Torah

Zionism’s mission is different today. Sixty years ago, and decades prior to then, Zionism was the national and political movement of the Jewish people to settle again in the land of our ancestors, the land of Israel. Zionism’s goal was to establish a state for the Jews, to make the Jewish nation and the Jewish people equal among the different peoples of the world. No nation is viable without a homeland. For the Jewish people, Israel is that sacred place precisely because it is the historic source and spiritual center of Judaism.

As we celebrate Israel’s 60th anniversary on May 8, we humbly rejoice for all that Israel’s founders, pioneers, citizens, and the Jewish people have accomplished. Mindful of the political, security, social and moral challenges that Israel continually confronts, we are justly proud of what Israel has become, and hopeful about what Israel will next achieve.

Zionism’s different mission today, however, is to advocate the reasons why being a Jewish state matters, to make the Jewish nation and the Jewish people distinctive among the different peoples of the world. Israeli Jews and Jews everywhere must be able to explain why this unique democratic state can and ought to prefer in its purpose and society the legacy and history of Judaism.

This mission can be rooted in Torah where we discover the foundations of holiness and ethics for the Jewish people in our homeland. In this parsha, Moses reports God’s words, “You shall not hate your brother in your heart. Reprove your kinsman but incur no guilt because of him. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against your people. Love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Eternal” (Leviticus 19:17-18).

On first reading, it seems that the instructions should be reversed. Wouldn’t it be more logical to worry about not hating my neighbor and loving my family? For most people a rift between family members is more worrisome than a fight between neighbors, however disturbing.

Jewish tradition considers the following reality. It is the people who are closest to us who will most disappoint us. We can’t let our anger at their behavior or opinion fester and become how we feel about them. That’s why the very next phrase in the verse tells us, “reprove your kinsmen.”

The State of Israel’s 60 years provide a good example of the Torah’s intent. In Israel’s brief history, two tensions are clearly present: the internal debate about the Jewish character of Israeli society and the external defense against warring neighbors.

Israel’s remarkable accomplishment is that it has built a pluralistic, democratic society in which all varieties of Jewish identity are present. The internal challenge is to learn how to disagree with family members without disrespecting their affinity for the Jewish identity we hold in common.

This strength is precisely the moral measure by which Israel withstands the hostility of its neighbors. Defending Israel’s security has motivated our people’s sense of unity and destiny. We may argue with one another, but we rely upon and need each other.

This is how we learn to love our neighbors as ourselves. We are in a position to hope for our neighbors what we cherish. Instead of “hating” them, we are commanded to “love” them, to wish for them what we have built –– a society in which they too can safely live in dignity and diversity.

How powerful our tradition’s wisdom! Control those emotions that can harm our family, and hope for something good from which our neighbors may also benefit.

This year we proudly celebrate Israel’s 60th year of independence striving to live by Judaism’s ethical principles for the sake of our own families and the good of all people.