Reflections on Israel, the history of Jews, and hopes for peace

Friday marked the horrific anniversary of Kristallnacht, a night in 1938 in which the Nazis carried out violent attacks on Jews in Germany.

While this is always a somber day for Jews as we remember these hateful acts, this anniversary took on even more importance in light of the terrorist attacks last month in which Israeli men and women, babies, children, elderly and Holocaust survivors were raped, beheaded, and slaughtered.

With so many questions about the current situation in Israel and misinformation circulating, I feel compelled to share some facts and reflections.

The history of Jews and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is long and nuanced. There are voluminous books, research papers, museums, academic courses, and documentaries that cover this complex history.

Short statements do not do full justice to this conflict and the people involved.

I do not pretend to be an expert or for my thoughts to be exhaustive of every detail and aspect of this situation. But my intent is to share some objective historical facts that address some of the most prevalent inaccurate and misguided views I have seen on social media and in society.

I do not speak for every Jew. But I do speak as someone with a long personal and professional commitment to Jewish community, to serving humanity and to advancing an inclusive, tolerant world for all. I will begin with the origins of Jews and the Land of Israel and walk through the chronological history leading to today.

The Israelites originated over 3,000 years ago in the same land that is now the State of Israel. After being forced from the land and persecuted virtually everywhere else we have lived — the worst being the Holocaust in which 6 million Jews were slaughtered — we returned to our homeland in 1948.

This history dates back to when, according to the Hebrew Scriptures, Jacob lived in the land of Canaan, which mostly encompasses the same land of the present day State of Israel. He was eventually given the Hebrew name Israel and was the patriarch of the Israelites.

After being forced into slavery in Egypt, the Israelites then eventually made it back to their homeland in Canaan. For generation after generation Israelites worshiped one God — Yahweh — later referred to as Adonai, spoke semitic languages including Hebrew, received the 10 commandments and followed the teachings of the Torah (The Five Books of Moses).

For centuries, starting around 800-900 BCE, the Israelites lived in the land and formed the Kingdoms of Judah and Israel which included the City of Jerusalem — again, the land in what is today the State of Israel. The Israelites continued practicing the same traditions of worshiping Adonai. About 1000 years before Jesus was born, they built the Holy Temple in Jerusalem as a place to carry out that worship.

The kingdom was then conquered by empire after empire including the Greeks, Roman, Arabs, and more.

After the Jewish Temple was destroyed twice — the second time in 70 CE — many Israelites were forced into the diaspora into surrounding lands in Northern Africa, the Middle East (which is the land connected to both Africa and Asia), and even Europe. Genetic studies of Jews today trace their ancestry back to the Israelites and demonstrate that Jews have remained a close-knit people through generation after generation. Ashkenazi Jews — those with ancestors from Europe — are often outwardly white but trace their lineage and heritage all the way back to the original Israelites. They did not steal or co-opt the religion. Even while forced into Europe, they stayed true to their roots.

Even while scattered throughout other parts of the world, Israelites remained loyal to their identity and their practices and became known as Jews, derived from the Hebrew word Yehudah originally the term for the people of Judah. While in exile, Jews still hoped and yearned for the return to their homeland and rebuilding of the Temple.

As other religions (including Christianity, Islam, Catholicism) and empires emerged and ruled over Jews, we faced persecution, murder, attacks, expulsion, and forced conversions because of our ethnicity and religion almost everywhere that we lived. My own ancestors lived in what is modern day Ukraine during a time of pogroms — violent attacks on Jewish communities — in the 1800's and emigrated to the United States during a time in which many Jews were escaping such violence.

This almost 3,000 years of hatred against us culminated with the Holocaust — the attempted genocide of the Jewish people. The definition of genocide is the deliberate killing of a large number of people from a particular nation or ethnic group with the aim of destroying that nation or group.

After millennia of being scattered across continents and not being accepted or safe in most places, many Jews moved back to our ancestral homeland, which Arab populations had settled on a few centuries before.

in 1948, after much of the world watched in silence during the Holocaust, the descendants of the original Israelites formally established the State of Israel as a safe haven for themselves and other Jews.

The United Nations proposed splitting the land, which the Jews accepted but Arabs leaders rejected and instead launched war against Israel. The Arab leader in Jerusalem at the time had been an ally of Hitler's and had assured Hitler that they had a common enemy in Jews. This ideology has continued through today.

The war resulted in many Arab residents being displaced from homes that they and their ancestors had occupied for centuries. This has been a deep source of ongoing tensions ever since and the displacement of Arabs who only knew that land as their home has understandably had a tremendous impact on their lives since.

For decades, Israeli leaders and U.S. presidents have tried to broker a two state solution in which Palestinians and Israelis would live peacefully side by side, each with their own country and agreed upon sharing of the land. Yet time and time again, the Palestinian governments have refused these compromise proposals.

In more recent decades, rather than seek peace with Israel, one of the main Palestinian governing bodies, Hamas, has made it its mission to annihilate Jews and has spent its time, money and resources on trying to destroy Israel rather than invest in its own people and country. As a result, many innocent Palestinians have suffered from the rule of Hamas. Gaza is completely run by Hamas and it is not occupied by Israel. My heart truly breaks for the suffering that Palestinians in Gaza endure from their own government.

This is not to say that the Israeli government is not at fault for some of the issues. Some Israeli government leaders have made decisions that have impeded and even set back the two-state solution. Many Jews -- and especially Israelis — see it as their duty to criticize the Israeli government when it does wrong and this was very much the case in recent months. Yet while critiques of government decisions are necessary for a healthy democracy, categorizations of Jews as being colonizers, oppressors, and illegitimate people are blatantly wrong and dangerous. That kind of rhetoric can incite hatred and violence and calls to hurt, kill or extinguish Jews and celebrate these attacks on them are not legitimate — they are genocidal and antisemitic.

Despite some of the very problematic decisions of the Israeli government, they still maintained and respected the ceasefire with Hamas. Yet Hamas decided to break the ceasefire on October 7 and launched brutal atrocities that we have not seen since the Holocaust. These were not the noble actions of oppressed people or freedom fighters but rather were brutal, intentional attacks on civilians.

In the same way that the U.S. did not want or seek war during the Civil War, or during Pearl Harbor's attack, and after 9/11, there are times in which sovereign nations must respond to protect their security and defend their people. While we must fervently hope and work towards a world without physical and armed conflict, we cannot sit idly by when terrorists launch attacks.

In doing so, Israel must of course abide by International Law and do everything it can to minimize civilian deaths.

All of this to say, after 3,000 years of being targets and numerous rounds of ceasefires with Hamas in which they just rearm and ultimately launch another attack, the only way to secure our long term safety is to dismantle Hamas. Rather than return our hostages and seek peace, Hamas has chosen to hide and launch its missiles, rockets, and weapons from amongst innocent civilians. They intentionally store their artillery under hospitals and residential buildings. They withhold fuel and goods from residents for their own purposes. Meanwhile, some of Hamas' top leaders reside in luxurious comfort far from Gaza in other countries. Unlike Hamas, Israel does not target civilians and they try to prevent and minimize civilian casualties. But as Israel rightfully defends itself against threats and seeks the return of hostages, tragically, Hamas continues to put Palestinians in danger.

Hamas can surrender today which would lead to even more humanitarian aid for Palestinians and eventually lead to the end of Israeli self defense military operations. Unlike the calls to create a country of Palestine from the river to the sea with no place for Israel, most Jews accept a two-state solution in which Jews and Palestinians split the land.

As Jews we watch in horror as more and more people call for the destruction of Israel, mock and dismiss the kidnapping of our people, and justify the heinous actions of Hamas. Yet despite all of this, as we have done for over 3,000 years — when ancient empires, Hitler and the Nazis, white supremacists, and Hamas have all tried to wipe us from the Earth — we will continue to survive.

To my friends on the political left who we have marched and fought together for social justice and inclusion of all people: I know we have differing views on this very sensitive issue. I hope we can continue to march and fight together against all forms of hate and bigotry and work towards an inclusive world for all. I hope that my reflections provide some insightful perspective and perhaps help better understand why Jews are not the oppressors in this situation. Hamas is no friend to marginalized groups and they operate with an iron fist of hatred. They do not share our commitment to an inclusive world for all, including women, LGBTQ+ individuals, and more in their own land. I welcome further conversation and dialogue — please do not hesitate to reach out. I am grateful for the relationships betwen so many Jewish and Muslim communities in Alabama and the U.S. and will continue to foster and cherish those relationships.

To my friends on the political right who are expressing staunch support for Israel or Jews during this difficult time, I am grateful for your support on this issue. But I urge you to not just condemn hate right now. I hope that you find the courage to speak out against all forms of hatred — whether against Jews, Muslims and any minority group. I ask you to not just criticize Hamas, but to call out white supremacy and bigotry right here in the United States and work to ensure Jewish people - and people of all backgrounds and faiths — are welcome, tolerated and protected in our country. This also means not just supporting Jews in Israel now as an end goal to biblical prophecy, but supporting Jews — and people of all backgrounds and faiths -- as equal children of God who will be included for all of eternity.

Lastly, to my friends who understandably ask why we should even care about what is happening overseas, especially when there are very real, pressing needs right here in our communities, cities, and states; We absolutely can and must address injustices, inequities, and disparities right here. We are the wealthiest country on Earth and there is no reason we should not uplift and empower our fellow Americans with quality and affordable health care, clean water and sewage, greater educational and economic opportunities, affordable housing, reliable public transportation, and so much more.Yet the choice is not mutually exclusive. We can take care of our immediate neighbors and communities, while also caring about and helping those abroad. we are interconnected and are harmed by the suffering of fellow humans. We are impacted by war and situations overseas that can ultimately impact our own national security and freedoms.

I will conclude by saying this: to anyone who seeks or wishes to destroy us as Jews, history is not on your side. For thousands of years, there has been propaganda that blames and scapegoats Jews for many issues in society. Especially in the last few hundred years, there has been propaganda materials that Hamas, white supremacists, and others have used as justification for their attacks on Jews. We continue to persevere despite these lies and attacks.

We will always be here, worshiping Adonai, observing the Sabbath, studying Hebrew Torah, and living out our mission of trying to make this world and the world-to-come a better, peaceful place for all people of all backgrounds and all faiths.

Especially as we just remembered the dark day of Kristallnacht, I hope that the lights of peace and love for one another prevail. May there no longer ever be attacks and hatred against Jews, may those in Gaza be free from the terror of Hamas, and may there be lasting peace between Palestinians and Israelis.

Phillip Ensler is Executive Director of the Jewish Federation of Central Alabama, and is the representative for District 74 in the Alabama House of Representatives. He has also also served as a civil rights attorney, policy expert, and public school teacher.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Reflections on Israel, the history of Jews, and hopes for peace