J-Street featuring Open Letter to Gen Z and Millennial Jews

Dear Joshua, As we approach Rosh Hashanah, I wanted to share a powerful reflection from Rabbi Joshua Hammerman, a longtime member of J Street’s Rabbinic and Cantorial Cabinet. In an open letter to Gen Z and Millennial Jews, Rabbi Hammerman speaks directly to the complicated and painful moment many young Jews are navigating – and offers a deeply Jewish vision of what it can mean to reclaim pride, hope and moral agency. He writes, “The Judaism of victimhood, violence and vengeance is not the Judaism that has prevailed over the centuries. It is not the essence of our Jewish tradition, to revel in conquest and cling to a vision of blood and soil. With all the tragedies that have afflicted Jews and Palestinians, we know that at the heart of darkness burns a special light. We see it in countless acts of courage and love... Judaism, YOUR Judaism, desires peace over anything else. We are not ‘genocidal.’ Our purpose for existing on this planet is to eliminate genocide, because genocide was done to us. Elie Wiesel said that Jews have a moral duty to speak out and intervene against indifference. You should be proud to take ownership of Wiesel’s legacy. Sometimes that means taking tough stands even against the government of our democratic Jewish state of Israel. We have needed to do that all too often recently." I hope you’ll read Rabbi Hammerman’s full reflection, and consider sharing it with the college students and young adults in your community who may find this message particularly meaningful as we enter the new year. Read the full reflection → An Open Letter to Gen Z and Millennial Jews L’Shanah Tovah, Emily Kaiman Director of Jewish Communal Engagement, J Street