Ceasefire or Peace? Depends Who You Are

It almost felt like they were waiting for my last day to go through with the deal. October 9, 2025, was already circled on my calendar, weeks before it meant anything to the rest of the world. For me, it was the end of my third month of Miluim, my unit’s fifth round since the war began. I saw the news of the deal that morning when I woke up, and honestly, I was surprised it was really happening. But like everyone else, I felt a wave of excitement and relief at the prospect of the hostages finally coming home. It was as if the entire country could take a deep breath for the first time in two years. For months, their faces had been everywhere you looked, on bus stops, billboards, and storefronts. They came first in any conversation, prayer, and fight, until it felt that the hostages weren’t just in Gaza, but in a way, holding all of us there with them. The ones who would soon return were nothing but heroes who chose never to give up, because giving up would have meant Hamas had won.

As the details of the deal unfolded and hostages began to be freed, praise for Trump’s “impossible” achievement of peace in the Middle East poured in from politicians, analysts, and world leaders, with many even calling for him to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. After all the living hostages had returned, President Trump declared, “At long last we have peace in the Middle East… After years of suffering and bloodshed, the war in Gaza is over,” presenting the deal as both the end of the war and the beginning of a lasting peace in the region.

Meanwhile in Israel, huge “Thank You Trump” signs appeared and people openly expressed their gratitude, most weren’t thanking the United States for peace. Even Netanyahu, standing in the Knesset next to Trump, thanked him for his support, but not for peace. Across Israel, people were grateful for America’s help in pressuring Hamas to release the hostages, mixed with the understanding that there is still work to do. As Netanyahu put it, “The campaign is not over, there are still very great security challenges ahead of us… we will complete the victory that will shape our lives for many years.” Even the language reflected that difference. In English, it was called the “Gaza Peace Plan” or officially known as the ‘Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict.’ In Hebrew, however, it is referred to as the 21-Point Plan,’ or even just the ‘Gaza Plan.’ While we must recognize that as an undeniably a miraculous victory from Hashem revealed through human hands, it felt less like a complete ending and more of a turning point.

The way the deal was spoken about reflects how each nation inherently understands success. In the United States, this “peace” was described as a personal victory achieved by a group of individuals who had fulfilled their promises and checked the boxes of national interest. It plays to their nation’s cultural instinct that measures people, and their leaders, through their personal achievements and milestones.

This outlook is just the natural rhythm of a culture that finds meaning in the success of the individual. It is what happens when a people live without a shared divine or national mission. The same pattern appears in Jewish life in exile, though in a far more elevated form. In this reality, meaning naturally turns inward, with Hashem revealing His presence only within our personal “Arba Amot” of Halacha (Berachot 8a). The measure of success becomes the individual, how I can grow, how I can serve, how I can become the best Eved Hashem I can be, a sincere and meaningful purpose and mission.

However, when holiness is confined to the personal, even the sincerest form of Avodat Hashem slowly and subtly replaces Judaism’s national essence. It is a quiet limitation that is easy to miss when shaped by generations of exile that have taught us to practice Judaism in the personal. Exile can begin to feel not only comfortable, but even sacred, where a Jew can still learn, daven, and perform mitzvot with dedication. But the essential awareness that Am Yisrael is meant to live as a people in its Land, not as scattered individuals, is missing. Once that awareness fades, it becomes easy to believe that you can live a full Jewish life anywhere, that mitzvot and morality are enough, and that fulfillment of our national destiny belongs to someone else. 

This isn’t sinful or rebellious, rather a spiritual confusion that is naturally the result of being uprooted and separated from national life in exile. A person inevitably begins to mistake partial holiness for wholeness and to feel complete as an individual when cut off from the life of the nation.True completeness for an individual, however, returns only when holiness comes through living as a nation. Our service of Hashem can then expand beyond personal growth into incorporating efforts for the sake of His people and His Land as well. As we have seen, especially through the last two years, challenges continue to test us, and sometimes we must even demonstrate Mesirat Nefesh (self-sacrifice) to allow ourselves to thrive as a nation in Israel. 

The past two years have given Israel a far clearer understanding of the scale and nature of the enemies surrounding it, along with a growing consensus about the need to decisively remove those threats. The return of the living hostages allows Israel to focus fully on its enemies without the need to consider the danger to them. This opens space for Israel as a country to reflect from within, because for the first time in two years, Israel can begin to address both the internal and external divisions that had to be managed but were never resolved. More unity is not only what our people depend on, but it is what the world and what our redemption ultimately depends on. It is an opportunity for Jews all over the world who value their Avodat Hashem to come together, strengthen the nation’s spiritual foundation, allowing the Land of Israel to stand stronger as one, based on the values of Torah and Mitzvot. So while we must thank Trump for his role in securing the hostages’ release and consistent support for Israel, peace for him looks different than peace for us. Entering this next phase is about building a peace that doesn’t need to be declared, only lived and felt. It means returning to a mindset where the nation once again stands naturally as an inseparable part of our actions within Judaism, because only through the nation can our individual Avodat Hashem truly succeed.