An Opportunity to Work on Terror
Last night in the Tel Aviv (Israel) RC leaders’ class I teach, we worked on the recent United Nations resolution on Israel [a resolution demanding the cessation of Israeli settlement expansion in the West Bank and immediate steps to end terror and incitement, and reaffirming the international community’s support for a two-state solution]. It seems that for many Israelis, and certainly for those in our class (who represent a broad spectrum), the resolution first and foremost is an opportunity to work on terror.
Some of the resolution is not easy for Israelis of most persuasions. For example, the resolution “reiterates that Israel . . . cease all settlement activities in East Jerusalem.” Over 155,000 Israelis live in the parts of Jerusalem annexed by Israel fifty years ago, and the vast majority of Israelis do not consider these neighborhoods settlements. When we include the West Bank, we are talking about well over half a million Israelis in areas held since 1967.
In the class there was a lot of discharge. One person was able to work, maybe for the first time, on the two early places she had made a decision not to feel terror. Another worked on how scary are the attempts of Netanyahu [the Prime Minister of Israel] to isolate Israel even more.
Israelis also need to discharge a lot about the many thousands of missiles fired into Israel from Gaza since the Israeli withdrawal, as well as the civil war in Syria, on Israel’s northern border.
We can’t expect or want Israelis to leap over terror. Rather, this is an opportunity to feel it. This is hopeful.
Tel Aviv, Israel
(Present Time 187, April 2017)