A rabbi’s letter to  Jewish doctors

I have just returned from a three-day conference in Washington, D.C. — Zionist Rabbinic Coalition. The ZRC rabbis are Orthodox, Reform and Conservative, among others. The ZRC mission is to support Israel and to work against antisemitism.  

One presentation was about antisemitism within the medical community. That is why I am writing to you. Because you are a Jewish physician, I write to you because the medical community is being poisoned by antisemitic enemies. 

Some medical students and young physicians have been advocating that physicians not care for “Zionist” Jewish patients, and patients not seek care from “Zionist” Jewish doctors. All Jews are being smeared, and it’s disgusting pollution has seeped into the medical community. We also learned that medical associations have been receiving proposals targeting Jews. 

You may not be aware of the American Jewish Medical Association (AJMA) because it is less than 2-years old. I urge you to take a look at its website: www.theajma.org/

Perhaps, you, as a physician, have experienced this recent strain of antisemitism, perhaps not yet. If so, is it possible you did not know what to do and/or who to talk to, or did or didn’t even consider sharing your concerns? You now have a support group and advocates. Even if you have not yet experienced antisemitism as a physician, pretending it will not reach you or it will fade away will not serve you well as a physician, as a human being, and as a Jew. AJMA may be a vital resource for you. United we stand, divided we fall. 

At AJMA’s presentation at the ZRC conference, they posted a slide. It was a commonly recognized basic sketch, a side view of a human head, loosely depicting areas of the brain. All around it were identifying words with arrows pointing to specific parts of the brain, many identifying a physiological locus of various so-called socio-pathologies; one was Zionism. 

A few generations ago, physicians, esteemed and beloved by their patients, were secure — until Nazi influence grew. Recall the saying: “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.”

With AJMA, a powerful resistance is building. I am concerned for physicians, patients and medicine. I am concerned as a Jew for Jews. Be on the right side of history, on the right side as a Jew; be on the right side of good and evil. If not for these ideals, then at least for yourself. 

Rabbi Seth D Gordon
Traditional Congregation of Creve Coeur

Responses to recent commentary

I am writing in response to Professor Warren Rosenblum’s May 7 op-ed, “Antisemitism bill is broad, vague and could punish students.” 

Rosenblum errs in his understanding of Missouri’s proposed bill, HB 937. Referring to it as the “antisemitism bill,” the entirety of his op-ed is that the thrust of the bill is to define antisemitism. A reading of HB 937 clearly states the bill’s purpose: To protect Jewish students in public schools and public postsecondary educational institutions from harassment and discrimination and mandating that those educational institutions incorporate a definition of antisemitism into their codes of conduct. 

Furthermore, Rosenblum inaccurately and unfairly criticizes the IHRA (International Holocaust Remembrance Association) definition of antisemitism as “troublingly vague and exceedingly broad.” IHRA provides a working, non-legally binding definition of antisemitism with thirteen specific examples of antisemitism targeting Jews. IHRA’s precise definition and specific examples of antisemitism targeting Jews have broad international and national consensus supporting its value as a tool for identifying antisemitic conduct while respecting free speech. 

Lastly, Rosenblum’s claim that “American Jews have traditionally understood that our biggest safeguard against antisemitism is our country’s commitment to liberal values” is a generalization that overlooks the full spectrum of American Jewish beliefs and misses the opportunity to foster a more inclusive conversation. His thesis oversimplifies an impactful approach to antisemitism and high-handedly dismisses conservative principles such as law and order. 

Rabbi Ze’ev Smason
Coalition for Jewish Values Missouri

Professor Warren Rosenblum takes issue with the Missouri antisemitism bill’s definition of antisemitism, but he apparently hasn’t even read it. He states: “Even a Jewish student who loves her community and is proud of her identity could be punished for antisemitism because she calls out examples of ‘systemic racism’ by the Israeli government.” 

Not even close. The bill incorporates the International Holocaust Remembrance Association’s definition of antisemitism, which has been adopted by every presidential administration since Barack Obama’s, as well as 45 other countries and 40 states. Here is what the definition says about racism; it is set forth as one of many “contemporary examples of antisemitism”: “Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor.” 

Under that standard, Rosenblum’s hypothetical student can criticize supposed acts of systemic racism by the Israeli government all she wants, even if she is wrong about it. What she can’t say, without being antisemitic, is that the Jewish state has no right to exist because its very existence is a racist endeavor.

Rick Cornfeld
Creve Coeur