American Jews: No Consensus

War of words over Middle East leaves them divided

At last count there were about 300 Jewish organizations in America--and almost as many points of view, or at least shadings, among American Jews as to what, precisely, Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin should be doing to bring about a Middle East settlement. Consensus on anything is hard to come by, except for the obvious fundamental that Israel has the right to exist as an independent Jewish state in peace with its Arab neighbors. On that, virtually all Jews feel strongly and emotionally.

Among Jewish leaders interviewed last week by TIME, the euphoria of Sadat's visit in November to Jerusalem has waned, and been replaced by the old familiar weariness with an ancient conflict that never ends. Says Robert Blumenthal, assistant director of the American Jewish Committee of Los Angeles: "The community is tired of 30 years of drained emotion. We can still raise funds for Israel, but it looks like Sadat is trying to divide the Jewish community."

Most of the division is below the surface, although it occasionally breaks into the open, as it did last week when all but one member of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations refused to meet with Sadat in Washington, as the Carter Administration had invited them to do. But Philip Klutznick, a Chicago businessman who heads the World Jewish Congress, attended--and drew complaints from other leaders that he was dividing and weakening the American Jewish community. Retorted Klutznick: "Our Government has exerted every bit of legitimate influence to try to keep the negotiations going, and I think that our Government should be applauded for that."

Many Jews are irritated by Sadat's overt public relations campaign to win the backing of U.S. opinion. But there are those who feel Sadat has every right to make his views known, and forcefully. Says Samuel Kaplan, of Washington, D.C., a board member of the Zionist Organization of America: "From Sadat's point of view, this kind of campaign is perfectly legitimate and understandable. We've been doing it for years. There's no reason why he shouldn't."

The president of the same organization, Rabbi Joseph P. Sternstein of New York, criticizes Sadat for wanting too much too soon, specifically by insisting on Israeli withdrawal from occupied lands and establishment of a Palestinian state on the West Bank of the Jordan. "No one in the Jewish community will agree to that," says Sternstein. "Neither of these things can ever be accepted."

Not everyone agrees. Indeed, the whole issue of the disputed settlements worries many Jews. One small (membership: fewer than 2,000) Jewish organization called Breira (Hebrew for alternative), based in New York, feels that Israel must give up a great deal if peace is to come. "Israel cannot have both peace and territory," says Breira Executive Director Dan Gillon, arguing that the West Bank is not necessary to the security of Israel. There are others, too, who would be willing to abandon Jewish settlements in the Sinai. Israel, says Rabbi Stephen Pinsky of Tenafly, N.J., "should be able to give up the Sinai, to take a chance on this area." David Weinstein, president of Chicago's Spertus College of Judaica and a frequent visitor to Israel, agrees. Says he: "Relocate the Sinai settlers elsewhere and give that territory back entirely to Egypt."

Israeli Foreign Minister Moshe Dayan was quick to warn American Jews last week that any misgivings they might have are of no consequence. "I wouldn't like them to tell us what to do," he said, adding caustically that he admired the Sinai settlers "rather more than I admire American Zionists who do not go to live in Israel."

In general, though, many Jews feel that the struggle for public support is too noisy, and that it fails to lead toward peace. Says Leo Dunn, president of Boston's Jewish Community Council: "It would be better to stop the public relations push in the United States at this point and go and sit down for some quiet negotiating." -

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