Page 2 - The Canadian Jewish News, Thursday, December 22, 1983
M-T
World-National
Rejection
on
By
RABBI W. GUNTHEBPLAUT
A few weeks ago on theoccasion of the 500th anniversary-of the birth of Martin Luther, I devoted a column to his relationship with the Jewish people.
Luther had at first hoped that his new purified version of Christianity would attract Jews to conversion, but when he was disappointed he turned against them and attacked them in the most virulent and vitriolic terms. He called them liars, cheats and the scum of humanity and urged their synagogues be burned, the Jewish communi-
Rabbi Plant
ties be dismantled and called for the Jews to be I expelled from their habitats.
With all his great achievements within the church, Luther thereby became a contributor to a pervasive, and eventually deadly violent anti-semitism.
Lutherans have been painfully aware of his dark side of their founder's faith and life. Consequently, in Stockholm in mid-summer a conference was held between religious leaders of the International Jewish Committee on Interreligious Consultation (IJCIC) which resulted in pronouncements which have just come to my attention. They are to the point and, I am glad to say, show a view of history which is realistic and at the same time lay a proper foundation for interreligious co-operation in the future.
Here are excerpts from a statement made by the Lutheran participants to the Conference:
Luther does not support racial anti-semitism, nationalistic anti-semitism and political anti-semitism. Even the deplorable religious anti-semitism of the 16th century, to which Luther's attacks made an important contribution, is a horrible anachronism when translated into the conditions of the modern world. . . . A frank examination forces Lutherans and other Christians to confront the anti-Jewish attitudes of their past and present.
Beginning in tlie last of the 19th centiiiy, anti-semitism increased in Central Europe and at the same time Jewish people were being hitegrated hi society. This brought to the churches, particolarly in Germany, an unwanted challenge. Paradoxically the churches honored the people Israel of the Bible but rejected the descendants of those people. Myths were perpetuated about the Jews and deprecatory references appeared in Lutheran liturgical and educational materials.
Luther's doctrine was used to justify passivity in the face of totalitarian claims. These and other less theological factors contributed to the failure which have been regretted and repeatedly confessed since 1945.
At the end of the conference the Jewish and Lutheran representatives issued a joint statement which made the following afftnnations:
(1) We affirm the integrity and dignity of our two faith communities and repudiate any organized proselytizing of each other.
(2) We pledge to combat all forms of racial and religious prejudice and express our solidarity with all who suffer the denial of full religious freedom,
(3) Sharing in the common patrimony of the Prophets of Israel and inspired by their vision, we commit ourselves to strive for a world in which the threat of nuclear warfare will be ended, where poverty and hunger will be eradicated, in which violence and terrorism will be overcome and a just and lasting peace will be established.
We welcome this historic encounter which we prayerfully hope will mark a new chapter^ with trust replacing suspicion and with reciprocal respect replacing prejudice. To this end wc commit ourselves to periodic consultations and joint activities that will strengthen our common bonds in service to humanity.
This excellent statement may also serve as a reminder that we Jews too have our prejudice and that these too need to be dealt with openly. But this is another subject to which I will direct attention at another time.
Stevens understands IsraeFs position
^^Rkky^^to see PLO as spokesmen
By
SHELDON KIRSHNER
TORONTO —
The man who would probably be 'Canada's external affairs minister in a Progressive Conservative government said in an interview here that the Palestinians are entitled to ** political self-..expression.''
'Sinclair Stevens, the PC's foreign affairs critic, said that all parties to the Arab-Israeli conflict must accept two basic principles — Israel's right to exist, and t6e Palestinians' desire for "political self-expression in a homeland."
Although he was initially reluctant to define the borders of a Palestinian homeland (an expression which does not imply actual statehood), Stevens said it could be set up on the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip, or in Jordan, subject to an agreement between Israel and the Arabs.
In other comments, Stevens described Israeli settlements as "a concern," but said he presumes they are legal.
Israel, the MP for York-Peel said, is not obligated ^to withdraw from all occupied territories. He expressed understanding for Israel's desire to keep the West Bank, and voiced conditional support of the 1981 Israeli annexation of the Golan Heights.
Stevens,; president of the Treasury Board when Joe Clark was Prime Minister, said that Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon could be partially justified in military terms.
Stevens criticized External Affairs Minister Allan MacEachen for the impression he created during his recent trip to Israel, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and Egypt.
MacEachen, he charged, had used "loose language" in formulating his statements, and his "words and actions" had been "ill-advised. "While Canada had not changed its policy toward Israel, the 56-year-old parliament tarian said, Canada had "flirted" with Syria.
Rebutting MacEachen, Stevens said he saw no evidence that Syria sought a free, independent Lebanon. "For years, the Syrians have held to the position that Lebanon is a natural extension of Syria."
MacEachen, he said, had not been "even-handed" in calling for a unilateral Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon — a statement MacEachen later withdrew. And his tone on the PLO "seemed to be soft," because he appeared to acknowledge its primacy as the Palestinians' sole representative. (M:ac-Eachen said the PLO was "obviously an important organization.")
In reply to a series of questions on the Pales-
Sfaiclair Stevens
tinians, Stevens said that Canada should not'' seek out" contact with the PLO. (Canada has had diplomatic contacts with PLO officials, and MacEachen said recently they might be upgraded in the future.)
However,- Stevens added, Canada may be forced to deal with the
PLO. "You've got to live in the world the way it is," he explained. "There may be occasions when you have little alternative but to deal with (the PLO). ;.to give them a status, a credibility, they might welcome."
Saying he knew of "no alternative" to the PLO at present, Stevens said, nevertheless, he would be "hesitant" to coUr
elude that the PLO speaks for all Palestinians.
The PLO, he went on to say, has not been elected in a referendum. Therefore, he pointed out, it is "risky" to recognize the PLO as the representative of the Palestinians. (Canada has not extended recognition to the PLO.)
Calling Ronald Reagan's 1982 peace plan "a good thrust... a good proposal to put on the table," Stevens declined to say whether Israel had been wrong to reject it.
(Reagan's plan envisaged an association between the West Bank and Jordan, and a moratorium on the building of new Israeli settlements.)
A lawyer by training, Stevens said he was surprised MacEachen had termed Israel's settlements '^illegal and an obstacle to peace."
Stevens, who visited the Middle East in 1978 and again in 1979, said MacEachen had deployed harsh" wording in criticizing the settlements. They are a "concern," but presumably legal, he said.
"When you . disrupt the status quo, you're invariably creating new
tensions," he said. "But no one denies that the Israeli government has jurisdiction over (the occupied areas) . . . What law are you breaking by putting a settlement into a certain location?"
Stevens said that the settlements are a domestic, Israeli issue and he chided MacEachen — whom he referred to as Allan — for bringing it up.
He refused to be drawn into a discussion as to whether Israel should freeze settlement activity, in accordance with the Reagan plan. "Now you're getting into domestic politics . . . Is it right for me to be saying whether this should be the case?"
Even with the advent of a satisfactory peace settlement with the Arabs, Israelis under no obligation to withdraw from all the occupied territories, he said.
"They need, to a certain extent, buffers," Stevens declared, referring to Israel's oft-stated goal of achieving security by retaining land captured in the 1967 Six Day War.
Militarily, Israel was justified to annex the Golan  Heights, which
was a part of Syria until the Six Day War, he said. "A land grab per se would have been a totally different thing."
From a strict security standpoint, Stevens said, Israel has a stronger claim to the West BankT Having visited the region, he said he could understand why the West Bank is important to Israel as a military buffer.
Partially justifying Israel's invasion of Lebanon, Stevens said he understands why the Israelis found it necessary to carry out a preemptive strike to knock out terrorists.
"Whether they (the Israelis) penetrated farther than they should have is an open question," he said.
Stevens, who worked as a journalist before turning to the practice of law,jaid he regards the Middle East as a tinder-box where "the East is coming closer to the West in a very explosive way.
"It has to be given a high priority," he asserted.
Time permitting, he intends to visit the area after trips to Washington and Western Europe.
[By JTA[
Italy and Israel recently signed a broad agreement defining their future economic agricultural, scientific, technological and cultural relationships and ways to deal with problems arising for Israel's agricultural exports from the impending admission of Spain and Portugal into
the European Economic Community (EEC).
The far-reachihg accord was finalized during a 2-day meeting here of a joint commission of the two nations, headed by Israel's deputy foreign minister, Yehuda Ben-Meir and Bruno Corti, the Italian undersecretary of foreign affairs.
The commission,
OTTAWA —
Immigrants over the age of 65 will probably find most of the formal requirements for Canadian citizenship relaxed in the new year, according to David Collenette, minister of state for mnl-ticulturalism.
He noted with approval last week that this proposal was made in the recent Speech from the Throne, and that drafting of new multicultural-ism legislation will begin immediately for introduction in the House of Commons early in 1984^
At present, Collenette pointed out in an official statement, there are instances where elderly parents of new Canadians are unable to acquire the full fluency in English needed to pass citizenship tests. Hence, they are being denied the citizenship
they have succeeded in obtaining. ,
Apart from their residency, he expected a loosening of most of those formal requirements.
The minister expressed particular satisfaction with the Throne Speech proposal to act quickly on the report of the parliamentary committee on the padrticipa-tion of visible minorities in Canadian society, which has been visiting cities across Canada and receiving representations from a Variefy of groups.
"Strengthening laws against hate literature is another important way in which the government proposes to ensure that 7^11 Canadians, whatever their race or culture, can enjoy equal respect and participation in Canadian society," he said.
established by a 1954 (^agreement, had not met for the past 20 yeairs. From now on, however, it will convene annually and the next meeting is scheduled for Jerusalem in 1984.
Meanwhile in Jerusalem the official visit of Chile's foreign minister Miguel Schweitzer Wal-ters ended with agreements to expand trade and . agricultural cooperation between Israel and that country.
Chile, an arid country, is particularly interested in Israel's experience and knowhow in the development of advanced irrigation techniques. Israel will send a team of experts to Chile shortly to discuss possible joint projects in that field.
The two countries also agreed to encourage businessmen to exr change visits and to participate in each other's trade fairs and exhibitions.
in Brussels, Israel and the EEC signed an accord providing for two joint research projects which will be carried out in Israel and financed by the EEC.
The signing marks another step in normalizing relations between Israel and the EEC which became strained after Israel's invasion of Lebanon and the subsequent "punishment measures" by the EEC.
Israeli diplomats
noted that the accord was signed under thie Greek rotating chairmanship of the EEC and. they said Greek officials took pains to demonstrate that they were not interested in being blamed for trying to prevent improvement of relations.
In London, Israel and Britain last week held a series of talks on ways of hicreasing cooperation between industrial companies in both countries. The talks were held under auspices of the Anglo-Israel Joint Economic Commission, an inter - governmental panel which meets annually.
Moshe Semadar, head of the Israeli delegation, told JTA that Israel wants the creation of a special framework to foster joint research and development in industry, agriculture and medical equipment. Areas of special interest to Israel, he said, are robotics, engineering, telemetry ^nd computer hardware and software.
The talks coincide with -^growing trade between the two countries. Britain is now Israel's ^cond most. valuable export market after the U.S. and her third biggest supplier after the U,S. and West Germany. Britain's exports to Israel in the first 10 months of 1983 were 62% higher than in the same period last year.