For those of us who have labored in the vineyard of Middle East peace for decades, this is the best of times and the worst of times. Around the world, the cause of a just peace between Israel and Palestine has enlisted many millions of followers. Here in the U.S. our movement, so marginalized for so long, has grown by leaps and bounds in the last few years, among Jews and gentiles alike.
Yet actual progress toward peace seems stalled at best. The shift to the right in Israeli politics makes the task more daunting than ever. The Obama administration’s veto of a UN resolution that declared Israeli settlements illegal — simply stating the administration’s own position — reminds us how hard it still is to pry U.S. policy away from right-wing Israeli positions.
[Rest of content follows with proper paragraph breaks and formatting…]