Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch, a longtime peace advocate and prominent Reform rabbi declared in a sermon on Saturday that he has lost hope for a two-state solution in his lifetime, citing continued Palestinian rejectionism and incitement. He said that he still dreams of a future where coexistence is possible, though.

Hirsch, of the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in New York, lamented what he described as the definitive end of his lifelong hope for a peaceful two-state solution between Israelis and Palestinians.

"This was the week that finally ended the hope, at least in my lifetime, for a Palestinian state and a Jewish state existing side by side," Hirsch said. “The Palestinians themselves strangled this fragile hope in its crib.”

For decades, Hirsch has been an outspoken advocate for peace and coexistence. He remained steadfast in his optimism even in the face of significant setbacks, including the collapse of the Oslo Accords and the violent aftermath of the Camp David Summit in 2000, maintaining his belief that a two-state solution was still achievable.
Hostage posters seen at the Hostages' Square in Tel Aviv, January 14, 2025 (credit: REUTERS/KAI PFAFFENBACH)
Hostage posters seen at the Hostages' Square in Tel Aviv, January 14, 2025 (credit: REUTERS/KAI PFAFFENBACH)
“I have been my entire life, in all of the 25 years since the collapse of the Oslo Accords, committed to peace and coexistence. Even after the Palestinians rejected a state offer to them at Camp David on practically all of the territory they said they wanted, and then launched a brutal killing spree in the restaurants, schools, hospitals, buses, and streets of Israel, even then, I never gave up hope,” he said.

Turning point

This past week marked a turning point for him. His disillusionment stems from continued Palestinian rejectionism, ongoing incitement against Israel, and what he sees as a failure to foster a culture of moderation and tolerance within Palestinian society.
“Until such time as the Palestinians themselves say they want peaceful coexistence, two states living side by side, we must cease deluding ourselves that a two-state solution is available now,” he said. “It is harmful to us and to the Palestinians themselves, who are deprived of the international support they need to create a culture of moderation and toleration, educating their children to love peace rather than hate Jews.”
Despite his despair, Hirsch expressed a lingering hope that history might prove him wrong. “I hope I’m wrong,” he said. “I hope that within a decade, you pull out this sermon from our archives, wave it in my face, and offer the incontrovertible truth that I was wrong. Nothing would please me more.”
Citing the biblical vision of universal peace, he said: “I dream of the days when nations shall beat their swords into plowshares and spears into pruning hooks, when they shall learn war no more, and all shall sit under vine and fig tree, and none shall be afraid.”