There are certain years which Israel and the broad Jewish world consider sacred — deeply consequential moments in time in which the Jewish state was forever transformed.
These years—1948, 1967, 1973, 1982 and 1995—are burned into the Jewish collective memory. They are years which we are still struggling to understand and to make sense of – years that continue to shape who we are and who we are yet to become.
These years now include 2023, yet another moment in time which forever changed reality for the state of Israel and for the Jewish people. As the new year is on the horizon, let us consider the place of 2023 amongst its siblings.
1948: It was in 1948 when Israel declared its independence and fought a war against five Arab nations seeking to destroy it. 1948 marked the end of the very long exile of the Jewish people but also the beginning of a seeming endless struggle to defend borders and to achieve real security.
1967: It was in 1967 when Israel was forced to respond to Egyptian aggression and to fight a six-day war in which boundaries were expanded and Jerusalem was united. 1967 taught Israelis that they had real power but also instigated an Arab and Muslim resentment that has shaped the modern middle east and has led to international contempt.
1973: Just a year after the disastrous terrorist attack at the 1972 Munich Olympics, 1973 proved that Israel’s ongoing dangers were real. It was in 1973 when Israel was first attacked with its head down. 1973 reminded Israel of its vulnerability and led to the eventual ouster of the Labor government that had ruled since the state’s founding.
1982: It was in 1982 when Israel was led into a war in Lebanon whose goals were never clearly articulated. If 1973 was a year in which trust in Israel’s government was first challenged, 1982 was a year in which political wariness became an Israeli national pastime.
1995: It was in 1995 when Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated and hopes for peace with the Palestinians demolished. Although the Oslo process continued through Shimon Peres and eventually Ehud Barak, the assassination of Rabin in November of 1995 by a fanatic Jewish settler demonstrated the power of hatred within Israeli society.
And then 2023.
2023: It was on October 7th, 2023 when Israel learned how deeply susceptible to violence it remained. 2023 demonstrated the powerful antisemitism that continues to exist outside of Israel’s borders and the ineptitude of some Israeli politicians to protect its citizens from it. 2023 reminded Israel and world Jewry of its existential loneliness amongst the nations and peoples of the world. 2023 also brought the Jewish people together. Not since 1967 has the Jewish world been so united in its support of the Jewish state and of Jewish peoplehood.
As 2024 begins, there are so many unresolved questions as to the meaning of the consequential years that have shaped Israel as we know it today. There are certainly more questions than there are answers.
But throughout all of these years, one thing has not changed. Israel has always remained a nation of hope and the Jewish people have always been dreamers. Through all of the obstacles and challenges that these years have presented us, the resolve to move forward has never ceased.
As 2024 begins, we seek peace and security for our people and for the world which they inhabit. We resolve to spend this year caring more about our community, about Israel and about the values that our tradition has taught us.
A happy and a healthy new year to everyone!
