Idealism without illusion
Andrew Silow-Carroll has done us all a service reminding everyone that we have the privilege to teach our children about Jerusalem l’mata — the actual, wonderful, and often messy real Israel — rather than Jerusalem l’mala — the overly romantic state that cannot exist in the real world (“What shall we tell the children,” June 3).
We continue to live through a now-more-than-10-year period of dysfunction when dealing with the Israeli-Palestinian issues. That should not deter us all from, as John F. Kennedy said, “being an idealist without illusion.”
When Ben-Gurion was asked how he could support the British war effort against Hitler once the White Paper was issued he replied, “We shall fight the war as if there was no White Paper, and fight against the White Paper as if there was no war.” Our message is the same: we shall fight within Israel for religious freedom for all as if she were at peace, but we shall fight for Israel until there is peace.
Rabbi Daniel R. Allen
Executive Director
Association of Reform Zionists of America
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