This year, Oct. 7 falls on the first day of Sukkot — almost exactly two years in the Hebrew calendar since I last saw my beloved son Daniel. He was with us for the first day of the festival and then the next morning I took him to the bus stop to return to his base at Nachal Oz.

Just a few days later, on that fateful Simchat Torah morning of Oct. 7, 2023, Daniel’s tank crew, known as “Tzevet Peretz,” fought an unbelievably brave battle against the first two waves of the Nuchba terrorists, the special forces unit of Hamas’ Al-Qassam Brigades, for two hours and 16 minutes. After repelling tens of terrorists and saving many lives, their tank was eventually overrun. Daniel fell with crew members Itay Chen and Tomer Leibowitz. Matan Angrest was wounded and taken hostage alive; the bodies of Daniel and Itay were taken to Gaza as well. 

As of the writing of these lines, that is where they all remain today. 

Oct. 7 will forever be a time of deep introspection, on a personal and collective level. As we commemorate the second anniversary of this protracted war, it is a time to reflect on all that has been lost and all that has been gained, on what pains us and what inspires us in this post-Oct. 7 era. 

Blindness and brilliance

Oct. 7, 2023 was the worst day in modern Jewish history since the Holocaust. No subsequent day compares to the magnitude of death and destruction, as well as the depth of depravity and barbarism experienced. I recently spoke with a member of ZAKA who collected body parts from the devastation of that day. He told me that he had been at the scenes of dozens of terror attacks — bus bombings, car rammings and other mass carnage over the past 30 years — yet none of that, as terrible as it was, compared to the sight of acts of torture and sadistic savagery. Not to mention the inhuman depravity of taking 251 hostages of all ages, with 48 cruelly remaining in Gaza as of the writing of these lines.

It was also a time of blunder and blindness by Israel’s military, intelligence and political establishment. With the leadership smitten by a plague of darkness and a policy of appeasement and containment toward a brutal, self-destructive enemy, the problems that had been kicked down the road exploded with devastating consequences. At the same time, internal fighting in Israel over the proposed judicial reform in the months leading up to the Oct. 7 attacks put the country toward an internal collision course. 

Israel still must undertake a full introspection and reckoning regarding the tragic mistakes that led to the events of Oct. 7, 2023.

And yet, in equal measure, no day in modern Jewish history revealed so much brilliance — so much courage, clarity and unmatched self-sacrifice and heroism. A young generation that many had characterized as a self-absorbed TikTok generation emerged as a remarkable example of mesirut nefesh (self-sacrifice) and selfless commitment to our country and cause; a generation no less heroic than the defenders of 1967 and 1973, the founders of the State of Israel, the Maccabees, perhaps even King David’s army. They have earned their place among the pantheon of our greatest Jewish heroes and defenders.

Where the system failed and froze, individuals fought and rose. The blindness of the establishment was matched only by the brilliance of personal responsibility and courage of countless people. Thousands upon thousands of soldiers and civilians alike left their homes and altruistically put their lives on the line to stem the tide of terror. Where the state stumbled, the individual spirit prevailed. 

The superhuman self-sacrifice shown on that Oct. 7 has continued uninterrupted for two whole years. Reservists — many of them parents and even grandparents — have left their families for repeated tours of duty, some serving their eighth tour. The spirit of service displayed by them and their families, who are paying a terrible price, reflects the best of what it means to be a Jew.

Two years on

Today, as Israel faces threats on its borders, growing hostility around the world and the return of internal divisiveness, it is time for us to commit to what Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik called the dual covenants of fate and destiny. 

The covenant of fate is that we are in this together, and nothing fortifies the Jewish people more than standing together in unity, despite our diverse views, at a time of threat and challenge. We dare not let the internal fissures of Oct. 6, 2023 return; rather, we must commit and recommit to our deep sense of Jewish solidarity and our collective fate as a historic community.

The covenant of destiny calls upon us to defend with confidence and boldness our Jewish mission in the world. The Jewish state in Israel and Jewish communities around the world are under threat. Each and every one of us is called upon to stand up in defense of our people wherever we find ourselves, with faith and fortitude. The antisemitic threat of our enemies today is not against the Jewish people per se or against practicing Judaism, but rather against the existence of a Jewish state — Zionism. We must defend Jewish identity by affirming the absolute legitimacy of a sustainable Jewish state in Eretz Yisrael, and the inseparable bond it has with Jewish destiny. There must be no daylight between Judaism and Zionism and the indivisible connection between Jewish identity and destiny — between the People, Torah and the Land and State of Israel at the heart of our story.

Our enemies today wish to weaken us in two ways: to weaken the internal bonds of Jewish solidarity that bind us together, and to sever the connection between Judaism and the Jewish state. It is precisely these connections that we must strengthen — courageously and heroically — wherever we find ourselves in the year 5786.

Rabbi Doron Perez is the executive chairman of the World Mizrachi movement.