18
Road Map
€ONTINUED FROM PAGE 2
likely at a later date.
But the Palestinians were wary
of Israel's decision, arguing that
inclusion of the reservations robs
the initiative of its content. The
Palestinians have accepted the road
map as is, and insist that Israel do so
as well.
Speaking after talks in Ramallah
with "the visiting French foreign
minister, Dominique de Villepin,
P. President Yasser Arafat wel-
comed the Ismeh move but said
Israel's reservations raised "ques-
tion marks."
Meanwhile, Israeli-right-
wingers assailed Sharon for
agreeing to what settler lead-
ers decried as a proposal
"worse than the Oslo
accords."
"We are not talking about ges-
nares, but rather about a policy that
Sharon will have to implement, arti-
cle by article, with the same serious-
hess that he wants us to fight ter-
ror,"one PA. Cabinet minister told
the Israeh deldy Ha ' aretz.
The road map calls on Israel to
uproot illegal settlement outposts,
withdraw' troops to the positions
they held before the Palestinian
intifada began in ptember 2000
and stop anti-terror measures that
target terrorist kingpins and harm
civilians°
Meanwhile, Israeli right-wingers
assailed Sharon for agreeing to what
settler leaders decried as a proposal
"'worse than the Oslo accords."
Settler ideologue Ely',&im Haet-
zni compared supporters of the
peace plan to Holocaust-era Jews
who "willingly boarded those
trains"to the concentration camps,
"believing everything that the Ger-
mans told them."
Responding to praise for the vote
as a historic development, Haetzni
said it was historic "in the same
sense that the destruction of the
Temple was historic?'
Settler leaders who met with leg-
islators in the Knesset said they
would launch a campaign to oppose
Israeli implementation of the
accord.
The far-fight National Union
bloc was debating whether to quit
the government. Though they were
outraged by the vote, some mem-
bers of the bloc said they could
more effectively scuttle the plan
from inside the government than
from outside.
Even Sharon's defense minister,
Shaul Mofaz, appeared to distance
himself from the decision, a day
after he voted for the proposal.
Mofaz said that the Cabinet vote
was not legally binding, but was
merely a "declaration of diplomatic
intentions."
Even Sharon, who said Israel
must be willing to pay a "painful
price"to resolve the conflict with the
Palestinians, acknowledged that the
vote was "not a happy decision."
Addressing angry members of
his Likud Party, Sharon said that
Israel's occupation of 3.5 million
Palestinians in the West Bank and
Gaza Strip would be "bad for Israel,
bad for the Palesfinians and bad for
the economy."
Israel does not want to sit indefi-
nitely in the West Bank cities of
Jenin and Nablus, Sharon said,
adding that diplomatic progress is
critical for economic improvement.
"I know that there are
doubts"Sharon continued. "Every-
one has doubts. I have doubts as
well. But I know one thing: We
must try."
Tri-faith group to meet June 8
Do religious beliefs impact your
life decision? Abraham's Children
Togettm- (ACT) a tri-faith group of
Jews, Christians, and Muslims is
hosting: "3 Faiths Approach Life's
Challenges: How Our Faith Effects
the Way We Live".
The event will take place on
Sunday, June 8, from 2 to 4 in the
Parish Hall at Blessed Sacrament
Church (located directly behind De
Paul Hospital on Newport Avenue
in Norfolk).
Speakers include Rabbi
Michael Panitz from Temple Israel,
Rev. Thomas J. Quinlan, Pastor at
Holy Family Catholic Church and
Dr. Almaed Noor, at the
Mosqtm and Islamic Center in
Hampton, who will offer perspec-
tives on how faith and experience
impact challenges and choices. A
question and answer session will
follow facilitated by Bob Glover,
Executive Director of the DSC
Community Mediation Center.
The event is free and open to the
public.
Abraham's Children Together
aspires tO promote greater under-
standing, empathy and mutual
respect and is working to create a
greater appreciation for diversity in
our society. In a world fractured by
fear and suspicion, the group
strives to stand together as a force
of goodness against the power of
evil.
For nx infomaation contact
Barbara Hughes at
Bughes456@aol.com or Bob
Glover at BobG@infionline.net.
Southeastern Virginia Jewish News
Jewish Education
June 1, 2003
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5
Chai award recipient Vivian Forman,
right, with presenter Hannah Baer.
Rabbi Michael Panitz, JEC immediate
past chairman.
Other Learning Organizations
mentioned were: Chabad LubaV"
itch, Florence Melton Adult Mini-
School, Norfolk Area Community
Kollel.
After all the schools were rec-
ognized every teacher present was
asked to come up, give Ms/her
name and the school where he/s
teaches. Then each person was pre-
sented with a copy of Rabbi Josepla
Telushkin's book on Jewish Values
as a "thank you" from the cornmU"
nity for the service they give
Jewish Educators.
Rabbi Israel Zoberman gave tlae
closing prayer as the evening
ended with a dessert reception and
an opportunity for those in attetv
dance to socialize and exchange
good wishes.
Double Chai Award recipients
Rabbi Israel Zoberman Bachman and Virginia Rosen.
Festival to present opera on era in Jewish histOrYhlc00
If your smmnerplans have you July 16 and 18 and on Sunday tumultuous oeriod in w'ot
-- d Betltv:
Nabucco takes place, an ..ol
will perform liturgical natt
selections appropriate to that oo
in Hampton Roads in mid-July,
spend some of that time in
Portsmouth for the 2nd Annual
TodiMusicFest.
The highlight of the festival will
be the first regional performance of
the grand opera Nabucco which
relates the story of the Hebrew
nation during the reign of King
Nebuchadnezzar in Babylonia,
which today is Iraq. Featuring
international caliber talent, Nabuc-
co will be performed at Willett Hall
in Portsmouth on the evenings of
afternoon, July 20.
Call 393-5182 for ticket infor-
mation.
To get ready for Nabucco,
though, come to St. John's Episco-
pal Church in Portsmouth on
Wednesday, June 18 at 7:30 p.m. as
Rabbi Michael Pamtz of Temple
Israel, a renowned Jewish histori-
an, and opera tenor and TodiMu-
sicFest director Howard Bender,
collaborate on an evening of edu-
cation and song.
Rabbi Panitz will talk about the
Jewish history.
Th, e historic and ch
John s Episcopal is located air
er of Washin on St and L°
corn gt • ,,,^oat
don Boulevard in Olde .t'"0tt
Portsmouth. For more intol," --t
on this seminar and other evl
during TodiMusicFest (JULY
27), call 397-8651.
