By Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie
I have just returned from a week in Israel.  I met privately with Foreign Minister Tsippi Livni, Leader of the Opposition Benjamin Netanyahu, and a half dozen other ministers and Knesset members. I also joined a small delegation of Jewish Agency leaders for a meeting with Prime Minister Olmert.  In addition, of course, I had extensive meetings with leaders of the Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism.

A few impressions:  In many ways, Israel's situation has never been better. Unemployment is the lowest in 20 years. The economy grew at a rate of more than 5% for the first quarter of 2008. The hotels are full and tourism is at an all-time high. Reform congregational groups are everywhere, and I was delighted to meet Reform congregational leaders and rabbis wherever I turned. On the political front, a ceasefire is in place in Gaza, Israel is negotiating with Syria, and there has been quiet on the northern border for almost two years.

But...the mood in the country is at best cautious and at worst skeptical and sour. The current government is a moderate one, but its leaders - Olmert, Livni, and Ehud Barak - are at each other's throats, and the Prime Minister, who is under investigation for corruption, is not expected to survive for very long. There are many reasons to support the ceasefire, but there are reasons to question it as well, and the country is deeply divided. In addition, Hizbollah in the north continues to strengthen its position, and hovering in the background, always, is the growing threat from Iran.

During my stay, a debate over Israeli hosatages held by Hamas and Hizbollah was raging.  Had Israel done enough to get back Shalit, Goldwasser, and Regev? Should Israel pay the outrageous price that her enemies were demanding for their return? With regard to Gilad Shalit, did it make sense - morally and practically - to hand over hundreds of Palestinian prisoners to Hamas, including convicted murderers, to get back a single Israeli soldier? The debate on these issues was intense, passionate, often bitter, and completely unpredictable; hawks and doves were on both sides of the question. 

My thought throughout was that nowhere else but in the Jewish state would a debate of this type even take place. 

The Reform movement in Israel continues to thrive. The Israeli rabbinic program of the Hebrew Union College will be admitting 10 students this year, its biggest class ever. The major problem for our congregations and other movement institutions is an economic one not of their own doing. The collapse of the dollar vis-à-vis the shekel has led to an economic crisis with which we are currently struggling. The leadership of our Union, together with our sister institutions here in North America, will be offering some proposals in the near future to help deal with the crisis.

In the meantime, the people and the State of Israel remain in our thoughts and our prayers.

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