An Incomplete Redemption

by Audrey Lichter

President Carter is being eulogized.  After his presidency, he became known for his humanitarian work and his efforts on behalf of international peace.  He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace. For Jews though, his reputation is much more nuanced. Micheal Oren writes in his  article  Jimmy Carter and Jewish Tragedy: The self-proclaimed champion of human rights, Carter was comfortable with Middle Eastern dictators like Sadat, Hafez al-Assad, and the Shah of Iran, but endlessly critical of Israel’s democratically elected leaders, beginning with Menachem Begin …

From a mere misreading of 242, Carter descended into a dark obsession with Israel, casting it as the source of all Middle Eastern instability and a world-leading violator of human rights. His 2004 book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, though based on half-truths and outright lies, effectively legitimized Israel’s delegitimization. Dr. Oren goes on to detail how Jimmy Carter vilified Israel and promoted Hamas as the only legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, whitewashing their heinous behavior. He supported the Goldstone Report that condemned Israel for committing war crimes during the 2008-09 conflict with Gaza and accused Israel of systematically starving Gaza’s civilian population. The terrorists’ attempts to bore under Israel’s border were, in Carter’s telling, “defensive tunnel[s] being dug by Hamas inside the wall that encloses Gaza.” The article goes on … That, he says unfortunately, is how many Israelis will remember Jimmy Carter, a person for whom the truth, especially about Israel, was easily discounted. 

As Jewish Americans we are once again caught in a bind.

 

As Jewish Americans we are once again caught in a bind. For most of our history, the majority of Jews have lived in the diaspora. While maintaining Jewish life as best we could, in the diaspora we worked hard to be accepted by our host country: We fought in their wars, adopted their customs and foods, and blended when we could. Inevitably, the needs of the Jewish community would clash with those of our host country – and we, as a people, have reacted in a myriad of ways – from total assimilation when possible to isolation and suspicion.

Instead of expecting clarity and alignment, there might be another way to live with these persistent inconsistencies. As Rabbi Brahm Weinberg said in a recent sermon: We Jews need to get used to living with ‘incomplete redemption.’ Nothing is perfect and no situation is without its challenges. Do we join our compatriots and celebrate President Carter’s many achievements, or do we stand firm in our defense of Israel and hold him accountable for the many daggers he launched at the Jewish homeland? Or perhaps, we do both … as we have done for millennia, make our peace by holding two competing truths. President Carter should be honored for devoting his life after the Presidency to helping those in need while at the same time recognizing that he was no friend to Israel, spewing distortions and misrepresentations. Is it possible or even advisable  to hold both these truths and make our peace with this particular incomplete redemption?

2 responses to “An Incomplete Redemption”

1. John W says:

   January 8, 2025 at 7:45 am

   Thank you for posting this. I was not aware at all regarding these historical facts.
   Shocking, disappointing, and disturbing.
   Thanks again!

   Reply
   • Nina Woldin says:

     January 13, 2025 at 7:57 am

     Thanks for you comment!

     Reply