US rabbi blames Netanyahu's 'right wing messianism' for the end of 'Jewish Golden Age'

US rabbi blames Netanyahu's 'right wing messianism' for the end of 'Jewish Golden Age'

Submitted by MEE staff on Mon, 11/09/2026 - 10:49 Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch said anti-Zionism had become normalised in American public life and urged Jewish leaders to reassess their political alliances Israelis seen during a raid at Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem on 23 July 2026 (Ilia Yefimovich/AFP) Off

A leading US Reform rabbi has blamed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's “right-wing messianism and West Bank lawlessness” for fuelling opposition to Israel and rising settler violence in the West Bank as a factor contributing to the end of "The Golden Age of American Jewry". 

“We need to be honest with ourselves: We have entered a new era,” Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch said in a speech focused on the US midterm election results.

“The Golden Age of American Jewry that defined the years when most older millennials, Gen X and Baby Boomers grew up and established careers and families is over.”

Hirsch made the remarks in a Friday night sermon, in which he said the growing influence of religious-nationalist politics in Israel has contributed to the opposition to Israel in America. 

He cited comments by political influencer Hasan Piker, who has said he would vote for Hamas over Israel and compared liberal Zionists to liberal Nazis. Hirsch also referred to a political advertisement that blamed Israel for food prices in the United States.

The rabbi singled out US House representative-elect Darializa Avila Chevalier, whom he accused of attending a rally celebrating the 7 October 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel and refusing to condemn Hamas during her election campaign.

He also cited Michigan senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed's response to an attempted attack on a synagogue and preschool, saying El-Sayed's remark that “hurt people hurt people” was particularly troubling.

Hirsch said some incoming members of Congress were “not only critical of Israel, they are viscerally, obsessively and ideologically opposed to the very idea of Israel”, viewing the country as “the epitome of evil”. 

'Jews were respected, embraced and overrepresented in many fields of human endeavour prized by society. Israel had broad bipartisan support. Those heady days seem over'

- Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch

Netanyahu's coalition has relied on far-right allies, including Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, whose political positions have helped push Israeli policy further towards the right.

The religious and political symbolism surrounding Jerusalem has also become a point of contention.

In September, Netanyahu published footage of himself and his wife, Sara, walking through tunnels beneath the Old City of occupied East Jerusalem before attending Jewish Selichot prayers at the Western Wall ahead of Yom Kippur.

In the video, Netanyahu said: “It is moving to touch the rock of our existence. We are here very close to the Holy of Holies. We are here, and we will always remain here.”

The tunnels form part of the Western Wall excavation system, which runs alongside the wall bordering the courtyard that houses Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock.

The site is sacred to Muslims and Jews and excavations and visits by senior Israeli officials have long been politically provocative.

On the same weekend, Ben Gvir and other settlers entered the site, where the Palestinian Jerusalem Governorate said hundreds of Israelis had performed Jewish religious rituals.

Settler violence  

Hirsch also blamed the expansion of settlements in the occupied West Bank and the activities of far-right figures in the Israeli government, calling it "West Bank lawlessness".

He said he supported coexistence between Israelis and Palestinians and acknowledged that Netanyahu's policies contributed to hostility towards Israel. 

Waves of settler attacks target mosques, homes and businesses across West Bank Read More »

According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (Ocha), more than 2,060 settler attacks resulting in Palestinian casualties or property damage were documented across approximately 300 West Bank communities between the beginning of 2026 and 12 October.

During a two-week reporting period ending on 12 October, five Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces or settlers, including three in settler attacks.

The UN also documented 246 Palestinian injuries during the same two-week period, including 181 in the context of settler attacks.

It recorded 244 incidents of settler violence across 113 communities, involving casualties or damage to homes, agricultural land, livestock and infrastructure.

In a separate report published in October, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry said Israeli military operations and sustained settler violence formed part of a widespread and systematic attack against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank.

The commission said the conduct of Israeli authorities indicated that they intended military operations and settler violence to form part of a coordinated attack against Palestinians.

Hirsch's criticism of Netanyahu, however, was accompanied by a rejection of anti-Zionism that he said went beyond legitimate criticism of Israeli government policy.

“Anti-Zionism is a hateful ideology of destruction - as illiberal and immoral as anything in modern public life,” he said.

'Years of turbulence'   

The rabbi also criticised what he described as the failure of some progressive politicians to recognise the connection between anti-Zionist rhetoric and antisemitism.

“Whatever happens, we will still be living here with growing anti-Zionism, which - in turn - generates intensifying antisemitism. We are in for years of turbulence,” he said. 

Support for Israeli far right surges among first-time voters, poll finds Read More »

Hirsch said antisemitism had long existed in the United States but had previously receded from public institutions and mainstream political life.

“Jews were respected, embraced and overrepresented in many fields of human endeavour prized by society. Israel had broad bipartisan support. Those heady days seem over. We are reverting to the historical norm,” he said.

“While the erosion of the Golden Age was brewing for many years, October 7, 2023, was its symbolic end.”

He described the midterm elections as a “repudiation” of US President Donald Trump, saying the result reflected a combination of economic concerns, the impact of the Iran war, corruption, tariffs, immigration enforcement and dissatisfaction with Trump himself.

Hirsch also warned that antisemitism had become normalised on both the political right and left, arguing that American Jewish organisations could no longer rely on traditional political alliances.

He called on Jewish communal leaders to conduct what he described as a “searing reassessment” of their strategies and build broader political coalitions.

“We will need to relearn how to work much smarter, seeking coalitions and partnerships wherever we can. We need to be more realistic and humble about our true influence in years to come,” he said.

“These will be fateful and momentous years for our community,” he added.  

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