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Two years have passed since that deadly assault of October 7, 2023, which shook world Jewry like no other occurrence since the establishment of Israel as a nation.

Within Jewish communities it was shocking. For Israel as a nation, it was a significant embarrassment. The whole Zionist endeavor rested on the assumption that Israel would prevent such atrocities from ever happening again.

A response seemed necessary. But the response that Israel implemented – the widespread destruction of Gaza, the killing and maiming of many thousands non-combatants – constituted a specific policy. This particular approach made more difficult the way numerous Jewish Americans grappled with the attack that set it in motion, and presently makes difficult their observance of the day. In what way can people mourn and commemorate an atrocity affecting their nation in the midst of a catastrophe experienced by a different population attributed to their identity?

The Complexity of Mourning

The challenge surrounding remembrance exists because of the reality that there is no consensus about the significance of these events. In fact, within US Jewish circles, this two-year period have seen the breakdown of a half-century-old agreement on Zionism itself.

The beginnings of a Zionist consensus among American Jewry can be traced to writings from 1915 written by a legal scholar subsequently appointed high court jurist Justice Brandeis named “The Jewish Problem; Finding Solutions”. Yet the unity truly solidified after the Six-Day War during 1967. Before then, Jewish Americans housed a vulnerable but enduring cohabitation among different factions holding a range of views about the necessity for a Jewish nation – Zionists, neutral parties and opponents.

Previous Developments

This parallel existence continued during the post-war decades, within remaining elements of Jewish socialism, through the non-aligned US Jewish group, in the anti-Zionist religious group and similar institutions. In the view of Louis Finkelstein, the head of the theological institution, pro-Israel ideology was primarily theological instead of governmental, and he forbade performance of Israel's anthem, Hatikvah, at religious school events during that period. Nor were support for Israel the centerpiece for contemporary Orthodox communities before that war. Alternative Jewish perspectives coexisted.

Yet after Israel overcame adjacent nations in the six-day war during that period, taking control of areas including Palestinian territories, Gaza Strip, the Golan and East Jerusalem, the American Jewish perspective on the country underwent significant transformation. The military success, coupled with longstanding fears about another genocide, led to a developing perspective in the country’s vital role to the Jewish people, and a source of pride for its strength. Language regarding the “miraculous” quality of the victory and the reclaiming of areas assigned the Zionist project a theological, even messianic, importance. In that triumphant era, much of previous uncertainty toward Israel vanished. During the seventies, Writer Norman Podhoretz declared: “We are all Zionists now.”

The Consensus and Its Limits

The unified position did not include strictly Orthodox communities – who typically thought a nation should only be ushered in through traditional interpretation of redemption – but united Reform Judaism, Conservative, contemporary Orthodox and most unaffiliated individuals. The predominant version of the consensus, later termed progressive Zionism, was founded on a belief in Israel as a progressive and free – though Jewish-centered – state. Numerous US Jews viewed the control of Arab, Syrian and Egyptian lands post-1967 as temporary, thinking that an agreement was forthcoming that would maintain Jewish demographic dominance in Israel proper and regional acceptance of Israel.

Multiple generations of American Jews were thus brought up with pro-Israel ideology a core part of their Jewish identity. Israel became a key component of Jewish education. Israel’s Independence Day became a Jewish holiday. Israeli flags adorned religious institutions. Summer camps integrated with Israeli songs and learning of contemporary Hebrew, with visitors from Israel educating US young people national traditions. Visits to Israel increased and achieved record numbers through Birthright programs by 1999, offering complimentary travel to the country was provided to young American Jews. The nation influenced nearly every aspect of Jewish American identity.

Evolving Situation

Interestingly, in these decades post-1967, American Jewry grew skilled regarding denominational coexistence. Acceptance and dialogue across various Jewish groups increased.

Except when it came to the Israeli situation – that represented diversity reached its limit. You could be a rightwing Zionist or a liberal advocate, but support for Israel as a Jewish state remained unquestioned, and criticizing that position placed you outside the consensus – outside the community, as a Jewish periodical termed it in writing in 2021.

However currently, under the weight of the destruction of Gaza, famine, dead and orphaned children and anger about the rejection of many fellow Jews who decline to acknowledge their complicity, that consensus has collapsed. The liberal Zionist “center” {has lost|no longer