“I am proud to give these businesses a platform. Proud to be Israeli. I am proud that these are Israeli businesses, patriots who contribute to Israeli society, to economy and to peace. Although we do not promote private businesses here in this house, when Israeli businesses are under the threat of boycott, we will stand with them.”

“Boycotting Israeli companies does not advance the cause of peace and does not build confidence between the sides. We call on our friends around the world to speak out against this shameful initiative which reminds of dark periods in our history.”

President Reuven (Ruvi) Rivlin today, Wednesday 12 February / 17 Shevat, opened the Keeping it in the Family conference on the Israel-Diaspora relationship held at Beit HaNasi in Jerusalem. The conference included a wide range of speakers from across the Jewish world, including author Nicole Krauss, former vice president of the Supreme Court Eliyakim Rubenstein, Olympic medalist Arik Ze’evi, actress Moran Atias, singer Ayala Indgedashet and many others and dealt with a range of areas including literature, identity, Judaism, law and culture. The event was held together with the Ruderman Family Foundation, the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and Gesher. The aim of the conference was to widen the boundaries of discourse between Israel and the global Jewish community

The president opened by saying “I would like to begin my remarks by referring to the UN’s announcement of a blacklist of Israeli companies operating in the settlements. I am proud to give these businesses a platform. Proud to be Israeli. I am proud that these are Israeli businesses, patriots who contribute to Israeli society, to economy and to peace. Although we do not promote private businesses here in this house, when Israeli businesses are under the threat of boycott, we will stand with them. Boycotting Israeli companies does not advance the cause of peace and does not build confidence between the sides. We call on our friends around the world to speak out against this shameful initiative which reminds of dark periods in our history.”

The president then welcomed the attendees to the conferences, which he described as a family gathering bringing together close relatives coming from far away, saying “In October 1958, Ben Gurion sent a letter to fifty of the leading thinkers in the field of Jewish studies in Israel and around the world, asking them to give their learned opinion on the question of ‘Who is a Jew’. Ben Gurion was of the opinion that Judaism is bigger than the Jewish people in the Land of Israel. It draws from many different sources that flourished in different cultural contexts and developed into unique Jewish civilizations, each one in its own way. I think we have to go back to something like that view.”

“For a long time, we have defined ourselves by our lowest common denominator, the outward and negative definition we inherited from our persecutors over history. The scorn-filled and hate-inspired look of the anti-Semites defined who was a Jew, the execrable and murderous words of the Nuremburg Laws defined who was a Jew. Years of persecution made us responsible for each other, whether we wanted to be or not,” added the president. “But these are different times. These are times that call out for a positive definition, a definition that builds from within us what binds us together and addresses our shared mission. It begins, of course, with an uncompromising commitment to fight antisemitism in all its forms and encompasses ensuring the existence of the State of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state. But it also entails a relationship that exists in all other fields of life: literature and philosophy, in science and research, in tikkun olam, in business and philanthropy. Judaism cannot and must not be the product only of crises, of disasters and of moments of calamity. It must celebrate the spectrum of Jewish communities in Israel and across the world and flourish through cross-pollenation.”

Shira Ruderman, Director, Ruderman Family Foundation: "After many years in which Israel's conversation with the American Jewish community took place in a small circle of professionals, without a real interest from the public, we are bringing it back to center stage. The tensions felt in recent years between the sides stem, among other reasons, from the tendency of this closed group to gravitate to issues in dispute and problems, rather than the many places in which the relationship is mutually beneficial. The 'Civil Forum' is a first step in changing the public's perception, by bringing opinion leaders from all fields of life – sport, law, economy, literature and others – into the conversation. This will diversify and widen our discourse, and make it relevant to the public."