel holds for him and how he connects to it, and even more, what he doesn’t connect to. Anyone who thinks American Jews will continue to work for Israel and contribute large sums of money to it just because it is the state of the Jewish people is making a grave mistake.

Israeli Knesset members don’t understand the complexity of American Jewry, and it’s not certain that those who will enter the Knesset after the upcoming election know or understand what Israel’s situation is with American Jews. The foundation I head, working in conjunction with Brandeis University, brought two delegations of Knesset members from various parties to the United States to expand their knowledge of the American Jewish community. We were stunned to discover just how vital and necessary this was.

If Knesset members aren’t wise enough to understand the changes taking place within American Jewry and in its connection to Israel, and if they don’t learn how to strengthen this connection, we will lose one of the most important factors ensuring Israel’s security – our common future, and our unconditional mutual solidarity.

Imagine for yourselves where we would be without it, if, heaven forbid, we should ever reach such a state.

The author is president of the Ruderman Family Foundation, which works to strengthen the connection between Israel and American Jewry.

Being in Two Places at Once: Our Foundation’s Challenge and Advantage

Friends:

I’m writing to share an op-ed I wrote this week for ejewishphilanthropy.com.  I have been reflecting on why — even with the logistical difficulties of running a foundation with offices thousands of miles apart — the strategic advantages to having a dual presence far outweigh the challenges.

As always, I welcome your comments.

— Jay

Being in Two Places at Once

by Jay Ruderman

There’s an old Yiddish expression that says you can’t have “ein tuchus oft da ganze velt” or, simply put, you can’t be all over the place at once.

But like many foundations today, our agenda transcends nations. We work toward the goal of full inclusion for Jews with disabilities wherever they may live and we also seek to strengthen the bond between Israel and the Jewish community in the United States.

Unlike many foundations, however, we felt we could not be fully effective at this work without a physical presence in both Israel and in the U.S. Our foundation is one of the few to have its principal decision maker live in Israel, while keeping the organization headquartered in the U.S. This unusual arrangement has given us a broader perspective from which our organization and those we serve truly benefit. It has also given us the opportunity to be a peer-to-peer resource for other funders in both the U.S. and Israel.

There are times that the increased coordination required by this arrangement is challenging. But the advantage of having feet on the ground in both places, and the additional involvement with grantee programs that it provides, cannot be measured. We believe that our twin locations provide us with a distinct perspective on philanthropy. Being in two far-away places at one time truly lets us understand the special and unique relationship between Israel and the U.S. Jewish community and how to most effectively pursue our foundation and program goals.

Looking back to Israel’s failed ad campaign in 2011 to woo expatriates to return home, we had a unique vantage point. We could both see the particular forces in Israel that led to the development of the campaign and better understand why it was so poorly received among American Jews.

More recently, during the military conflict with Hamas, we were able to provide our partners in the U.S. with a first-hand account of what it was like in Israel living beneath the thunder of the Iron Dome explosions, as Israeli anti-missile defenses collided with incoming rockets from Hamas, and also report to the public about how Israelis with disabilities were adversely impacted by a shortage of services during the crisis.

Such a perspective is helpful in an environment where major Israeli philanthropists tend not to fund programs outside of Israel. At the same time, many American foundations that fund programs in Israel do not have offices and staff here, even if they visit frequently.

The fact that I choose to live in Israel makes a statement to our board and partners that our foundation understands how Israeli civil society operates. It would be hard for our foundation to be as effective without this structure, in the same way that it would be hard for a newspaper to report on a community if it did not have a presence there.

Similarly, our Ruderman Fellows program, which brings Members of the Knesset to the U.S. so that they can learn more about the Jewish community in the U.S., benefits from our presence in both places. By being located in Israel we are able to directly recruit Members of the Knesset for the program and our operation in the U.S. is able to design the right experience for the participants as well as handle the thousands of details that make these trips a success.

The power of a dual or multi-location operation for foundations should not be underestimated today. In a world where information, influence, and contacts defy boundaries, the strategic advantage of being in two places at once often translates into the greater fulfillment of goals and the coalescing of mission.

Jay Ruderman is President of the Ruderman Family Foundation.  For more on this topic, please follow Zeh Lezeh, the Ruderman Family Foundation’s blog.

Another View of American Democracy: A Knesset Member Speaks Out

Dear Friends,

Today I share with you the second of two op-eds by members of the Israeli Knesset that appeared on JTA, the primary global news service of the Jewish community.

It may be surprising, at a time when many of us are tiring of election season, to hear about how our democracy is viewed by others.

–   Jay Ruderman

 Israel must Learn from American’s Unrelenting Self-Examination

By Raleb Majadele, deputy speaker of the Israeli Knesset and a member of the Labor Party

Among the many strengths of Israel is its strong democratic tradition. Maintaining this tradition, however, seems to be more of a challenge with every passing year.

Perhaps my feeling is in part a result of a recent visit to the United States, where I witnessed the U.S. presidential election playing out in a demonstration of democracy that is particularly vibrant, robust and energetic.

Along with four other members of the Knesset, I visited the U.S. as a member of the Ruderman Fellows delegation, sponsored by the Ruderman Family Foundation, to promote greater understanding among Israel and the American Jewish community. Throughout many meetings in Boston and New York City that included a wide spectrum of Jewish community and public leaders, I was deeply impressed by the dynamics of an American democracy in which the diversity of opinion and culture is so embraced.

What also was instilled in me is that a primary component of American strength is the unrelenting self-examination and self-criticism to which it subjects itself. America is not afraid to confront its missteps and imperfections.

My visit to the United States was for me, an Arab citizen of Israel, a profound lesson in democracy. Democratic values are deeply rooted in American society, as well as in its Constitution, which guarantees the equal rights of minorities as a fundamental precept of American law.

Among American Jews I discovered a diverse and principled community representing a wealth of political opinions, religious streams and worldviews. I was moved by the passion and commitment evoked through points of both essential agreement and unbridled disagreement on political, social and strategic issues affecting not only the community but support for Israel as well.

We in Israel have much to learn from the American Jewish community in how to contend with our differences within a safe and respectful atmosphere. Stronger democracy is the cure to a weakening of unity within Israel — and a weakening of support for Israel from outside our country.

For sure, democracy in America is imperfect — and it has taken more than two centuries for it to achieve this level of imperfection. But the U.S. no doubt is a beacon and example of how to build and hold on to representative government. My Israel has much to learn.

 

Wanted: Americans to Serve in the Knesset

Friends,

I hope you enjoy this op-ed of mine that ran in a recent edition of eJewishphilanthropy.  In it I make the case for including American olim (new immigrants to Israel) in the Knesset. This will both raise awareness among Israeli lawmakers about the American perspective on Israeli politics and increase Israelis’ understanding of this all-important bond between our two countries. As always, I welcome your feedback in the comment box provided below.

— Jay Ruderman

 

Wanted: Americans to Serve in the Knesset

Israel’s relationship with the United States has entered a critical phase and the ensuing pressures that this year will bring must be handled with sensitivity by both sides.

Many Americans – Jews and non-Jews alike – have a deep affection for Israel. The same could be said for Israelis, who value the deep connection and unparalleled support of the United States, the world’s most powerful democracy. But as the two nations move forward during unstable times, they must strive to remain in sync. The engagement of the U.S. Jewish community has been so important to maintaining this special relationship and toward ensuring Israel’s long term interests that any weakening in the relationship is a cause for concern.

The clear difference of opinion between the Israeli and U.S. leaders on the timetable for action to prevent Iran’s development of nuclear weapons highlights a strained Israel-U.S. relationship perhaps better than any other single factor. The frustration expressed by Israel over the seriousness of this threat and what the government sees as a slow and far too measured approach by the U.S. is indicative of the different viewpoint of these two nations.

The United States is Israel’s most important strategic ally. That alliance, and the moral, political and military support that comes with it, offers protection to Israel at a time when security of the nation and region are so vulnerable. It is because of this vital relationship and the great need for Israel to approach its relationship with the United States with the highest degree of respect and caution that Israel should be better utilizing the unique tools and perspective of Americans in Israel. There is perhaps no greater time than now to make better use of American olim who are well positioned to understand the nuances and sensitivities of the relationship in a deeper and more intuitive way than their fellow Israelis.

I am not suggesting that American olim should be relegated to the role of the loyal advisor to Israel’s political leaders. Rather, I believe the time has come for them to assume up front political roles in Israeli political life. There are no Americans, for instance, currently serving in the Knesset. The Israel-United States relationship would be greatly improved by the presence of American olim, who can speak directly to the passions and interests of U.S. citizens and would bring American perspective to Knesset dialogue. Such members of the Knesset would give Americans a greater connection to Israel, in much the same way that Golda Meir, as someone who had been raised in the U.S., forged a strong bond with American Jews.

It is hard to understand why American olim don’t serve in the Knesset. After all, they represent the largest group of immigrants to Israel after those from former Soviet republics. Russian speaking olim, on the other hand, serve in large numbers and form a powerful Knesset voting bloc. They advocate strongly for the interests of their community in a way that American olim can aspire to replicate. American olim also have a myriad of special interests that would be best served by having their own representatives in the Knesset.

Philanthropy has a role to play. The Ruderman Fellows program organized by our foundation, in which Members of the Knesset travel to the U.S. to better understand the U.S. Jewish community, has demonstrated the ways in which Israelis have not fully internalized the diversity of American Jewish life and the complexity in their connection to Israel.

One Ruderman Fellow, MK Faina Kirshenbaum, wrote after her trip, “Whatever their (American Jews) views, investing in dialogue with them is a critical Jewish mission. We must establish a shared platform for discourse and exchange because only in dialogue can the Jewish world find the commonality of spirit and commitment to ensure our joint future.”

Americans in the Knesset could be a critical link in enhancing the Israel-U.S. relationship. They could help their fellow Israelis to better understand the American viewpoint and could also help Americans to better understand the Israeli perspective.

Programs like ours that bring Israeli leaders to America, and those that bring American leaders to Israel, are very effective at opening eyes and minds, but they are no substitute for committed and engaged American-informed perspective in the Knesset.

Jay Ruderman is President of the Ruderman Family Foundation.

Ruderman Fellows Program: Building Bridges Between Israeli Policy-Setters and Their American Cousins

Friends,

In just two days Passover will be here, a holiday that invites us to explore all the ways we are still striving for freedom in our lives and community and ways we can bridge our differences to enable this to become more of a reality in the future.

One bridge we have been building is the Ruderman Fellows program which wrapped up last week.  Now in its second year, the program, in partnership with Brandeis University, brings members of Knesset from across the political spectrum to the US for an intensive week of meetings with many top leaders in the fields of government, academia and the organized Jewish world.  The goal: to send these Israeli policy-makers home with a new understanding of their American cousins and the reality of what it means to be Jewish in America today.

In back-to-back briefings, panels, site visits and meetings in New York and Boston, the Knesset members heard from the top leadership of the organized Jewish community and some of the brightest stars in academia, as well as senators, congressmen and mayors.  Busy people all, they nonetheless took the time to share their experiences, passions and insights with the Israeli leaders, painting a composite portrait of the current state of American Jewry.

And the message got through. As Ruderman Fellow MK Leah Shemtov of the Yisrael Beteinu Party put it, “Especially during these times when anti-Semitism is on the rise all over the world, the encounter with American Jewish community representatives from all religious and political streams revealed that the security and future of the state of Israel remains among their top priorities.” As she and the other Ruderman Fellows learned directly from so many American leaders, “this exposure is certain to  strengthen the ties and cooperation between our two countries.”

By emphasizing both the differences in the difficulties we face and, at the end of the day, the core values we share, we are able to move forward to face the challenges with a deeper sense of optimism, understanding and shared dreams for the future.

Here are two more of the MK’s observations: “This initiative was an in-depth, intensive and  fascinating program. We now have a broader understand of the American Jewish community and the challenges they face.” — Deputy Speaker of the Knesset, Ofir Akunis (Likud)

“The first-hand encounters and honest dialogue with a broad spectrum of leaders and representatives, and the sincere efforts of the organizers and the Ruderman Foundation helped us explore the realities and contributed to a deeper knowledge and understanding of the American Jewish community.” – Raleb Majadele (Labor)

On behalf of myself and the entire Ruderman Family Foundation, I’d like to wish all our readers a wonderful, meaningful Passover and, for those of you who celebrate Easter, a delightful holiday of your own.

— Jay Ruderman

Ruderman Fellows Send-Off: Building a Bridge to Better Understanding

By Guest Blogger Roberta Fahn Schoffman, MindSet CEO

Members of Knesset participating in the upcoming Ruderman Fellows Program braved stormy weather last night to attend an informal pre-trip dinner at the Rehovot home of Jay and Shira Ruderman. A unique initiative by the Ruderman Family Foundation in partnership with Brandeis University, the program brings a diverse group of MKs to Boston and New York to cultivate a deeper understanding of the priorities and sensibilities of the American Jewish community. This year’s delegation, which departs for the US on March 24, includes Ofir Akunis (Likud), Yitzhak Cohen (Shas), Ilan Gilon (Meretz), Fania Kirshenbaum (Yisrael Beitenu), and Raleb Majadele (Labor).

After welcoming the MKs to his home, Jay Ruderman, President of the Ruderman Family Foundation,  introduced Danny Ayalon, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Israel’s former Ambassador to the U.S., who emphasized the great value of the Fellows program: “While the US-Israel relationship is based on important interests, the American Jewish community makes possible the true intimacy of the partnership,” he said, praising the Rudermans for creating a new “platform and bridge” that will greatly contribute to better understanding and dialogue.

Labor MK Danny Ben Simon, who participated in last year’s delegation, told the group that the program was so packed with sessions and meetings that even hard-working MKs had a hard time keeping up. But, he explained, this is a rare opportunity to engage in open exchange with so many different elements of the American Jewish community. Bradley Burston, Haaretz columnist and senior editor of Haaretz.com, pointed out the very different perspectives of the two largest Jewish communities in the world. Israelis are conditioned to see the world through the prism of threats while American Jews have built their future security on the unfettered democratic foundation that upholds the critical separation of church and state. Recognizing that the delegation’s visit coincides with the current presidential election season, he said, some of these issues remain at the core of national debate.

The group will be exposed to a spectrum of views and opinions, spanning the political, religious and social attitudes of the community, with sessions like “Consensus and Diversity in the Communal Agenda,” “Conflicting Perspectives: What is Pro-Israel,” “Religious Movements in American Communal Life,” “Trends in Jewish Innovation – a Conversation with Young Social Entrepreneurs,” and “Tikkun Olam Goes Global.” Meetings are scheduled with, among others, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and Treasurer Steve Grossman, Senators Scott Brown (R-MA) and Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Brandeis President Fred Lawrence, heads of major Jewish organizations and religious streams, the Board of Trustees of Brandeis University and leading philanthropists. In addition, two Town Hall meetings in Boston and New York will enable the MKs to interact directly with the public.

— Roberta Fahn Schoffman

A Summer of Love: The Tikvah-Mishlochot Relationship

By Guest Blogger Howard Blas, Director of the Tikvah Program, Camp Ramah in New England

Most travelers to Israel long for their visits to the Kotel, Masada, and to an authentic Israeli falafel stand. Members of the Tikvah Program at Camp Ramah in New England, a program for campers with developmental disabilities, can’t wait to visit and spend time with their special friends from the mishlochot. “Mishlochot,” Hebrew for “delegation” or “emissary,” refers to the 40 post-Army Israelis who come to camp each summer to serve as bunk counselors, teach swimming, boating, sports, ropes, nature, dance and singing and represent the many faces of Israel. In return, they bring a bit of American Jewry back to Israel. The delegation to Ramah New England returns home each year with so much more, including deep meaningful relationships, changed attitudes and a desire to work in Israel with a similar group of people.

Delegation leader Rotem, who also heads the waterfront, notes, “When I tell them about Tikvah before they leave for camp, they feel a little discomfort, they don’t really understand what I am talking about and have no idea how they will teach them. When they return home at the end of the summer, they have gained so much including a special bond and an ability to communicate and work uniquely with each camper.”

Swimming teacher Idan recalls happily, “For me, I loved the experience of teaching swimming to a group with lots of joy and pure love of life’s simple things, like water. They got so much satisfaction out of their time in the lake!” And Sivan speaks fondly of her work teaching drama and as a peer buddy to a member of the Tikvah vocational training program. “At first I was nervous about my drama classes with Tikvah. This soon became the most rewarding bright spot in my day. They really loved coming to drama! I also enjoyed my Shabbat special time with my buddy Sarah.  We had so much fun playing and talking and hearing about her love for Israel.” Sarah and members of the recent Tikvah Ramah Israel Program enjoyed seeing mishlochot friends during a recent trip to Israel — in their homes in Beit Shemesh, Yafo and Modiin, at the Kotel, and sharing meals together.

While it is hard to measure the impact of the experience, anecdotes abound.  Isaac “Buji” Herzog (current member of Knesset and former Minister of Welfare and Social Services, who addressed the recent ADVANCE conference) looks back fondly on his stint as a waiter at Camp Ramah in the 1970s, and has written about his work tutoring a girl in the Tikvah Program. “That experience taught me so much and contributed a great deal to my leadership skills and my desire to help disadvantaged populations,” he says. “This plays a large role in my work as a member of Israel’s current administration.”

— Howard Blas

Survey Says: Most Israelis Think Legislators Should Consider Diaspora When Making Policy

Dear Friends,

Our foundation is extremely proud that the Ruderman Fellows Program, our initiative to educate members of Israel’s Knesset on the American Jewish community, has led to the creation of a new caucus announced this week in the Knesset on the connection between Israel and the American Jewish community.  A recent poll we commissioned shows that the Israeli public agrees that Israeli leaders should consider the views of the Diaspora when making policy. Click here to see the front-page Jerusalem Post story that ran this week.

 — Jay Ruderman

New Knesset Caucus to Address Widening Gap between Israel and American Jews

Jerusalem, January 23, 2012 – A poll sponsored by the Ruderman Family Foundation has found that 70.8% of Israelis surveyed think that it is important that legislators consider the Diaspora when deliberating on legislation like “Who is a Jew,” which sought to more narrowly define who in the Diaspora is Jewish and thereby qualifies for Israeli citizenship.  The new poll data makes even more timely an effort to heighten both the knowledge and sensitivity of Israel’s Members of Knesset about the American Jewish community.

A new Israel-American Jewish Knesset Caucus will be inaugurated on Wednesday, January 25, 2012, which will be focused on deepening the understanding and relevance of the relationship with the American Jewish community.  The Caucus will raise awareness among MKs, Knesset committees and lobbies concerning agendas and priorities of Israel and the American Jewish community.  The Ruderman poll, conducted by Teleseker (TNS) on January 19^th, found that 78.2% of Israelis polled believe that the establishment of the Knesset Caucus is an important initiative.

The vast majority (87.5%) of Israelis surveyed also believe that the American Jewish community is important to the future and security of the State of Israel. 

MK Ronit Tirosh (Kadima Party), Caucus Chairperson, launched the Caucus to ensure that this crucial relationship stays strong. “I came back from the Ruderman Fellows Program in the US last year with the understanding that Israelis in danger of losing one of its most critical strategic allies,” said MK Tirosh.  “As times change, and the US Jewish population becomes less engaged and less attached toIsrael, the bedrock of traditional US support of Israel becomes less of a certainty too.”  MK Tirosh was one of six MKs to participate in the first Ruderman Fellows Program in 2011, which was designed to educate MKs about the American Jewish community.

“Again and again, we see that the Jewish people are split into two camps – Israel and the Diaspora – that do not understand each other,” said Jay Ruderman, President of the Ruderman Family Foundation.  “The fact that the Knesset members are now willing to examine and address the shifting dynamics in the American Jewish world is a huge step for Israeli political leaders, and it will have a direct impact on the future of Israel and Jewish unity.”

The Ruderman Fellows: A Big Tent for Greater Understanding Between Israeli Leaders and American Jews

By Jay Ruderman

Only this time of year of course we refer to that tent as the Big Sukkah: A shelter large enough to unite Jews from both sides of the Atlantic with the goal of mutual understanding and support. In fact, this understanding is one of the guiding principles of our family’s foundation. Specifically we are working to raise awareness among Israeli leaders of the key importance of the relationship betweenIsraeland the American Jewish community. Which is why last spring we brought six members of Knesset to North America so they could see first-hand that which unites and divides us, and get to know – and appreciate the unique position of — American Jews.

In last week’s JTA op-ed, “Bridging the Israel-Diaspora Gap is More Vital than Ever,” Avi Dichter, a Kadima Member of Knesset, the former Minister of Internal Security and former head of Israel’s Shin Bet (domestic security agency), shared much of what he learned during his Ruderman Fellowship experience.

As the son of Holocaust survivors. Dichter learned at an early age not to take Israel’s security for granted, and this has been a driving passion behind his four-decades in the public eye, with a specialty in security.

“The trip showed me that my deep personal concerns for my family ties are but a microcosm of the dangers facing the continuity of the Jewish people,” he wrote in his op-ed.

It was a trip that opened eyes of all six Knesset members. “As politicians, this was a new experience for all of us. Rather than coming to speak, we came to listen. Instead of espousing our own ideas, we learned from others.” And some of what they learned was “alarming.”

The Fellows were shocked to find that millions of Americans hold anti-Semitic views, accusing Jews of loyalty to Israel over America (re: a 2009 Anti-Defamation League survey). “We were astonished to learn of such bigotry in America, the beacon of freedom around the world, where Jews have thrived for well over a century.”

They also found disturbing inconsistent statistics about the number of Jews living in the United States, ranging from 5.2 million to 6.5 million. “The vast 25 percent difference suggests a serious crisis of identity as to the definition of ‘Jewish,’” he writes.  So, by insisting on clear-cut definitions, he fears “Israelis risk alienating our friends in the diverse Jewish communities around the world and most importantly in America, which finds unity through diversity.”

All in all, Dichter returned home with a deep concern about the divide between American and Israeli Jews, “and its potential for widening even further at a time when Israel must depend on friends from abroad … those bonds, critical to Israel’s standing and resiliency, must be reinforced so that we are able to contend with the myriad challenges confronting us today.”

And so, in this new year, may all of us – Israeli and American alike — work together to strengthen each other under the Big Sukkah of unity and peace.

— Jay Ruderman