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It has been that mass murder of October 7, 2023, which profoundly impacted world Jewry unlike anything else since the creation of the Jewish state.

Among Jewish people it was deeply traumatic. For Israel as a nation, it was a profound disgrace. The entire Zionist endeavor was founded on the assumption that the nation would ensure against things like this from ever happening again.

Some form of retaliation was inevitable. But the response Israel pursued – the obliteration of the Gaza Strip, the casualties of tens of thousands of civilians – was a choice. And this choice created complexity in how many American Jews grappled with the October 7th events that set it in motion, and it now complicates the community's observance of that date. In what way can people mourn and commemorate an atrocity targeting their community in the midst of devastation being inflicted upon a different population in your name?

The Difficulty of Grieving

The complexity of mourning stems from the circumstance where little unity prevails about what any of this means. In fact, within US Jewish circles, this two-year period have experienced the disintegration of a half-century-old consensus regarding Zionism.

The early development of a Zionist consensus among American Jewry can be traced to an early twentieth-century publication by the lawyer who would later become Supreme Court judge Justice Brandeis titled “Jewish Issues; How to Solve it”. However, the agreement really takes hold subsequent to the 1967 conflict that year. Before then, Jewish Americans maintained a delicate yet functioning coexistence between groups that had a range of views about the need for a Jewish nation – pro-Israel advocates, non-Zionists and anti-Zionists.

Background Information

Such cohabitation persisted through the 1950s and 60s, within remaining elements of socialist Jewish movements, through the non-aligned Jewish communal organization, within the critical religious group and comparable entities. Regarding Chancellor Finkelstein, the head at JTS, the Zionist movement was primarily theological instead of governmental, and he forbade the singing of the Israeli national anthem, Hatikvah, during seminary ceremonies in the early 1960s. Additionally, Zionism and pro-Israelism the centerpiece of Modern Orthodoxy before the six-day war. Jewish identitarian alternatives remained present.

Yet after Israel defeated neighboring countries in the six-day war that year, taking control of areas including Palestinian territories, Gaza, Golan Heights and East Jerusalem, US Jewish perspective on the nation changed dramatically. The triumphant outcome, coupled with persistent concerns about another genocide, led to a developing perspective about the nation's essential significance to the Jewish people, and generated admiration in its resilience. Discourse regarding the “miraculous” aspect of the success and the freeing of areas gave Zionism a religious, potentially salvific, importance. During that enthusiastic period, a significant portion of previous uncertainty regarding Zionism disappeared. In that decade, Writer Podhoretz stated: “We are all Zionists now.”

The Consensus and Its Limits

The Zionist consensus excluded the ultra-Orthodox – who largely believed Israel should only be ushered in via conventional understanding of the messiah – however joined Reform, Conservative, contemporary Orthodox and nearly all secular Jews. The most popular form of this agreement, later termed progressive Zionism, was founded on the conviction about the nation as a liberal and democratic – though Jewish-centered – country. Numerous US Jews considered the administration of Arab, Syrian and Egypt's territories following the war as provisional, believing that a resolution would soon emerge that would guarantee Jewish population majority in pre-1967 Israel and neighbor recognition of the state.

Multiple generations of American Jews were raised with Zionism an essential component of their Jewish identity. The nation became an important element of Jewish education. Yom Ha'atzmaut turned into a celebration. National symbols were displayed in most synagogues. Summer camps were permeated with Hebrew music and learning of the language, with Israeli guests educating US young people Israeli customs. Travel to Israel increased and reached new heights through Birthright programs by 1999, offering complimentary travel to the nation became available to Jewish young adults. Israel permeated almost the entirety of US Jewish life.

Changing Dynamics

Interestingly, during this period following the war, American Jewry became adept regarding denominational coexistence. Tolerance and discussion between Jewish denominations expanded.

Yet concerning support for Israel – that’s where pluralism ended. One could identify as a right-leaning advocate or a liberal advocate, yet backing Israel as a majority-Jewish country remained unquestioned, and challenging that narrative categorized you outside the consensus – outside the community, as one publication labeled it in an essay recently.

But now, during of the ruin in Gaza, famine, dead and orphaned children and outrage about the rejection within Jewish communities who avoid admitting their involvement, that consensus has broken down. The moderate Zionist position {has lost|no longer