What Would Leonard Say?

“What would Leonard say?” Many of us have wondered how our beloved teacher and friend, Rabbi Leonard Beerman, would respond to the current moment—the long nightmare that began on October 7, 2023, and that has continued with such devastation in Gaza ever since.

In his last sermon from 2014, Leonard described the raging conflagration of that day in this way: “Another war in Gaza. The outrages perpetrated by Hamas, the thousands of rockets deployed, thousands of Israelis rushing for shelters, living in fear, the many Hamas tunnels burrowing their way into the borders of Israel.”

And then, with his characteristic sharpness and equanimity, he called attention to “(a)nother 500 children of Gaza killed by the Israel Defense Forces, with callous disregard for their lives.” Leonard contemplated what word to use to capture what had taken place in Gaza: “Is that not…a massacre? Massacre, slaughter, callous disregard for life—does it really make any difference?” What did it matter, he meant, when the principle of upholding the dignity of all human life was so blithely disregarded?

And here we are again. Another war in Gaza, but one of indescribably larger scale than in 2014. What would Leonard say? It is reasonable to assume that Leonard, in line with many scholars and observers today, would conclude that what Israel has done in Gaza over the past twenty-one months is a genocide. Yes, he would also maintain that October 7 was an abomination, a crime against humanity, and a rending of the human soul. And yes, he would demand the return of the long-suffering Israeli hostages. But then he would proceed to describe Israel’s killing of 60,000 Gazans, including some 20,000 children, as a violation of all that Judaism holds sacred, as a moral blemish of world-historical proportions. He would understand that many would regard him as naïve, one-sided, and self-hating. But he would be undaunted in the face of such suffering inflicted by the Jewish state in the name of the defense of Jews.

As members of the board of the Foundation that keeps alive his legacy, we must follow in his path. The brutality being inflicted by Israel against Gazans is intolerable and must stop. International law demands it. Jewish morality demands it. Human decency demands it. Now!