This week’s guest, who wishes to remain anonymous, describes herself as “a pacifist, a poet, a Jewish grandmother, [and] a bubbe.” She became a Friend in 2006, when the Israeli-Hezbollah war began. “I couldn’t sit back and watch the carnage of that war and do nothing,” she recalls. “I had witnessed pacifism with awe among Quakers. I saw them walking the talk.”
“The Quakers served the oppressed,” she says, “and I was impressed.… I wanted to be part of a place that honored pacifism. I did not, do not, have a conscience for war. It is not the answer.” Since October 7, she has been absorbing everything she can about the war in Gaza, “trying to figure out… why are more people not outraged witnessing this carnage? Where are Quakers now?”
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Transcript:
I am a Jewish Quaker. I am a Quaker Jew. I am a Pacifist, a Poet, a Jewish Grandmother, A Bubbe, and this is my message.
And this is my Message!!! I became a member of the Religious Society of Friends in 2006, when the Israeli Hezbollah War began. I couldn’t sit back and watch the carnage of that war and do nothing, my heart was broken… I had witnessed “pacifism” in awe, among Quakers, I saw them walking the talk. I worked among Quakers, and learned first-hand of the work of Conscientious Objectors who put their lives on the line during WWII in threatening ways, but through humanitarian efforts. They were unable to pick up arms and kill, they were pacifists. The Quakers served the oppressed and I was impressed. AFSC received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1947 for their humanitarian efforts during the war. I wanted to be part of a place that honored pacifism. I did not, do not, have the conscience for war, it is not the answer.
I got involved with the Middle East Working Group out of my Yearly Meeting. We sponsored a YAF Mission to Israel Palestine, where 12 YAF witnessed the Israeli Occupation first hand. We lobbied Friends Fiduciary, to divest from companies profiting from the Occupation. They were the first faith-based organization to do this.
I’ve been involved in this war 24/7, since October 7th. From my shattered place, I have been learning as much as I can, trying to figure out, what’s this all about? Why are more people not outraged witnessing this carnage? Why is America, so complicit? Where are Quakers now? If God, he, she, they, them, if, they are overseeing this, I believe it is through technology. We are witnessing this carnage in vivid color, what will we do, who will we be? Back when America coined Manifest Destiny, there were no cameras or iPhones. The Torah says, Choose Life, what will you choose, life or death? I challenge every Quaker, to ask themselves what does pacifism mean for you, and to come to consensus in one’s meeting, is that possible? It is the foundation of Quakerism!!! There are many already doing this work, among Christians, Jews, and Moslems, but more need to step up, and from this country, confront the complicity of our government, that is really all that we can do!!! And I believe Quakers have an opportunity to be at the forefront of a Pacifist movement, among other Christian faiths.
I am reclaiming Judaism from Zionism, and have found an opening, through a courageous Rabbi, who actually worked for American Friends Service Committee, he started a non- Zionist Synagogue, in Chicago, and I’ve been attending. It is packed with pacifists, who are putting themselves on the line, they are involved with Jewish Voices for Peace, Not in My Name, and this gives me hope, for Judaism, and for the next generation. This movement was not around twenty years ago.
If I could create the perfect Religion, for me, it would be, to bring Pacifism to my Friday night Shabbat Table. I am going to read a poem; it is called Another Mother’s Child; this poem is for everyone.
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil – Isaiah 5:20
I heard the vengeance in their hearts
I felt their anguish, their pain
But mostly I felt shame…
Is the child of another mother’s blood not worthy of the same?
They are not the ones to blame
It’s all the same, and I take claim for that blame
Precious and damned, the child of another mother’s blood
Please, please, we all must die, but how is the wonder?
To whom shall we sit tonight, for whom shall we light the candles of death
I sit forlorn, a call for the soul of a people
For whom I hear the bells toll
For whom with obstinance I will grieve, and remember
How hard the bombs fall
Is the blood of another mother’s child not worthy the candles of my plight?
I cry tonight, for the soul of a people
For somewhere it has died, and somehow must rise out of the ashes of antiquity
Let us all mourn, for death is but a burdensome plight that befalls us all
Tonight I cry for the souls of a people
Who live by the shame of those who carry their name?
I cry for the souls of a people tonight
I will not give up this fight, for the shame that I carry
Is in the heart of the vengeance I listen to, but do not hear
I cry for the souls of a people for fear that from the ashes a spark might not ignite
Out of the thunder and wonder of that child in the night
I cry for the soul of my people tonight, out of fright!
Discussion Question:
- What are your views on pacifism in light of the carnage in Gaza?
The views expressed in this video are of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views of Friends Journal or its collaborators.
I am also a Jewish Quaker and I stand with this “bubbe”. You can see a piece I wrote grappling with my Jewish identity in the face of the current hostilities in the Winter 2024 edition of the Northern Yearly Meeting Journal: https://northernyearlymeeting.org/publications/nym-journal/ My wife, yet another Jewish Quaker, was instrumental in the creation of the public minute on Israel and Palestine that you can find in the Social Justice section of the Madison (WI) Friends website: https://madisonfriends.org/ She and other Friends have been actively raising their voices about this issue in our community. Thank you for sharing your heart.
This was an especially powerful witness to me on this Maundy Thursday. Although I do not observe the occasion as I did for many years in Protestant Christianity, its themes continue to penetrate my heart and animate my mind, and those themes of painful parting from those we love, including both those who give themselves to us and for us and those who betray us and seek to take life from us and from others, are echoed in the testimony of our Jewish Friend. Let us wail and moan tonight for all the children of every age who are being taken from their loved ones and loving ones in this season. But let us also live in the hope that is the rising of Spring from the darkness of Winter’s night.
This Friend speaks my heart.
We’re wrestling with what it means to live the peace testimony in my monthly meeting and in the veterans oriented organization I serve.
This Jewish friend speaks my mind.