United Church of Canada to Consider Israel Boycott
On August 11, 2012, delegates from across Canada gathered at the United Church of Canada’s (UCC) 41st General Council in Ottawa. The General Council is a triennial meeting of the largest Protestant denomination in Canada, a denomination also widely considered the most liberal of the mainline Protestant denominations in the Great White North. Unfortunately, as has been the case in some American churches, the gathering affords an opportunity for a small group of “boycott, divestment, sanctions” activists within the UCC to yet again make their move.
The UCC and the Canadian Jewish community have had a complex and difficult relationship regarding Israel. In 2006, a proposal calling for the support of BDS against Israel was presented to the UCC’s General Council. Through representations by the Canadian Jewish Congress (CJC), the proposal that was eventually accepted by the General Council was more balanced and included among several positive elements the recognition of Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state.
In 2009, a number of anti-Israel proposals came before the General Council, including a call for academic and cultural boycotts of Israel. As a result of significant work by the CJC and related agencies, these proposals were rejected by UCC delegates and the General Council went so far as to repudiate the language of the documents. However, the 2009 General Council did encourage individual congregations and local/regional church entities to consider strategies to “move the two peoples toward reconciliation (including but not limited to economic boycott).”
At the 2012 General Council, the Israel/Palestine issue is on the agenda yet again. Delegates will decide whether to adopt the recommendations of the Church’s Working Group on Israel/Palestine Policy. (The recommendations are included in a report which can be read in full here.)
The report contains certain praiseworthy elements: an unqualified recognition of Israel’s right to exist; the recognition that criticism of that right to exist manifests a new strain of anti-Semitism; and recognition that Natan Sharansky’s famous “3D Test” is one way of gauging whether criticism of Israel has crossed that line.
However, the majority of the report contains deeply troubling elements that reflect a distorted narrative and a serious misunderstanding of history. Stated briefly, these elements include asserting a moral equivalence between the Holocaust and the challenges faced by Palestinians (since removed from the report); a bizarre section that expresses “regret” for the past policy of calling on the Palestinians to recognize Israel as a Jewish state; and the false assertion that Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and the presence of settlements are the root cause of the conflict.
I will not waste time debunking the ” Church’s Working Group on Israel/Palestine Policy ” report. Any child with a library card could list the dozens of errors contained therein. So the real question is what motivates this distortion of history? The answer is simple- Antisemitism. The report is simply a fig leaf to mask true intentions. If the members of this church allow themselves to be led astray by a determined group of radicals then they will have only themselves to blame for the Judgement they will incur.
The report recognizes an injustice and makes a proposal for resolution. My experience is that the first person to identify something as racist is more likely to be a racist. The knee jerk label of anti-semitism wears thin.
The report could have been written by Fareed Zakaria.
It will be.
The only problem with your argument Brian is that in 99% of the cases the charge of anti-semitism is true.
It is quite amazing that the “injustice” discovered always happens to be when Israel and Jews are involved. I do not see any churches crying against China for its occupation of Tibet, or Russia in Chechnya or Syria’s slaughtering of its own people, or Turkey oppressing Kurds or a myriad of other geopolitical events. No…only when Israel is involved, then these liberal leaning Christian churches feel the obligation to show their moral superiority vis a vis the Jews.
Please spare me the hypocrisy.
And yet it keeps fitting like a bespoke jacket.
And you expect people in 21st century to take seriously a bunch of deranged vermin? History rewriting much? Never works.
Who are you referring to when you say “deranged vermin?” To me, the rockets being lobbed into Israel, and the suicide bombers of buses full of innocents are being sent by deranged vermin.
“My experience is that the first person to identify something as racist is more likely to be a racist.”
How is that relevant to determining whether the “something” is in fact racist? I suggest that you begin to rely more on thinking, logic and evidence, and less on your “experience,” which, apparently, describes a knee-jerk reaction which is not based on any of the above.
“My experience is that the first person to identify something as racist is more likely to be a racist.”
How is that relevant to determining whether the “something” is in fact racist? I suggest that you begin to rely more on thinking, logic and evidence, and less on your “experience,” which, apparently, describes a knee-jerk reaction which is not based on any of the above.
Injustice? The injustice is that after 64 fricking years the Palestinians are still eating their bread of my taxes instead of on the sweat of their brows. All while people are starving in Africa and getting one hundredth the aid is being spent on the Palestinians. Starving as in dying while Palestinians are likelier to be overweight than anything else. The injustice is that m hard earned money is being spent against my will on schools where children as young as four are told as adults they should be suicide bombers and exterminate the Jews.
And about antisemitism wearing thin How curious that neither those people of the UCC nor you lose any sleep about the people of Darfour who are being killed and raped by the thousands every year, how curious you don’t give a thought to the people of Darfour despite the fact they don’t educate their children to become suicide bombers nor hold as heroes a woman who tried to bomb a matenity or a man who slit the throat of a toddler. Now tell me _one_ reason you and the UCC are so sympathetic to people repugnant enough to hold a baby murderer as a hero, to dance in the streets upon hearing the news when there is at least a dozen of “opressed peoples” in the world afr worthier of your sympathgies and you don’t give a rat’s a.. for them? Il will tell you why: it is because you support Plaestians’s objective, an objective they have told loud and often enough: the extermination of the Jews of Israel. They want to finish Hitler’s work and you abd the UCC share this objective. That is why you support them.
It is appeasement, in my view (not anti-semitism), of a determined, hateful, and even irrational aggressor, which indicates moral cowardice, a sign of degenerating spiritual understanding in the churches involved (the solution to which is, first remove the beam from your own eye, UCC General Council and participating churches–you appear to be weak in spirit).
Appeasement becomes antisemitism when the end result is Jews being murdered.
Was it Rabbi Akiva who said” Those that are kind to the cruel, will in the end be cruel to the kind”?
” There are those who believe that “Amalek” belongs to our distant past, and that the commandment to obliterate Amalek similarly belongs to history. Rav Joseph Dov Soloveitchik, the preeminent Jewish philosopher of the last generation, disagrees. He proves that, according to Maimonides, Amalek exists in our day and the commandment to obliterate Amalek exists as well. How so? Regarding the commandment to destroy the seven nations who resided in Canaan at the time of Joshua’s conquest, Maimonides notes20: “And their memories have passed from being.” This phrase was omitted by Maimonides when citing the law regarding the obliteration of Amalek. Rav Soloveitchik writes:
From his words, it seems that Amalek still exists in the world while the seven nations have been doomed to oblivion. Scripture testifies that Amalek is still in existence. Note what the Torah states: “The Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation”, it is therefore impossible that Amalek be completely destroyed before the coming of the Messiah. As the Sages state: “The [divine] throne will not be whole and the [divine] Name will not be whole until the descendants of Amalek are completely obliterated.” But – where is he? I once heard the answer from my father and master, of blessed memory, namely that any nation that conspires to destroy Knesset Israel becomes, according to the halacha, Amalek. ”
http://www.acpr.org.il/ENGLISH-NATIV/06-issue/shochetman-6.htm
In the western world, if your priest or minister got up and started preaching hate and vengence as is done on a daily basis in the Muslim world, he would be hauled off to the looney bin. One might point to the Westboro Baptist Church as a counter-example but I say they just prove my point- they are considered complete nutjobs by 99% of the population and are shunned wherever they go(plus there are like 30 of them and I think half of them are related.) Yet look at any polling of the Muslim world, look at their own media, look at the public pronouncements of their leaders and you see that they are just steeped in hatred. And what is so disturbing and evil about it is that it is sanctified by their clergy. You’ll go to heaven if you die as a suicide bomber? Are you kidding me? To come down on the side against Israel requires you to overlook this PURE EVIL. It’s mind-boggling. It’s like scolding one kid for not doing his homework while the other kid is dumping gasoline all over the house and setting it on fire. To see a Christian group take this position is sad and scary.
Chris, I hate to disagree with you, but I’ve heard plenty of preachers go on fire-and-brimstone “hate and vengeance” filled rants in Christian churches. And nothing whatsoever was done about them.
The difference is, in Christianity they are the outlier. Modern Christianity has grown past the xenophobia and bigotry that once stained it; in Islam, this is still the mainstream.
Obama’s pastor, Jeremiah Wright comes to mind.
Brian the true injustice is for people of your ilk to write comments like this and not be called out for it. You have, no doubt, a serious lack of any real knowledge of the history of that region or the core issues that presently plague the egion.
My experience tells me you don’t have any warm thoughts of Jews in general, now do you Brian old buddy?
PS I’ve seen and heard to many guys like you in my life. I’m not taking it anymore
A Canadian here:
PLEASE understand that the United Church is dying, literally. The average congregant is in their 60s.
We’ve called them McChurch and “the NDP at prayer” for decades. Some of the clergy don’t accept the divinity of Christ. They are basically pagans at this point.
Their tagline about being the “largest Protestant denomination” is one of those self-invented mottoes, like Michael Jackson being “the King of Pop”
There are tons of conservative evangelicals up here, but because (being evangelicals) they belong to a zillion different denominations or none at all, they don’t “count”.
and the media hates them, so even if they came up with a clever tagline of their own, it would never get picked up.
Between them and Catholics, the United Church is hugely outnumbered and their influence has been low for over a generation.
Thanks Kathy. We here in Israel are well aware of the support we have in Canada. It is both appreciated and reciprocated. Prime Minister Harper is a man of honor and courage. Nobody ever said it better….
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUfFdhIOoQM
“they are basically pagans at this point”
Good point Kathy and a good description of some of the so called main line protestant churches here in the US.
“Pagans” – Goes as well for most of the fundamentalist evangelicals I have encountered.
For the sake of non-Canadian readers, the NDP to which Kathy referred is the New Democratic Party, our major socialist party in this country.
http://www.sunnewsnetwork.ca/video/search/united%20church/united-church-divided/1766643204001
Im still waiting for the call for a boycott of China over their horrible treatment of Tibet. Oh and a boycott of Turkey over their aggression in Cyprus, and a boycott of Russia over their incursion into Georgia. While we are at it, how about a boycott of Saudi Arabia for their horrendous treatment of women and guest workers? Or Egypt for their persecution of Copts and other religious minorities? The list goes on and on.
Forgive me for coming to the logical conclusion that the UCC is being hijacked by leftist Jew haters.
Perhaps the United Church hopes that if they spew bile at Israel now, the muslims will maintain their empty churches before they convert them to mosques.
Canada.
Who cares.
We have enough problems keeping out people who simply want to work on our southern border. How well do you think we will be able to keep Jihadis out from our porous longest undefended border?
The United Church of Canada has been overrun with a bunch of morons in the leadership positions. Just another bunch of leftists under a different banner. Probably most are atheists, strange in a church setting, any way.
I have great respect for you, Kathy. Its always a pleasure to hear what you have to say.
GM
Is it antisemitism?
No, in the sense that the authors probably do not hate Jews, certainly not in the way that was fashionable in the 1930s.
However, the same psychology invoked in old-fashioned antisemitism is at play in the way Israel is being treated. This will ultimately lead to harm for Jews but more importantly, it will also accompany a wider conflict that like WWII, will kill many more.
So it’s a YES for ultimate effect. (Too bad we live in an A.D.D. / progressive world where implications are never considered.)
another useful idiot
get your head out of your ass, so you can smell the coffee
Thank you for your unhelpful response. I have no idea what you’re objecting to.
I do know that you are a very rude individual.
The “loony” left has special connotations in reference to Canadians, but it amazes me that so many political Christians around the world are eager to spot the mote in their neighbor’s eye while ignoring the beam in their own.
Here is a petition that I signed to record my opposition to the proposed boycott by the dopey United Church of Canada. It’s more of a symbolic gesture than an action but at least it shows that other Canadians don’t share their opinion.
This is simple antisemitism……..JEW HATRED
If this disgusting ‘church’ were really interested in justice or had ANY compassion, they wiould boycott Egypt, or Pakistan or Saudi or any of the repugnant countries, where Christian are regularly slaughtered, kidnapped, raped, forced to convert all because they refuse to submit to Islam.
No wonder the Churches of the world are increasingly empty.
The UCC does not speak for Christianity. They are left leaning libtards, much like the ELCA of the Lutheran church. There are a lot of mainstream churches that have foresaken Biblical teaching. They are worldly pagans…….
To the UCC – From a Proud Jew, Sionist, Israel-loving fanatic!
All the Christian denominations and Churches, including the Supra Sumo Vatican, instead of sticking their noses in Israel’s sovereignity, would be much better off if they defended their own followers, specially those in Muslim-dominated arab countries. These followers are harrassed, beaten up, , raped, kidnapped, murdered by the arabs and their churches burnt! You can say whatever you please about Israel and Jews, Israel is an established fact, it is OUR LAND, Jerusalem is its eternal, undividable Capital and we Jews are Israel itself! We have nothing to explain to anyone, nothing to excuse ourselves for, nothing nor anyone to bow to or bend over! We don’t owe anything to you antisemitic racists – quite the contrary: IT IS YOU WHO OWE US EVERYTHING, the murders your Church committed against us, the Temple treasures stolen, hidden and guarded in the Vatican vaults, the misery you inflicted on us through the ages. The rabid Popes who led your “holy wars” against us, Pius XII – that miserable nazi collaborator – if not in deed then in passivity and indifference, Pius IX who kidnapped the Edgardo Levi Mortara boy in Italy, converted him forcefully to Christianity, and “played hide-and-seek” with him under his papal robes – this should have been published on facewbook. It would take me over an eternity to detail everything you did to us! YOU can’t keep your own filthy houses clean and you try to tell us what to do? You people are the biggest, saddest, “pathetikest”, “pukest”, joke created in the universe! Go take a good look at yourselves. You’d better hurry before you have a flag with a green field and crescent moon floating over the Vatican! YOU are practicing all the harm and filth you accuse us of… Instead of destroying and bringing down, why don’t you try to elevate yourselves morally, ethically and spirituallY? That’s it for now… and shove this message down your throats.
One detail I left out on my previous message: what eaxctly was it that the present Pope, with all due respect and consideration, did during WWII? Wasn’t he part of a nazi anti-aircraft group or detachment – or am I mistaken?
He was a Bavarian boy who, like all the other little boys, joined the Hitler Youth. He was too young to be held accountable for his membership. He is not an anti-Semite.
Mr. Mahoney, I was being ironic/sarcastic when I asked this question. Of course I know very well that 1st. he was part of an A.A. detacdhment, then switched over to any army group. The “poor, little Bavarian, unknowing youth,” to join and take active part in barbarian acts must have been quite indoctrinated and brainwashed both at school and socially at home and family. So please don’t come along with those lame, ridiculous, pathetic, obnoxious excuses: “I only obeyed orders….” / “I never imagined those things were happening….” / “I’ve nothing whatsoever against Jews, they’re really quite pleasent persons…” etc. etc. Come on man, don’t insult my intelligence. Somebody once said: “If Jews didn’t exist someone would have invented them”…
God bless Harper and Canada – let’s ignore the fakey-bakey pseudo-”Christians”.
My wife was Canadian and she recounts all the anti-Semitic incidents that happened to her. It wasn’t nice. Canadians like most of the Western world are hell bent on intertwining themselves with the Moslems. They would rather marry the devil than face the reality of what they are and what they are doing. The word dhimi has no meaning to them.
http://www.cija.ca/press-releases/press-release-united-church-decision-on-boycott-outrages-jewish-community-and-betrays-its-own-membership/
It is curious that the Canadian Church group is apparently siding with the Islamists who hate Jews and Christians equally. But I remember that in Great Britain in the 1920′s the Archbishop of Canterbury supported the Communists in Russia, although they were persecuting and killing Christians. There were Christians who didn’t oppose Hitler and his persecuting Jews. Some Christians hated American chattel Slavery and others supported it wholeheartedly. Christians are odd people, often with odd beliefs and policies.
The Moslems must be kvelling (busting at the gut with happiness). They are succeeding in “persecution by proxy”. The Canucks are too stupid to understand it.
Not only that, Gumper, Canadians are constantly bombarded with socialist, leftist drivel from the biased, pro-Hamas, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC has, for several years, been the author of the TV show “Little Mosque on the Prairie”, a comedic and admiring tribute to our peace-loving, humorous, warm & cuddly friends…the Muslims. Little wonder that the UCC has veered off into the rhubarb; Canucks have been systematically neutered wrt the truth of the true nature of Islam.
Mr Levy I couldn’t say it any better. You are so right. I am also from Canada. My father was a Jew (non religious) and my mother a christian who converted. I first experiencee the hate when I was just 12 years old when one day out of the clear blus my best friend walked up to me and called me a dirty Jew. I guesss he heard this at home. It happened many times durng my childhood.
When I was 17 (1967) I left for Isreal on the 4th day of the war. I ened up staying for a year. It changed my life for ever. I had never been with a more magnificent group of women and men and have not been since. These haters can go F themselves.
Somebody like Wm Rusher wrote that any institution which is not explicitly founded on conservative principles will become liberal (e.g., the Ford Foundation). This is certainly true of the mainstream protestant churches in the anglosphere. But why not? Why can’t white Volvo-driving antisemitic liberals have their own churches? Let 100 flowers bloom. The CJC’s mistake is to assume that because the UCC has the word Canada in its name that it has some sort of authority that the Church of God of Prophecy doesn’t. Who cares what the UCC thinks or says, and why argue with them?
Mr. Mahoney, I was being ironic/sarcastic when I asked this question. Of course I know very well that 1st. he was part of an A.A. detacdhment, then switched over to any army group. The “poor, little Bavarian, unknowing youth,” to join and take active part in barbarian acts must have been quite indoctrinated and brainwashed both at school and socially at home and family. So please don’t come along with those lame, ridiculous, pathetic, obnoxious excuses: “I only obeyed orders….” / “I never imagined those things were happening….” / “I’ve nothing whatsoever against Jews, they’re really quite pleasent persons…” etc. etc. Come on man, don’t insult my intelligence. Somebody once said: “If Jews didn’t exist someone would have invented them”…