Jewish diversity …

Christian Century, May 17, 2003 by George Wiley

I AGREE with James M. Wall: "To be opposed to the policies of a particular Israeli government need not be anti-Semitic," and I acknowledge that some who make the charge of anti-Semitism may occasionally make it to dismiss a claim that they dislike ("Prison of hope," Nov. 6, 2002, and "War motives," April 5). I am concerned, though, about some of Wall's language: "The leaders of the Jewish community," "the American Jewish lobby in Washington," "[the] stranglehold [of the lobby]."

This language characterizes Jews and Jewish leaders in the U.S. as a unified (and strangling!) force pursuing goals through a unified lobby. I hear a faint echo of "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion," with its claim of a worldwide Jewish conspiracy. Are the Jewish people of the U.S. so unified in their thinking about Israel? Across the spectrum of the Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist and "none of the above"? It hardly seems possible. I admire Wall's writings, but can't agree with his characterizations.

George Wiley
Baldwin City, Kan.