August 31, 2024: Statement of values
Beit Kaplan is an organization of rabbis and rabbinical students dedicated to a flourishing, dynamic Jewish civilization and to Ahavat Yisrael – love for the diverse, creative Jewish people and for its ancestral homeland – and the centrality of Jewish peoplehood, as a pillar of Reconstructionist Judaism.
We have deep ties to Reconstructionism. Most of our members are graduates of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College; as an organization we respect the streams of thought, guidance, and practice of Jewish tradition, while embracing the teachings of Rabbis Mordecai M. Kaplan, Ira Eisenstein, Jack J. Cohen, and other modern thinkers.
As the survival of our people is threatened both in Israel and in the diaspora, we confront the brokenness of a world filled with hatred and grief, not with despair, but with hope for renewal and the energy to rebuild. While we hear others projecting fear and demonization of Zionism and Israel, we proclaim instead:
Beit Kaplan unequivocally supports the right of Israel to exist, and to exist as a Jewish state. We view Zionism as a fundamental pillar of Judaism as a civilization, and of Reconstructionist Judaism.
The legitimacy and welfare of the State of Israel are central to Jewish peoplehood, according to Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan. We agree, and so too do the vast majority of Reconstructionist Jews today.
Reconstructionism and Zionism
Zionism from its start has been a response to centuries of systematic and often violent oppression of the Jewish People, experienced while living under the rule of governments aligned with other religions and civilizations. Generations of our people faced ever-present threats of hostage-taking, murder, massacre and expulsion; those who attacked us knew that we could do little in response. In the face of such persistent antisemitic oppression, Jews need the power of communal self-determination and self-defense.
We regard every human as created in the image of God and imbued with dignity. We yearn for peace, security, and self-determination for all. It is our particular obligation to advocate for and affirm the Jewish people’s right to national, cultural and political self-determination in the land of our ancestors, where our customs and prayers are rooted. The balance between the universalist and particularist is core to the Reconstructionist understanding of what it means to be Jewish, and to our vision of the Jewish future.
In 2000, the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation resolved: “We call for a just and lasting peace that will protect Israel’s right to a secure existence and that will also fulfill the legitimate national aspirations of the Palestinian people. Such a peace requires Palestinian leaders and heads of Arab governments at long last to acknowledge Israel as a permanent state in the region and to renounce all violence directed against the Jewish homeland.”
We affirm this resolution. A sovereign state in the land of Israel serves not only as a refuge for Jews facing rising oppression and persecution around the world, but also as a place where the Jewish people can create a national life in harmony with our people’s history, culture and religion. The right of Israel to exist as a democratic Jewish state among the nations of the world must be preserved.
Additionally and most importantly, given that half of the Jewish people in the world live in the land of Israel, we assert that rabbis must be concerned with their safety and survival. Our people have been victimized all too often over the millenia. We must support one another in the existential effort of surviving.
Responding to October 7th and its aftermath
We deplore and denounce the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel and its tragic consequences. We are horrified by the brutal events of October 7th, the continued captivity of our hostages, the necessity of fighting an existential war that leads to death and devastation, the constant Hezbollah attacks on Israel’s north, and the rise in antisemitism worldwide.
In the face of this all, we affirm our support for the State of Israel’s existence and its legitimate right to defend its borders, guaranteeing the security of its citizens and all its inhabitants.
We do not want others to suffer. We support every effort to avoid dehumanization, torture, and disregard for civilian life.
We insist that Israelis and Jews be afforded these same dignities.
We are deeply troubled that leaders of Reconstructing Judaism and its institutions do not share this insistence, even in the wake of October 7th, when our own people were so viciously attacked.
Zionism is not accidental to our Judaism, it is integral
We hold to the vision of Reconstructionist Judaism that is bonded with the larger Jewish world. Connection with Israel and love for Israel are core components of a Jewish life, because Israel is interwoven with all of our people, customs, practices, and prayers.
We acknowledge that this can be complicated, for example, when there is concern about the actions of the State of Israel’s government.
Our response, then, is to reaffirm our commitment to and love of Israel and the Jewish people, and to advocate, work, and pray for better decisions and better days. In this, we are guided by the “Prayer for the State of Israel,” as found in the Reconstructionist prayer book Kol HaNeshamah.
We invite you to join with us in this prayer:
“Rock and Champion of Israel, please bless the state of Israel, first fruit of the flourishing of our redemption. Guard it in the abundance of your love. Spread over it the shelter of your peace. Send forth your light and truth to those who lead and judge it, and to those who hold elective office. Establish in them, through your presence, wise counsel, that they might walk in the way of justice, freedom and integrity. Strengthen the hands of those who guard our holy land. Let them inherit salvation and life.
“And give peace to the land, and perpetual joy to its inhabitants. Appoint for a blessing all our kindred of the house of Israel in all the lands of their dispersion. Plant in their hearts a love of Zion. And for all our people everywhere, may God be with them, and may they have the opportunity to go up to the land. Cause your spirit’s influence to emanate upon all dwellers of our holy land. Remove from their midst hatred and enmity, jealousy and wickedness.
“Plant in their hearts love and kinship, peace and friendship. And soon fulfill the vision of your prophet: ‘Nation shall not lift up sword against nation. Let them learn no longer ways of war.’
“And let us say: Amen.”
Beit Kaplan: A Rabbinic Voice of Reconstructionist Judaism is open to all rabbis and rabbinical students who are committed to the existence and security of the State of Israel, to a vibrant vision of Jewish peoplehood, and to the revitalization of Reconstructionist Judaism. To join our efforts, contact us at www.beitkaplan.org.