We can only provide words of healing if we know what ails others! There is no way of making our way through sickness and disease without the care and concern of others. We must loudly declare, “This is no time to try to go it alone!”

He said to the group, “Be proud to be a Jew.” He continued, “I have heard that some Jews are afraid. They take down their mezuzahs and hide their stars of David. Put those mezuzahs back up. Be proud to be a Jew.” Although still confined to a wheelchair, he stands taller than we often do. Ordinary Israelis are indeed extraordinary.

I do not believe Israel is using food as a weapon. It understandably prioritizes the lives of its hostages still held in Gaza’s tunnels over ordinary Gazans. I have confidence there will be an honest accounting of what went so terribly wrong, and I hope a thoughtful reckoning. I believe in Israel’s character. I have faith in its military leaders despite its soldiers’ occasional callousness.

We often think that our synagogue services, and the prayers we recite, are somehow disconnected from our everyday, ordinary lives. They are not. They may seem like they are only about God but instead they are about changing our frame of mind.

If we believe in free speech, then we must believe it for our elected officials. We have a voice. It is heard every November. Until then, let’s argue even with those with whom we disagree. Let’s not confuse our friends—however uncomfortable they may make us sometimes feel—with our enemies.

Yes, we must defend ourselves. Yes, we must protect and safeguard our citizens and rescue our hostages. Yes, first the hostages must come home. And yes, a nation can prioritize its own people’s lives over those of others. I make no apology for loving my family more than others. Yet, conquering and subjugating were never part of our dreams.