As I attended Yom Kippur services this past Friday night and Saturday morning, I was reflecting on my Jewish faith and my view of Isreal, especially since we it is the first anniversary of the October 7^th Hamas attack on Isreal.

Most of the attention around Israel today focuses on the war between Hamas and Israel, plus the incursion by Israel into Lebanon, and the reactions to the fighting by Pro-Palestinian protesters, other nations, and defenders of Israel.  It is almost inevitable that the focus would be on the Israel controversy’s today, with scant attention paid to why the modern State of Israel exists in the first place.

The late John Lewis once called the Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act and the election of Barack Obama as “Down Payments on the Dream“, making progress in rectifying the previous 300 plus years of African American oppression.  I would view the modern State of Israel in the same manner.  It was a down payment by the world to start to rectify the centuries, millennium even of oppression that Jews have faced throughout history.  Unfortunately, the area did not sit vacant for the 2000 plus years since the previous Kingdom of Israel existed, like an overgrown property waiting for its owners to return and clean it up.  Other people established a presence there, their lives and land disrupted by the creation present day Israel.  The struggle over how the Israelis and Palestinians who lived there before can coexist is a problem that has bedeviled the area to this day.

So what is my relationship with Israel?  I have a deep appreciation for Israel, because of my Jewish faith and having visited the country in College with the Birthright program.  It is because of that love that I have had the Israeli flag on my Facebook profile page since the October 7^th attacks last year.  But I do not love Israel blindly.  First off, I believe that the Israeli government has not made enough of an effort to reach a deal to bring the remaining hostage’s home, seemingly moving the goalposts during negotiations.  This is something that not just Americans, but Israeli’s have been prioritizing.  While I understand that Hamas embeds itself within civilian populations in Gaza, which increases the risk of civilian casualties whenever Israel attacks Hamas, there have been many instances where aid workers have been killed, even when they notify and identify themselves clearly as aid workers.  That is a carelessness on Israel’s part.

I also have a deep criticism of how Israel treats its citizens.  Many reflexively point out that Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East, and that unlike its neighboring countries, Arab citizens can vote in free and fair elections.  While there is no arguing that point, it should be reminded that before October 7th, the big conflict within Israel was over the governments proposed judicial reforms.  There were massive protests objecting to the effort to undermine the power and independence of the Israeli Supreme Court which was the centerpiece of the reforms.  Such an effort, if successful, by one branch of government to undermine the power of a separate branch of government certainly taints the description of Israel as a liberal democracy.  Also, even though Arabs can vote in free and fair elections, it was not until 2021 that an Arab political party was invited to join a government coalition.  That is a denial of representation for Arabs by not being able influence a ruling government’s policies.  Also, Arab citizens experience a great deal of race-baiting by Jewish politicians and many attempts to get their parties candidates thrown off the ballot.

Another thing that I criticize about Israel is the settler movement.  Israeli’s have been building settlements in the West Bank for decades, eating away at a potential Palestinian state.  This went on even during the time that Yitzhak Rabin was Prime Minister in the mid 1990’s trying to make big progress in a Two-State solution.  The settlers do not have any problems displacing Palestinians from their farms in the West Bank.  Many Israelis don’t care about Palestinians at all, with many preferring that they be driven out of Gaza and the West Bank. It unfortunately far more likely that Israel will annex the West Bank and make the Palestinians second class Israeli’s than there is to be a independent Palestinian State, or even equal rights to Israelis in a single state full dignity for them.

While I have listed my issues with Israel’s past and current policies, I mentioned about that I love Israel.  Throughout my life reading history and during Hebrew school, I learned about presence of Jews living in the area and establishing a Kingdom there, which existed even during the Roman Empire. The existence of Jews living and flourishing there again despite the controversies wrought by Isreal and its enemies brings joy to my heart.  It fills me with pride that this country, Isreal, is majority Jewish, something that cannot be said anywhere else in the world. 

When I was on my Birthright trip, I was struck by the scene at a grocery store on a Friday afternoon.  It was packed with people scrambling to buy food for the Jewish Sabbath (Shabbat) that goes from Friday night to Saturday night.  The concept of most people in Isreal observing Shabbat all at once is something that I think is incredible.  During International Holocaust Day, everyone pulls off to the side of the road and stops in silence to remember the Holocaust.  That is mesmerizing to me.  I like that most Israelis are required to do some military service in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF).  Because almost everyone does it, it is considered a rite of passage for Israelis, and it is something that binds everyone together. 

October 7^th was considered the worst attack on Jews since the Holocaust, but unlike the Holocaust, the IDF came and pushed back the Hamas terrorist into Gaza within hours.  I know that there was legitimate criticism that it took the IDF too long to respond to the attacks in southern Isreal, and that there was carnage and hostages that are still being held captive.  But the fact that there was an army that responded to the attacks is because there is a State of Isreal.  During my Birthright trip, I saw a modern wealthy country that endures and thrives, which despite all its flaws, is a wonderful thing in an area where most of Israel’s neighbors are hostile to them.  It is because of this love of Isreal that I have concerns with some in the Pro-Palestinian movement.  When I read about not just arms embargos, but efforts to boycott educational institutions Israel, or boycotts of the country in general, it makes me wonder if the goal is not just to advance the rights of Palestinians, but also reduce the rights of Israelis.  I wonder and worry if the end game is to kick Israeli’s out their country.  What was striking to me after October 7^th, was not just the brutality of the attacks, but the statements by many Palestinian organizations in America to justify it.

Now, what is my relationship with my Jewish faith?  I am proud to be Jewish.  While I am not very religious, I observe the major holidays of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Hannukah, and Passover, and I refrain from eating pork, as is Jewish custom.  I consider it an obligation to go to attend Synagogue during the High Holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, even if it’s something I don’t always want to do.  Perhaps my relationship with my faith can be summed up in whether I believe in God.  The honest answer is I don’t know.  If I were to interpret the words of the Torah literally used that as the basis to analyze whether God existed, I would say that there is no such thing as God.  The God as described in the Torah is caring and protects people, so just on the basis of last October 7^th  alone, one could conclude that such a God is just a character in a story because many innocent people were not protected from Hamas that day.  But the Torah, just like the Bible is not taken literally by anyone.  So because of that and due to my general discomfort with describing myself as an atheist, I cannot state that I don’t believe in God.

At the same time, I cannot think for 5 or ten minutes, list several descriptions or events on Earth and say with certainty that those are proof that God exists!”  I don’t believe it is that simple for most people.  If I were required to give a yes or no answer to the question, I would say that I believe that God exists but is in a form that is beyond our human comprehension.  As such we can only hope that this Being cares enough about us humans to give us some guidance.  While that is the answer I feel most describes me, it just seems too simplistic and almost seems like a lazy excuse to state my belief in God without really contemplating whether such a Being exists.  Perhaps, it is just like what my Rabbi said in his sermon for Friday’s night’s Yom Kippur Service.  That the Torah gives a good start to a story, but has no definitive conclusion, and the question of God’s existence can only be discussed on a deep level with no conclusive answer.

I don’t believe my views of God matter that much with regards to my Jewish identity.  I don’t observe my religion because of my devotion to God.  I practice my faith because the Jewish community is a community that I enjoy being a part of.  I like the teachings of the Jewish faith, particularly it’s strain of Social Justice woven throughout.  I believe the true beauty of Judaism or of any religion is not the actions of God, but the actions of people.  So that is why even when if I don’t want to dress up in a suit and tie and attend my Synagogue for 2 and a half hours during the High Holidays, I always try to go.  If didn’t attend, I would feel like I was not following a key part of being Jewish, and if I stopped observing the basic tenets of my religion, I would feel like I would be abandoning a community that is worth being part of.

What are your views on God, Judaism, and Israel? Comment below.