{"id":16957,"date":"2014-07-11T15:55:50","date_gmt":"2014-07-11T21:55:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/?p=16957"},"modified":"2014-07-13T06:26:46","modified_gmt":"2014-07-13T12:26:46","slug":"divestment-issue-will-not-alienate-congregations-leaders-vow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/divestment-issue-will-not-alienate-congregations-leaders-vow\/","title":{"rendered":"Divestment issue will not alienate congregations, leaders vow"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>By DEAN SHAPIRO, <em>Special to the CCJN<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Despite the recent passage of a measure by the governing body of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) calling for divestment in companies doing business with Israel and the publication of an anti-Zionist pamphlet by the church, those views don\u2019t represent the views of all American Presbyterians, according to Senior Pastor Donald R. Frampton of St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_16959\" style=\"width: 199px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a title=\"Rabbi Cohn and Pastor Frampton\" href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/01Cohn_Frampton.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-16959\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-16959 lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/01Cohn_Frampton-189x300.jpg\" alt=\"Temple Sinai Rabbi Ed Paul Cohn with St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian church Senior Pastor Donald Frampton with their olive tree. (Photo by Dean Shapiro)\" width=\"189\" height=\"300\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/01Cohn_Frampton-189x300.jpg 189w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/01Cohn_Frampton-646x1024.jpg 646w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/01Cohn_Frampton.jpg 1456w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 189px) 100vw, 189px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 189px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 189\/300;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-16959\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-16959\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/01Cohn_Frampton-189x300.jpg\" alt=\"Temple Sinai Rabbi Ed Paul Cohn with St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian church Senior Pastor Donald Frampton with their olive tree. (Photo by Dean Shapiro)\" width=\"189\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/01Cohn_Frampton-189x300.jpg 189w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/01Cohn_Frampton-646x1024.jpg 646w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/01Cohn_Frampton.jpg 1456w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 189px) 100vw, 189px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-16959\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Temple Sinai Rabbi Ed Paul Cohn with St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian church Senior Pastor Donald Frampton with their olive tree. (Photo by Dean Shapiro)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Approximately 100 congregants from Temple Sinai, the St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church and contingents from other Jewish and Presbyterian houses of worship gathered in fellowship and solidarity on July 8 for a pot luck supper at the temple. They listened to remarks from Frampton, Rabbi Edward Cohn and Cantor Joel Colman of Temple Sinai, as well as members of the audience.<\/p>\n<p>Emphasizing the longstanding friendship between his church and the New Orleans Jewish community, Frampton made it clear that the church hierarchy\u2019s position did not reflect his own.<\/p>\n<p>Controversy erupted in January of this year with publication of the church-funded Israel\/Palestine Mission Network\u2019s 74-page anti-Zionist congregational study guide titled \u201cZionism Unsettled.\u201d The pamphlet went out for sale over the Mission Network\u2019s website, accompanied by a DVD.<\/p>\n<p>Six months later, at its June 2014 meeting in Detroit, the Presbyterian Church\u2019s General Assembly narrowly voted to support a measure authorizing the church to divest in three large American corporations that do business with Israel.<\/p>\n<p>The 310-303 vote specifically targeted Caterpillar, Hewlett-Packard and Motorola Solutions which, the resolution claimed, \u201cfurther the Israeli occupation of Palestine.\u201d The church, which <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-admin\/themes.php\">Themes<\/a>has approximately 1.9 million members, has about $21 million worth of investments, according to a report in <em>The New York Times<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>In his opening remarks, Frampton explained that following the Presbyterian General Assembly vote, he immediately got in touch with Cohn and suggested that their congregations get together to discuss the issues and reaffirm their solidarity. \u201cI just wanted to reach out to you, our valued friends at Temple Sinai, to assure you of our ongoing friendship and partnership, regardless of what happened in Detroit,\u201d Frampton said.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_16961\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a title=\"Pastor Donald Frampton\" href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/02Frampton.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-16961\" class=\"wp-image-16961 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/02Frampton-300x245.jpg\" alt=\"02Frampton\" width=\"300\" height=\"245\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/02Frampton-300x245.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/02Frampton-1024x837.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/02Frampton.jpg 1515w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 300px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 300\/245;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-16961\" class=\"wp-image-16961 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/02Frampton-300x245.jpg\" alt=\"02Frampton\" width=\"300\" height=\"245\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/02Frampton-300x245.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/02Frampton-1024x837.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/02Frampton.jpg 1515w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-16961\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church senior pastor Donald Frampton. (Photo by Dean Shapiro)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cI also wanted to share with you my own personal disagreement with the G.A.\u2019s decision,\u201d Frampton continued. \u201cI was against it from the beginning and extremely disappointed that it passed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Weighing his next words carefully, Frampton added, \u201cI can only speak for myself and not for the whole congregation. However, there is one thing I am able to say: Even from those who may have found some merit in the G.A. decision, never for a moment do they do so out of a sense of anti-Semitism, but only in the interests of peace in the Middle East. That is the reality.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Frampton also said he wasn\u2019t at the G.A. meeting where the vote took place and has never attended any of the nationwide biennial gatherings, despite his position as a local church head.<\/p>\n<p>At the G.A. gatherings, \u201cNo one is instructed how to vote. Rather they vote as the Holy Spirit guides them,\u201d Frampton said. \u201cIn secular terms, they vote their conscience. So any decision made on the G.A. level, does not necessarily reflect the majority view of any particular local congregation. That\u2019s how our church works; how it governs itself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Continually emphasizing the closeness of the vote, Frampton nonetheless added, \u201cIt\u2019s a<em> fait accompli.<\/em> What\u2019s done is done. In the Presbyterian Church, much as I suspect it is in Reform Judaism, we don\u2019t always agree with each other and we don\u2019t always get what we want. Until the Assembly meets again in two years there is nothing that can be done about the outcome of the vote.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Taking it down to the local level, Frampton said, \u201cI think it is important to affirm that St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church does not look at Temple Sinai any differently than it did before this vote was taken. And we sincerely hope you did not see us differently either.\u201d The two congregations would continue their friendly and cooperative relationships, \u201cjust as we have for decades,\u201d he promised.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy hope for tonight is what I see going on right now; table talk, rich conversation, getting to know each other and renewing acquaintances around the tables. Strengthening and affirming our friendship and the bonds that we have. . . . coming together as one; as people of God, and we\u2019re doing that tonight,\u201d Frampton said at the conclusion of his remarks.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_16962\" style=\"width: 252px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a title=\"Cantor Colman with map of Israel\" href=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/03Colman.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-16962\" class=\"wp-image-16962 size-medium lazyload\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/03Colman-242x300.jpg\" alt=\"03Colman\" width=\"242\" height=\"300\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/03Colman-242x300.jpg 242w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/03Colman-829x1024.jpg 829w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/03Colman.jpg 1456w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 242px) 100vw, 242px\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 242px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 242\/300;\" \/><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-16962\" class=\"wp-image-16962 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/03Colman-242x300.jpg\" alt=\"03Colman\" width=\"242\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/03Colman-242x300.jpg 242w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/03Colman-829x1024.jpg 829w, https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/03Colman.jpg 1456w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 242px) 100vw, 242px\" \/><\/noscript><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-16962\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Temple Sinai Cantor Joel Colman points on a map to Gaza, from where hundreds of missiles have been launched at Israel. (Photo by Dean Shapiro)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Addressing the group, Cantor Colman stood beside a map of Israel and pointed to the location of the Gaza Strip, from which well over 100 missile strikes have been launched against the Israelis in recent weeks.<\/p>\n<p>According to reports he is getting from his son, Josh, a soldier in the Israel Defense Forces, potential victims of the missile attacks may have only a few seconds \u2013 three minutes at best \u2013 to take shelter. Color-coded flyers containing this information are being handed out to Israelis in much the same way as hurricane preparation and evacuation tips are disbursed to New Orleanians, Colman pointed out.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo, when people ask me, is he OK, I can say he is OK but it\u2019s not OK what\u2019s going on over there,\u201d Colman said.<\/p>\n<p>Ruthie Frierson, a member of the St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian congregation, said that when she heard about the divestment vote, \u201cI was so sad I don\u2019t even remember what that day\u2019s sermon was about. The Jewish faith in this community has meant everything to our community, when you look at the education, the arts, the medicine and everything else I can think of.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Continuing, Frierson said, \u201cThe generosity and commitment and everything that goes with it, has really helped make us who we are today.\u201d Making reference to World War II, she added, \u201cWe just can\u2019t turn our backs again,\u201d and she encouraged people to speak out on this and other issues affecting Israel.<\/p>\n<p>During his remarks, Rabbi Cohn took issue with the Presbyterian G.A. vote, saying that \u201cit will be used as propaganda against Israel in a hurtful way.\u201d Then, referencing the \u201cZionism Unsettled\u201d pamphlet being distributed by the church, he called it a \u201cloathsome publication\u201d and added, \u201cIt\u2019s impossible to describe the hurt caused by this congregational study guide, which seems to blame Israel alone for the absence of peace in the Middle East.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Cohn went on to say, \u201cFrom 1948 to 1967, when the West Bank was under Arab control, there was no Palestinian state. There could easily have been but there wasn\u2019t.\u201d Also from 1948-67, when no Arab nations recognized the existence of Israel, he added. \u201cThey were determined to keep the Palestinians as refugees. No one opened their doors to them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Cohn decried the analogy found in \u201cZionism Unsettled\u201d that likened the present day situation in Israel to the apartheid formerly practiced in South Africa. \u201cIn Israel, Arabs and Jews sit side by side in restaurants,\u201d he said. \u201cThey are treated in hospitals by Arab and Jewish physicians and nurses, and they study in the same universities with Arab and Jewish professors.<\/p>\n<p>Regarding the divestment issue, attendees at the Detroit General Assembly in Detroit were being led to believe that large numbers of American Jews support divestment. However, when Cohn asked if anyone in the room supported it, no one raised their hand. He explained that a fringe group of Jews were at the G.A. wearing T-shirts supporting divestment but, he added, \u201cThey are as representative of Jews are snake-handlers are representative of Christians.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Cohn concluded by assuring those gathered that \u201cThis decision by the General Assembly will not interfere, for one instant, with the close, trusting friendship and the commitment of Temple Sinai and St. Charles Avenue Presbyterian Church to be with one another. It would be a tragedy were it to be otherwise. We need to work together on so many social justice issues in this community which is in such pain. What happened in Detroit happened and it is unfortunate. We have to center our attention on what is happening and what will happen in the Crescent City. That is our mission, and our task.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>(Editor&#8217;s Note: Due to pressure from Jewish sources at the June General Assembly, members voted to remove the \u201cZionism Unsettled\u201d publication from the Mission Network\u2019s website but, as of July 11, it was still up on the site.)<\/em><\/p>\n<div style=\"padding-bottom:20px; padding-top:10px;\" class=\"hupso-share-buttons\"><!-- Hupso Share Buttons - https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/ --><a class=\"hupso_toolbar\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hupso.com\/share\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/buttons\/share-medium.png\" style=\"border:0px; padding-top: 5px; float:left;\" alt=\"Share Button\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"lazyload\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/buttons\/share-medium.png\" style=\"border:0px; padding-top: 5px; float:left;\" alt=\"Share Button\"\/><\/noscript><\/a><script type=\"text\/javascript\">var hupso_services_t=new Array(\"Twitter\",\"Facebook\",\"Google Plus\",\"Pinterest\",\"Linkedin\",\"Tumblr\",\"Email\");var hupso_background_t=\"#EAF4FF\";var hupso_border_t=\"#66CCFF\";var hupso_toolbar_size_t=\"medium\";var hupso_image_folder_url = \"\";var hupso_url_t=\"\";var hupso_title_t=\"Divestment%20issue%20will%20not%20alienate%20congregations%2C%20leaders%20vow\";<\/script><script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"https:\/\/static.hupso.com\/share\/js\/share_toolbar.js\"><\/script><!-- Hupso Share Buttons --><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":16959,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[5698,1348,8790,8795,8800,8788,4973,5697,8802],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16957"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16957"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16957\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16976,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16957\/revisions\/16976"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16959"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16957"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16957"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.crescentcityjewishnews.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16957"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}