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Marking two years after that deadly assault of the events of October 7th, which profoundly impacted world Jewry unlike anything else following the founding of the state of Israel.

For Jews it was profoundly disturbing. For the Israeli government, it was a profound disgrace. The whole Zionist project was founded on the belief that the Jewish state would ensure against similar tragedies occurring in the future.

Military action appeared unavoidable. However, the particular response Israel pursued – the widespread destruction of the Gaza Strip, the deaths and injuries of tens of thousands non-combatants – constituted a specific policy. This particular approach made more difficult the way numerous Jewish Americans processed the attack that precipitated the response, and presently makes difficult the community's observance of the anniversary. How does one honor and reflect on an atrocity against your people during a catastrophe being inflicted upon another people in your name?

The Difficulty of Grieving

The difficulty in grieving exists because of the fact that no agreement exists about the implications of these developments. In fact, for the American Jewish community, this two-year period have seen the collapse of a half-century-old consensus regarding Zionism.

The origins of Zionist agreement among American Jewry can be traced to writings from 1915 by the lawyer who would later become supreme court justice Louis Brandeis titled “The Jewish Problem; How to Solve it”. Yet the unity truly solidified after the six-day war during 1967. Previously, Jewish Americans housed a fragile but stable parallel existence across various segments that had diverse perspectives regarding the requirement for a Jewish nation – Zionists, non-Zionists and opponents.

Background Information

That coexistence endured during the 1950s and 60s, in remnants of socialist Jewish movements, within the neutral American Jewish Committee, among the opposing American Council for Judaism and other organizations. For Louis Finkelstein, the chancellor of the theological institution, pro-Israel ideology was more spiritual rather than political, and he forbade the singing of the Israeli national anthem, the Israeli national anthem, at religious school events during that period. Additionally, Zionism and pro-Israelism the central focus of Modern Orthodoxy before the 1967 conflict. Different Jewish identity models existed alongside.

Yet after Israel defeated neighboring countries during the 1967 conflict during that period, taking control of areas such as the West Bank, Gaza, Golan Heights and Jerusalem's eastern sector, US Jewish connection with the nation evolved considerably. Israel’s victory, along with enduring anxieties of a “second Holocaust”, produced a developing perspective regarding Israel's vital role to the Jewish people, and created pride in its resilience. Rhetoric concerning the remarkable aspect of the outcome and the freeing of land gave the Zionist project a religious, even messianic, significance. In that triumphant era, a significant portion of the remaining ambivalence about Zionism dissipated. During the seventies, Writer Norman Podhoretz stated: “We are all Zionists now.”

The Unity and Restrictions

The pro-Israel agreement excluded the ultra-Orthodox – who generally maintained Israel should only be ushered in via conventional understanding of the messiah – but united Reform Judaism, Conservative Judaism, contemporary Orthodox and most secular Jews. The predominant version of the consensus, identified as liberal Zionism, was founded on the idea about the nation as a progressive and democratic – albeit ethnocentric – state. Numerous US Jews considered the administration of Arab, Syria's and Egyptian lands post-1967 as provisional, thinking that an agreement would soon emerge that would guarantee a Jewish majority in pre-1967 Israel and regional acceptance of the nation.

Multiple generations of American Jews grew up with Zionism an essential component of their identity as Jews. The state transformed into a key component in Jewish learning. Israel’s Independence Day evolved into a religious observance. Israeli flags adorned many temples. Summer camps integrated with Hebrew music and learning of the language, with Israelis visiting and teaching US young people Israeli culture. Trips to the nation grew and achieved record numbers with Birthright Israel during that year, when a free trip to the nation was provided to US Jewish youth. The nation influenced virtually all areas of the American Jewish experience.

Shifting Landscape

Ironically, in these decades following the war, American Jewry became adept in religious diversity. Acceptance and communication across various Jewish groups expanded.

However regarding Zionism and Israel – that’s where diversity ended. Individuals might align with a right-leaning advocate or a liberal advocate, yet backing Israel as a Jewish state was assumed, and challenging that narrative placed you outside mainstream views – a non-conformist, as a Jewish periodical labeled it in a piece in 2021.

Yet presently, amid of the destruction of Gaza, food shortages, dead and orphaned children and outrage regarding the refusal by numerous Jewish individuals who refuse to recognize their involvement, that agreement has collapsed. The moderate Zionist position {has lost|no longer