Reflections as October 7 Nears

Dear OneBeach Community,

As we near the anniversary of the horrors of October 7 and its devastating aftermath, we see a new escalation of tensions in the region.

I realize that there are no words left to say about the human costs of this war. I know that all touched by this conflict are experiencing profound sadness, anger, and even rage. These emotions are completely understandable, but I suggest the world has more than enough anger and rage.  

Ancient Greek philosopher Plato created a hierarchy of knowledge and wrote that the highest form of knowledge is empathy; the lowest is opinion. My wish is that we could, as we reflect on the war, pursue empathy.  

Even on our campus, colleagues and students have been labeled with derogatory terms and pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli posters and flags have been vandalized. What if we stopped name-calling and started listening? The pain felt by families who have lost children transcends national boundaries. The agony of displacement and pervasive terror is not particular to one faith or ethnicity. As humans, we are all more alike than different, but we often seem to magnify differences rather than promote a shared humanity.

All major religions have a version of the commandment, “Thou shalt not kill.” That commandment has a long history of being ignored and rationalized away with protestations that take many forms: just war, self-defense, revenge, revolution, and, strangely, that God is on the side of the aggressor.  

Instead of killings and rage, I wonder if we can reflect on how to promote peace. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” I understand the attraction toward darkness and hate in times like these, but these are inevitable companions of more war, more loss of innocent lives, and more broken families.  

I hope our campus community can be the light that leads us to reconcile with each other and join forces to work for peace on our campus and in our world.

Jane Close Conoley, Ph.D.
President