My readers know that I admire the Jewish itinerant performance artist whom scholars identify as Jesus, the first-century Galilean agitator for Hebrew prophetic social justice demands in the face of increasing Roman occupation-oppression, forced urbanization, and Jewish priestly collaboration. My readers know, as well, that I separate the person-who-lived from the object of personal and institutional worship people subsequent to his murder made of the man.

The historical issues are simply not the devotional ones. I am fascinated by the former and I’ve largely and rather easily ignored the latter. At the same time, in our era I have interested myself in the work of the organization, Jews For Jesus.

The central concern most Jews have with Jews For Jesus is not the fact it attempts conversions away from Judaism to a form of evangelical Christianity. Many, many organizations have made those attempts pretty much since Rome adopted Christianity. (Of course, lions in stadia can be more immediately convincing than college campus pamphlets and pasty smiles.)

The concern most Jews have with Jews For Jesus is that it promotes itself as somethng it simply isn’t. Jews For Jesus was founded in the mid-1960s as an evangelical arm of the Southern Baptist Convention in Dallas. The SBC remains J4J’s most significant fundining source.

The primary concern actual Jews have with Jews for Jesus, then (and, I should fast say here that no authentic Jewish system of belief can possibly include human blood atonement for sin…that’s just one ideological issue involved) is that the organization portrays itself and its work as an authentic expression of Jewish belief and way of living while it has always been an expression of the American Baptist evengelical movement; this is to say, it’s a fraud.

Jonathan Wolfman blogs at http://open.salon.com/blog/jlw1.

I’ve shared here how some historians articulate three historical stages of European antisemitism, covering the past 1700 years from the time christianity became antagonistic and then lethal to Jews; that is, from the point when Rome adopted christianity.

In brief:

Stage One I called religious antisemitism. Jews were told: you may not live here as Jews; you must convert in order to live here.

Stage Two I called political antisemitism. Jews were told: get out; you may not live here. (By “political” I am referencing political, national boundary maps.)

Stage Three I called racial antisemitism. It assumes that Jews are a blood infection, a blight on the body of humanity. Jews are told: you may not live.

When the Inquisition’s Alhambra Decree expelled Jews from Spain, for example, in the year Columbus sailed, stage three was still half a millennium off. Spain’s expulsion of Jews was an example of State two antisemitism: Jews were told that conversion no longer would make us tolerable; we had to leave.

Six months back, reports Raphael Minder in the New York Times, the Spanish government promised to ease the naturalization process for Jews of Sephardic (Spanish) ancestry. Six months later, no real movement has taken place: only 20 Jewish descendants of those expelled asking for Spanish citizenship have had their requests granted. Just under 3,000 requests remain under consideration. The (Spanish) Federation of Jewish Communities which has been given the responsibility to certify the Spanish lineage of applicants says it has a thousand new applicants awaiting government action.

One issue that has arisen is that the Spanish government now says applicants must renounce their other citizenships. This wasn’t at all clear six months back.

Stage-Two antisemitism appears intact in Spain.

Jonathan Wolfman blogs at http://open.salon.com/blog/jlw1.

By RON TOROSSIAN

The unsung heroes in our midst are those who go out every day and do the tough work that needs to be done.  Whether for our safety, like the police and military, or teachers who educate our children to give them the background needed to generate future leadership and success, so many people often fall through the cracks of public recognition.

We yield to celebrities and sports stars today, but who we should be recognizing are those among us who get their hands dirty, do the hard work and help form the backbone of societies.  Take a look at what happened in Boston.  Regular people, runners and spectators, helped pick up the fallen, comfort the wounded and assist the police in finding the perpetrators.  Do we know them?  No, we have no idea about most of them, but to those whose lives were made better as a result, they mean the world.

So many first responders were on the front lines away from their families while many Americans were worried and concerned for their safeties. In Judaism we have our unsung heroes among the masses too.

Men and women who serve the volunteer ambulance corps in New Yorkarea neighborhoods come to mind.  We see them run into action at all hours of the night to save neighbors in distress.  The other day on the West Side Highway I witnessed an accident, and an car with EMP plates drove by and then stopped.  A member of Hatzolah volunteer ambulance corps on his way to work pulled to the side and assisted the victims until an ambulance arrived.

For a short while longer, the world will have Holocaust survivors to be the eyewitnesses to the Nazi atrocities of the last Century.  They all serve as reminders of what evil can do when it is unchecked, and every survivor deserve our awe and appreciation.  Our Jewish community is thriving today because of those very people.  The sad truth is that we are in the final generations of Holocaust witnesses, and very soon the only ones who will be left are those who were too young to truly grasp what was happening to them and the Jewish people.

Yet, we have the benefit of the Israeli soldiers to help carry the torch of memory for them and for all of us.  Israel is here as a shining example of triumph over evil, and the boys and girls who protect her every day are the beacons of light in every survivors’ eye.

And keeping the flames of Judaism lit in the most remote places of this planet, giving us the reasons to continue cherishing the nation and land ofIsrael are people such as the Chabad Shluchim all over the world, and people who do kiruv work such as the teachers and counselors at Kars for Kids educational arm known as Oorah.  It is people like this, committed to preserving the essence and traditions of our forefathers and mothers, who inspire the millions of Jews born since those dark days of horror when we lost so many.

The way the rabbis and counselors reach so many is through funding.  We cannot overlook the importance of those among us who have reached the highest rungs of success, and who feel compelled to pay it forward in spades.  Philanthropist’s such as Daniel E Straus, who give to so many Jewish institutions and centers of higher learning just so others can learn and succeed as they have, are important unsung heroes among us.

Finally, there are the parents who raise Jewish children today.  Given the known expenses, the educational commitment and the financial encumbrances that keeping kosher and living in Jewish neighborhoods can be for so many, the commitment to being Jewish is worthy of applause and the parents who do this tirelessly need to be recognized too.  Altogether, the unsung heroes among us help ensure the strength and growth of the Jewish nation.

Ronn Torossian is CEO of New York based 5WPR, a leading PR firm.

By ALAN ELSNER

Now that some time has gone by since President Obama delivered his historic speech to the Israeli people, we can look back and reassess some of the messages he intended to convey

In the immediate aftermath, there was some debate on how to interpret the address. Was it a “win” for Israel because Obama did not explicitly lay out a detailed political blueprint to solve the conflict? Some on the political right, both in Israel and the United States, made that argument. This was dispiriting because it ignored, or willfully disregarded, the singular focus and moral clarity that ran through the President’s speech.

Faced with Obama’s long and detailed statement on why a two-state solution is crucial for Israel’s security, its democracy and its spiritual wellbeing, it was strange the way that some commentators focused not on what he said but on what he did not say.

It’s true that Obama did not repeat his call for a settlement freeze; he alluded to but did not explicitly repeat his statement for a Palestinian state to be founded on the basis of the 1967 lines plus swops; he said nothing about the future of Jerusalem.

But the point of the speech was not to lay a peace plan on the table: it was to explain to Israelis why they should start to believe once again, in the president’s words, that peace based on the creation of a Palestinian state was possible, necessary and just.

This was not in that sense a policy speech. Instead, Obama was walking in the tradition of Biblical prophets like Isaiah and modern-day prophets like Martin Luther King in laying out the ethical necessity for political action.

Take this striking paragraph, which I will quote with the applause lines included:

“It is not fair that a Palestinian child cannot grow up in a state of their own – (cheers, applause) – living their entire lives with the presence of a foreign army that controls the movements, not just of those young people but their parents, their grandparents, every single day.

It’s not just when settler violence against Palestinians goes unpunished. (Applause.)

It’s not right to prevent Palestinians from farming their lands or restricting a student’s ability to move around the West Bank – (applause) – or displace Palestinian families from their homes. Neither occupation nor expulsion is the answer. (Cheers, applause.)

Just as Israelis built a state in their homeland, Palestinians have a right to be a free people in their own land. (Applause.)”

Yes it’s true that Obama did not lay out a detailed plan. He had never been expected to.

It’s true also that he did not exert pressure on the Israeli government to take any particular actions. Instead, he appealed directly to Israelis to pressure their risk- averse political leaders to take action in pursuit of peace.

The overwhelmingly positive reception to the speech both from Israelis and Americans, including American Jews, represented a significant political success for the administration.

Those who embraced his words will find it much harder to disavow them later. Attention now turns to Secretary of State John Kerry who has already begun working for a resumption of peace talks. It’s going to be hard – but Obama’s speech undoubtedly made his task easier.

By focusing on the vision rather than on the details, on the goal rather than on the journey, on the potential gains rather than on the political risks, Obama challenged Israelis and Palestinians alike to show real leadership and courage. So much of their interactions over the past three years have seemed smallminded and petty, largely or partly designed to embarrass or humiliate the other side. Now, they are summoned to a higher purpose.

When the talks run into problems, as they surely will, and when the parties get bogged down on this detail or that, they will be able to refer back to this moment. Israelis will know, because they have now heard in the clearest terms possible, that in Obama they have a friend committed to their safety and prosperity. And Palestinians will know, because they also heard, that they have a friend committed to justice.

Alan Elsner, a former Reuters correspondent in Jerusalem and Washington, is Vice President for Communications at J Street, a pro-Israel advocacy group that works for a two-state solution.

As CEO of a PR firm, we often brief clients prior to major communications endeavors, and with President Obama embarking upon his much-awaitedIsrael trip which is sure to attract major attention, wanted to offer ten tips to ensure his trip to Israeli is a success:

1: It is not necessary to bow to elected officials in Israel.  Your bow to the Saudi King is not necessary in the Jewish State.  Shaking hands will do just fine for Prime Minister Netanyahu, President Peres and others.

2:  The Israeli media is everywhere and indeed will not leave you alone.  Don’t be surprised if there are open microphones and don’t get caught talking ill of Prime Minister as you did last year with Sarkozy.

3: Don’t walk out on PM Netanyahu for a private meal with your wife, nor make him wait for a scheduled dinner.  Treat Israel like the long-time ally they are not the other Mid-East nations.

4:  Don’t make the mistake of implying Israel was created because of the Holocaust, nor let someone on your staff say (as a fundraiser of yours during the campaign did) that Muslim anti-Semitism “stems from the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.” Muslim anti-Semitism in the Middle East predates 1967, and even 1948.

5: While you have previously referred to Israel’s elected government as “extreme right”, in Israel it isn’t thought of in that manner.  Your statement in 2008 that “I think there is a strain within the pro-Israel community that says unless you adopt an unwavering pro-Likud approach to Israel that you’re anti-Israel, and that can’t be the measure of our friendship with Israel” wont go over well. Likud is the largest party in Israel, and even given differences with the 2 other major coalition partners they’d also stand against these statements.  The term “pro-Likud” is confusing as every single Israeli government has supported settlements, a peace process, strength against Iran and strength on national security. The coalition has recently been formed and it focuses primarily on domestic issues – and certainly isn’t perceived as extreme-right.

6:   Don’t mention your “Jewish” friends as it won’t score your points.  Your relationships with people like The New Yorker’s David Remnick andNewsweek’s Peter Beinart (as when you reportedly told Beinart to “hang in there”) wont help.  Those who support boycotting Israel – even if they are Jewish – aren’t very popular in Israel.

7. When in Jerusalem don’t say that Jews can’t build in all areas ofJerusalem.  If Jews can build and live anywhere they choose in America, why not in Israel? However, while you are in Jerusalem, even as a non-Jew you can pray as in Jerusalem, Israel practicing the religion of your choice is accepted and safe.  Just like in America, people can live wherever they choose in Israel and worship freely. That isn’t the case for Jews, Christians or Mormons in nearly any Arab country.

8. Iran is a real danger to Israel and Netanyahu’s redlines are very real. Respect them and the Jewish state. As Zionist leader Zev Jabotinsky wrote in 1929, “The Jewish people – all of us, 100 percent want peace” and it still true today.  Whether Iran or the Palestinian Arab issue, Israel is simply trying to stay alive in a dangerous neighborhood.

9. Would be a great gesture if you would commute Jonathan Pollard’s sentence to time-served.  Israelis –and American Jews – across the board have asked for commutation as his sentence is simply unfair given previous sentences to people convicted of similar crimes.

10. Most importantly enjoy the wonders of the modern day miracle known as Israel.  It is a simply amazing country and everyone who visits with an open mind comes away changed.

President Obama it’s great you are visiting Israel.  Hope it is a successful and enjoyable visit.

Ronn Torossian is CEO of 5WPR, a leading PR Agency. He is also author of “For Immediate Release: Shape Minds, Build Brands, and Deliver Results with Game-Changing Public Relations.”

The Ynet report claimed that President Obama has demanded from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a plan for Israeli West Bank withdrawal in order to create a Palestinian state in 2014. While that report cannot be considered authoritative, it is at least consistent with Obama’s approach at the outset of his first term, when he labeled the time particularly auspicious for settling the Palestinian-Israeli conflict once and for all and appointed former Senator George Mitchell to get the job done. Whatever favorable omens the president read in his tea leaves soon turned sour. No substantive negotiations between the Palestinians and Israel have taken place since he entered office.

Read more at Jewish Media Sources.

Even so, the razzmatazz at this year’s AIPAC policy conference couldn’t quite mute the background murmurs about the organization’s declining influence. There was Chuck Hagel’s confirmation as Defense Secretary, and there is the ongoing debate about the impact of sequestration on Israel’s defensive capabilities. When Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) complained that the Obama Administration still had not delivered advanced F-35 fighter aircraft to Israel, he inadvertently invited his audience to ponder, “All powerful Israel Lobby? What all powerful Israel Lobby?”

Read more at JNS.org.

Another inexplicable, perhaps even divine spin of events will bring President Obama to Israel around Purim. Some see this is an opportunity for Obama to press for a renewed peace initiative on the newly elected Knesset. Others, a politicized Obama trying to get himself into the spotlight for some lame foreign policy legacy.

Whatever the reason, the timing of this sudden and rushed decision of the American leadership to visit Israel cannot be ignored. Who can forget their meeting on Purim one year ago when Prime Minister Netanyahu put a magnificent, hand-written manuscript of the Scroll of Esther into the hands of President Obama? With Mordechai-like clarity, Netanyahu declared to Obama, “Mr. President, we must stop Iran, before they destroy us!”

For the Jewish prime minister it is a no-brainer; Israel is facing a modern-day Haman. In his speech to AIPAC Netanyahu described Haman as “a Persian antisemite who tried to annihilate the Jewish people.” Netanyahu explained that “In every generation, there are those who wish to destroy the Jewish people. In this generation, we are blessed to live in an age when there is a Jewish state capable of defending the Jewish people.”

This time, even more than ever, Netanyahu’s message must remain clear, and not only to Obama. Purim must be a reminder to all of us, women and men, that we must take action to save ourselves. It is not enough to just allow events to take their course. We must not wait passively for some divine intervention.

That is the message in Esther’s Scroll. Purim is the assurance that the divine hand of intervention will turn the tables on Israel’s enemies, when someone is willing to stand up for what is right. The hero of Purim is neither fate nor consequence. It is the young girl, who with a good sense of woman’s intuition and gentle feminine persuasion convinces a king listen to her plea. It is about the “coincidences” that happen when a faithful uncle risks everything to stand up for what he believes and does not hesitate to warn his people of impending danger.

While Purim is a constant reminder that Jews have enemies dedicated to our destruction, we learn from the Scroll of Esther that we also can, and should, do something about it. When the chips are down, and it seems like the cards are stacked against us, it is not time to sit around and brood. It is time to remember Purim, a celebration to shake us out of our apathy. It is a call to do something, something we can do, something we should do. Something that could turn the tables on an enemy, foil a foe by his own foolishness, or hang a Haman on his own hemp.

While Netanyahu is said to be considering military action against Iran, Israeli author Yossi Klein Halevi believes that Netanyahu’s reading of the Purim story is understandable. “Tradition emphasizes that the Book of Esther is the only sacred text in the Hebrew Bible without God’s name in it, and that’s understood as an indication that this is a story that requires human initiative, that saving oneself requires human initiative, and that God’s help is implicit,” he said. In that sense, Netanyahu is reading the Purim story correctly when he calls for active Israeli self-defense against our existential threats.

This year as we approach Purim with a nuclear Iran ticking, killer chemicals floating over the Syrian border, Hezbollah missiles stockpiled in Lebanon, al Qaeda wannabes tunneling under Gaza’s sand hills and civil wars raging on our doorsteps, the stakes have been raised. Long ago the die was cast in the Middle East and we have long since crossed the Rubicon of diplomatic solutions for Israel’s security. Israel cannot and will not risk her survival to rhetoric and wishful thinking. The only question remaining is whether or not President Obama and the United States of America will cast their lot in time to make a difference.

Perhaps this Purim Netanyahu should highlight with a yellow marker for  Obama the passage in Esther that reads, “If you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place… And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?”

President Obama’s decision to visit the Middle East this spring has focused new attention on how hard he intends to work and how much time and political capital he might expend on trying to bring about peace between Israelis and Palestinians.

Obama can expect to receive a warm welcome both in Jerusalem and Ramallah, despite rocky personal relationships with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

The ceremonial aspects of both visits are important in terms of winning over Israeli and Palestinian public opinion to the President’s agenda. But Obama faces a choice: he could make speeches in both cities, lay wreaths at appropriate sites and leave with a warm feeling – or he could use the trip to kick start a sustained, concentrated, focused and determined push to finally end this conflict.

It is essential that Obama take the second, tougher option. It’s a high risk choice with no guarantee of success – but failure to act could be disastrous not only for the region but for US national security interests as well.

We could get a clue about Obama’s intentions in next week’s State of the Union address. Israeli-Palestinian peace may only get a one or two sentence mention – but those few words could have enormous significance depending on whether the President sticks to well-known bromides or whether he says something slightly more specific.

The probability that a new, more centrist Israeli government will be in place by the time of the visit provides an opening for US diplomacy that has not existed for the past three years. With Obama having won the last election of his life and now relatively immune to right-wing groups that reflexively oppose almost everything he does, now is the time to move forward.

To give this visit real significance, Obama should signal that the visit marks the start of what is certain to be a tough process that may take all four years of his second term with the aim of reaching a peace deal based on a two-state solution. He should also pledge his continued personal involvement to help the parties reach that goal.

Experience has taught us that only US leadership and mediation can bridge the gaps between the parties. Both the Israelis and Palestinians now seem locked in psychological patterns in which they discount the views and claims of the other side as unreasonable. Each side has its own narrative, proclaims its own historic and legalistic rights and dismisses the claims of the other side as illegitimate.

That kind of debate will never bring peace. The trick for Obama and for Secretary of State Kerry will be to bring both sides to a realization that this negotiation is not about proving which of them is more right and which is more wrong (or wronged) but in reaching a compromise to benefit both peoples. It’s not about what each side may have to sacrifice but about what they stand to gain.

If Obama fails to take advantage of the moment, the door on a two-state solution may close forever. Then, Israelis and Palestinians will be locked in an endless conflict and the United States will have to deal with a festering sore in the center of the Middle East that will never heal.

The president seems aware of the challenge and ready to meet it. If he succeeds, it would stand as a towering historic achievement and legacy that would benefit not only Israelis and Palestinians but all of humankind.

Alan Elsner is J Street’s vice president of communications.