Who is the best spy of all time?

Take a minute. Think through the list. Maybe it is Eli Cohen, the mastermind who became the Chief Adviser to Syria’s Minister of Defense all while working for Israel. Perhaps it is Mata Hari, the German spy who posed as a prostitute in France and is the reason for the term “sleeping with the enemy”. But, the truthful answer is that the world’s greatest spy is unknown to us. Because, to be truly successful in such a position, you must not be discovered.

Now, consider this: who is the world’s greatest advocate? Surely, the same people who wanted to answer Eli Cohen before will have a list of names. Great Jewish and non-Jewish pro-Israeli speakers and leaders will spill forth from their mouths. They will be called heroes and lauded for their effectiveness and power.

And, surely, many of them will be worthy of high praise and commendation. But, are they truly the greatest? Are they even great? Like a spy, a truly superlative advocate should move in silence, their actions unknown, secretly and powerfully influencing people, ideas and cultures without their work being disregarded or delegitimized for being exactly what it actually is - advocacy. 

We live in a day and age so acutely aware of branding and messaging that nothing escapes our notice. We honor authenticity and promote honesty. Advocacy is anathema to this awareness. It is the opposite of what influences people and, as such, can often have a debilitous effect on those we most seek to influence. 

However, this great failing of current advocacy is that we also live in a hyper-self-selected-self-curated-tell-me-what-I-want-to-hear-virtual-reality-echo-chamber of belief. Within our communities, we confuse agreement for achievement and seek applause over ability.

Our great defect is to confuse rhetoric with effect, appreciating the speaker over the doer. Such cheerleading comes with great rewards - ego boosting, fund raising and popularity inducing rewards which stymie actual progression.

In the choice between doing effective advocacy work behind the scenes on a lonely island removed from positive reinforcement vs rah-rahs and rapidly tallying Facebook emoji smiling faces and hearts, the choice is easy. If you run a non-profit organization reliant upon giving it is impossible not to toot your own horn if you want a horn to toot at all. Even so, why toil in anonymity when praise is there to be taken. Listen to that praise long enough and it almost becomes fact.

Until you realize that the greatest advocate will never be known nor saluted.

S/he will influence from within, lead from behind and affect the top from the bottom. They will be one and indistinguishable from the people they seek to sway - part of the community and not an outsider demanding appreciation.

I implore all the future leaders of the Jewish and Israel advocacy communities to think of themselves as the unknown soldier buried in our nation’s capital and not the hero laid to rest with great fanfare. Your names may never be known but you will be honored with constant vigilance.

And, as a community, I ask us to consider our praise and be wary of our heroes. If we know them, they may not be what we think them to be. 

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