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may we step up to this moment and have the capacity to meet the suffering we see with empathy and compassion for all innocent lives. as much as we are able, we should bear witness to what is happening – watching, reading, etc. while being mindful of our own mental health and well-being and that of those near and dear to us. and then speaking out on the harm we see while expressing solidarity with those who are being harmed.

caring for the lives of Israelis and Palestinians whether Jewish, Muslim, or Christian is not mutually exclusive.

we can and should condemn Hamas as the terrorist organization that it is, recognizing the immense harm, destruction, and horrific atrocities they have committed against Israeli lives – families, elderly, children (which has been verified by Amnesty International) aware of not just the initial harm and fear this has caused but the triggering effect it has on generational trauma for Jews throughout the world, while also not being indifferent to or dismissing Palestinian lives, including those displaced by occupying settlements in the West Bank and especially those in Gaza, who have also been victims to Hamas as well and live in what human rights organization have called an “open air prison”. we must be clear – Hamas are not resistance fighters, fighting on behalf of Palestinian lives. Hamas, backed by Iran, in its own charter has expressed their goal has nothing short of annihilation of Israel, and are willing to sacrifice Palestinian lives to do so. 

i have taken the time to read and watch the suffering they have caused. it is absolutely brutal and overwhelming and my heart goes out to the Jewish community who are suffering. there has to be accountability of some sort for such monstrous acts of violence.

so, we can hold all of that, knowing that Israel has a right to defend itself and still call upon the Israeli government to abide by International Human Rights laws. the Gaza strip has already been a human rights crisis, with 40% unemployment, shortages in fuel, electricity, food and water. the dense population of 2 million – half of which are children – has now had all power, water, and food cut off by the Israeli government as stated by the government itself. what about the hospitals tending to the injured? the Israeli government as of last night has told the UN they have 24 hours to evacuate 1 million Palestinians in the Gaza strip. this is impossible. where are they to go and in such a short amount of time? Egypt will not accept them and they are unable to leave Gaza. are Israeli citizens willing to bomb 1 million innocent lives? what about the 150 hostages – Israeli and American? Amnesty International has also verified the use of white phosphorus by the Israeli military. its use is prohibited by International Human Rights law. we must bear witness. my heart goes out to the people of Gaza and all Palestinians who are suffering.

there will be plenty of voices claiming we have to take sides in this situation and justifying more suffering, these are views that lead to anti-Semitism (which is already on the rise) and mistakenly side with Hamas, and views that justify an excessive violent response on innocent Palestinian lives in Gaza.

there is a struggle to avoid such duality and to also avoid a type of bypassing that happens (i.e. there will never be peace in the middle east, or can’t everyone just get along?). i think the way to avoid these is to go to the suffering. our hearts and minds, our moral commitment, should be with those who are suffering regardless of who they are. if we genuinely feel that all lives are sacred and worthy of love, this view comes to life with empathy and is love embodied as compassion specifically and particularly when we attend to those who are suffering at the moment, while simultaneously holding a wider expansive view of empathy for all people and life.

it also feels important to say that, while we place our attention on the current crisis, we must not lose our awareness of the bigger issues of injustice, marginalization, oppression and hate that fuel conflict, aggression, violence, and harm, while also not excusing aggression, violence, and harm, and the suffering they cause.

may hearts open, may wisdom arise, may we step up to this moment, to heal and bring an end to suffering.

~j

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#suffering