19 Days to Go – Glen Beck in Israel

By Sherwin Pomerantz

The march to the edge of the cliff by the Palestinian Arab leadership to the opening of the 66th Regular Session of the UN General Assembly and the vote to unilaterally establish a Palestinian state continues unabated even though there are moderate voices within who are vocal about their sense that this is not in the best interests of that community at this time. Sad that no one can figure how to put a ladder against the tree that will be tall enough to permit Abbas to descend to firm ground.

Here in Israel on Wednesday, Glen Beck held the last of his three “Restoring Courage” events, this one at the southern wall excavations near the Temple Mount at what is now known as the Davidson Center. There were barely 1,000 people in attendance (less than was expected) although an additional several thousand were watching the event on large screens set up in City Hall Plaza where tickets of admission were not required.

This majority (but not all) of the op-eds in this morning’s papers here were, for the most part, critical of the events in general, critical of his holding this particular program at a Jewish holy site (some saying it was a desecration of the place), and critical of his even being here for these events as some perceive his commitment to Israel and stated love of the Jewish people is nothing but traditional Christian anti-Semitism dressed up in different clothes, but now much more palatable to those of us who are, indeed, historical Jews.

I was not at either place, just as I was no longer in the room when he spoke at the Christians United for Israel Night to Honor Israel in Washington in July (he was the last speaker on the program so it was easy for me to exit). I did not participate in those events because I am not sure of his motives, have some discomfort with his statements in the not too distant past that were less than wise, if not foolhardy, nor can I vouch for his sincerity. But I am grateful that he came here along with thousands of supporters from the US and other countries with a message of love and support for Israel and the Jewish people.

For the naysayers who claim we do not need the support of people like him and caution us about who we choose for friends, I would feel more comfortable not having to depend on the Glen Becks of the world for support if I and millions of others here like me felt that our natural partners were with us. But, truth be told, that is simply not the case. Europe can certainly not be depended upon to support our cause, the US does so grudgingly (recall the difficulty Susan Rice, the US Ambassador to the UN, had in raising her hand to veto a resolution condemning Israeli settlements last February and her immediate explanation that this should not be seen as support for Israel), and, quite frankly we here are not seeing any great public outpouring of support from the Jewish community in the US either.

Taking all of this into account if 50 million US Christians who consider themselves Evangelicals are prepared to express their vocal support for Israel, to lobby their congressional representatives on our behalf, to rally in support of Israel and express their love for this country and the Jewish people, and for some of them to travel here at great expense to put their money where their mouths are, then in this period of time where we here feel ourselves becoming more isolated every day, I for one will accept that support gladly and worry about their long term intentions later.

Abe Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, said Tuesday that Beck has come to Israel to show support and solidarity with Israel and he should be welcomed as a friend. He added that the fact that Beck expressed views people did not agree with was no reason to ostracize him.

Foxman is right and we need to remember this important concept embedded so deeply in our tradition. All of us have friends and if they are good friends, sometimes we disagree with them but we remain friends. It is always possible that we will find out differently sometime in the future, it has happened before. But Beck’s message, as elucidated on Wednesday that “Evil is counting on us to do nothing, that evil is counting on us to be afraid but that evil has misjudged us” is an important concept to remember and act on, even it was uttered by Beck.

Martin Luther King, to whom a fitting memorial will finally be dedicated this coming Sunday in Washington, said “In the end we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” So even if Beck turns out not to be such a friend, we will more clearly remember those who said they were friends but remained silent.