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• VN)"\le:
esinyahu, the master of the •
erican sound bite who used his
nited Nations ambassadorship as a
ully pulpit inside and outside of
he Secretariat, hasn't initiated a
ommunications campaign aimed
t American Jews that focuses on what
nites us with Israel, rather than
lowing differences to shake, and
otentially break, the partnership?
Laster Dore Gold, a Connecticut
ankee in King Bibi's court. Gold is
urrently serving as Israel's ambassador
o the United Nations.
With master's and doctoral degrees
om Columbia, he is knowledgeable,
iculate, wise to the ways of
erican Jews and has Netanyahu's
ar (though he has a streak of arro-
ance). Unlike Israel's ambassador to
•
the U.S., Eliahu Ben Elissar, Gold
doesn't come across as a party hack
who storms out of meetings (as Ben
Elissar did at the recent Reform bien-
nial in Texas) when discussions are not
going his way.
Dore Gold needs to be deputized to
make Israel's compelling case with
American Jewry, and fast. The United
Nations General Assembly can wait.
What's important is the maintenance
of the "special relationship" between
Israel and the U.S. Israel needs
America's Security Council veto, and
lots more. Israel needs Dore Gold to
make sure American Jews feel they
have a stake in Israel's future so they
remain in Washington's political
trenches.
Otherwise, everyone loses. ❑
luralism And Jewish Unity:
Outside-the-Box Approach
AVID ARNOW
ecial to The Jewish News
he agreement for a cool-
ing-off period until Jan. 31
in the conflict over reli-
gious freedom in Israel has
ulled the Jewish people back from
he brink of a grave crisis and offers
n opportunity for a bold move that
ould unite us.
The elements of a solution build
n and expand Prime Minister
etnyahu's recent approach in
ppointing a special committee head-
d by Finance Minister Yaakov
e'eman to hammer out a compro-
ise on conversion and related mat-
ers.
The committee included five rep-
esentatives of Orthodoxy and one
ach from the Reform and
onservative movements. After many
otths, they reached a groundbreak-
ng compromise on conversion and
arriage.
The essence of these proposals is
hat while they preserve Orthodox
ertification of marriage and conver-
ion, they provide meaningful partici-
ation for Reform and Conservative
abbis in Israel without violating even
he most stringent interpretation of
ewlish law.
Nonetheless, the Ne'eman
pproach requires the Orthodox to
elinquish their exclusive control over
David Arnow is a vice president of
ew York UJA-Federation.
religious life in the country. That is a
big step.
From the non-Orthodox perspec-
tive, accepting the necessity of any
official Orthodox role in marriage or
conversion represents an enormous
concession.
Why can't the Likud, Labor and
any other willing parties simply agree
to pass legislation along the lines of
the Ne'eman Committee's recom-
mendations?
To overcome the fears of political
betrayal and of losing such a potent
bargaining tool, I propose that parties
supporting the new law — the
Ne'eman committee recommenda-
tions — enact legislation in a cere-
mony witnessed by representatives
from Jewish communities from
around the world. Israeli legislators
would pledge to the entire Jewish
people never to repeal the freedoms
granted therein.
While this outcome would no
doubt appeal to the vast majority of
world Jewry, it would_certainly prove
difficult for the Orthodox in Israel
and elsewhere. Orthodox rabbis in
Israel might simply refuse to partici-
pate in ceremonies in which Reform
or Conservative rabbis had any role.
The new law would need to include a
clause to the effect that if Israel's reli-
gious establishment refuses to partici-
pate, then the state would recognize
marriages or conversions performed
by duly ordained rabbis from other
denominations without any
Orthodox presence. ❑
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1997
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