Orthodox

California, described by one observer in the late 19th century as “the Jews’ earthly paradise” for the economic and social promise it held, seems to have become newly hostile to Jewish people in recent years. More than any other place on Earth, Jews have shaped much of California’s progress, from Levi Strauss and the founders of the entertainment industry to numerous other leaders in culture, science, real estate and finance.

The current assault expresses itself in politics, in schools from elementaries to universities, on the streets, in literary circles and in anti-Zionist graffiti.

Erwin Chemerinsky, the dean of the UC Berkeley Law School (and my fellow contributing writer in the L.A. Times opinion section), expressed two years ago that “nothing has prepared me for the antisemitism I see on college campuses now.” The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law and Jewish Americans for Fairness have filed a lawsuit against Berkeley, alleging “longstanding, unchecked” antisemitism.

This is not just a local issue. California’s population of 1.2 million Jews is roughly three times the size of each of the three largest Jewish diaspora communities outside the U.S. — in France, England and Canada. Los Angeles itself is the world’s third-largest Jewish city. Demographer Ira Sheskin noted recently that unlike New York City, which has lost roughly half its Jewish population since 1950, California’s Jewish populace has continued to grow, albeit more slowly in recent years.

Despite their relative demographic vitality, many California Jews feel increasingly isolated. Even in Hollywood, the Writers Guild, long a bastion of fashionable progressivism, suddenly decided to be neutral rather than making a statement on the Israel-Hamas war. Some leading figures, like Maha Dakhil, co-head of motion pictures at CAA, accused Israel of “genocide,” and others now refuse to work with Israeli film companies. Two thousand actors signed a statement outlining Israel’s “war crimes” with no mention of Hamas’ atrocities.

The political fallout has been considerable, and may become more so. Most California Jews are Democrats, according to the Pat Brown Institute; 20-30% tilt to the GOP. But the anti-Israel caucus, both here and nationally, is almost entirely made up of Democratic progressives. In a show of power, these activists even succeeded in disrupting California’s 2023 state Democratic Party convention. Many are justifiably uncomfortable with the GOP, citing the influence of antisemitism from the likes of Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens, and some critics of Israel have found the Democratic Party too cozy with Jerusalem and its supporters, but generally the Republicans, including MAGA young people, are clearly more philosemitic than the Democrats.

At a local level, politics in many cities have sent a message to the Jews of California. Anti-Israel resolutions have passed in Oakland, Stanton, Burbank and Richmond, where the progressive-controlled City Council accused Israel of “ethnic cleansing” and “apartheid.” Oakland called for an immediate ceasefire without mentioning Hamas’ atrocities. Demonstrators there even suggested that Israel murdered its own people as a pretext to attack Gaza.

And California’s youth are being groomed to hate Israel with hostile curriculums, setting up a whole new generation of antisemitism in the future and in the meantime putting Jewish teachers at risk. San Francisco has experienced anti-Israel walkouts in 10 high schools, organized by an advocacy group with access to student addresses.

At the same time, the drive to “globalize the intifada” affects California’s Jewish community directly. It has forced at least one L.A. synagogue to relocate its services; others have been vandalized. The Brentwood home owned by the president of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee was attacked in 2023 with smoke bombs and red paint. More recently, two years after the bloody Hamas attack on Israel, supporters of Palestinians disrupted a commemoration at Pomona College, warning that “Zionism is a death cult that must be dealt with accordingly.”

These assaults make Jews more concerned about their safety and perhaps more likely to turn inward in their communities. Far less alluring under these circumstances is the Jewish notion of tikkun olam, or repairing the world. Although it is the driving force in many congregations, particularly Reform synagogues, in troubled times it can be eclipsed by concerns about safety.

This new environment favors the Orthodox, pioneers of a kind of “self-segregation,” notes writer Joseph Epstein in the Wall Street Journal. And because of their higher birth rates and the below-replacement birth rates among non-Orthodox American Jews, the Orthodox could triple their share of the U.S. Jewish population by 2060. This trend plays out in California’s Jewish communities such as L.A.’s Pico-Robertson — epicenter of California orthodoxy.

The resurgence of California Jewry matters more today, given that voters in the traditional center of Jewish life, New York, have been supporting a mayoral candidate who was at least at one time sympathetic to “globalizing the intifada.” Many suspect that the once well-connected Jewish community in New York will likely face indifference, if not open hostility, from City Hall if Zohran Mamdani is elected.

Fortunately, the sun has not yet set on California’s Jews. The Golden State can still remain our “paradise” — true to its past. But this will work only by learning how to protect ourselves and make the case to our gentile neighbors so that we can continue to contribute mightily to the future of our common home.

Joel Kotkin is a contributing writer to Opinion, the presidential fellow for urban futures at Chapman University and senior research fellow at the Civitas Institute at the University of Texas, Austin.

Israeli authorities froze all bank accounts of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in Jerusalem over a long-standing property tax dispute, escalating tensions with Christian institutions in the occupied city, local media said on Thursday, Anadolu reports.

A statement by Protecting Holy Land Christians, a group founded by Theophilos III, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, said the freeze has left the Patriarchate unable to pay salaries to clergy, teachers, and staff.

The Times of Israel news outlet said the freeze, enacted on Aug. 6, stems from the Jerusalem Municipality’s push to collect Arnona, a property tax, on church-owned properties used for non-religious purposes, such as guesthouses and coffee shops.

The municipality claimed that the measure followed “efforts at dialogue and engagement” that failed because the Patriarchate “ignored letters from the municipality demanding payment.”

“Administrative enforcement measures were taken against the Greek Patriarchate because it failed to settle its property tax debts for assets not used as houses of worship,” its spokesperson office said.

“This was done despite efforts at dialogue and engagement with them, and in light of their ignoring letters from the municipality demanding payment.”

A decades-long agreement had historically exempted churches from such taxes, but in 2018, the city narrowed the exemption to properties used solely for prayer, religious teaching, or related needs, seeking tens of millions of shekels in back taxes.

The dispute echoes a 2018 clash when then-mayor Nir Barkat froze church accounts, prompting a three-day closure of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in protest. The municipality relented after intervention by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Tensions have since flared periodically over specific properties and activities.

Saint Catherine’s Monastery of Sinai, perched amid the stark landscape of the Sinai Peninsula, is more than a monument of Christian antiquity. It stands today as a living testament to the enduring spiritual and diplomatic role of Greece within the Orthodox world, a quiet but formidable projection of Greek soft power that resonates across the Eastern Mediterranean and beyond.

A silent beacon of Greek diplomacy

Far removed from the centers of modern diplomacy, the monastery’s Greek-speaking monastic community and steadfast commitment to Byzantine liturgical tradition transform it into a unique spiritual and cultural outpost. It exemplifies the principle that soft power does not always emerge through overt political maneuvering but often through the quiet constancy of spiritual guardianship and cultural authenticity.

This presence enables Greece to project a moral authority and cultural leadership that transcend national boundaries. As a spiritual bridge linking the ancient Patriarchates of Alexandria, Jerusalem, and Constantinople, the monastery fosters relationships of trust and mutual respect, relationships built not on political expediency but on the bonds of faith and tradition. This role is particularly significant in an era marked by shifting alliances and the increasing entanglement of religious and geopolitical interests.

Through the Monastery, Greece affirms its position as a custodian of Orthodox heritage and as a stabilizing force in the region. Its spiritual authority and cultural resonance serve as subtle yet powerful tools of statecraft, enabling Greece to foster dialogue, unity, and a sense of continuity within the Orthodox landscape.

The challenge of the Russian Exarchate

The relevance of the monastery’s soft power role has grown even more pronounced in recent years, as new challenges emerge within the Orthodox world. Foremost among these is the creation of the Russian Patriarchal Exarchate of Africa, an assertive move by the Russian Orthodox Church to expand its jurisdiction into territories historically aligned with the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria.

Although this development does not directly involve Saint Catherine’s Monastery, it reshapes the broader Orthodox environment, highlighting the use of ecclesiastical structures as instruments of geopolitical influence. The Russian initiative underscores how religious identity and geopolitical strategy have become deeply intertwined—posing challenges for Greece as it seeks to maintain a stabilizing and mediating role within Orthodoxy.

For Greece, this underscores the urgency of preserving the monastery’s autonomy and Greek character. It is a reminder that spiritual heritage can be both a shield and a platform for diplomatic engagement. a means of counterbalancing external interventions that risk deepening divisions within Orthodoxy.

A strategic spiritual outpost for a fractured world

Saint Catherine’s Monastery thus emerges as a linchpin in Greece’s ecclesiastical diplomacy, a discreet yet resilient bastion of Hellenic presence and Orthodox unity. Its continued independence is not merely a matter of cultural preservation; it is a strategic necessity. In a region where spiritual and geopolitical rivalries increasingly overlap, the monastery’s enduring witness to faith and Greek identity becomes a vital asset for Athens.

The recent diplomatic initiatives, including the visit of Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis to Egypt, underscore this recognition. By reaffirming its commitment to the monastery’s unique status, Greece sends a broader message that it remains a quiet but influential actor, leveraging spiritual heritage to foster stability and to protect the fragile balance of the Orthodox world.

Saint Catherine’s Monastery is far more than a relic of the past. It is a living expression of Greece’s diplomatic and spiritual mission in the Orthodox East, a mission that transcends temporal concerns and speaks to the heart of Hellenic identity. Amid emerging challenges such as the Russian Exarchate and broader regional volatility, the monastery’s quiet testimony to spiritual continuity and Greek cultural presence affirms Greece’s enduring mission: to serve as a custodian of Orthodoxy and as a bridge of stability in a fractured world.

In the lexicon of modern diplomacy, Saint Catherine’s Monastery stands as both a symbol and an instrument—projecting an image of a nation that values spiritual heritage, cultural authenticity, and the deep bonds of Orthodoxy that connect peoples across borders.