Israel Rips Judaism Apart

«Il est bien plus difficile de se juger soi-même que de juger autrui.

Si tu réussis à bien te juger, c’est que tu es un véritable sage. »

— Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Le Petit Prince, Ch. 10.

(“It is much more difficult to judge oneself than to

judge others. If you succeed in judging yourself

rightly, then you are indeed a man of true wisdom.”)

Antagonism between Zionism and Judaism is nothing new.[1] Rosh Hashana, the New Year, which Jews (and some Christians) celebrate in the autumn, exposes a deepening rift. This split is driven by a growing awareness among Jews worldwide of what Israel is and does. The Pentateuch calls this holiday Yom Hazikaron, the Day of Remembrance. But what is there to remember on Rosh Hashana against the backdrop of continuing genocide and ethnic cleansing in the Holy Land?

Jewish tradition commands individuals to remember their own misdeeds and seek forgiveness from those they have harmed. It also obliges people to forgive and let go of wrongs they have endured. This precept is built into the prayer a Jew is to recite every night before going to bed: “I forgive and pardon anyone who angered me, or antagonized me or who sinned against me, whether relating to my body, or my money, or my honor, or anything that belongs to me, whether done accidentally, or willingly, unintentionally or intentionally, or whether with words, whether with actions…”[2]

Yet, this message of forgiveness seems to contradict a biblical commandment that has often been in the news over the last three years: “Remember what Amalek did to you on your journey, after you left Egypt. […] you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget!” [3]

For centuries, Talmudic sages and their heirs —from the mystical texts of the Zohar to Rabbi Levi Yitzhak of Berdichev, (1740-1809), in modern-day Ukraine — defused the genocidal potential of this commandment. They did this by reinterpreting “Amalek” metaphorically . They suggested that Amalek represents the internal, evil urge to prey on the weak — an urge hidden in the dark corners of every human soul. [4] Rosh Hashana and the days leading up to Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, are considered particularly propitious for this kind of rigorous soul-searching and spiritual cleansing.

Similarly, the German Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, (1808–1888), who sought to integrate modern culture with Jewish tradition, viewed the biblical battle against Amalek as a war of values rather than people:

[He] interprets the phrase “the memory of Amalek” as referring to a specific type of remembrance; when a society honors infamous strongmen who build their reputation through acts of violence, they are perpetuating the “memory of Amalek.” The world must stop glorifying savagery as heroic, and when that happens Amalek will disappear.[5]

Today, however, many people in Israel and beyond interpret Amalek through the lens of Rabbi Meir Kahane (1932-1990). Kahane was an American Jew who settled in Israel and was even elected to the Knesset (Israeli parliament) in 1984. At the time, his extremist, racist ideas were shunned by the Israeli mainstream, and he was banned from running for re-election in 1988. Decades later, his ideas have become normalized. [6] Current Israeli officials openly invoke the name of Amalek when calling for the total physical destruction of Palestinians following the October 2023 attack on southern Israel. Consequently, it is no surprise that soldiers chant “Amalek” as they devastate the Gaza Strip and its inhabitants.[7]

This situation highlights a radical incompatibility between the modern political ideology of Zionism and the traditional Rabbinic Judaism that developed over the last two millennia. The founding fathers of Zionism were quite honest about their resolve to abandon traditional Judaism, which they deeply abhorred and openly disdained. They rejected its historical emphasis on peace, patience, and compromise. Instead, they created a martial nationalistic culture inspired by 19th-century European exclusionary nationalism and a literal, non-rabbinic reading of biblical wars and conquests.

Because of this history, Zionists, as I have already argued, [8] cannot simply be accused of “straying” from Jewish moral values; they rejected them by design. In fact, several Israeli scholars and rabbis openly recognize this split. They argue that their movement Dati-Leumi, National Judaism, follows an entirely different set of principles and values known as “the Torah of the Land of Israel.”

Because, the Zionist understanding of what it means to be Jewish is radically opposed to the traditional Rabbinic Judaism, it is somewhat missing the point to criticize Israel for betraying its self-proclaimed status as a “Jewish state.” After all, the term “Jewish” is not a legally protected geographic trademark of quality French wines (appellation d’origine contrôlée). Anyone can claim the mantle of Judaism, which has no centralized human authority like the Vatican to decide which kind of Judaism is legitimate and which is not.

What is clear is that largely incompatible values are now on display within different communities claiming to practice Judaism. Many mainstream synagogues around the world proudly banners declaring “We Stand with Israel!” and invite Israeli officials to speak during Rosh Hashana services. Meanwhile, other Jewish communities — often younger and outside established institutions — pray for an end to Israel’s murder, oppression and displacement of Palestinians.

This creates a deep spiritual crisis: how can Jews repent for the crimes committed in their name in Gaza if they cannot stop the destruction, repair the damage, or even ask the victims for foregiveness? These are agonizing questions to ponder during the Vidui, the traditional confession of sins recited during the High Holy Days.

To address this, some groups have added contemporary clarifications to the ancient liturgy. For example, Independent Jewish Voices in Canada suggested the following addition:

Bagadnu (we betrayed). We have betrayed the Jewish value that every life contains an entire universe by dehumanising and demonising Palestinians. Everyone: ashamnu, (we are guilty). Our politicians, media, and mainstream institutions are complicit in laying the groundwork to allow for this genocide by spreading false accusations that are based in racism that is anti-Palestinian, Orientalist, Islamaphobic, and anti-Arab.[9]

Individual Israeli soldiers tormented by their crimes may genuinely wish to repent for what they have done to the Palestinians. The recent documentary NAZA (a Hebrew military acronym for “collateral damage”) shows a few such veterans.[10] But to repent, these soldiers must unlearn deep-seated values and beliefs taught to them since kindergarten. The prominent Israeli author Amos Oz (1939-2018) described these beliefs with sharp sarcasm long ago:

Our sufferings have granted us immunity papers, as it were, a moral carte blanche. After what all those dirty goyim [non-Jews] have done to us, none of them is entitled to preach morality to us. We, on the other hand, have carte blanche, because we were victims and have suffered so much. Once a victim, always a victim, and victimhood entitles its owners to a moral exemption.[11]

Within the traditional values of Judaism, spiritual discipline requires focusing on what you have done wrong, both individually and collectively. This is difficult because it is always easier to condemn someone else than to examine oneself. Sliding into external blame leads to the grave sin of self-righteousness.

This poses a crucial question: do Jews who abhor Israel’s actions share the same collective identity as the soldiers reveling in genocidal bacchanalia in Gaza? Tribal loyalty suggests including them, but it is the same loyalty that underpins unconditional support for Israel—“my country, right or wrong.” A growing number of Jews are concluding that true loyalty belongs to shared moral values and ideals, not biological kinship. They feel no connection to the state in West Asia that claims to act on their behalf. In their understanding of Judaism, there is simply no room for Zionism and Israel. Can they find common ground with those for whom Israel has become alpha and omega of their Jewish identity?

Judaism has experienced many splits in its history. But this time the division is more profound than before. Past rifts – such as the rise of Hasidism, Orthodoxy, Reform Judaism and Jewish Renewal, to name a few – revolved around differences in how to worship God. This time, the division is far more profound because disagreement concerns the very object of worship, which for many has become the Zionist state itself. Only time will tell how Judaism evolves in the face of this dramatic discord.

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[1] See, for example, my book on the subject, which came out twenty years ago: Yakov M. Rabkin, A Threat from within: A Century of Jewish Opposition to Zionism, Halifax, NS: Fernwood/New York: Bloomsbury, 2006.

[2] https://www.sefaria.org/Siddur_Edot_HaMizrach%2C_Bedtime_Shema.5?lang=bi&with=all&lang2=en

[3] Deuteronomy 25:17-19.

[4] For example, Zohar, 3:160a; http://berdichev.org/amalek.htm

[5] https://jewishjournal.com/commentary/opinion/344089/amalek-and-the-problem-of-human-cruelty/

[6] https://mondoweiss.net/2020/01/kahane-the-prophet/

[8] https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/dont-blame-israel-for-violating-jewish-ethics/

[9] https://www.ijvcanada.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Days-of-Awe-5785.docx-compressed.pdf;

[10] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/sep/10/secret-systems-used-by-israel-in-mass-killings-of-gaza-civilians-revealed-in-new-film

[11] Oz, Amos, The Slopes of Lebanon, San Diego, Harcourt, Brace and Jovanovich, 1989, p. 40.

Yakov M. Rabkin