There's room for hope

Haaretz : BY Avraham Burg

Anyone who, like me, believes in the separation of religion and state cannot support the "Jewish-democratic" formula. A state whose algorithm is so heavily weighted with religion can never fully contain democracy as well. Between "Jewish" and "democratic," Jewish theocracy will prevail. The fact is that the "Jewish" is getting stronger and more insular while the "democratic" - encompassing liberty, equality, rights and humanism - is growing very weak and ebbing away. ...

The alternative? The transition from defining Israel as "a Jewish state" to defining it as "the state of the Jews." It's the citizens, not the state, who define the identity. The individual is responsible for the contents and values of the society, for preserving its cultural and spiritual character, historical heritage, and for private and collective memory. The most profound, fundamental questions are to be decided only in a completely democratic manner. ...

Of all the things in the interview in question, I was especially disappointed by what was omitted. The book and its thesis were described only very briefly. None of the alternatives I posed were cited, no expression was given to my hopes for a new humanism, for a renewed Judaism, for less traumatic interfaces with the world. My views were hidden, as were my proposals for ways to recover from the national trauma and to transform weakness into strength; ideas for other trips that high-school students could make, for changes to the curriculum, for another, more Jewish way to commemorate the destruction of European Jewry.

Also not mentioned was the role that I envision for Israel as the catalyst for a greater, worldwide peace process - because our very existence should be motivated by a continual responsibility for world peace. Also missing from the interview was my aspiration for the Jewish people that says 'Never again,' not just for us, the Jews, but for every suffering victim today in the world, for them to get the support and protection of the Jews, yesterday's victims who defeated Hitler. ...

In my book and statements I join the stifled Israeli voices that are trying to sketch the outline of the next Israeli landscape. To add humanity and universalism to the old equations, and new dimensions of ethical content and national existence. A life of confidence, not a reality that is nothing but endless trauma. All those who are ready to ask tough questions, even if our answers are completely different, all those who put their hand on their hearts and admit "We are afraid" - they are my partners. And we are many.