A Rabbis and Teachers Guide on Addressing Israel

Tips to Ensure Effective Education and Leadership

* Introduction – The Challenge of Discussing Israel

Navigating how to address Israel from the pulpit or the teacher’s lectern today is like soldiers navigating a minefield. The current Jewish community’s diverse and partisan opinions on Israel makes it easy to offend a congregant and student. If a rabbi or teacher wants to extend their influence and teaching by posting their teachings on social media, they risk offending an even larger audience. Many rabbis and teachers could be forgiven for avoiding discussing Israel all together, favoring quiet over criticism and strife. Muzzling oneself is the easier path, but also shirks a responsibility to guide one’s flock on a crucial topic in their lives.

As a former community rabbi and current Israel educatorת I navigate this challenging path daily. I’ve learned many lessons along the way, and I have advised rabbis and educators about discussing Israel without upsetting members of their congregation or their students.

* Rabbis Define Their Rabbinate

A rabbi and educator must ask themselves how they envision their role as a rabbi and educator. Do they see themselves as a Torah educator and guide or a political analyst? This isn’t a sardonic question; many rabbis see their message and teachings best consumed as spiritual guides while others find playing the role of political analyst better suits them and their messages.

Rabbis need to define their rabbinate for themselves. Do they want to address Israel from a Torah perspective or as a political analyst? These are two very different models. Rabbis find themselves “stuck” when they blur these lines. If a rabbi or teacher are clear that their lesson is strictly applying Torah values as a clergy member to contemporary situations their congregation will understand their lesson in context.

A rabbi or teacher that explains they’re offering their political analysis will make it known to their congregation and student body that the words they’re being taught aren’t aimed at a person’s Jewish identity. Their lesson can be accepted easily when people understand the opinion presented wasn’t meant to be taken as “Torah from Sinai,” but rather a political perspective.

* The Benefits of Nuance and Giving Voice to Congregants’ Feelings

A common mistake made by many educators and rabbis is jumping directly to their lesson and opinion. There are valuable steps to take before getting to your point. The first step to take along the way is to outline at least two opposing ways of addressing the issue from the viewpoint that will be presented in the lesson. A good rabbi and teacher will teach opinions they disagree with before teaching their own opinion.

One of the most important roles that a rabbi and teacher play is giving voice to the feelings that events or issues that are on their congregants or students’ minds. Even if the clergy person disagrees with the feeling, if they know it’s a somewhat shared feeling or opinion, it should be addressed.

* Be Inclusive

A clergy person, educator, and community leader should strive to make sure all their students and congregants feel a part of the community. It is important for leaders to include all opinions and only negate opinions that are truly despicable. A leader who rejects an opinion solely because they disagree with it risks excluding congregants and students without cause.

It is crucial for rabbis and teachers to learn to express their opinions and opposition to ideas they don’t agree with while simultaneously validating the opinion or feeling they oppose. This allows their more important roles, bringing Jews closer to God, their Judaism, and their community, be achieved.

* Will You Criticize Israel?

Clergy and educators have disagreed for decades about whether it is better to criticize Israel or offer a more aspirational tone to their Israel commentary. Rabbis and teachers have chosen both paths, and some have found success and others have failed taking both paths. There will be those who claim the criticism wasn’t enough and an honest assessment would’ve brought even more criticism. Others will claim all criticism of Israel by Diaspora Jewry is inappropriate and shouldn’t be voiced.

An educator and rabbi should think carefully before choosing which model they’ll follow. Congregants and students get confused when their leaders and educators don’t have a consistent policy about criticism of Israel and their opinions seem random and inconsistent.

Offending one’s listeners is counterproductive to teaching a lesson and should be avoided at all costs. Educators and rabbis should consider that criticizing Israel might be warranted but will also be off-putting to many of the people listening to their analysis. Offering a more aspirational view of hope that the situation improves teaches the lesson without risking offending others. The downside of the aspirational model is that it doesn’t state your lesson and opinion as explicitly as direct criticism.

* Develop Israel Principles

A rabbi or educator that teaches about Israel should have clearly articulated principles and values they are committed to and never veer from. The educator and clergy should always measure the lessons they plan on teaching against these principles to make sure they are consistent.

There are many examples of Israel principles that leaders should discuss, such as the legitimacy of the State, the obligation of the Jewish people to support the State of Israel, the Jewish people’s right to the land of Israel, etc. These, among other principles, are constants that leaders should measure themselves against, and should discuss on a constant basis.

* Conclusion – Be Present for those Looking for Direction

An educator and rabbi’s role is to be there as a light for their congregants and students. They should always be offering more inspiration, optimism, and clarity than anything else, especially more than any cynicism and pessimism they feel necessary to address.

A rabbi needs to work hard to make sure their thoughts and lessons are well-thought-out. They should only teach and speak about issues they care about passionately. Every issue they address should be contemplated about for hours. Before talking they should ask themselves if their lesson will add to their efforts to improve their students’ lives.

Not every thought needs to be expressed, and it is very possible staying quiet on an event or issue will be more effective at keeping the peace, unity, and support of Israel.

Rabbis and educators have an immense ability to inspire, influence, and impress on those in their community the importance of supporting, visiting, and even moving to Israel. This is a serious responsibility and shouldn’t be taken lightly.