By Rabbi Moshe Kletenik, Special to JTNews
My wife Rivy and I were among some 200 guests invited to the White House Hanukkah Reception on Monday, December 22, 2003. I was also part of a group of 16 Jewish leaders — among them seven rabbis — representing the different movements within Judaism invited to a private meeting and briefing with President Bush. This meeting took place earlier in the day and was held in the Roosevelt Room in the West Wing of the White House. I was one of two rabbis representing the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America.
At the briefing, the President affirmed that any steps toward peace between Israel and the Palestinians must begin with security for Israel and a cessation of terror. He said that the primary responsibility of any government is to provide security for its citizens and expressed understanding for the difficulties faced by Prime Minister Sharon. On numerous occasions, the president referred to the prime minister as “my friend, Prime Minister Sharon” or “my good friend, Arik Sharon.”
President Bush also expressed concern about the upsurge in anti-Semitism in Europe. Speaking of the war in Iraq, he said that Iraq is just one theater in the war on terrorism and expressed his hopes that events there promote changes throughout the entire region. He also discussed the threat of nuclear weapons in North Korea and Iran, and the efforts of his administration to address these issues.
The president called on several members of the group to ask questions or make remarks. He then turned to me and said: “Rabbi, what would you like to say?” I was the only rabbi given this opportunity. My comments included the following:
“Mr. President. I would like to begin by expressing gratitude to you on behalf of the Seattle Jewish community and on a personal level for the directive to [the Federal Emergency Management Agency] to allow emergency disaster relief assistance to the Seattle Hebrew Academy, which was severely damaged by an earthquake some three years ago. This is a school that serves the entire Jewish community and one that my own four children attended. This assistance was integral to the success of the effort to rebuild the school. On behalf of the leadership of the Seattle Hebrew Academy, I would like to invite you to the rededication ceremony of the school that will be held this fall, and which will take place at your convenience to accommodate your schedule, should you choose to attend.
“Education is an important Jewish ideal in addition to being a universal ideal. Your administration’s focus on improving education is significant. Education tax credits and other initiatives to enhance funding for education would be most welcome.
“Finally, I would like to thank you for your strong and consistent support for the State of Israel and for staying the course in the war on terrorism. Hanukkah marks the first war fought for religious freedom. It was courageous of you, in your recent speech in London, to criticize European leaders for allowing anti-Semitism to grow within their countries and to tell the nations of the Middle East that they must undertake reforms and modernize. May you have the strength to continue your courageous leadership of the free world.”
The president thanked me for my remarks about the Seattle Hebrew Academy. He said there are many institutions that serve the community and that it is unfair for them to be discriminated against because they have a religious component. The president also spoke of his great concern about anti-Semitism in Europe, and that this is why he felt it important to publicly speak about the matter.
That evening, Rivy and I attended the reception held in the East Wing of the White House. As we entered the reception, a military band in full ceremonial dress played “S’vivon, sov, sov sov, Hanukkah hu chag tov.”
The band continued to play music with Jewish themes throughout the evening. There were several tables of specially catered kosher food, and, yes, we ate latkes on Hanukkah at the White House. A military officer announced guests’ names as we met the president and Laura Bush.
James Tully, head of the Office of Faith-Based Initiatives at the White House, sought me out at the reception. He said that he wanted to personally thank me for raising the issue of the funding for the Seattle Hebrew Academy with the president. He spoke of the significance of this decision, and how the case of the Seattle Hebrew Academy set a precedent. It was the circumstance of SHA that allowed for the recent allocation of federal dollars to the historic Touro Synagogue.
We Jews constitute a small minority of the population in the United States. It is significant that the President of the United States held a special Hanukkah reception and briefing for Jewish leaders. Beyond that, I am not a politically active rabbi who publicly endorses political candidates or supports political organizations. I represent a synagogue of about 300 families in the state of Washington. There are many larger Jewish congregations and states that are more populous and thus more important in presidential elections. It is in this light that I reflect on the privilege I was accorded, to be given the opportunity to speak to the President of the United States on behalf of our community and the Jewish people.