I continue to be confounded by how some Jewish supporters of Israel have aligned themselves with fundamentalist Christian preachers. I'm not alone. Rabbi David Saperstein wrote recently on The Washington Post's On Faith website:
Fundamentalist religious leaders who believe not only that God controls everything that happens but that they are able to see God’s explicit plans within the context of their own political and cultural views should raise alarm bells for those who would ally with them. Senator John McCain faced this dilemma starkly yesterday, and ended up, rightly, repudiating Pastor John Hagee’s assertions that Hitler was foretold in a verse in Jeremiah and that Hitler and the Holocaust were part of God’s plan to force the Jewish people back to Israel.
Jews can empathize with Sen. McCain because we have faced the same dilemma with Rev. Hagee. No fundamentalist Christian is more overtly supportive of Israel, raised more money for Israel, nor used his religious and political clout to more energetically mobilize support in America for Israel. Further, he was an evangelical who made clear that his relations with Jews over Israel would not be used to try to convert us. Yet, his fundamentalist views had led to reprehensible statements about gays, Catholics, and even the victims of Hurricane Katrina.
And his particular understanding of the Bible led him to use his political clout in efforts to undermine support for the Israel- Palestinian peace process and a two-state solution. Nonetheless, it had become common to find Jewish leaders joining in Pastor Hagee’s “Salute to Israel” events around the country and paying public tribute and homage to the pastor for his efforts. Two months ago, Rabbi Eric Yoffie, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, challenged Reform Jewish rabbis with the contradictions of participating in such events with someone who held views that were anathema to our commitment to tolerance, pluralism and intergroup respect. While I hope that Rev. Hagee continues his support for Israel, which I assume he gives for its own sake, we should refrain from allying with him in any manner that gives our stamp of approval to him generally or to the deeply troubling views he has expressed.
Sen. McCain faced a similar dilemma and decision.
Since Rabbi Yoffie’s speech and the coverage it received, Rev. Hagee has apologized or retracted some of his statements. But now comes the revelation of this most distressing sermon given in the late 1990s and reiterated in several books since then. I don’t believe that Rev. Hagee is anti-Semitic but the words he used are. Blaming Jews for anti-Semitism or the Holocaust is a classic form of anti-Semitic argumentation. If only the Jews had listened to Herzl and gone to Israel, the Holocaust would not have been necessary!I do not share Rev. Hagee’s belief that God controls every action here on Earth nor that God wishes for every Jew to move to Israel right now. But even if Rev. Hagee does so believe, that his God is one who could only accomplish that by killing 6 million innocent Jewish men, women and children, and 5 million innocent others is mind boggling. Ironically there are some anti-Zionist theological extremists in our community who argued exactly the opposite: that the Holocaust was God’s punishment for the Zionist movement. Both views are equally repugnant theologically, morally and politically. They deserve to be condemned by religious, civic, and political leaders in general, but most particularly by those who have chosen to align themselves with Rev. Hagee.
Here's the full post (though I admit now that I've reprinted most of it because, well, the words are so important even if I would disagree with Rabbi Saperstein's belief that Rev. Hagee himself is not anti-Semitic).
Now comes the question as to whether or not Sen. Joe Lieberman - who last year compared Rev. Hagee to Moses (no joke) - will speak next week as scheduled before the Rev. Hagee's group, Christians United for Israel.
People for the American Way is calling on him not to:
Max Blumenthal recently uncovered -- and published on the Huffington Post -- that Sen. Joe Lieberman is scheduled to headline Pastor John Hagee's 2008 Christians United For Israel Summit this July 22.
This is an outrage.
Reverend Hagee has made hateful statements about gays, Muslims and the Catholic Church and just recently, his comments that God had appointed Hitler to "hunt" the Jews became news. That was enough to convince presidential candidate John McCain -- who had previously courted Hagee -- to renounce the pastor's endorsement. Now it's time for one of McCain's closest campaign advisors, former Democrat turned Independent Joe Lieberman, to do the same.
Following news of Lieberman's keynote address to Hagee's conference, a pro-peace Jewish organization called J Street launched a petition urging Lieberman to reject Hagee and cancel his appearance. People For is joining in the effort.
Sen. Lieberman should not legitimize Hagee. Join our petition demanding that he cancel his appearance at the Christians United For Israel Summit.
http://www.pfaw.org/go/RejectHagee
Every time an elected official embraces one of these fringe, right-wing hate-mongers, it gives them legitimacy they don't deserve.
Sign the petetion.
And thanks to the good people at Talk to Action for their work on this story.
Related Post: Christians United for Israel: Bad Theology, Wrong Goals
Related Post: NBC’s “Revelations”
