Resolutions 2006

Whereas Rabbi Ismar Schorsch has served The Jewish Theological Seminary as Chancellor for the past twenty years with distinction;

Whereas Rabbi Schorsch articulated his vision to the community with the publication of Sacred Cluster: The Core Values of Conservative Judaism;

Whereas Rabbi Schorsch implemented that vision by committing JTS to train the next generation of Jewish educators by establishing the William Davidson Graduate School of Jewish Education;

Whereas the most treasured values of Americans as enshrined in the laws and Constitution of the United States are under attack;

Whereas among the most revered of these is America’s regard for civil rights and civil liberties;

Whereas Jewish tradition teaches of one’s obligation to defend oneself against those who have and/or will attack;

Whereas Jewish tradition supports the establishment of a basic normative order and governance that ensures peace and security for the citizens of all lands as exemplified by the instructions of Moses to Jethro in Exodus 18;

Rabbi Yose HaGalili says, “How meritorious is peace?  Even in time of war Jewish law requires that one initiate discussions of peace.” (Leviticus Rabbah, Tzav 9);

Whereas the United States, the United Kingdom and other countries remain engaged in armed conflict in Iraq;

Whereas Judaism affirms the justice of war only as a response to life-threatening aggression, current or anticipated;

Whereas Judaism also affirms the supreme value of peace and peacemaking;

Background:

Whereas the Rabbinical Assembly, an association of religious leaders with deep faith,  believing in the truth of our Torah and the teachings of traditional rabbinic Judaism,  also believes that a literal reading of Genesis otherwise known as Creationism is not a dogma of Judaism;

Whereas it is a Jewish religious obligation to study and understand God’s creation through intellectual inquiry and scientific research and whereas such study is one of the foundations of piety (Mishneh Torah Yesodei Ha-Torah 2:1);

Background:

Whereas the Rabbinical Assembly is comprised of colleagues who care deeply about the state of the world, tikkun olam and mishpetei tzedek, the laws of justice and righteousness as prescribed by the Torah and Prophets of Israel;

Whereas members of the Rabbinical Assembly have the potential for enormous influence throughout the world by standing up for moral principles, as both Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel and Rabbi Marshall T. Meyer exemplified in their time and place in history;

Whereas Jewish tradition commands us to “open your hand [to the poor person] and provide sufficient for the need” (Deut. 15:8), and reminds us that “just as God clothed the naked- so too must  you supply clothes for the naked [poor]” (Talmud B. Sotah 14a);

Whereas the Jewish community has long demonstrated a commitment to economic and social justice in the United States as exemplified by the involvement of hundreds of Conservative synagogues, schools and camps in social justice programs such as food banks, homeless shelters, home rebuilding projects and medical clinics;

Whereas the Torah teaches us, “ve-shinantam l'vanekha – and you shall teach your children” (Deuteronomy 6:7) and this call to literacy has been a hallmark of Jewish civilization for over 3,000 years and has ensured Jewish survival;

Whereas the National Jewish Population Study (NJPS) of 2001 revealed that identification with Judaism, observance, the Jewish people, and the State of Israel is highest among those with the greatest level of Jewish education;

Whereas the Rabbinical Assembly is greatly concerned by the resurgence of anti-Semitism around the globe;

Whereas the President of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad publicly and unabashedly proclaimed his goals of "wiping Israel off the map" and creating a world "without the United States and Zionism," funds terrorist activities in Israel, spearheads his country's development of nuclear weapons and is seeking to deny that the Holocaust ever happened;