(Never) again and again and again

The conflict in the Middle East is as complex as it is historic. It predates the establishment of the Jewish state in 1948 and, unfortunately, will probably continue well into the future. It is not a black-and-white issue, therefore, a swift and just resolution is virtually impossible.

That said, the recent bloodshed, perpetrated by Hamas, a militant terrorist organization, needs to be vehemently denounced by the international political community. I move within moderate ecclesial circles and liberal academic ones, and have hardly heard any voices of condemnation. I looked at the social media accounts of numerous scholars and clerics whom I admire. The chirping of crickets is deafening. With a cadre of politicians, academics, and clergy outwardly sympathizing with (and some even applauding the actions of ) Hamas, even in the United States, it is no wonder that such silence is ubiquitous.

There is no moral construct that justifies the kidnapping, rape, torture, and killing of innocent Israelis. When such heinous acts are fueled by antisemitism, they are beyond unconscionable.

This is not Islamophobia. Hamas embodies traditional Islam the same way that the Ku Klux Klan reflects orthodox Christianity. Both organizations are atrocious and neither epitomizes the “faith” they bastardized to legitimize their hateful ideologies.

I visited the Dachau concentration camp 33 years ago. At the exit of the camp, a living monument to the potential of inhumanity, there is a sign that reads “Never Again” in multiple languages. This testimonial calls upon us to embrace “the better angels of our nature,” as Abraham Lincoln so eloquently wrote. It also calls to mind the words, “Those who forget their history are condemned to repeat it.”

We remember our history quite well, but our hatred of one another possesses us to perpetuate it.

THE REV. JOHN TAMILIO III Beverly

Hamas embodies traditional Islam the same way that the Ku Klux Klan reflects orthodox Christianity.