Today’s post is a clip from the Knesset channel of a speech given last week by MK Gilad Kariv, to which we have added subtitles for our readers.
Gilad Kariv is currently a member of the Knesset for the Democrats and previously for the Labor Party, in the 25th Knesset. He gave a speech at the Knesset during Hanukkah which, I think, ought to be heard and admired by everyone who cares about Israel’s moral fiber.
Before we get to MK Kariv, though, a correction and an apology.
Last week, I shared a humorous clip about the Houthis and their missile attacks on Israel, put out by the Israeli singer Eyal Golan. I noted, though only parenthetically, that Golan had been accused of sexual relationships with underage women, but I also noted that the charges had been dropped.
Very coincidentally, perhaps because that clip brought him very much into the center of attention again, the Israeli press exploded with coverage about Golan last week, and it became clear to me that the accusations are much more serious than I had understood.
Since then, the press has been relentless in its accusations. Here, from Maariv, for example:
“Eyal Golan should be vomited out of Israel society: Back to the performance which revealed his true character.” Followed by: “A healthy society would have vomited him out of its midst. Instead, he fills stadiums, and people raise questions about the young women involved.”
The situation with him is far more serious than I’d realized, and I’m very grateful to those readers who wrote, forcefully but also respectfully, to say that it was wrong to link to anything by him. I think they were right, and we’e deleted the post from the archive.
Back to the video clip above, from the Knesset TV channel, which made its way around Israeli social media last week. It’s a portion of a speech by MK Gilad Kariv, during Hanukkah, as the Knesset deliberated the budget.
This part of the speech, though, has nothing to do with the budget, and everything to do with Judaism, morality and the Jewish state. One can agree or disagree with Kariv’s political positions on a host of issues—personally, I agree with some, disagree with others. But I don’t think that anyone can deny that the power of his moral message is precisely the kind of discourse we need to hear from the podium at the Knesset.
If there’s anything tragic about his speech, it’s that I’m hard-pressed to think of a single right-leaning MK or someone from any of the religious parties who speaks with the same passion about Judaism and morality.
Imagine an Israel in which MK’s competed to see who could most convincingly correlate their political positions to the best of Judaism’s moral tradition ….
MK Gilad Kariv was born and educated in Tel Aviv. His involvement with the Reform Movement began in high school, when he joined the Beit Daniel Synagogue in Tel Aviv, which, incidentally, is also the religious home of MK and former Prime Minister Yair Lapid.
Kariv served in the Israel Defense Forces Intelligence Corps under the Haman Talpiot program. Following five years of service, during which he completed the officers program with honors, Kariv studied at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. In 2001, he earned a bachelor's degree in law and Jewish studies. In 2001–2002 he interned in the Supreme Court of the State Attorney Office. In 2003, he received a master's degree in Jewish studies at Hebrew Union College in Jerusalem. In 2004, he was certified as a lawyer by the Israel Bar Association. In 2008, Kariv received a master's degree in constitutional law from Northwestern University in Chicago, through a combined program with Tel Aviv University.
In 2003, Kariv received rabbinic ordination at the HUC. Among his posts, Kariv served as a rabbi at Congregation Beit Daniel in Tel Aviv until 2008. Between 2003–2009, Kariv served as the director of the Israel Religious Action Center, and headed Reform movement public and legal initiatives in Israel on issues of freedom of religion, relation between religion and state, conversion, and numerous other social causes.
Share this post