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Marking two years after the horrific attack of 7 October 2023, which shook global Jewish populations more than any event since the establishment of the state of Israel.

Among Jewish people it was shocking. For the state of Israel, it was a profound disgrace. The whole Zionist endeavor was founded on the belief which held that Israel would ensure against similar tragedies repeating.

Some form of retaliation was inevitable. Yet the chosen course that Israel implemented – the comprehensive devastation of the Gaza Strip, the killing and maiming of many thousands ordinary people – was a choice. This particular approach made more difficult the way numerous Jewish Americans grappled with the attack that precipitated the response, and currently challenges the community's remembrance of the day. How does one grieve and remember a tragedy targeting their community during a catastrophe experienced by a different population in your name?

The Challenge of Mourning

The complexity in grieving exists because of the reality that little unity prevails about what any of this means. Actually, among Jewish Americans, the last two years have seen the collapse of a half-century-old unity regarding Zionism.

The early development of a Zionist consensus within US Jewish communities extends as far back as writings from 1915 written by a legal scholar who would later become supreme court justice Louis D. Brandeis called “The Jewish Problem; How to Solve it”. Yet the unity became firmly established after the 1967 conflict during 1967. Previously, US Jewish communities contained a fragile but stable parallel existence between groups which maintained a range of views regarding the requirement for Israel – pro-Israel advocates, non-Zionists and anti-Zionists.

Previous Developments

That coexistence continued through the post-war decades, through surviving aspects of leftist Jewish organizations, in the non-Zionist Jewish communal organization, in the anti-Zionist American Council for Judaism and similar institutions. In the view of Louis Finkelstein, the head of the theological institution, the Zionist movement was more spiritual rather than political, and he prohibited singing the Israeli national anthem, the national song, at JTS ordinations during that period. Additionally, Zionist ideology the centerpiece for contemporary Orthodox communities prior to the 1967 conflict. Jewish identitarian alternatives existed alongside.

However following Israel defeated its neighbors during the 1967 conflict that year, seizing land such as the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Golan Heights and Jerusalem's eastern sector, US Jewish relationship to the nation evolved considerably. The military success, combined with enduring anxieties regarding repeated persecution, led to a growing belief in the country’s vital role within Jewish identity, and generated admiration regarding its endurance. Language about the extraordinary aspect of the victory and the reclaiming of territory provided the Zionist project a spiritual, potentially salvific, significance. In those heady years, a significant portion of the remaining ambivalence toward Israel vanished. In the early 1970s, Writer the commentator famously proclaimed: “Everyone supports Zionism today.”

The Unity and Restrictions

The unified position did not include Haredi Jews – who largely believed Israel should only be established via conventional understanding of the messiah – however joined Reform, Conservative, contemporary Orthodox and most non-affiliated Jews. The predominant version of the unified position, what became known as left-leaning Zionism, was founded on the idea in Israel as a democratic and liberal – while majority-Jewish – nation. Numerous US Jews considered the occupation of Arab, Syria's and Egyptian lands after 1967 as not permanent, thinking that a solution was forthcoming that would guarantee Jewish demographic dominance in pre-1967 Israel and Middle Eastern approval of the nation.

Several cohorts of American Jews grew up with pro-Israel ideology a fundamental aspect of their Jewish identity. Israel became a key component in Jewish learning. Yom Ha'atzmaut turned into a celebration. National symbols decorated many temples. Seasonal activities were permeated with national melodies and learning of contemporary Hebrew, with Israeli guests and teaching American youth Israeli culture. Travel to Israel increased and achieved record numbers through Birthright programs during that year, offering complimentary travel to the nation became available to Jewish young adults. The state affected almost the entirety of US Jewish life.

Evolving Situation

Ironically, throughout these years following the war, Jewish Americans developed expertise in religious diversity. Acceptance and communication among different Jewish movements increased.

Yet concerning support for Israel – that represented tolerance reached its limit. One could identify as a conservative supporter or a progressive supporter, but support for Israel as a Jewish state was a given, and challenging that narrative positioned you beyond accepted boundaries – outside the community, as a Jewish periodical termed it in an essay that year.

Yet presently, amid of the ruin of Gaza, starvation, child casualties and outrage about the rejection of many fellow Jews who decline to acknowledge their responsibility, that unity has broken down. The liberal Zionist “center” {has lost|no longer