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Correspondence

Nov. 18, 1966

Letter to Deborah Lipstadt about Her Experience in Israel (1966)

Israel & the Middle East
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Dear Norman: I write now to ask you to hold the dates of February 11–12 for a most important intimate meeting in Washington, D.C. You are one of 10 persons to whom I have written. I have spoken with some of you personally about this. I will be calling each of you. Now, however, I only want to alert you to the date and describe briefly what it is all about. As a result of some long and detailed conversations and plans which I have been having with a few key persons on the executive staff of the United Presbyterian Church of the United States, we have finally agreed to hold an intensive, intimate conversation on Middle East questions in Washington, D.C., beginning 4:00 p.m., Monday, February 11 and going through luncheon the following day. They are inviting 10 of their top people, executive and lay, and I am doing the same from the American Jewish religious community. There will only be 20 persons at the sessions. Included is their list of invitees. Three basic topics will be on the table: The Third World perceptions of Israel as an imperialist nation now creeping into the thinking of some elements of the religious community; The Palestinians; Framing a religious response to the Middle East. Each of these agenda items is now being drawn up in a more detailed fashion and will soon be sent to you for your further consideration. I mention them now, however, so you will see the general areas of our conversations. Some of you have seen their preliminary study document: “Peoples and Conflict in the Middle East.” Some of us were asked to comment on it in its initial draft form. Since then, it has been circulated throughout the church community and is now being evaluated and possibly revised. Moreover, leadership in the Presbyterian church is anxious to meet for in-depth conversations with a few of their counterparts in the Jewish religious community. We are pleased to be able to help bring this meeting about, though unfortunately we have no funds to even defray your expens…
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Letter to Mrs. Gruen about Israel and Pacifism (1956)

Dear Mrs. Gruen, Thank you for showing me the October 19 copy of "Peace News." I was happy to have the opportunity of acquainting myself with the Pacifist point of view. However, I must say that I was shocked and dismayed by the lead story in that issue, entitled "Israel and Jordan" by Brijen K. Gupta. In what purports to be an "inside story" on the Middle East crisis, I have found a most intemperate and one-sided condemnation of Israel certainly not calculated to pacify inflamed passions in that international cauldron. The correspondent's thesis is that Israel's policy of "massive retaliation" is the very factor that is disturbing the peace, and that this is traceable to Ben Gurion's "aggressive Zionism." The sophisticated reportorial verbiage aside, this is the essence of the position of the Arab war lords who have been threatening for over eight years now to "push Israel into the sea." Israel, according to this point of view, must behave like a gentleman and remain supremely oblivious to the murder of its citizens on its own soil, the boycott against it, the closing of international water-ways to its shipping and constant warmongering against it. And if Israel raises a finger in its own defense, that is "naked aggression." It calls to mind the story of the youngster reproached by his father for fighting with his friends. "Who started the fight?" asks Father. "He did," replies the youngster, "he hit me back first.""Israel," the correspondent advises, "must take a lead in creating an atmos-phere of mutual trust and peace." Does not this correspondent, who announces that he is giving "the inside story," acknowledge any of the facts of recent history? Does he not know, or want to know, that Israel from the day of its birth has been asking for peace with the Arabs, and has even included this request in its Declaration of Independence? - that for years now its represent-ative at the U.N. has been asking vainly for the Arab delegates to sit down with him and begin nego…
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Letter to R. Jung about Hijacking of TWA Flight 840 (1969)

Dear Rabbi Jung: Just a reminder about the announcement to the Congregation on the Shemini Atzeret for them to write to TWA expressing indignation at the lack of results so far in the release of the Israeli hostages, and also at the general conduct of TWA with regard to the hijacking. – Aaron Green P.S. – Aaron: This is my 2nd or 3rd request.
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