Free Republic

Why do so many in Europe feel so much hostility to the most open and liberal democracy in the Middle East? Daniel Gordis, President of the Shalem Center, zeroes in on the source of the problem in this fascinating look at the complex relationship between Europe, Israel and the Arab World.

Note: On May 3rd, Daniel Gordis addressed the “J-Street Leadership Mission to Israel and Palestine.” The following column is based on his remarks that day.] Good morning and welcome to Jerusalem. It’s a pleasure to meet with this Leadership Mission; I understand that there are some first time visitors to Israel among you, so a particular welcome to those of you who’ve never been here before. Before we got seated, one member of your group conveyed a message from the Israeli Consul General in his home community. The message was that I shouldn’t speak to you. As you can imagine,...

  Tuesday, August 03, 2004 Wall Sight Journal Jerusalem occupies space in the international headlines that is wholly incommensurate with its size. Big news, but a tiny city. We live on the southern side of the city, almost at the edge (Bethlehem would be a ten minute drive if we could get there at all), but can get to the northern edge of the city, if traffic isn't too bad, in just over fifteen minutes. As one heads north, to the Hebrew University campus for example, you pass the Old City, then a relatively upscale Arab neighborhood called Sheik Jarakh,...

Three Girls, Three Graves, One Torah By: Daniel Gordis Last Sunday night, which now seems like a hundred years ago, was about as good as it gets here. Along with the other twelfth grade parents at Tali's school, we'd been invited to a "Hachnasat Sefer Torah," the "bringing of a Torah Scroll to a synagogue." There's nothing particularly unusual about a "Hachnasat Sefer Torah" in Jerusalem, or in Israel, for that matter. They happen pretty frequently. But this one was unique. Fourteen years ago, in about 1990, a group of pre-twelfth grade girls from Pelech, Tali's high school, went on...

Unacceptable. Unjust. By Daniel Gordis A couple of years ago, our office started using a new driver. The previous one, it turns out, couldn't make a living when the tourists abandoned the country, and left for the States. My secretary told me about Shlomo, the new driver, right before I was to get picked up for a drive to a meeting, and I didn't think much of the news. I got in the cab, sat in the back, introduced myself to Shlomo (who appeared to be in his mid-fifties) and told him where I was going. We set out on...