The Paradox of Israel

This is an excerpt from a Yom Kippur sermon delivered by Rabbi Michael Gotlieb at Kehillat Ma’arav Congregation in Santa Monica.

I was in New York last February when four-year-old Ariel Bibas was confirmed murdered by Hamas. In solidarity with Israel, the Empire State Building was lit up orange in memory of red-haired Ariel.

Nearly two years since Oct. 7, with Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, that solidarity has eroded to the point that I’m deeply worried that Israel is becoming a pariah state among some of her most valued longtime allies. 

Let alone the rise of Jew-hatred in America and abroad — tethered to a shifting downward opinion of Israel. It breaks my heart to say that, because I love and respect Israel and my love and respect for Israel remains clear and undiminished. 

Though it’s become an almost dirty word — “the Z word” — I am a Zionist and I continue to be a supporter of Zionism.  Zionism is Jewish national self-expression and free-will; Zionism stretches across the entirety of Jewish history. 

The hope to return to the land of Israel and reestablish an independent Jewish state has remained with us Jews ever since the destruction of the Second Temple in the first century of the Common Era.

The physical land of Israel is definitional to Judaism. One who denies Israel’s legitimacy to exist as a free and independent Jewish nation is an antisemite. Professor Emerita Ruth Wisse summarizes: “Anti-Zionism is a more malevolent form of antisemitism, because it denies Jewish national distinctiveness.” A nation needs a land. The land of Israel is our indigenous homeland — that’s where we Jews begin, that’s where we’re formed — and that’s Zionism.

But being a Zionist doesn’t mean one agrees with everything the Israeli leadership does or advocates. Zionism has never been one size fits all. We are a people of lively discussion, debate and disagreement — there never was one Jewish paradigm, be it religious, or political or cultural, that fits all.

So, how can we hold divergent opinions when it comes to Israel, the fulfillment of modern Zionism? To paraphrase Rabbi Stuart Weinblatt, founder of the Zionist Rabbinic Coalition: “Your criticism of Israel should not be louder than your support for Israel.”

Israel’s political and military decisions are filled with paradox, complication and tension. Think of the Bible’s story of the burning bush. Moses, while wandering in the desert, approaches a shrub engulfed in flames. It’s not disturbed by the fire, and remarkably remains intact. It’s an instructive allegory. How can something be in flames, but not be consumed by the intense heat and fire? It defies natural law. 

Israel must stare into the burning bush every day. Prior to Oct. 7, Israel faced difficulties from within, including the battle over judicial reform; government coalition members, some of whom are bona fide bigots, who oppose any notion of a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians; and West Bank settlers who torment Palestinians and attack Israeli military police. There are also growing tensions between the general population and ultra-Orthodox Jews who refuse to serve in the army.

Post-Oct. 7, Israel has been plagued with difficulties from without. As we know all too well, two years ago, Hamas slaughtered, raped and butchered 1,200 Israeli souls. Relative to Israel’s population, that’s equivalent to more than 60,000 Americans murdered in one day. Many were viciously tortured to death.

Hamas also captured 251 innocent Israelis. Of the 48 remaining hostages in Gaza, Israel thinks 28 are dead, and 20 are still alive. 

Today marks the hostages’ 725th day in their Hamas hellholes.

In 2005 Israel ceded the entire Gaza Strip to the Palestinians. Beginning the following year, Gazan rockets started raining down on Israel. Over the course of 17 years, more than 20,000 missiles have been launched against Israel.

This past Jewish calendar year, Israel had to successfully confront Iran, Hezbollah and the Houthis. That said, the images coming out of Gaza are heartbreaking: Gazans living in tents. Food insecurity. Social media is filled with pictures of destruction and death. What is Israel to do? What are we to think?

Israel can’t allow the Gaza Strip to return to the way it was prior to Oct. 7. It can’t leave a void in place of Hamas’ eventual retreat, and it can no longer live with missile attacks and the constant threat of murder, destruction and war. As one of Israel’s leading intellectuals, Micah Goodman, points out: The challenge Israel faces is not a binary between good choices and bad ones, but rather between bad choices and worse choices. Israelis are continually forced to stare into the flame of the burning bush — paradox, complication and tension.

Let’s unpack some of the allegations leveled against Israel. The first being the most pernicious: Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. Let me state unequivocally: Israelis are doing no such thing. 

According to the Hamas-run Health Ministry, there have been more than 60,000 deaths since the beginning of the war. I ask: Even if the numbers are accurate, if Israel’s committing genocide, why aren’t the numbers in the hundreds of thousands, or more than a million? Why does Israel give prior notice alerting Gazans to evacuate areas it intends to destroy? Why are there nearly five times more Palestinians living in Gaza and the West Bank than there were at Israel’s founding in 1948?

Further, between a third to one half of those killed represent Hamas militants. Need it be said, the loss of any truly innocent soul is a tragedy. But this is a low proportion of civilian deaths compared with other modern wars, especially in very crowded urban areas.

Most Israelis feel the war with Hamas has gone on much too long. We should hope and pray that last Monday’s 20-point peace plan launched by the Trump administration will prevail. 

Another accusation is that Israel is intentionally withholding food from Gaza. I emphatically believe Israel should provide copious amounts of food, water and medicine, not merely because of the Geneva Convention’s rules of conduct, but because Jewish values dictate it’s the right thing to do. 

Although there have been Israeli missteps in the distribution of food in Gaza, the blame sits squarely with Hamas. It is Hamas that doesn’t care if its own people starve.

If you are genuinely concerned about innocent Palestinians (as I am); if you hold out for the long-term possibility of a two-state solution (as I do); if you value Israel’s legitimate right to live as an independent Jewish nation (as I continually pray for); then Hamas must be marginalized to the point of virtual nonexistence. It’s that simple.

It is Hamas that has wanted this war to continue. They know they’ve lost the ground war; they probably knew they would. But it’s highly likely they thought they could win the war of public opinion — and they are proving themselves right.

Older Jews remember Israel as a young idealistic nation fighting for its survival against Palestinian terrorism, and how Palestinian leaders repeatedly refused offers of a state of their own in the West Bank and Gaza. The younger generation doesn’t have that perspective. Too many of them see Israel as the aggressor, a brutal occupier of Palestinian territories. 

Each of us can strive to counteract this false narrative. Israel remains a free, open, compassionate, creative country. It bridges the cultures of east and west, respecting and upholding ancient traditions. It is a pioneer in women’s rights and LGBTQ lifestyles. Israel has provided safe haven for refugees representing more than 70 countries. 

Each of us can support religious and secular organizations that work for liberal democracy in Israel. Each of us can broaden our understanding of what Israel faces on a daily basis: the paradox, complication and tension; a lowly desert bush that’s an unconsumed blazing inferno.

In addition to mainstream media sources, consider reading or listening to podcasts and articles on Israel by Bari Weiss, Yossi Klein Halevi, Haviv Rettig Gur, Daniel Gordis, Tal Becker, Dan Senor, Micah Goodman, Bret Stephens, Ross Douthat, Douglas Murray, Bill Maher and others.

Israel with all her shortcomings and faults, remains an extraordinary nation. Now’s not the time to walk away from Israel in frustration and anger. When a friend or a loved one is in trouble, you do all you can to help. Now’s the time to stand up for Israel. Now’s the time to, ensure that “your criticism of Israel should not be louder than your support for Israel.” 

Michael Gotlieb is rabbi of Kehillat Ma’arav in Santa Monica.