Backlash in synagogues over letter attacking Israel’s actions in Gaza

The April 16 letter was followed by a second letter in the FT, signed by more than 25 Liberal and Reform rabbis and one cantor, calling on the Israeli government to end the war in Gaza, uphold international law and allow humanitarian aid into the Strip.

In an email sent to congregants, seen by the JC, the Chair of Finchley Reform Synagogue, Jenny Nuni, said the council had not been “notified or consulted” prior to the publication of either of the letters.

Nuni said the first letter sent to the FT was signed by three out of four deputies representing the shul, and the second was signed by its Emeritus Rabbi Jeffrey Newman and Rabbi Howard Cooper.

“From the correspondence we have subsequently received, it is clear that there is significant strength of feeling both for and against these letters, and their publication in the national press,” she wrote in the community email.

“Concerns have also been raised about FRS processes for how deputies represent the synagogue,” she added.

The chair of the synagogue said a council meeting on May 12 was arranged following “conversations” within the synagogue, and with its deputies, about the signatories’ actions, and to “discuss ways of working for the future”.

She said the synagogue was developing new guidelines to ensure the relationship between the FRS leadership and its deputies is clear – because currently such guidelines do not exist.

Elsewhere, in Cardiff Reform Synagogue’s May newsletter, a letter appeared from the shul’s representative on the Board, apologising for signing the first FT letter.

Writing to a member of the congregation, Eddie Cawston, one out over 300 Board deputies, revealed that he signed the letter condemning Israel’s conduct on the assumption that it would remain an “internal document within the Board of Deputies.

“Whilst I appreciate that the views in the letter may not be those of some members of Cardiff Reform Synagogue the intention of the letter was to open debate within the Board,” he said.

“I apologise if the impression given in the letter was that I was speaking on the behalf of Cardiff Reform Synagogue. My support for the letter was personal and as your deputy I made an error of judgment that I have learned from.”

The Board’s code of conduct states that deputies must “not bring the Board into disrepute by their actions or activities,” nor must they “represent their own views as the views of the Board to third parties”. It also states that deputies must “respect the confidentiality and privacy of all information as it pertains to individuals,” including a list of deputies.

When the investigation into the deputies was announced at the end of April, it was understood that it would take at least four weeks to conclude.

At the time, Board President Phil Rosenberg said: "We take alleged breaches of the code of conduct very seriously. I am grateful to the constitution committee for the speed with which they have reviewed the initial complaints, and it is right that they are now given the time and space to review the cases with due process and impartiality.

“The Board of Deputies is clear: only our democratically-elected honorary officers and authorised staff speak on behalf of the organisation."

The 36 signatories of the first letter sent to the FT said it was their "duty, as Jews, to speak out.

“We write as representatives of the British Jewish community, out of love for Israel and deep concern for its future.

"The inclination to avert our eyes is strong, as what is happening is unbearable, but our Jewish values compel us to stand up and to speak out.”

Rabbi Baginsky was cited by the letter's organisers as raising fears about the effect of “Jewish supremacy" on Israeli policy.

“We are afraid — not just for Israel’s future, but for Judaism itself. What becomes of our tradition if it is captured by messianic extremism, by racism disguised as religion, by power without principle… if the current trajectory continues, if Jewish supremacy becomes policy, then Judaism itself may become synonymous with oppression,” a quote attributed to her read.

However, the Progressive movement told the JC that Rabbi Baginsky’s comments had been taken out of context. A spokesperson explained that, during a pro-democracy event in London several weeks before the letter was written, Rabbi Baginsky had been quoting Israeli writer Yuval Noah Harari, who was the one to originally issue the warning about “Jewish supremacy”.

The letter was followed by another intervention against the war signed by, among others, Rabbi Laura Janner-Klausner, the former senior rabbi to Reform Judaism; Rabbi Robyn Ashworth-Steen, who co-chairs the Assembly of Reform Rabbis and Cantors; and Rabbi Jackie Tabick, the UK’s first female rabbi.

The JC has contacted Finchley Reform Synagogue and the writers of the open letter for comment.