Diaspora min. bashes radio host for attacking Conservative, Reform Jews

Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli bashed a haredi (ultra-Orthodox) radio host last week for asking him whether he sees Reform and Conservative Jews in the Diaspora as Jews. "I'm not willing to write off three million Jews because they don't think the way I do," he said.

“There are consequences [to the amendment] of the Law of Return. This is a sensitive topic for Diaspora Jews,” Chikli said in an interview with Kol Chai radio host Bezalel Kahn. “We need to be sensitive to them,” Chikli stated.

Chikli said as he mentioned in the past few weeks, that he recommends the establishment of “a committee that will look into the issues,” that the amendment of the law may cause “at President Isaac Herzog’s residence.”

Chikli: Amendments to Law of Return would have "dramatic influence"

Chikli argued that any amendments to the Law of Return have a "dramatic influence" on Diaspora Jews. "A thorough discussion is needed before making any type of decision."

When asked by Kahn, if he sees Reform and Conservative Jews are part of what he considered Diaspora Jewry, Chikli seemed as if he took offense. "Whoever leads such an attitude hurts the feelings of millions of Jews around the world who are part of the Jewish people, just like us," Chikli said in what became a heated interview.

Asked again if he includes Reform and Conservative Jews "who do not immigrate to Israel," according to the haredi journalist, Chikli lost his temper. 

"You have a blind spot about the current state [of Jewish life] in the US," he stated. "They are three million," he said of Reform and Conservative Jews in the US. "Here in Israel they are just a few thousands," he said of the non-Orthodox movements. He then asked: "Are you willing to give up on a few million Jews because they're not like you?"

He continued by asking "do we have the luxury of losing three million Jews because they don't necessarily follow the Halacha?"

Israeli radio host: Reform, Conservative Jews not interested in aliyah 

Kahn said that "Reform and Conservative Jews are not really interested in Israel or immigrating to Israel."

Chikli, again, was not pleased with the question. "You are wrong and discrediting," he stressed. "You have no idea what you are talking about. The people from the Detroit or New York Jewish Federations invest tens of millions of shekels in Zionistic and educational projects here in Israel. How can you say they don't care about Israel? This is a very serious slander," the Minister answered.

Chikli was asked about the non-Jewish grandchildren of liberal Jews, who aren't Jewish according to the Halacha because of intermarriage.

"There is pure hatred in your words. [Are you willing to write off] three million Jews because they are not like you?"

"Many non-Orthodox Jews donate their money towards Zionist projects of the State of Israel. It's worth getting to know before being slandered in such a severe way. We are paying a price for not learning and not knowing the facts. Even the most liberal Jewish Federation invests in the State of Israel, and many of these Jews aren't Orthodox," the minister concluded.

Chikli, a member of the Likud Party, is the son of a former Conservative rabbi, Eitan Chikli. He doesn't affiliate with the Conservative movement, nor does his father, but he grew up with an understanding of liberal movements.