Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie

As offensive as the attacks by ultra-Orthodox men on Women of the Wall are, there are multiple reasons to expect that good might emerge from the nastiness.

The Yesh Atid chairman told the arrogant, coercive Haredi Knesset leaders to stop their bullying. If he makes good on his commitment to Israel’s religious freedom, then Diaspora Jews will join the many Israelis who have already applauded his actions.

Friendly is good, a little glitz is fine, and being non-judgmental has its virtues; but who wants to be part of a Jewish tradition that doesn't ask anything of you?

My daughter chose a challenging way to push back against an American Jewish culture based only on translation from Hebrew sources: To speak to her son only in Hebrew.

Both Barack Obama and Ehud Barak share the commitment to a peace built on two states and to a robust, militarily secured Israel. Now that Ehud Barak has retired, who in Israel's cabinet will voice this position with sufficient force and influence?

Acquiring power to responsibly influence issues of Jewish concern – as showcased by the AIPAC conference - should be a source of pride for U.S. Jews, without any need for apologetics or overstated fears about an anti-Semitic backlash.

Torah study should be recognized as the foundation of Israel’s existence - but not according to its current Haredi definition.

The Israel advocacy 'David Project's' primer on Israeli settlements, aimed at campus activists, avoids inflammatory language, but it cannot escape the glaring conclusion: Settlement policy is Israel’s Achilles heel, and no amount of discussion and review will make it more convincing, either on campus or outside.

A reduced American role in the world will impact Israel and everyone else, and probably not for the better. But President Obama has rightly sought a realist secretary of defense for a time of economic distress - and Chuck Hagel is a good man for that job.

In your post-election Knesset speech, address directly the Reform and Conservative majority of American Jews - the heart of our Jewish family and the core of Jewish support for Israel – and who are finished being understanding and patient while Israel’s official representatives offend them and denigrate their religious practices.

If Israel fails to decide about the big issues during this election period, issues that Ariel Sharon had the courage to face, then this small and vulnerable country, caught in the crossfire of history, will be overwhelmed by historical processes that will not wait.

Far from being wild-eyed liberals, most American Jews have sensible, pragmatic views on Israel and the likelihood of peace, but they are confused and incredulous at the myopia of Israel's political leaders – a dismay that far eclipses the 'faults' of U.S. Jewish leaders as identified by Daniel Gordis.

The PA’s UN victory is a small one, but if nothing is done, it will lead to others. And with Israel’s international position deteriorating and time running out, American Jews understand that Netanyahu must show greater courage in standing up for the two-state solution.

My answer to progressive American Jews who ask me why Israel can’t just muddle through rocket attacks from Gaza: Israel came into being so that Jewish children would never again have to huddle together in fear, terrorized by enemies of the Jewish people, while their parents stood by helplessly.

Women at the Wall call attention to legitimate concerns about the status of women in Israeli society, and for that they deserve our thanks.

Relations between Jews and mainline Protestants in the U.S. hit a 45-year low after 15 Protestant leaders sent a letter to Congress urging that aid to Israel be reconsidered.

'One-issue voter' proposals do more harm than good, failing to reflect how Jewish voters see ourselves and how we function as Jews in America's democracy.

Many Americans think that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has chosen sides in the U.S. presidential elections. His interference and squandering of good will toward Israel on both sides of the U.S. political spectrum will mean that the day after the election, regardless of who wins, Israel’s influence will diminish, at the cost of its security.

The conventions showed that differences between Democratic and Republican policies on Israel are a matter far more of style than substance and are unlikely to be a swing issue for U.S. Jewish voters.

U.S. commentators are talking more loudly in the media about Israel's failure to engage with a two-state peace process – which could leave Israel out in the cold when it comes to fateful decisions on Iran as well as disconnecting Israel itself from a democratic future.

Let’s be thankful that it came out when it did and not before, and let’s hope that the prime minister now files it away—and forgets it.

Too many American Jewish groups have their heads in the sand when it comes to the damage the settlement project has done to Israel.