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Marking two years after that mass murder of October 7, 2023, an event that shook Jewish communities worldwide like no other occurrence following the creation of the Jewish state.

Among Jewish people it was profoundly disturbing. For the Israeli government, it was deeply humiliating. The entire Zionist movement was founded on the assumption which held that the Jewish state could stop such atrocities from ever happening again.

Some form of retaliation seemed necessary. However, the particular response that Israel implemented – the obliteration of Gaza, the casualties of many thousands non-combatants – was a choice. And this choice created complexity in the perspective of many Jewish Americans grappled with the October 7th events that precipitated the response, and presently makes difficult the community's observance of that date. How does one grieve and remember a tragedy targeting their community while simultaneously a catastrophe being inflicted upon other individuals connected to their community?

The Difficulty of Grieving

The difficulty surrounding remembrance lies in the fact that no agreement exists about the significance of these events. Indeed, for the American Jewish community, the recent twenty-four months have witnessed the collapse of a decades-long unity about the Zionist movement.

The beginnings of pro-Israel unity within US Jewish communities dates back to a 1915 essay written by a legal scholar who would later become high court jurist Louis Brandeis titled “The Jewish Problem; Finding Solutions”. However, the agreement truly solidified subsequent to the Six-Day War during 1967. Previously, Jewish Americans maintained a fragile but stable parallel existence among different factions holding different opinions concerning the need for a Jewish nation – Zionists, non-Zionists and opponents.

Historical Context

That coexistence endured throughout the mid-twentieth century, within remaining elements of leftist Jewish organizations, in the non-Zionist American Jewish Committee, among the opposing religious group and similar institutions. In the view of Louis Finkelstein, the head of the Jewish Theological Seminary, pro-Israel ideology had greater religious significance rather than political, and he did not permit the singing of Israel's anthem, Hatikvah, at religious school events in those years. Furthermore, support for Israel the centerpiece of Modern Orthodoxy until after the six-day war. Alternative Jewish perspectives remained present.

But after Israel routed neighboring countries in that war during that period, occupying territories comprising the West Bank, Gaza, Golan Heights and Jerusalem's eastern sector, US Jewish perspective on the country evolved considerably. The triumphant outcome, along with longstanding fears regarding repeated persecution, produced a growing belief regarding Israel's critical importance to the Jewish people, and generated admiration in its resilience. Language regarding the remarkable nature of the victory and the “liberation” of land provided Zionism a religious, even messianic, meaning. During that enthusiastic period, considerable existing hesitation regarding Zionism dissipated. In that decade, Publication editor Podhoretz stated: “Zionism unites us all.”

The Agreement and Its Boundaries

The unified position excluded the ultra-Orthodox – who typically thought Israel should only be ushered in by a traditional rendering of the Messiah – however joined Reform, Conservative, Modern Orthodox and nearly all secular Jews. The predominant version of the unified position, identified as progressive Zionism, was established on the conviction about the nation as a liberal and democratic – while majority-Jewish – state. Many American Jews saw the control of Palestinian, Syria's and Egyptian lands post-1967 as not permanent, believing that an agreement was forthcoming that would guarantee Jewish demographic dominance within Israel's original borders and regional acceptance of the nation.

Several cohorts of American Jews were raised with support for Israel a fundamental aspect of their religious identity. The state transformed into a central part within religious instruction. Yom Ha'atzmaut turned into a celebration. Blue and white banners decorated many temples. Summer camps integrated with national melodies and learning of the language, with Israeli guests and teaching US young people Israeli culture. Visits to Israel expanded and achieved record numbers through Birthright programs during that year, when a free trip to Israel was offered to Jewish young adults. Israel permeated nearly every aspect of the American Jewish experience.

Shifting Landscape

Ironically, throughout these years post-1967, Jewish Americans developed expertise at religious pluralism. Tolerance and communication among different Jewish movements increased.

Yet concerning support for Israel – there existed pluralism ended. Individuals might align with a right-leaning advocate or a progressive supporter, but support for Israel as a Jewish homeland remained unquestioned, and challenging that narrative placed you outside mainstream views – an “Un-Jew”, as one publication described it in an essay in 2021.

However currently, during of the devastation of Gaza, famine, dead and orphaned children and anger over the denial by numerous Jewish individuals who refuse to recognize their responsibility, that unity has collapsed. The liberal Zionist “center” {has lost|no longer