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It has been the deadly assault of 7 October 2023, an event that profoundly impacted Jewish communities worldwide more than any event since the establishment of Israel as a nation.

Within Jewish communities the event proved shocking. For the state of Israel, the situation represented a significant embarrassment. The entire Zionist endeavor was founded on the belief which held that the nation would ensure against such atrocities occurring in the future.

Military action appeared unavoidable. But the response that Israel implemented – the comprehensive devastation of the Gaza Strip, the casualties of numerous of civilians – constituted a specific policy. And this choice made more difficult the perspective of many US Jewish community members processed the October 7th events that triggered it, and it now complicates their commemoration of the anniversary. How can someone honor and reflect on a horrific event against your people while simultaneously devastation done to a different population in your name?

The Difficulty of Remembrance

The difficulty in grieving lies in the circumstance where there is no consensus as to what any of this means. In fact, for the American Jewish community, this two-year period have experienced the breakdown of a half-century-old unity on Zionism itself.

The beginnings of Zionist agreement across American Jewish populations can be traced to writings from 1915 written by a legal scholar and then future Supreme Court judge Louis Brandeis called “The Jewish Problem; Finding Solutions”. However, the agreement became firmly established after the Six-Day War during 1967. Earlier, Jewish Americans contained a vulnerable but enduring cohabitation across various segments that had different opinions regarding the need for a Jewish nation – pro-Israel advocates, non-Zionists and anti-Zionists.

Historical Context

Such cohabitation persisted through the 1950s and 60s, through surviving aspects of Jewish socialism, through the non-aligned Jewish communal organization, within the critical religious group and other organizations. For Louis Finkelstein, the leader at JTS, the Zionist movement was primarily theological than political, and he forbade the singing of Israel's anthem, Hatikvah, during seminary ceremonies in the early 1960s. Additionally, Zionist ideology the central focus of Modern Orthodoxy before the 1967 conflict. Different Jewish identity models coexisted.

Yet after Israel overcame neighboring countries in the six-day war in 1967, taking control of areas including Palestinian territories, Gaza Strip, the Golan and East Jerusalem, the American Jewish perspective on the country evolved considerably. The military success, coupled with persistent concerns regarding repeated persecution, led to a developing perspective regarding Israel's essential significance to the Jewish people, and created pride regarding its endurance. Language about the “miraculous” nature of the success and the reclaiming of territory gave Zionism a religious, even messianic, significance. In that triumphant era, much of the remaining ambivalence toward Israel disappeared. In the early 1970s, Writer Norman Podhoretz famously proclaimed: “We are all Zionists now.”

The Unity and Its Boundaries

The pro-Israel agreement did not include the ultra-Orthodox – who largely believed Israel should only be established through traditional interpretation of redemption – yet included Reform Judaism, Conservative, Modern Orthodox and most non-affiliated Jews. The common interpretation of the consensus, later termed left-leaning Zionism, was based on a belief in Israel as a liberal and free – albeit ethnocentric – nation. Countless Jewish Americans considered the control of Arab, Syrian and Egyptian lands after 1967 as temporary, thinking that a resolution would soon emerge that would maintain a Jewish majority within Israel's original borders and Middle Eastern approval of Israel.

Multiple generations of Jewish Americans were raised with support for Israel an essential component of their identity as Jews. Israel became a key component within religious instruction. Yom Ha'atzmaut turned into a celebration. Israeli flags decorated most synagogues. Youth programs became infused with Israeli songs and the study of contemporary Hebrew, with visitors from Israel instructing American teenagers Israeli culture. Visits to Israel increased and reached new heights through Birthright programs by 1999, when a free trip to the nation was provided to young American Jews. Israel permeated nearly every aspect of US Jewish life.

Evolving Situation

Ironically, in these decades after 1967, US Jewish communities grew skilled at religious pluralism. Tolerance and communication across various Jewish groups grew.

However regarding the Israeli situation – that’s where pluralism ended. You could be a rightwing Zionist or a progressive supporter, yet backing Israel as a majority-Jewish country was a given, and questioning that narrative categorized you beyond accepted boundaries – outside the community, as a Jewish periodical described it in an essay recently.

Yet presently, amid of the devastation of Gaza, famine, dead and orphaned children and frustration regarding the refusal within Jewish communities who avoid admitting their complicity, that consensus has broken down. The liberal Zionist “center” {has lost|no longer