OTHER VIEWS

A Lot To Learn

I

is difficult for any professional
to acknowledge a lack of
expertise in his-her chosen
field. It's probably even harder
if the professional has been working
in the field for many years. And it's
harder still when the professional is a
rabbi, usually seen as the font of
Jewish wisdom and competence.
But that's exactly what eight
Michigan rabbis have done for the
past three years in our Clinical
Pastoral Education (CPE) courses.
We all began the studies having
worked as full- or part-time chaplains
for many years. I had done so for
more than 20 years.
One congregant said to me, "I bet
you could teach that course!" Yet
when we began, we realized we had a
lot to learn.
I had enjoyed working as part-time
chaplain in a psychiatric center in
New York City and at a Veterans
Administration hospital in Wilkes-
Barre, Pa. I had given some thought

James Michaels is spiritual leader of

Congregation Beth Israel in Flint. He
will begin a new job as chaplain-director
of spiritual care at the Hebrew Home for
Greater Washington in Rockville, Md.,
this summer.

to doing this work full time, but
found that a lack of CPE experience
prevented me from doing so.
I had skills, to be sure, but my abil-
ities had not been given any system-
atic organization. When I learned
that the Michigan Board of Rabbis
was going to establish a CPE pro-
gram in Detroit, I jumped at the
opportunity.
So what exactly did we experienced
chaplains learn in CPE? To put it in a

colleagues. It was a unique
experience for Chabad,
Orthodox, Conservative and
Reform rabbis to learn along-
side men and women from
diverse religious and ethnic
backgrounds. It was also
important for the non-Jewish
The Past, The Future
participants to learn about
RABBI
the
variety of beliefs and
Throughout the three years,
JAMES
practices
that exist in the
we've been privileged to learn
MICHAELS
Jewish
community.
from supervisors of extraordi-
Community
Having completed four
nary skills and
Views
units, I am now eligible for
knowledge.
certification as a chaplain. I
Our first unit
have also been encouraged to contin-
was run by Rabbi
ue taking CPE units, to train to
Israel Kestenbaum
become a supervisor. But there's
from the HeathCare
another result: In July, I will move to
chaplaincy in New
Rockville, Md., where I will become
York City.
the chaplain-director of spiritual care
Subsequently, we were
taught by Dr. Urias Beverly, a Baptist at the Hebrew Home for Greater
Washington. Thus, my training has
minister in Novi.
made it possible to enter a new phase
A former national president of the
of my rabbinic career. Although my
Association for Clinical Pastoral
congregation in Flint is sorry to see
Care, Urias came to Michigan five
me leave, they have been very sup-
years ago. He was fascinated by our
group of rabbis; when a group of rab- portive and encouraged my studies
and growth over the past three years.
bis take CPE together, he says , they
No valedictory is complete without
get noticed. After conducting the sec-
expressions of gratitude, and I have
ond unit at Jewish Family Service, he
many to give:
urged us to take units at Ecumenical
• Rabbis Bunny Freeman and
Theological Institute with non-Jewish

[the presence of God in the
world] is already there. We
also became aware that the
patients' families often need
our help as much as or more
than they do.

We learned to stop talking
and start listening.

nutshell, we learned to stop talking
and start listening. We aren't experts
in our patients' suffering; if we listen
to them, they can teach us more than
we teach them. But in the process,
they learn something, too: They're
not alone in their suffering.
Because we represent God to our
patients, our desire to listen and learn
brings the Divine presence to their
bedsides. Or to be more precise, we
make them aware that the shechinah

Accepting A Jewish State

Ramat Gan, Israel

IV hen President Bush
included a specific refer-
ence to the recognition
of Israel as a Jewish state
in his speech at the Aqaba summit
meeting, a number of Arab leaders and
commentators responded angrily.
Once again, the concept of a Jewish
state was labeled as racist and unac-
ceptable, as has been the pattern for
many Arab officials and in the state-
controlled media for decades.
However, Bush was merely restating
the obvious. The United Nations rec-
ognized the legitimacy of a Jewish
state on Nov. 29 1947, when a two-
thirds majority adopted Resolution
181. Under this partition framework,
what remained of mandated Palestine

Gerald M. Steinberg is a professor of

wite

7/18

2003

28

Political Studies and director of the
Interdisciplinary Program on Conflict
Management and Negotiation at Bar-
Ilan University. His e-mail address is
gerald@vms.huji.ac.il

(after the British split off a large part
to provide a home for the Hashemite
family in what became Transjordan)
was to be divided into two states —
one for the Jews and one for the Arabs.
So why all the fuss, over 55 years
later?
The reason is that this issue remains
at the core of the Arab-Israeli conflict,
and the deep-seated rejectionism that
fuels the continuing campaign of ter-
rorism. The real obstacles to peace are
not settlements, occupation, refugees,
borders or even the conflict over
Jerusalem — these are just symptoms
and expressions of much deeper but
well-hidden causal factors. When all
the rhetoric and propaganda is finally
stripped away, the primary problem is
the Arab rejection of the concept of
Jewish sovereignty in Israel.
For decades, the Arab states simply
rejected the legitimacy of Israel, across
the board, and called for its destruction.
More recently, the line has become
more sophisticated. Some Arab coun-
tries, beginning with Egypt and Jordan,

conference on racism that
have formally and officially
took place in September
accepted Israel's right to exist.
2001.
However, in most cases, the
In contrast, no one uses
rejection of Zionism as the
terms
such as "racist" or
"national liberation movement"
"apartheid" with respect to the
of the Jewish people has not
countries around the world
changed. The clearest evidence
that are officially Muslim,
was provided three years ago, at
the Camp David summit, when GERALD M. including Egypt, Jordan, and,
Yasser Arafat rejected any terms
STEINBERG of course, the Islamic
Republic of Iran. And simi-
— particularly regarding a solu-
Special
tion to the dispute on refugee
Commentary larly, the dominant Christian
cultures that characterize most
claims and on Jerusalem — that
societies in Europe, North
would have meant acceptance
America, Australia and New Zealand
of Israel as a Jewish state.
are also not viewed as racist or illegiti-
Instead, the propagandists continue
mate. In these countries, under the
their intense efforts to delegitimize the
facade of multiculturalism, the calen-
concept of Jewish sovereignty. Arab
dar is Christian, as are many other
governments, the United Nations, and
facets of daily life. At the same time,
hundreds of NGOs (non-governmen-
non-Christians minorities are able to
tal organizations) funded generously
make adjustments in a dominant
by the European Union and the
Christian culture and society.
Canadian government, as well as well
Similarly, there is nothing illegiti-
intentioned but ignorant donors)
mate about a country in which the
publicize the absurd claim that a
calendar is Jewish, Saturday is the offi-
Jewish state is inherently racist. This
cial day of rest, kosher food is general-
was the core of the infamous Durban