Remembering Hersh

Last night, Jews around the world received the devastating news that Hamas murdered six hostages in the tunnels beneath Gaza, including American Hersh Goldberg-Polin. While every innocent life lost carries the same weight for the families and loved ones, the pain of losing Hersh brings a familiar kind of agony, reminiscent of the horror that began when Hamas massacred over 1,000 people on October 7th.

Hersh became a symbol of hope for the American and Jewish communities. The world witnessed his brutal capture from the Nova festival, where Hamas blew off half his arm with a grenade lobbed into a bomb shelter full of innocent festival-goers. We watched as they violently dragged him out and threw him into the back of a pickup truck, his arm shredded to pieces.

Hersh’s parents, Jon and Rachel, embodied unimaginable strength alongside Hersh. They shared their resilience with the world through countless TV appearances, including on stage at the DNC, where they expressed their hope of one day seeing their only son again.

When a Hamas propaganda video of Hersh surfaced in recent months, it became clear that the suffering he endured on October 7th was only the beginning. In the video, we saw his poorly amputated arm, his gaunt appearance, and heard the fear in his voice. Early reports on the conditions of the six dead hostages found in the tunnels below Gaza confirm the unimaginably inhumane conditions they endured for the past 331 days.

The timing of this news made it especially difficult to accept. Over the past weeks, as fighting in the north with Hezbollah escalated and threats from Iran seemed to come and go daily, Israel and Hamas attempted to finalize a ceasefire deal that would free the hostages. News circulated that a deal might be close, giving further hope to the loved ones and the world at large that Hersh and his fellow hostages might once again be reunited with their families to begin their healing and resume their lives.

The deal never came.

And so, that dreaded feeling we confronted on October 7th has returned: Hopelessness. This is the exact feeling that Hamas has always sought to inflict on Israelis, Jews, Americans, and even Palestinians. Hopelessness gives fanatical tyrants and despots their power. It diminishes the resolve of people to believe in a better future. Hopelessness is a victory for Hamas.

But Hersh showed us something even more powerful than hope: Perseverance.

For 331 days, Hersh endured the most unimaginable circumstances on earth. He pushed on until his future was forcefully taken from him. The memory of Hersh Goldberg-Polin and those who perished alongside him must inspire us to keep pushing; to keep believing in the face of hopelessness. In this sense, Hersh defeated Hamas.

We must remember that there are still at least sixty more hostages believed to be alive. Sixty more Hershes. There are at least thirty five hostages who perished, whose families deserve a proper burial. There are fallen soldiers and soldiers fighting to root out Hamas. There are millions of innocent civilians who deserve a better future, free from the rule of Hamas, which has brought them nothing but pain.

May Hersh’s memory be a lesson for all of humanity that no matter how cruel and evil we learn to be to each other, we should never abandon our belief that goodness can and will find a way to persevere, despite how hopeless things may seem.

May the memory of all innocent lives lost be a blessing for peace. Baruch Dayan HaEmet.