This weekend saw two religious occurrences of different significance. The Muslim world welcomed Ramadan, a month of spiritual reflection, discipline, and renewal, while the Jewish calendar marked the arrival of the month of Adar, a time of joy, resilience, and salvation from destruction.
These two months – sacred in their respective traditions – offer a stark contrast in how faith is invoked in times of war. While Ramadan should inspire humility, peace, and concern for the suffering of others, it is exploited by the likes of Hamas and the Iranian regime to justify violence, oppression, and destruction.
Meanwhile, Adar reminds Jews of their historical survival against those who sought their annihilation, namely the Persian Empire, and offers a different lens through which to view Israel’s war with Hamas.
For Muslims, Ramadan is a time of fasting, empathy, and purification and is a period when believers are meant to restrain from anger, avoid harming others, and practice self-control. It is a month that teaches gratitude, particularly for the basic necessities of life, and calls for acts of charity and kindness to the less fortunate.
But in Gaza, Hamas has twisted Ramadan’s meaning beyond recognition. Instead of protecting the vulnerable, it hides behind civilians, turning them into human shields. Instead of calling for peace, it refuses ceasefires that could bring relief to its people.
Instead of fasting to feel the pain of the hungry, Hamas leaders feast in luxury while ordinary Gazans struggle to survive. How will the remaining living hostages pass this month while remaining in captivity? Ramadan, which should be a time of self-restraint, is being used by Hamas as a shield for continued violence, hostage-taking, and terror.
Meanwhile, Israel, despite being at war, has taken all necessary procedures to ensure the respectful observance by Muslims in the country, including Israel Police’s stringent policies to keep worshipers safe and avoid trouble.
The paradox is glaring: The Jewish state is doing its best to ensure that its Muslim citizens can observe their holiest month, while Hamas continues to violate the most basic tenets of Islam.
The month of Adar
In contrast, Jews enter Adar, a month of joy and redemption. The Talmud teaches: “When Adar enters, joy increases.” But this is not a naïve, passive joy – it is a joy born from the Jewish experience and the Jews’ triumph over its enemies.
Adar is the month of Purim, the holiday that celebrates the defeat of Haman, the Persian official who plotted to annihilate the Jewish people. The parallels between Haman and Hamas/Iran are impossible to ignore:Haman sought the total destruction of Jews in the Persian Empire; Hamas and Iran seek the destruction of the Jewish state.
Haman’s hatred is ideological, rooted in deep-seated antisemitism. Hamas’s charter openly called for Israel’s destruction since its inception, not as a political dispute but as a religious duty.
In the Purim story, the Jews did not seek conflict, but when faced with a threat to their existence, they defended themselves and endured, just as Israel does today in the wake of October 7, confronting those who seek its destruction.
Adar teaches that Jewish survival is not a given but must be fought for and defended. Just as the Jewish people overcame Haman in ancient Persia, we will, as a nation, overcome Hamas in modern Gaza and the ayatollahs in Tehran.
Here lies the contrast between Adar and Ramadan, between Israel and Hamas, and between those who use faith to uplift and those who use it to destroy.
This war is not just military; it is moral. It is a battle between those who celebrate life and those who glorify death.Israel, even in war, continues to celebrate life, freedom, and survival.
Hamas, even in the holy month of Ramadan, continues to spread suffering, destruction, and oppression.
This Adar, as Jews rejoice in their historical triumph over enemies who sought their destruction, the message must be clear: Israel will prevail, just as it has, time and time again.
If Ramadan is to remain a sacred month, Muslim leaders must reject Hamas’s perversion of Islam and demand that faith be used for peace, not terror. This war is not about religion – it is about who truly values life. And that is a battle Israel will always fight and always win.