For Palestinians and Israelis

Most of us have deeply held moral beliefs that tell us not to mistreat other people. In Judaism, this is known as the Golden Rule. Rabbi Hillel the Elder once said “to which is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow. That is the whole Torah, all the rest is commentary.” He drew his words from Leviticus 19:18 which tells us to “love thy neighbor as thyself.” Perhaps this is the main lesson of the struggle between Palestinians and Israelis. 

The Holocaust taught us all how horrible it is to think badly of another group or to mistreat them. Maybe it’s because of the horrors of that event, but Jewish people have been on the forefront of the civil rights and civil liberties movements for many years – perhaps because they have so deeply internalized that lesson, a lesson taught to them over and over again in Jewish history, after many years of persecution.

Learn more about Martin Niemoller at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum here .

End the Support of Violence

Perhaps it is time to change slogans that say “We Support Israel” to “We support our Israeli and our Palestinian brothers and sisters.” Perhaps now is the time to end the support of violence. As the world changes, as we become more aware of the suffering of others around us, shouldn’t we embrace a more peaceful means to assure that our Palestinian brothers and sisters can return to their homes and villages?

Can’t we find a way to help Palestinians and Israelis live in peace alongside each other? As Americans – calling such a unique melting pot our home – we know that people of all religious faiths can live together in peace.

Many of us wait for the day when such peace reigns in the Holy Land – when there is peace for Palestinians and Israelis that is based on justice, and not on expelling and killing Palestinians. Perhaps Jews (known in the Old Testament as the “Chosen People”) will be the ones to beat swords into plowshares.

Perhaps they can find a way to use the tremendous funds now spent on weapons and walls to repatriate refugee families. Maybe for all of us, the shared goal is to see a peace in the Holy Land that would be a win-win for all the families living there (with a tourism economy with jobs and a growing economy for everyone).

As our beliefs, opinions, and knowledge of current events evolve, so do the ways we search for peace. Judaism, Christianity and Islam all teach that violence is wrong. It is wrong to expel peaceful families from their homes.

Interested in learning about the Israel-Palestine conflict
and how it’s affected the lives of the people that lived in the Holy Land?

Visit the Promised Land Museum to see how you can host an exhibit.

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