How to overcome attempts to demoralize the Jewish people

The State of Israel has a God-given and internationally recognized right to exist and to defend its citizens effectively against those who actively seek to deny them that right. No army can match the efforts the Israeli Defense Forces have made to strike its enemies surgically to avoid tragic civilian casualties. We are not ashamed of the Israeli army’s actions; we admire them.

The Mishna records the pep talk that was given to the Jewish soldiers by their spiritual leader as they headed out to war. He reminded them that this was not a family feud where the other side would be compassionate to them, dressing and feeding the vanquished. Rather they were going to war against their enemies who would show them no compassion.

Even then, it appears that the Jewish soldiers had a hard time treating their enemies as enemies. They recoiled from fighting the good fight and needed to be encouraged to do the job that was necessary to eliminate the looming threat. And they could only do this with the understanding that the cause they were pursuing was just and that it mandated their decisive actions on the battlefield. This is a challenging time for the State of Israel and for Jews around the world. “As one person with one heart,” we share in the grief of the bereaved, in the pain of the wounded, and in the traumatic upheaval experienced by the millions of our brothers and sisters, adults and children, who spent the war dashing to bomb shelters. And even as hostilities in Israel have subsided, Jewish communities around the world continue to face a significant increase in antisemitic acts.

The Orthodox Jewish community is feeling the painful uncertainty of this moment. As visibly and identifiably engaged Jews, it is we who are so frequently the targets of the flourishing hatred that is poisoning our society. And as passionate supporters of the life-giving miracle of the reborn Jewish state, we find ourselves bewildered and deeply disappointed by those in the international community and in our own Congress who would tie its hands from engaging in its self-defense.

Instead of being paralyzed by that bewilderment and disappointment, we must take steps to resolve it. We must express ourselves to our elected leaders, urging them to stand strong in support of Israel and to act to protect our Jewish community. We must speak to ourselves as well, reminding ourselves of our mission in these trying times. And we must be vigilant and proactive to protect ourselves and our institutions, including our synagogues and schools.

We will continue to believe in the cause, in the fulfilled hope of millennia that the reborn State of Israel represents. We will continue to stand proud as its soldiers uphold the highest ethics even as they fight to defend the safety of its citizens, and as they firmly repudiate – without need for the lecturing and oversight of others – any deviation from these high standards of battlefield ethics. And we will continue to be confident that the leadership of our beloved United States from the administration and from both its major parties will stand strong and firm in partnership with the State of Israel, the beacon of freedom and justice in the Middle East, and that they will work to ensure that our Jewish community lives in safety and security within this country.

We must pray – alone and as a community – for the peace of our people; “For the rod of wickedness shall never come to rest upon the lot of the righteous, as the righteous will not raise their hands in violence.” (Psalm 125)