With permission from Mary, we’re posting below a note we received in response to Daniel’s email update regarding the anti-democratic legislation currently under debate in Israel.

Dear Daniel:
 
I wish every Israeli and every American would read your stirring remarks. I am always moved. When visitors pick up some books from my coffee table, they are often puzzled by my having books on Israel and its people. I am delighted by such queries. it gives me the opportunity to talk about the struggle of Progressives and the difficulties they face daily. Because of your articulate, persuasive arguments, many find the courage to continue to speak out, and work for the solid democratic aims that will gain the freedoms that will benefit all Israelis. Further, their struggles will bring about greater awareness in the U.S. of the importance of a secure, strong Israel.
 
I wish that I could donate more; I ache to jump in and say, “How can I help?” It is seldom that I wish I were young, instead of 82 and ailing, but while I’m here, I will always tell people that freedom in the U.S. and other democratic countries is dependent, in part, upon the success of the Israeli Progressive movement. Certainly, the future of the Middle Eastern countries–perhaps all of Asia, may hinge on the valiant, determined people inside and outside Israel, Jewish or not. I am Christian, and to be Christian means, to me, an appreciation of the Hebrew tradition, spiritual, historical, and political.
 
Daniel, KEEP TALKING!!
 
Shalom.
Mary Etta Kiefer