Down the Memory Hole

Last month, I praised the PCUSA Office for Interfaith Relations for a paper it issued entitled “Vigilance Against Anti-Jewish Ideas and Bias.” I was amazed that such a document had come out of the PCUSA, one critical of the growing anti-Semitism of the left within the denomination. Even though no names were named, it was clearly aimed at those who took their support for the Palestinians to be license to cast aspersions on Jews, the “Jewish lobby,” the “Jewish apartheid state,” and so on. Well, it turns out that that praise may have been premature. The paper has been re-written, and in a way that makes clear that the primary concern is now upholding the PCUSA’s constant Israel-bashing, rather than confronting anti-Semitic attitudes within the denomination.

The Jewish Council on Public Affairs has put together a before-and-after picture of the document (it’s not at their site, but Viola Larson has a link to it that at the moment isn’t working, but hopefully will be shortly). Among the differences I noticed:

•Instead of criticizing denominational actions, the document is now full of warnings against slipping into old habits of anti-Jewish thinking and speaking. For example, the first version had this paragraph:

Examples of such an anti-Jewish theology can unfortunately be found in connection with PC(USA) General Assembly overtures, such as the overture on Confronting Christian Zionism, adopted by the 216th General Assembly in 2004. Some of the authors cited in the rationale of that overture make use in their writings of arguments suggesting or declaring that the Jewish people are no longer in covenant with God, or make statements that echo the medieval Christian claim that the Jews are to blame for the crucifixion of Christ. The rationale and background sources cited in any overture are not General Assembly policy, but Presbyterians need to read such materials with awareness of these themes of classic anti-Jewish teaching.

This paragraph has now completely disappeared. Instead, we read pablum like this:

We Presbyterians can celebrate the extent to which we have been able to rid our teaching, preaching, and actions of both anti-Semitic and anti-Jewish prejudice. We take our church’s principles and commitments regarding this seriously, and we believe that the official policies and statements of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A) live up to this standard.

•While the first version was tightly focused on a genuine problem, the second introduces the extraneous non-problem of anti-Muslim/anti-Arab bias, saying:

The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is also fully committed to building positive and respectful relations with Muslims (and people of other religious traditions), and equally concerned about anti-Muslim and anti-Arab bias. The Study on Islam adopted by the General Assembly in 1987, states, “The bigotry and prejudice manifested in the U.S.A. against Arabs, Islam, the Muslim world, and Muslim peoples produce in our society both attitudes contrary to the universality of God’s love and activities that violate the law of the land. When the church remains silent on this matter it lends credence to such prejudice.” Relations between Presbyterians and Muslims, and related issues, will be more fully explored, it is to be hoped, in a new study on Islam being proposed to the 218th General Assembly (2008).

•While the first version dealt with anti-Jewish bias, a good portion of this one is devoted to anti-Israel polemics and restatement of political positions. A list of the latter in the first section includes the standard stuff:

To call for an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories;

To condemn acts of terror and work for an end to the violence that tears apart the lives of Israelis and Palestinians alike;

To continue engagement with corporations as mandated by the General Assembly as a viable approach to achieve justice in this situation;

To criticize forms of Christian Zionism that advocate beliefs and practices that negatively affect the lives of Israelis, Palestinians and others in the Middle East;

To end the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza;

To speak out against the placement of the separation barrier, and against the continued building of Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territories;

To urge all parties to respect and uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and to abide by the requirements of international law;

To work in every way possible, with ecumenical partners, Muslims, Jews, and any others, for a viable, two-state, Israeli-Palestinian peace.

As usual, this laundry list fails to name any of the perpetrators of terror, fails to recognize what Israel has already done to facilitate peace (e.g., withdraw from Gaza) or note the violent responses that such actions have received, or suggest that there is anything other than the minimum that international law demands that Palestinians need to do in order to bring about peace (for instance, stop the daily demonization of Israel and Jews in general in Palestinian media and schools). In addition, the latest version takes a trope right out of the anti-Semites’ playbook when it declares:

It is important to note that, in and of itself, it is not anti-Jewish, or anti-Semitic, to critique or criticize what Israel does, or to make the kind of stand for justice and peace that the Presbyterian Church is making.

Simply put this way, this is true. However, in the context of a one-sided critique of Israel, and a one-sided emphasis on what Israel must do for peace, and a complete refusal to recognize and name the Palestinian contributions to continued conflict, it’s nothing more than an excuse to apply a moral double standard to the issue that is entirely (if not intentionally) anti-Semitic. That’s what the stuff criticized in the first version did, but in this version, that now becomes a virtue.

There’s more, but that will certainly give you a picture of what has changed. If I were guessing, I’d say that various grand poobahs in the PCUSA, perhaps starting with Stated Clerk Clifton Kirkpatrick, objected to the first version, and thought that it was pointing fingers at them and their allies in groups like Presbyterian Peace Fellowship (led by former GA Moderator Rick Ufford-Chase) and the Witherspoon Society.
So they order the first version dropped down the memory hole, and the second, more congenial to upper-level political preferences, replaced it, thus making for another sorry episode in recent PCUSA actions.

(Hat tip: Viola Larson.)