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It has been that deadly assault of the events of October 7th, which shook global Jewish populations more than any event since the establishment of the Jewish state.

For Jews the event proved shocking. For the Israeli government, it was a profound disgrace. The whole Zionist movement rested on the assumption which held that the nation could stop similar tragedies repeating.

Military action appeared unavoidable. But the response that Israel implemented – the widespread destruction of Gaza, the casualties of numerous non-combatants – represented a decision. This selected path created complexity in the perspective of many American Jews processed the October 7th events that set it in motion, and presently makes difficult the community's remembrance of that date. In what way can people grieve and remember a tragedy affecting their nation in the midst of an atrocity being inflicted upon other individuals connected to their community?

The Difficulty of Remembrance

The challenge of mourning lies in the fact that little unity prevails regarding the significance of these events. Indeed, within US Jewish circles, the recent twenty-four months have seen the breakdown of a decades-long consensus regarding Zionism.

The early development of pro-Israel unity within US Jewish communities dates back to an early twentieth-century publication by the lawyer subsequently appointed high court jurist Justice Brandeis named “Jewish Issues; Finding Solutions”. Yet the unity truly solidified subsequent to the six-day war in 1967. Earlier, American Jewry maintained a fragile but stable cohabitation across various segments that had a range of views about the need for Israel – Zionists, non-Zionists and opponents.

Background Information

This parallel existence endured throughout the 1950s and 60s, through surviving aspects of Jewish socialism, through the non-aligned US Jewish group, in the anti-Zionist Jewish organization and comparable entities. For Louis Finkelstein, the chancellor of the theological institution, the Zionist movement was primarily theological instead of governmental, and he prohibited performance of Hatikvah, the Israeli national anthem, at JTS ordinations during that period. Furthermore, Zionist ideology the main element for contemporary Orthodox communities until after that war. Alternative Jewish perspectives remained present.

Yet after Israel defeated adjacent nations in that war during that period, taking control of areas comprising Palestinian territories, Gaza Strip, the Golan and Jerusalem's eastern sector, the American Jewish connection with Israel underwent significant transformation. The triumphant outcome, coupled with persistent concerns regarding repeated persecution, resulted in a developing perspective in the country’s critical importance to the Jewish people, and a source of pride for its strength. Language regarding the extraordinary aspect of the victory and the freeing of areas gave the movement a spiritual, even messianic, meaning. In those heady years, much of the remaining ambivalence toward Israel vanished. In that decade, Commentary magazine editor Podhoretz famously proclaimed: “Everyone supports Zionism today.”

The Unity and Restrictions

The Zionist consensus excluded strictly Orthodox communities – who generally maintained a Jewish state should only emerge via conventional understanding of the Messiah – however joined Reform, Conservative, contemporary Orthodox and the majority of non-affiliated Jews. The predominant version of this agreement, identified as left-leaning Zionism, was based on the idea in Israel as a liberal and liberal – while majority-Jewish – nation. Numerous US Jews viewed the control of local, Syrian and Egyptian lands post-1967 as not permanent, assuming that a solution would soon emerge that would maintain Jewish population majority in Israel proper and regional acceptance of the state.

Multiple generations of US Jews were thus brought up with Zionism a fundamental aspect of their religious identity. The nation became a central part within religious instruction. Yom Ha'atzmaut became a Jewish holiday. National symbols decorated many temples. Youth programs integrated with Israeli songs and learning of contemporary Hebrew, with Israeli guests and teaching US young people Israeli customs. Visits to Israel expanded and achieved record numbers via educational trips during that year, providing no-cost visits to the nation became available to US Jewish youth. The state affected virtually all areas of Jewish American identity.

Shifting Landscape

Interestingly, during this period post-1967, Jewish Americans became adept regarding denominational coexistence. Open-mindedness and dialogue among different Jewish movements increased.

Except when it came to support for Israel – there existed pluralism found its boundary. Individuals might align with a conservative supporter or a progressive supporter, however endorsement of the nation as a Jewish state was a given, and challenging that position positioned you outside the consensus – an “Un-Jew”, as a Jewish periodical labeled it in an essay that year.

But now, amid of the ruin in Gaza, famine, dead and orphaned children and frustration about the rejection by numerous Jewish individuals who refuse to recognize their responsibility, that unity has disintegrated. The moderate Zionist position {has lost|no longer