As we mark the second anniversary of the attacks of October 7, we stand in a moment of great complexity. Little did we know how much the world would change on that day and how deep our divide would continue to grow.
For many in the Jewish community, the horror of that day including the killing of civilians, the abduction of hostages, and the shattering of ordinary life echoes across generations reminding us of the Holocaust. The months since have brought profound suffering as war has taken the lives of so many innocent people and torn apart families and communities.
When we turn to the lessons of the Holocaust for guidance, we know it is vital to preserve human dignity – no matter what. These lessons teach us to resist the pull of hatred and to recognize that the pain of one people does not erase the humanity of another.
This is not simple, nor is it easy. We want, and must demand, that Israeli hostages come home. We want, and must insist, that the killing of innocent people stops. Too often, we slip into competing over who is suffering more, as if pain were a contest to be won. Everyone’s pain is their own, and each person carries it in their own way.
The Holocaust teaches us we have choices.
We can choose to take action. We can stop and listen before we speak. We can wonder whether what we read or hear tells the whole story or is even accurate. We can consider compassion when someone disagrees with us. And while none of us can end this conflict, we can impact our families, our workplaces, and our communities into places where peace happens at our dinner table, differences are honored and humanity is seen.
As we remember the events of October 7, and everything that has followed, may we look to the lessons of the Holocaust to move us to moral clarity. Let’s speak up with respect, stop looking at people as “labels” that lead to dehumanization, and let’s believe in the power of ordinary people to make our own small corners of the world a little bit better, more humane.
Our hearts have great capacity for love of many things, even things seemingly at odds.