Rabbi Alexis Berk

Kol Nidre 5771

Who Wins?

So, he put his matches away. That is a relief.  But, not really; because the damage is done, and done again, many times over. Until last week, Pastor Terry Jones, the leader of a small Florida church that espouses anti-Islam venom said he was determined to go through with his plan to burn copies of the Quran on Sept. 11, despite pressure from the White House, religious leaders and others to call it off. Al chet shechatanu lifanecha b’azut metzach – for the sin we have committed against You with our insolence.

…Jones said he has received more than 100 death threats and has started wearing a .40-caliber pistol strapped to his hip since announcing his plan…[for]“International Burn-a-Quran Day.”

Supporters [had] been mailing copies of the holy text to his Gainesville church of about 50 followers to be incinerated in a bonfire ….[1] Al chet shechatanu lifanecha b’tzarut ayin – for the sin we have committed against You by narrow-mindedness.

But, then he decided to stop that madness.

This man Jones is clearly an unwell “religionist.” He’s wrong about religion. And, most people know it. In fact, he is so unwell, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (got involved, saying) that the pastor’s plans were outrageous and urged Jones to cancel the event. “It is regrettable that a pastor in Gainesville, Florida, with a church of no more than 50 people can make this outrageous and … disgraceful plan and get the world’s attention, but that’s the world we live in right now,”[2] … Al chet shechatanu lifanecha b’sinat chinam – for the sin we have committed against You by hating without cause.

“How much do we back down? How many times do we back down?” (The inexcusable) Jones told the Associated Press. “Instead of us backing down, maybe it’s time to stand up. Maybe it’s time to send a message to radical Islam that we will not tolerate their behavior.” Al chet shechatanu lifanecha b’yetzer ha’ra – for the sin we have committed against You with our by giving way to our hostile impulses.

[Interestingly, this article reported that Jones’s] actions likely would be protected by the First Amendment’s right to free speech. The U.S. Supreme Court has made clear that speech deemed offensive to many people, even the majority of people, cannot be suppressed by the government unless it is clearly directed to intimidate someone or amounts to an incitement to violence, legal experts said. (Really? Have these freedoms been created to allow hatred like this to be perpetrated by the hateful?) (But, in fact) Staffan de Mistura, head of the United Nations Mission in Afghanistan, expressed concern and outrage “in the strongest possible terms,” and added, “If such an abhorrent act were to be implemented, it would only contribute to fueling the arguments of those who are indeed against peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan.” So our own first amendment is being tested in this case, as it is so often.  “The fire department [had] denied Jones a required burn permit, but he said lawyers have told him he has the right to burn the Qurans, with or without the city’s permission.” How far do our freedoms reach? Where do they intersect the freedoms of others? Whose freedoms do we most protect? Whose freedoms are too quickly forgotten? Al chet shechatanu lifanecha b’vidui peh – for the sin we have committed against You by our hypocrisy.

In Afghanistan, Jones’ planned burning indeed provoked outrage. And, again and again we see that we are not in conversation, but in a state of constant provocation. We do not discuss, or even debate, we deplore and deploy. And, we react to one another and enrage one another and feed madly on the frenzy.

…The Quran, according to Jones, is “evil” because it espouses something other than biblical truth and incites radical, violent behavior among Muslims.[3]  Al chet shechatanu lifanecha b’ritzat ragla’im l’ha’ra – for the sin we have committed against You by running to do evil. [GOR pp. 330-1]

We get so terribly stuck.  Upon hearing that I was considering speaking about this tense subject at Kol Nidre, a very thoughtful and worldly congregant here at Touro looked at me and said, But, what are you going to say? He said he didn’t know what to think about it all, he doesn’t know the right answer. Of course he doesn’t. From what source would he get the full-hearted, unspun information from whence to derive some solid truth? There’s way too much noise! It’s all amplified and inflamed. We fear that if we sympathize with anything Muslim, we are naïve supporters of terror. And, if we denounce anything Muslim, we are racist.

I read a letter that Fran, from Metairie, sent to the editor of the Times-Picayune a few weeks ago. She writes: “When I initially read about the plan to build a mosque close to ground zero, I thought, ‘OK, freedom of religion, let them build their mosque. Not all Muslims are terrorists.’ However, the more I read the more I realized that this was more an issue of sensitivity than religious freedom. Then I read that it isn’t just a mosque but a community center to improve relations and understanding of Islam. If this is true, why haven’t they gracefully backed down out of good will and understanding of the feelings of Americans? [Fran goes on] The mosque planners have put us in a no-win situation. Give in, and we disrespect the memory of those killed two blocks away.

Refuse the mosque, and we are not as ‘free’ as we claim.”

Is Fran right? It isn’t about whether Fran is right or wrong, it is about the state of absurdity in which we find ourselves. We have decided to choose condemnation over conversation. We choose anxiety, defensiveness over understanding – and then we feel backed against a wall.  Al chet shechatanu lifanecha b’ones u’v’ratzon – for the sin we have committed against You under duress or by choice.

I have come across some helpful, sane writings from Adeel Chowdhry, a medical student/researcher at Cleveland Clinic.  He writes: “Who or what is responsible for distorting the understanding of the nation’s citizens about Islam?  Clearly, those who purposefully denounce Islam to further their own political goals are to be held accountable.  Most recently, politicians…have been among the most vocal critics of Islam, rarely, if ever, taking the time to differentiate between extremism and the faith practiced by Muslims all over the world. ….Individuals from both political parties appear to be playing to the fears and uncertainties of the nation…. Sensationalistic news stories perpetrated by media outlets also serve to convolute this issue. Both directly and indirectly, these news agencies have helped merge the ideas of radical and moderate Islam by pursuing stories that repeatedly fail to capture the religion as practiced by over a billion people, instead choosing to focus on, and subsequently empowering, a handful of zealots that Americans are led to believe represent mainstream Islam.”[4] 

This is like saying that every Jew – you and I – should bear the blame for our kin in Israel like Baruch Goldstein who in 1994 opened fire on a group of Muslim men peacefully praying at the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron. Baruch Goldstein, an Orthodox Jew born in Brooklyn, killed 29 human beings that day.  He was part of the larger organization under Rabbi Meir Kahane, who was the head of an extremist party in the Israeli K’nesset.  Kahane proposed a plan allowing Arabs to voluntarily leave Israel and receive compensation for their property, and forcibly removing Arabs who refused. That has a hideous resonance with other atrocities, does it not?

We don’t expect to be lumped with Baruch Goldstein or Meir Kahane in our religious beliefs or actions. We’d be horrified to be associated. Indeed, escalations and generalizations of all kinds are a symptom of our reluctance to listen to one another, and our addiction to sensationalism. Rather than really talking, and really listening to one another, we have allowed the agendas of the religious extremists among us to create a reality that is poisonous and frightening. The political idiom has become the reality, cheapening the lives and souls of real people by reducing their purposeful existence to buzzwords and branding. Al chet shechatanu lifanecha b’richilut – for the sin we have committed against You by malicious gossip.

I think this Adeel Chowdhry says some important things: “Various individuals and entities have maliciously attempted to use the events of [9/11]… to distort the realities of the Islamic Community Center, intentionally misguiding concerned Americans, …Perhaps the most vile of the nicknames given to the Cordoba House Project is the “Ground Zero Victory Mosque,” which zealots describe as a monument to the triumph and domination of Islam in New York…”[5] There are zealots of all kinds. It is hard enough to live with the reality that there are fundamentalist terrorists of all stripes. But, perverting someone’s honest faith to stand for evil instead of good is a transgression of the highest order.  Al chet shechatanu lifanecha b’kalut rosh – for the sin we have committed against You with our irreverence.

In the midst of this world brawl about whether or not an Islamic cultural center should be built blocks away from ground zero, we are getting madder and madder, louder and louder. We are cultivating anger and hatred for one another, for religion in general, and for specific religions generally. We’ve handed all of our opinions over the media to be pre-chewed and fed to us as slop. And, we’ve forgotten that there are real, complex, thinking, feeling people who want to do the right thing. And, this is the essence of the issue. We are in a brawl instead of a conversation. And we can’t seem to stop it.

When imagining this conversation, a cherished teacher of mine summarized: “(The reason this is so hard is because) you are trying to speak to virulent ethnocentrism, the most contentious and destructive force on earth, THE anti-shalom disposition. And clichés, platitudes, and rehearsals of the obvious are worthless in such circumstances. What’s needed is reflective integrity in one’s identity and positions and genuine receptivity to others who really are ‘other,’ enemies even. Teshuvah is required all around.”

Yes, my friends, we’re in a tough spot on this eve of Yom Kippur. As we offer our communal confession, on behalf of ourselves, our Jewish community here and far, and the world, we have hard work to do. We can do this better. We can be mad. We can be frustrated. We can be confused. But, we are Jewish, and that always requires taking the thoughtful high road. Every time.

On Yom Kippur, we read the litany of the Al Chet. In this moment of congregational confession, we will ask forgiveness for our wrongdoings, our human tendencies which are not optimal. Our default places, preyed upon by those looking to access our baser facets. The story of the Cordoba House project tests our ability to stay clear-headed and strong-hearted. And, when we encounter something so incendiary, Judaism calls us to bring forth our most holy attributes – ones for which we strive on this day in particular. The Cordoba House conversation meets us at the intersection of religion, politics, culture, and co-existence, hatred, apathy, and love. When we try to simplify things, we polarize them. When we try to vilify others, we diminish ourselves.

In a sermon on anger, a friend of mine tells this story:

A husband confronts his wife one day and says, “Whenever I get mad at you, you never fight back. How do you control your anger?”

“I clean the toilet,” she says.

“You clean the toilet? How does that help?”

“I use your toothbrush,” she says.

When people are angry with one another, it is easiest to think of vengeful or spiteful ways to retaliate. Whether it is verbal or otherwise, we’d rather argue that empathize. We’d rather win a debate than concede complexity. What I have found frustrating in observing the debate over the Cordoba House project is a grand scale failed conversation.  

Using religion to harm others is patently wrong. There is no God who would approve violence. There is no God who would approve intolerance. There is no God who would condone unkindness. Belief in a God like that is always going to be bad. Because it will lead to bad things in the name of God.  We desecrate the Holy One when we ascribe evil and cruelty to the source of justice and mercy. Al chet shechatanu lifanecha b’chilul ha’Shem – for the sin we have committed against You by profaning Your name.

In the name of all that is holy, we must protect those seeking to live out their faith in peace. Failing to care about the welfare of good and peaceful people, including millions of Muslims living in America is heading down a road that, believe me, we Jews do not want to go. We know religious persecution. We know too well what happens when a small group of fundamentalists decide that a whole group needs to be shut up, shut out, or shut down. It is hideous. We swear: never again. We are a minority. We embody the value of religious freedom.  Al chet shechatanu lifanecha b’hona’at rei’a – for the sin we have committed against You by hurting others in any way. [GOR 271-2].

            It makes a person wonder – as I have many times – is religion in all its many forms, a net gain or a net loss for this world? And, the question often arises at the treacherous intersection of politics and religion, which by the way, always intersect as they both so deeply affect the personal and public life of all people. Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair recently wrote a short piece trying to convince the world – and maybe himself – that the positives of religion – and even the benefits of religious differences among people – outweigh the negatives. Blair firmly asserts, “We should not allow those who use religion as a divisive force to succeed.….By understanding one another, respecting one another, and acting with one another, we can show why humanity is made not poorer by faith but immeasurably richer.”[6]

Did you hear that there was an actual mosque, with devoted practitioners of Islam, inside the twin towers? Did you hear that that mosque went down in ash along with its devoted adherents? The Cordoba House Project better live –  so that we all may live – in dignity and freedom and truth in accordance with our religious and civic ideals. I don’t know who said it, but it’s true: We want to believe that the line between good and evil runs between them and us, but in fact in runs straight through all of us. Al chet shechatanu lifanecha b’zadon u’vish’gaga –the sin we have committed against You consciously or unconsciously.

            What can we say before You, who dwell on high? What shall we plead before You, enthroned beyond the stars? Are not all things known to You, both the mysteries of eternity and the dark secrets of all that live? You search the inmost chambers of the heart, and probe the deep recesses of the soul. Nothing is concealed from Your sight. Now, may it be Your will, O God of all generations, to forgive all our sins, to pardon all our wrongdoings, and to blot out all our transgressions. [GOR].  Amen.

---

[1] Associated Press writers Kimberly Dozier and Robert Reid in Kabul, Curt Anderson in Miami and Matthew Lee, Mark Sherman and Anne Flaherty in Washington contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2010 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Associated Press writers Kimberly Dozier and Robert Reid in Kabul, Curt Anderson in Miami and Matthew Lee, Mark Sherman and Anne Flaherty in Washington contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2010 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved.

[4] http://muslimmedianetwork.com/mmn/?p=6776

[5] Ibid.

[6] Parade, Sept. 12, 2010, 22.