Some Immediate Reflections On U.S. Change in Policy Toward Jerusalem
(This is a Facebook post I wrote just an hour after President Trump's speech on Jerusalem)
I happened to have been at my home watching television during President Trump’s declaration with our pest control person who’s been with us for the last 8 years. We’ve talked about the best way to kill roaches and ants, our family lives, but never about geo-politics. As the news spread on television, he asked me, what are your thoughts on this statement? As a rabbi, I know I am not an expert in Middle East politics, but it dawned on me that to him, I am an expert, and if my pest guy is asking me, is America recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital a good thing or a bad thing, I imagine many others will. It was hard to explain to him how I feel in a short sentence, so I thought about it a great deal. First, emotionally, as a Jew who loves Israel, who has lived in Jerusalem for two years of my life, and who invokes Jerusalem in my prayers numerous times a day, this is a great day. I’ve heard many people write, “I don’t need Trump to tell me that Jerusalem is our capital, we knew that already!” But take a step back - imagine if you knew you had a relationship with something or someone; everyone knew it, but it wasn’t acknowledged. Now, publicly, it is said out loud and acknowledged by the government (please don't read too much into this analogy - it's not about marriage equality - more about peoplehood). It is hard to put these feelings into words, but this is how many Jews feel at this time. We always felt that Israel was our people's homeland, but the Balfour Declaration, the 29th of November - these moments mean something. Our tradition believes that Jerusalem is the center of the world - it’s vital to who we are Jews. I view this as the Jerusalem on high approach - the emotional approach. There is a famous teaching about the Jerusalem on high and the Jerusalem below. Living in Jerusalem, seeing the openness of worship for all faiths, I cannot help but think about the idealized Jerusalem of the prophets and the midrash. A ‘house’ of worship for all faiths, a metropolis for all lands (Exodus Rabbah 23:10).
The Jerusalem below is the political and the strategic. I watched President Trump’s address, and, for the first time seemingly ever, he spoke as if every word mattered and would be studied as text. There was seemingly no ad-libbing, which honestly, I don’t know if I’ve ever seen. Yet, I suppose I’m left with more questions than answers when it comes to the politics and strategy of what comes next. Is this part of a new peace push? Is there a strategy in place? For example, is this a concession to Israel, a very different approach from previous administration, who will then be asked to make painful concessions in the future? If this leads to violence, will it have been worth it? Also, what wasn't said in the statement? These are my thoughts on one foot…for now.
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