Community Views
Publisher's Notebook
The Herd Mentality
And Meaningful Judaism
We've Gone Overboard
With Jonathan Pollard
VICTORIA E. GREEN SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
ARTHUR M. HORWITZ PUBLISHER
F
pardon, he, too, is considered a
closet anti-Semite and we are
instructed not to vote for his re-
election. Talk about single-issue
humanitarian politics.
Enough already.
grounds. That
American Jewry's biggest
defender of the
downtrodden challenge today is assimilation
and dispos- — that means acceptance. From
sessed, Alan the president's Cabinet to the
Dershowitz, calls it a miscar- U.S. Supreme Court, from the
riage of justice. A newspaper in halls of Congress to the presi-
Canada carries a box on its front dents' offices at many of the
page, counting the
number of weeks this
political prisoner has
been incarcerated. De-
fense groups clog the
fax lines with the lat-
est in their efforts to
secure a pardon.
Another Nelson
Mandela? A modern-
day Nathan Hale? No,
it's Jonathan Jay Pol-
lard, the poster boy for
American Jews who
feel there is an anti-
Semite lurking in
every shadow. Even
though Mr. Pollard
swiped 1,100 — that's
right, 1,100 — classi-
fied documents while
an analyst with U.S.
Naval Intelligence,
and even though he
accepted money and
gifts for this informa- Jonathan Pollard: Hero or villain?
tion (so much for act-
ing out of blind love
and devotion to Israel), he re- world's leading academic insti-
mains a "political prisoner of tutions, Jews have earned posi-
Zion," as his father called him tions of importance based on
in a 1987 interview with The their individual merits. And let's
not forget that the former chief
Jewish News.
And that appreciative care- of naval operations, Jeremy Bo-
taker of Zion, Prime Minister orda, was a Jew.
If you believe there is an anti-
Yitzhak Shamir, said in 1987
that the Pollard family's Semite wherever you look, then
predicament "may be a human- consider giving your time, mon-
itarian problem or a moral prob- ey and attention to the Anti-
lem, but it is not a problem with Defamation League. If you care
which the State of Israel has to deeply about America's rela-
tionship with Israel, then roll up
concern itself"
your sleeves and support
AIPAC. And if you worry about
whether your grandchildren will
be Jewish, then invest in Jew-
ish education at home and at
our synagogues, day schools and
other communal institutions.
Jonathan Pollard is no hero.
He is no role model. He is no
For his actions, Mr. Pollard "prisoner of Zion." He commit-
is serving a life sentence, the ted espionage. He got caught.
same fate as those other Amer- He took money. He's serving the
ican Navy "superheroes," Jerry maximum sentence allowed.
Whitworth and John Walker. Nothing more, nothing less.
But because Mr. Pollard was Same sentence as John Walk-
spying for the benefit of Israel, er.
Mr. Pollard's family and
and former Secretary of Defense
Caspar Weinberger was out to friends have every right to try
get him, the severity of his sen- and secure leniency. But please,
tence must be anti-Semitic. And the American Jewish commu-
when President Clinton, ar- nity has more important issues
guably the best friend Israel — and rallying points for justice
ever had in the White House, and equality — than Jonathan
declines to grant Mr. Pollard a Jay Pollard. ❑
or the past few years, I've
been spending New Year's
Eve in New York City, vis-
iting my friend Nina.
While we singlehandedly bol-
stered the local economy, we
talked, as we do every year at
New Year's, about what's im-
portant in our lives.
As usual, Judaism was a
big topic of discussion. Both of
us were brought up in the Re-
form tradition, and both of us
like to read and learn about
Judaism and Jewish history.
The focus of our conversation
was on a change we have noticed
in Judaism over the past few
years.
Within our respective congre-
gations, mine Reform and Nina's
Conservative, it is apparent that
the observance of
Judaism has tak-
en on a more emo-
tional dimension.
For example, at
the end of Nina's
Shabbat services,
they sing "Kol
HaNeshema," put
their arms around
each other and
sway back and
forth, which led to
our coining the
term "group-hug
Judaism."
My own congre-
gation has added
a "healing prayer"
to High Holy Day
and other services
which, until re-
cently, involved
the afflicted going
to the bimah to receive the bless-
ings of the congregation.
Somehow, this smacks of tel-
evangelism to me, and it renders
me mightily uncomfortable. The
rabbi now permits people to re-
main in their seats for the bless-
ing, but I still find the whole
thing very far outside my tradi-
tion.
We wondered how this trend
fits into the grand scheme of
Jewish history. Nina pointed out
that the historic appeal of the
Chasidic movement was that, in
many cases, Orthodox Judaism
had become dry and formalistic.
The charisma of Chasidic lead-
ers put drama, emotion and
heart into the forms of obser-
vance people already knew.
There seems to be a renaissance
in Chasidic-like observances,
with the present efforts to re-
store emotional and ritual ob-
servance and thus make
Judaism more involving.
Since both Nina and I are
Victoria E. Green is a Bloomfield
Hills attorney on staff at the
Michigan Internet
Communication Association.
lawyers, maybe it's inevitable most significant and perhaps
that our method of becoming most relevant to the partici-
more involved in our religion has pants.
As a participant, I question
focused more on study than emo-
tion. We both believe firmly that whether the new emotionalism
reading the texts and commen- is the "right" first step in our
taries, culling the morals and quest for significance, meaning,
teachings from them, and then and possibly even salvation. It
finding ways to make them per- seems that our congregations are
sonally relevant takes time and following the herd because that's
effort — but that these are the the way the herd is moving. I'm
keys to our feeling involved in beginning to feel that in not fol-
lowing the herd, I'm being looked
Judaism.
For me, it helps bring me at askance by my fellow congre-
closer to Reform Judaism as it gants.
It's ironic, since I perceive the
was originally developed and
practiced. By knowing what Or- purpose of the group-hug school
thodox Judaism requires, one of Judaism as bringing people
can positively and actively into the group, creating an all-
choose which forms of obser- inclusive warmth that welcomes
vance are the most personally everyone, certainly not exclud-
ing people.
significant.
I
Basically,
don't believe that
the emotion being
expressed by
group-hug Ju-
daism is sincere.
I think the mean-
ing is still there in
the prayers and
the laws, and
that by studying
them, and apply-
ing them to daily
life, one will get
more out of Ju-
daism and being
Jewish than a
transient emo-
tional high will
ever provide. This
is a more difficult
route, but it is
genuine.
I imagine that
My major objection to the some may argue that emotional
"group-hug" school of Judaism is appeal is crucial, as it has the
that it strikes me as shallow. I potential to attract people who
don't see genuine reflection as to feel alienated from Judaism,
where these "new traditions" fit and even some who sought spir-
into the overall scheme of Ju- itual relief in other religions. I
daism. Because the emotional don't think that's an adequate
is so appealing at a basic level, I reason.
Comfort is not easy to come by
think the possibility — and the
in this world, and if these new
forms of observance bring com-
fort, that's great. It's just very
definitely not my cup of comfort.
I don't want to force my form of
Judaism on others, and I object
to having other forms of Judaism
forced on me.
I'm comfortable with my lev-
danger — exists for Jews to en- el of observance; I don't want to
gage in these new forms of wor- be proselytized by my own peo-
ship in the same glassy-eyed and ple and ostracized if I choose not
unquestioning way that has oc- to follow the herd.
I hope this change in obser-
curred off and on throughout the
vance and outreach is part of a
centuries.
Perhaps the emphasis on emo- pendulum swing. Ideally, the
tional and quasi-"politically cor- pendulum will eventually come
rect" elements in Judaism is a to rest at a comfortable middle
way to make Judaism more at- ground, not overly emotional and
tractive and more in tune with not overly dry.
If the pendulum ever stops
current values. Of course, I think
that's what the Reform tradition swinging, it will be because Ju-
does best: chooses to observe the daism is no longer a dynamic,
parts of Judaism that are the living religion ❑
Turned off by
"group-hug"
Judaism.
Nobel laureate
Elie Wiesel re-
quests a release
from prison on
The issue has
taken on knee-jerk
proportions.