 APRIL 23 • 2020 | 13

continued on page 14

“It’s not really about Palestinian 
human rights. And I think

 that’s a shame.”

— RABBI NADAV CAINE,

 BETH ISRAEL CONGREGATION

human rights. And I think that’
s 
a shame,
” Caine said. “I wish it 
were… It is really about the fact 
that Israel and the Jews con-
trol the world and it’
s all those 
anti-Semitic tropes about [how] 
we control the banking, we con-
trol the American government, 
control the military.
” 

“WOULD YOU LIKE TO 
SEE US SHOT?”
Caine came to Beth Israel from 
Poway, Calif., where he was the 
rabbi at the town’
s Conservative 
synagogue. He knew about 
Witness for Peace’
s activities 
when he took the job at Beth 
Israel, and it didn’
t affect his 
decision. In fact, Caine said 
anti-Semitism is around wheth-
er people realize it or not, and 
he felt it was important to stand 
with Jews experiencing it. 
Since arriving at Beth Israel, 
he’
s kept up the synagogue’
s 
existing policy of not engaging 
with the protesters. But Caine 
said he did go up to Mark and 
the other protesters once, on 
the Saturday after the April 
2019 shooting at the Chabad of 
Poway. 
“
After the Poway shooting, 
as I’
m walking by, I turned to 
one of the protesters on the 
next Saturday morning and I 
said, ‘
I just have a question for 
you — would you like to see us 
shot?’
” Caine recalled. “
And he 
turned to me and he said, ‘
Well, 
it would be an appropriate 
response considering the Israelis 
kill Palestinian children every 
day.
’
” 
Mark acknowledged to the JN 
that the conversation happened, 
but denied that he gave Caine 
that response. 
Caine said he does think the 
repeated protests have affected 
Beth Israel and its congregants. 
Like many synagogues around 
the world, Beth Israel has secu-
rity measures in place. While 
Caine said he’
s pro-security, it 
also makes it difficult to do cer-
tain activities and offer services. 
Rabbi Nadav Caine of Ann Arbor’
s Beth Israel Congregation

