In the U.S., the demand for Reform and Conservative synagogue rabbis has been outpacing supply. Now, Gabby Deutsch reports, congregations searching for clergy face an additional problem:

A large Conservative synagogue on the East Coast came face-to-face with the divide between some young rabbis and the synagogues they hope to serve last year. When several candidates applied for a rabbinical position at the synagogue, the congregation’s search committee was thrilled to be in the increasingly rare position of having options—and to their surprise, one of the first candidates they interviewed came in eager to critique the synagogue’s approach to Israel and armed with a plan to push it to the left.

Officially, Zionism is a key pillar of all three major Jewish denominations in the U.S. But in the more progressive Reform and Conservative movements, some prominent rabbis are raising the alarm about a small but significant number of rabbinical students and early-career rabbis who identify as non-Zionist or anti-Zionist, and who lack the connection to Israel that has for decades been a key part of what it means to be Jewish in the diaspora.

A November poll from the Jewish Electorate Institute found that more than 90 percent of Reform, Conservative, and Orthodox Jews identified as emotionally attached to Israel.

Israel’s goals of freeing the hostages and defeating Hamas (the latter necessary to prevent further hostage taking) are to some extent contradictory, since Yahya Sinwar, the ruler of the Gaza Strip, will only turn over hostages in exchange for concessions. But Jacob Nagel remains convinced that Jerusalem should continue to pursue both goals:

Only consistent military pressure on Hamas can lead to the hostages’ release, either through negotiation or military operation. There’s little chance of reaching a deal with Hamas using current approaches, including the latest Egyptian proposal. Israeli concessions would only encourage further pressure from Hamas.

There is no incentive for Hamas to agree to a deal, especially since it believes it can achieve its full objectives without one. Unfortunately, many contribute to this belief, mainly from outside of Israel, but also from within.

Recent months saw Israel mistakenly refraining from entering Rafah for several reasons. Initially, the main [reason was to try] to negotiate a deal with Hamas. However, as it became clear that Hamas was uninterested, and its only goal was to return to its situation before October 7—where Hamas and its leadership control Gaza, Israeli forces are out, and there are no changes in the borders—the deal didn’t mature.