October 8, 2023:
I yearn for peace; I was named peace. I believe that all people and peoples, including Palestinians and Israelis, deserve peace and want peace.
The last two days were supposed to be the happiest of the entire Hebrew year. Instead of celebrating the wisdom of the Torah and the joys of Jewish identity, we are now all in deep mourning, sadness, anger, confusion and fear.
These horrible acts of true terrorism will now lead to more war and destruction for Palestinians and Israelis. This does not bring Palestinians their legitimate political rights or freedoms. This just brings more death and hatred. My heart is broken beyond any more words.
September 22, 2024:
The stakes are high going into this US election: democracy, the peaceful transfer of power, women’s freedoms regarding their own bodies, competing visions of embracing our diversity or embracing xenophobia that often borders on outright racism. Can we maintain our fragile unity or are we going to tear each other apart?
In the Middle East there is a lack of real leadership with a vision of peaceful coexistence, and forces of hate, violence, and revenge have been empowered. We are seeing multi-generational trauma being created on both sides in real time. The world either looks away, or chooses a side and fully demonizes the other. I can’t believe in any deity that wants us to kill each other. When will these cycles of attacks and counter attacks and preemptive attacks end? How do we get back to pursuing peace?
I know that I’m an optimist, and I’ve been called unrealistic, naïve, self-hating, and lots of other things. One thing that I know, one promise that I made to myself, one truth that I always come back to: I’m not going to give up hope. I may cling to it with only a finger, but I truly see the good in most people. I see the power of connection and love within family and community, and I firmly believe that most of us just want to make it through the day and the night. I don’t believe that hate is an inherent human quality, and I will never give up my vision of a world living in peace, and embracing the ultimate Oneness.
This piece is part of a series of reflections from the J Street community. Read the rest of the reflections here.