Selected Responsa
The siddur with its daily public and private prayers constantly pleads with God to bring peace to the entire world. Modern Jews , Reform, Orthodox, or Conservative continue the path of countless generations as we pray to God for world-wide peace and often conclude our services with the biblical blessing“the Lord give you peace”(Nu 6:26).
Modern Jewish thinkers such as Lazarus, Hirsch, Cohen, Baeck, Buber , and Cronbach have stressed the need to work for peace. They sustain this Messianic hope through their writings. A small group of Reform rabbis early in the twentieth century led by Judah Magnes were active pacifists, but their influence soon waned. The goal of permanent peace continued to be fostered by poets and writers in the Jewish communities of Europe , Israel and the North America .
None of this, however led to an ideology of pacifism. Biblical as well as Maccabean and Roman times demonstrate a willingness 10 fight. As long as a Jewish nation existed, warfare persisted.
When the Jewish leadership understood that further struggles against Rome would not succeed, they channeled national hopes into a Messianic dream, God would eventually bring about a national rebirth. This would occur along with world wide peace.
This was a kind of practical pacifism; it did not prohibit warfare, but left all of this in the hands of God . In the practical personal realm the right of personal self-defense was neve! questioned, but surrounded by halakhic restrictions. Personal an communal conflicts were settled through the bet din. Justice on this practical level brought peace.
Military service was not questioned in the Bible or the postbiblical literature as the Books of Maccabees clearly demonstrate The defeat by the Romans in 70 C.E. and again after the revolt of Bat Kochba in 134 C.E. brought the realization that further combat ha to be avoided. The dream of a self-governing state was changed 10 be Messianic The midrashic and talmudic literature minimized tales© conflict and heroism. The festival of Hannukah and centered aro” a minor miracle rather than military achievement. At the same time;