Once again, missiles are falling on Israeli homes. Once again, our heart is in the east. And – once again – we feel competing emotions deep within us. 

Since October 7, 2023, I have written once again about cognitive dissonance, the idea that multiple things can be true at the same time.  When it comes to Israel, this is especially the case. If you are a modern, conscientious Zionist, then it is incumbent to acknowledge a variety of seemingly contradictory facts. 

Here are some that I am thinking about these days, including questions I am wondering about, as war rages across the Middle East:

• A nuclear-armed Iran poses an existential threat to the State of Israel. Extremist leadership has vowed once and again to wipe Israel from the face of the map. Were they able to do so, I believe that Iran would not hesitate to launch a full-throated attack on Israel. Removing tyrannical leadership and weakening their nuclear ability is in the best interest of Israel and its future. 

• There is no shortage of questions when it comes to “day two.” Are we ready to re-build Iran? Whose job will it be to do that? Are we ready to commit long-term to shaping a democratic Iran? What does success look like?  While undoing its weapon stockade is necessary, what comes next? If you are unsure of next steps, you are not alone. 

• Israel is now effectively at war with Hezbollah, Hamas and Iran. Can Israel really endure an even greater level of tension and unrest? How can all of this be sustainable? If you are worried about the toll this will take on Israel (not to mention its standing in the world), you are not alone.

• Will war lead to peace? This has not been the case in Gaza. Two a half years later and violence continues to be the law of the land. Will this current entanglement lead to wide-scale peace in the Middle East? I remain skeptical. I doubt I am alone. 

• Leaders both in the United States and Israel have long used the cudgel of war to mask domestic strife. Is this all some kind of distraction? Would leadership on both sides of the Atlantic initiate such a serious and consequential episode in part to prop up their own political standing? Unclear. 

In the Torah, we read of two types of war. The first type is discretionary, a war of choice. The second type is obligatory, a preemptive war that must be waged in the name of survival. Indeed, war has been part of the Jewish story since the very beginning, sadly. The Torah knows of war, as does the Talmud, as have the Jews of nearly every generation. What remains consistent in every age is that war is tragic and deeply painful to all sides involved. Peace is the preeminent goal of our people. It is what we strive for and pray for day after day. When will lasting peace come? God only knows. Can we have a hand in adding to a level of decency and kindness in this broken world of ours? Absolutely yes. May better days come for our people, and all of humanity, very soon. Amen.