What I Know & What I Don't Know: It's Okay to be Uncertain

Most Jews I know feel like the world has completely turned upside down since the horrific attacks by Hamas on Oct 7. Amidst the sadness, pain, fear, and despair is also a deep sense of confusion and mistrust. What should I believe? Whom can I trust? 

With opinions flying left and right, and lots of loud voices shouting into the ether, it is hard to be a voice of nuance. Of reason. Of uncertainty. I am writing this today to say loud and clear to my community: IT IS OKAY NOT TO KNOW.  It's okay not to know what you think and what you believe, especially as it relates to Israel and Gaza. It's okay to be wrestling with big questions about security, justice, freedom, the nature of good and evil. 

In that spirit, here are a few things I know and some things I don't know:

What I know:

• Hamas committed atrocities on Oct 7 that were unprovoked. There is absolutely NO justification for brutally murdering, injuring, and abducting civilians.
• Israel has a right to exist, and to be a Jewish state.
• Israel has a right to defend itself.
• Israel is not a "colonizing" power. The Israeli/Palestinian conflict is not a story of colonialism. 
• Palestinians deserve a country of their own (alongside Israel), with leadership whose goal is not to destroy Israel / kill Jews.
• I am personally dedicated - in my whole heart - to a two-state solution. As Thomas Friedman said in his excellent article Israel: From the Six-Day War to the Six-Front War, "If you are for a two-state solution, you are my friend and if you are against a two-state solution, you are not my friend."

What I don't know:

• What Israel should do next and whether a ground invasion of Gaza is the right choice or not
• How to dismantle Hamas
• How to free the captives
• How to get to a two-state solution, so that both Israelis and Palestinians can have self-determination and sovereignty, and live in peace and security.
• What can be done to help nurture/foster/encourage Palestinian leadership that is dedicated to the flourishing of Palestinians and a future Palestinian state alongside the flourishing of Israel / Israelis
• Whether to trust the current Israeli leadership, how to rid the Israeli government of extremists, and how to get to a new Israeli government that is dedicated to democracy, equality, and justice.
• How this will all unfold, how and when things will "end"

Where I turn for analysis about what's happening in Israel & Gaza:

• Israel Policy Forum (they are dedicated to a two-state solution, it's in their mission)
• The Shalom Hartman Institute, especially their podcasts

It's difficult to live with uncertainty.  It's difficult to live at a time when the news media make reports before facts are available. Before there's time to investigate and learn what happened. It's difficult when it feels like everyone jumps to conclusions and only sees things through one narrow lens. But in this time of heartache and pain, let us be counter-cultural by learning to live with uncertainty, with curiosity, and with patience.