'We are one,' Israeli president tells Conservative movement

Israeli President Isaac Herzog was awarded an honorary degree by the Jewish Theological Seminary on Wednesday in Jerusalem, telling the flagship New York-based academic center for Conservative Judaism, “We are one.”

“The State of Israel and Diaspora Jewry are both facing their own challenges, but the Jewish people have a shared destiny and a shared responsibility,” Herzog said in an address at the President’s Residence, where he was presented with the honorary degree. “This is one of the cornerstones I set for myself in my tenure as president of the State of Israel, and I reaffirm that I am doing everything so that we stand together in the face of these challenges.”

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The remarks by the president, who holds a largely ceremonial role in Israel, come at a time of greater unity in the Jewish world in the wake of the global surge in antisemitism that followed the Hamas massacre of Oct. 7, 2023, even as theological differences remain between Israel’s Orthodox establishment and the more liberal streams of Judaism, including the Conservative movement, which have a significant presence in the United States.

Herzog said the award served as a bridge between two parallel and complementary worlds.

“It sends a message from Jerusalem that we—on both sides of the ocean—are inseparable. We are one.”

Shuly Rubin Schwartz, chancellor of the Jewish Theological Seminary, called Herzog “a sterling exemplar of love for and service to the entire Jewish people,” who served as “the embodiment of true leadership.”

“Many give lip service to the goal of creating greater understanding and respect among groups that have been at odds with one another; you have taken it on as a mission,” Schwartz said.

The first woman to lead the historic Conservative institution in its 140-year history cited Herzog’s long record of public service, which culminated in his election to a seven-year term as president in 2021, a period that has included the Oct. 7 attacks and the wars that followed.

“In the most trying of times, you offered a soothing and healing voice that emphasized unity and courage,” Schwartz said.

Herzog spent time at Camp Ramah, the camping network affiliated with the Jewish Theological Seminary, in the 1970s while living in New York, when his father served as Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations. He also attended the Modern Orthodox Ramaz School in Manhattan.

The Israeli president had canceled his attendance at the Jewish Theological Seminary commencement in May and delivered a virtual address instead. At the time, a small group of students had opposed the invitation due to the war in Gaza, while others supported the move.

For many in the audience in Jerusalem, the worldwide wave of antisemitism was front and center.

“After two years when there was a serious increase in antisemitism in New York and the rest of the Diaspora, coming back to Israel was like a breath of fresh air,” said Christopher Penello, 29, of New York, a JTS rabbinical student who spent the last year in Jerusalem. “Being in Israel was for me to feel belonging, and my place, and to experience spirituality.”

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