How Israel Can Win the Cognitive War Without Losing Its Soul - The Battle You Cannot See
“Then you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” — John 8:32
There was a time when a battle could be recognized by the sound of horses, the clash of swords, the thunder of arrows, or the smoke rising above a city.
Today, another kind of battlefield can be almost completely silent.
No explosions.
No soldiers marching.
No visible army crossing a border.
Instead, a photograph appears on a screen.
A headline flashes across millions of phones.
A thirty-second video produces outrage.
A carefully chosen word changes the emotional meaning of an event.
A rumor is repeated until it feels like history.
A lie is shared so many times that people eventually stop asking whether it is true.
And somewhere, sitting alone in a living room, a classroom, a university lecture hall, a synagogue, a café, or a military barracks, a human being makes a decision based upon what he or she has just seen.
That is a battlefield.
It is the battlefield of perception.
It is the battlefield of memory.
It is the battlefield of language.
It is the battlefield of truth.
And increasingly, it is the battlefield of the human mind.
For Israel, this battle carries a significance that reaches far beyond politics.
It touches history.
Identity.
Memory.
Justice.
Antisemitism.
Faith.
Prophecy.
And ultimately, the question of whether God's people will allow fear, anger, propaganda, manipulation, or confusion to determine how they see reality—or whether they will learn to see through the eyes of truth.
This is why the cognitive war surrounding Israel deserves our attention.
But there is something even more important we must understand.
The goal is not merely to win an argument.
The goal is to remain faithful to HaShem while standing in the middle of an information storm.
Because there is a victory greater than persuading everyone else.
It is not losing our own souls while defending what we believe to be true.
The Battlefield Has Changed
Throughout Scripture, Israel repeatedly faced enemies who understood that warfare was not simply about physical strength.
Words mattered.
Fear mattered.
Morale mattered.
Memory mattered.
The enemy of Israel in the days of King Hezekiah understood this.
The Assyrian field commander did not merely attack Jerusalem physically.
He stood outside the walls and spoke.
He tried to convince the people that resistance was useless.
He attempted to destroy their confidence before destroying their city.
He questioned their trust in HaShem.
He mocked their leadership.
He offered an alternative narrative.
And he did something psychologically sophisticated:
He wanted the people inside Jerusalem to surrender before the battle was physically finished.
The account is recorded in 2 Kings 18–19 and Isaiah 36–37.
The Assyrian message was essentially:
Look at the circumstances.
Look at our power.
Look at what has happened to other nations.
Do not trust your king.
Do not trust your God.
Accept our version of reality.
The people had to make a decision.
Would they believe the voice outside the walls?
Or would they trust the word of HaShem?
That ancient story contains an astonishingly contemporary lesson.
Sometimes the first objective of an adversary is not to destroy a city.
It is to destroy confidence in truth.
The Cognitive War Is Not New
We should be careful here.
Technology is new.
Social media is new.
Artificial intelligence is new.
Viral videos are new.
But psychological manipulation is ancient.
The serpent in Eden understood something about human cognition long before humanity had a word for cognition.
“Did God really say...?”
— Genesis 3:1
Notice what happened.
The serpent did not begin by attacking Adam and Eve physically.
He attacked their understanding of God's word.
He introduced doubt.
He reframed reality.
He questioned God's character.
He offered an alternative interpretation.
And then he invited humanity to act upon that altered interpretation.
That pattern appears throughout Scripture.
Distort truth → create confusion → generate fear or desire → influence behavior.
This is why biblical discernment is not an optional spiritual skill.
It is essential.
The Torah Gives Us a Foundation for the Information Age
Long before social media, Scripture gave Israel principles for evaluating information.
One of the clearest is found in Exodus:
“You shall not spread a false report.”
— Exodus 23:1
That command is astonishingly relevant.
Don't spread it.
Even if it is shocking.
Even if it confirms what you already believe.
Even if everyone else is sharing it.
Even if it makes your enemies look terrible.
Don't spread a false report.
The Torah continues:
“You shall not follow a crowd to do evil...”
— Exodus 23:2
Think about how relevant that is to the digital world.
Millions of people can believe something.
Millions can repeat it.
Millions can become emotionally invested in it.
And yet popularity does not transform falsehood into truth.
The crowd is not our ultimate authority.
HaShem is.
Before You Share It, Ask Seven Questions
A spiritually mature response to the cognitive war begins with slowing down.
Before sharing something about Israel, Palestinians, Jews, Arabs, war, terrorism, military operations, casualties, history, or alleged atrocities, ask:
1. Is it true?
Not:
Does it feel true?
Not:
Does it fit my political worldview?
Not:
Did someone I trust post it?
But:
Is it actually true?
2. Where did the information originate?
Trace the claim backward.
Who first published it?
Was the original source identified?
Is the photograph actually from the event being discussed?
Was the video recorded recently?
Has the quotation been verified?
3. What is missing?
Sometimes deception doesn't require inventing information.
It merely requires removing context.
A photograph can be authentic while the caption is false.
A video can be genuine while its date is wrong.
A quotation can be real while its surrounding sentence completely changes its meaning.
4. Am I being emotionally manipulated?
Ask yourself:
Why am I being shown this?
Why this image?
Why this headline?
Why this music?
Why this wording?
Why this particular photograph?
Why does it make me instantly furious?
Manipulation frequently bypasses careful thought by first triggering emotion.
5. Have I verified it independently?
One source repeating another source does not create independent confirmation.
Ten websites can repeat the same mistake.
Look for primary documentation and credible independent reporting where possible.
6. Would I believe this if it harmed my preferred side?
This is one of the hardest questions.
Truth cannot be conditional upon convenience.
If something is false, it remains false even when it benefits our enemies.
If something is true, it remains true even when it embarrasses our allies.
7. Does sharing this honor HaShem?
This may be the most important question.
Because our digital behavior is not spiritually neutral.
Proverbs says:
“He who guards his mouth and his tongue, guards his soul from troubles.”
— Proverbs 21:23
In our generation, we might extend the principle:
Guard what comes out of your mouth—and guard what comes out of your keyboard.
The Power of a False Witness
The Torah takes false testimony extremely seriously.
Why?
Because words can destroy lives.
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”
— Exodus 20:16
A false witness does not merely make an inaccurate statement.
A false witness can alter the judgment of an entire community.
Today, a false claim can travel farther in an hour than an ancient messenger could travel in a lifetime.
That gives our words extraordinary power.
One person can create a post.
Ten people can repeat it.
A thousand people can amplify it.
A million people can encounter it.
And suddenly something that began as an unverified claim becomes part of the perceived reality of an enormous population.
The Torah's warning about testimony has become a warning for the digital age.
The Prophet Isaiah Gives Us Another Warning
Isaiah described a society in which moral categories themselves had become distorted:
“Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
who put darkness for light, and light for darkness...”
— Isaiah 5:20
This is not merely about individual morality.
It describes a profound social confusion.
A society can eventually lose the ability to distinguish between categories.
Truth becomes subjective.
History becomes negotiable.
Victims become villains.
Aggressors become victims.
Words lose their meanings.
And once language becomes sufficiently distorted, people can justify almost anything.
That is why the cognitive battle is ultimately a battle over moral clarity.
But Here Is Where We Must Be Extremely Careful
There is a temptation, especially during frightening times, to assume that every unfavorable report is propaganda.
That can become another form of blindness.
Biblical discernment does not mean automatically believing one side.
Nor does it mean automatically rejecting another.
It means pursuing truth.
The Berean-like instinct to examine claims carefully is valuable, but even without leaving the biblical books you requested, we find this principle repeatedly.
Proverbs teaches:
“The first to plead his cause seems right,
until his neighbor comes and examines him.”
— Proverbs 18:17
That verse should be printed above every social-media feed.
The first story you hear is not necessarily the whole story.
The Prophetic Danger of Echo Chambers
One of the greatest dangers of modern information systems is that they can surround us with people who already agree with us.
We begin by choosing what we want to hear.
The algorithm notices.
Then it gives us more of it.
Eventually, we can inhabit an information environment in which every article confirms our assumptions.
Every video reinforces our fears.
Every commentator agrees with us.
Every opponent is portrayed as malicious or foolish.
And we begin confusing familiarity with truth.
But Scripture repeatedly warns against this kind of collective blindness.
Jeremiah cried:
“Everyone is greedy for gain...
and from the prophet even to the priest everyone deals falsely.”
— Jeremiah 6:13
Then comes a devastating statement:
“They have healed the hurt of my people superficially...”
— Jeremiah 6:14
There are moments when society desperately wants comforting narratives.
But HaShem does not call His people merely to comfort.
He calls us to truth.
The Prophetic Voice Is Not a Propaganda Machine
This distinction matters enormously.
A prophet does not exist to tell people whatever they want to hear.
The biblical prophets frequently confronted Israel itself.
They challenged kings.
They confronted priests.
They exposed injustice.
They condemned idolatry.
They warned God's own people.
Why?
Because prophetic faithfulness is allegiance to HaShem above tribal loyalty.
That is an uncomfortable truth.
But it is also liberating.
We do not have to lie to defend Israel.
We do not have to exaggerate.
We do not have to invent.
We do not have to dehumanize another people.
We do not have to celebrate suffering.
We do not have to pretend every action taken by every Israeli leader is automatically righteous.
We do not have to pretend every criticism of Israel is antisemitic.
And we certainly do not have to accept antisemitic accusations as truth merely because they are repeated loudly.
We can pursue something much stronger:
truth.
Yeshua Warned Us About Deception
When Yeshua's disciples asked about the signs of the end, His first warning was striking:
“Take heed that no one leads you astray.”
— Matthew 24:4
Not:
Become obsessed with predicting dates.
Not:
Believe every dramatic headline.
Not:
Spend all your time decoding every geopolitical event.
His first warning was:
Do not be deceived.
He continued:
“For many will come in My name...”
— Matthew 24:5
And later:
“For false Messiahs and false prophets will arise...”
— Matthew 24:24
Then He said:
“See, I have told you beforehand.”
— Matthew 24:25
That is prophetic preparation.
Yeshua was telling His disciples that deception would intensify and that spiritual maturity would require discernment.
Fear Is One of the Most Powerful Weapons
Fear changes perception.
When people are frightened, they can become impulsive.
They can become suspicious.
They can become angry.
They can interpret ambiguity as threat.
They can forward information without checking it.
They can lash out at innocent people.
They can stop listening.
This is precisely why Psalm 27 has become such a profound spiritual weapon for generations:
“HaShem is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?”
— Psalm 27:1
Notice David does not say there is nothing frightening around him.
He says:
HaShem is greater than the thing frightening me.
That distinction matters.
Faith does not require pretending the danger is imaginary.
Faith means refusing to allow danger to become our god.
When the World Is Loud, Become Quiet Before HaShem
One of the most revolutionary things we can do during an information war is simply stop.
Stop scrolling.
Stop reacting.
Stop forwarding.
Stop arguing.
Stop consuming outrage.
And pray.
Psalm 46 says:
“Be still, and know that I am God.”
— Psalm 46:10
Sometimes the most spiritual response to a viral story is not another post.
It is silence.
Then prayer.
Then investigation.
Then wisdom.
The Battle for Memory
There is another dimension to Israel's cognitive war that deserves special attention.
Memory.
The Bible is a book that repeatedly commands God's people to remember.
Remember Egypt.
Remember the wilderness.
Remember the covenant.
Remember what HaShem has done.
Remember His faithfulness.
Why?
Because memory shapes identity.
A people who forget their story becomes vulnerable to having its story rewritten by others.
This is why Deuteronomy repeatedly commands Israel to remember.
“Remember the days of old,
consider the years of many generations.”
— Deuteronomy 32:7
Historical memory is therefore not merely academic.
It can be spiritually formative.
But biblical remembrance must also be truthful.
Memory cannot become an excuse for hatred.
Remembering suffering should produce wisdom—not perpetual vengeance.
Remember Without Becoming Captive to Hatred
This may be one of the hardest spiritual disciplines of all.
Jewish history contains profound trauma.
Persecution.
Expulsion.
Pogroms.
The Holocaust.
Terrorism.
War.
Loss.
Families separated.
Children buried.
Communities destroyed.
These realities must never be trivialized.
But there is a danger when legitimate remembrance becomes a permanent prison of hatred.
Yeshua taught:
“Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you.”
— Matthew 5:44
That does not mean surrendering justice.
It does not mean refusing to protect innocent people.
It does not mean ignoring evil.
It means refusing to allow evil to reproduce itself inside our own hearts.
We can seek justice without becoming unjust.
We can defend life without despising life.
We can remember suffering without worshiping resentment.
A Different Kind of Victory
What would it mean for Israel to "win" the cognitive war?
Perhaps we need to redefine victory.
Victory is not simply making the world agree with us.
Victory is not going viral.
Victory is not humiliating opponents.
Victory is not winning every online argument.
Victory is not producing the most emotionally powerful propaganda.
A deeper biblical victory would look like this:
- Truth remains truth.
- Falsehood is exposed without creating new falsehood.
- History is remembered accurately.
- Innocent life is valued.
- Antisemitism is confronted.
- Hatred is resisted.
- Fear does not control the people.
- Children learn discernment.
- Families remain grounded.
- Scripture remains authoritative.
- Prayer remains central.
- Justice remains important.
- Mercy remains possible.
- And God's people refuse to surrender their moral identity.
That is a victory worth pursuing.
How Families Can Fight the Cognitive War
This battle will not be won only in government offices or military headquarters.
It will also be won around kitchen tables.
Parents can teach children:
Don't believe everything you see.
Images can be manipulated.
Don't share everything you feel.
Emotion is not verification.
Ask where the information came from.
Teach children to identify sources.
Learn history.
A child without historical context is easily manipulated by whoever provides the most compelling narrative.
Read Scripture.
Biblical literacy creates a foundation for discernment.
Pray before reacting.
This simple discipline can transform a household.
Treat human beings as human beings.
Even when discussing people with whom we profoundly disagree.
Seven Spiritual Disciplines for the Information War
1. Practice the discipline of verification
Don't become a distributor of rumors.
2. Practice the discipline of prayer
Ask HaShem for wisdom before reacting.
3. Practice the discipline of historical memory
Learn the history instead of relying upon slogans.
4. Practice the discipline of emotional restraint
Don't allow someone else's outrage to become your master.
5. Practice the discipline of biblical literacy
Know what Scripture actually says.
6. Practice the discipline of intellectual humility
Be willing to say:
“I don't know.”
That sentence can protect us from enormous foolishness.
7. Practice the discipline of righteous courage
When something is genuinely false, say so.
When something is genuinely evil, do not rename it.
When someone is genuinely suffering, do not mock the suffering.
What About Prophecy?
Here we enter sacred territory.
Israel's story is undeniably woven throughout biblical prophecy.
The prophets speak about Jerusalem.
They speak about Zion.
They speak about Israel.
They speak about the nations.
They speak about judgment.
They speak about restoration.
They speak about the knowledge of HaShem filling the earth.
Isaiah declares:
“For out of Zion shall go forth Torah,
and the word of HaShem from Jerusalem.”
— Isaiah 2:3
Zechariah speaks of Jerusalem in extraordinary prophetic terms.
Ezekiel speaks of Israel's restoration.
Jeremiah speaks of a future in which God's covenant purposes remain significant.
But prophecy must never become an excuse for reckless speculation.
We should resist the temptation to declare:
“This headline proves this prophecy has been fulfilled.”
Sometimes events may remind us of prophetic patterns.
Sometimes they may cause us to examine Scripture more deeply.
Sometimes they may indeed have prophetic significance.
But humility is essential.
The prophetic student should be awake without becoming sensationalistic.
Jerusalem Is More Than a News Story
For Scripture, Jerusalem is not simply a geopolitical location.
It carries covenantal and prophetic significance.
The Psalmist wrote:
“If I forget you, Jerusalem,
let my right hand forget its skill.”
— Psalm 137:5
And Psalm 122 declares:
“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.”
— Psalm 122:6
This is why prayer for Jerusalem should never become merely a slogan.
It should become a spiritual discipline.
Pray for her peace.
Pray for wisdom.
Pray for protection.
Pray for truth.
Pray for repentance where repentance is needed.
Pray for justice.
Pray for mercy.
Pray for the vulnerable.
Pray for those who mourn.
Pray for leaders.
Pray for soldiers.
Pray for families.
Pray for children.
Pray for those trapped in fear.
And pray that the purposes of HaShem ultimately prevail.
The Most Dangerous Cognitive War May Be Inside Us
We have spent much of this article talking about external narratives.
But there is another battlefield.
Our own hearts.
We can become addicted to outrage.
We can begin needing an enemy.
We can become spiritually energized by anger.
We can spend hours consuming information that makes us furious while spending five minutes praying.
That is a warning sign.
If our defense of truth is destroying our peace, compassion, humility, and self-control, something has gone wrong.
Proverbs says:
“He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty,
and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.”
— Proverbs 16:32
Think about that.
The Bible defines mastery of one's own spirit as a greater victory than conquering a city.
That is a radically different definition of strength.
Yeshua's Way Is Not Weakness
Yeshua was not naïve about evil.
He confronted hypocrisy.
He challenged religious corruption.
He exposed false spirituality.
He refused to be manipulated.
Yet He also refused to become what His enemies expected Him to become.
He would not allow hatred to determine His identity.
He would not allow political expectations to define His mission.
And when violence erupted during His arrest, He said:
“Put your sword into its place...”
— Matthew 26:52
His kingdom could not be reduced to the methods of earthly power.
That remains a profound lesson for anyone trying to navigate an increasingly polarized world.
The Courage to Tell the Truth About Israel
A spiritual defense of Israel does not require pretending Israel is perfect.
No biblical nation was perfect.
The Hebrew Scriptures themselves contain enormous amounts of criticism directed toward Israel.
The prophets did not abandon Israel because they confronted Israel.
They confronted Israel because they loved God's covenant purposes.
That distinction matters.
A person can oppose antisemitism while acknowledging Israeli wrongdoing.
A person can defend Israel's right to exist while grieving Palestinian suffering.
A person can reject terrorist violence while refusing to dehumanize civilians.
A person can love Jewish people while insisting that Jewish lives are not more valuable than other human lives.
Biblical ethics demand moral seriousness.
Truth does not require tribal blindness.
And Truth Does Not Require Self-Hatred Either
The opposite error is equally dangerous.
There are voices that portray Jewish existence itself as illegitimate.
There are narratives that recycle ancient antisemitic accusations in modern vocabulary.
There are situations where Jewish history is deliberately distorted.
There are moments when legitimate political disagreement crosses into hatred of Jews.
That must be recognized honestly.
The command remains:
“You shall not hate your brother in your heart...”
— Leviticus 19:17
And Scripture also says:
“You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
— Leviticus 19:18
The biblical vision does not ask Jews to disappear in order to make the world comfortable.
Nor does it ask anyone else to surrender their humanity.
It calls humanity toward justice, truth, and righteousness before God.
When the Internet Becomes a Tower of Babel
There is something almost prophetic about our information environment.
Humanity has gained extraordinary technological ability.
A message can circle the planet instantly.
But greater communication has not automatically produced greater understanding.
Sometimes it has produced greater confusion.
Genesis tells us about Babel—a humanity united around a project that ultimately produced confusion of language.
Our generation has almost the opposite problem.
We have unprecedented ability to communicate.
And yet we frequently misunderstand one another more than ever.
We have millions of voices.
But where is wisdom?
Proverbs gives us the answer:
“The fear of HaShem is the beginning of wisdom.”
— Proverbs 9:10
Technology can multiply information.
Only wisdom can teach us what to do with it.
The Prophetic People Must Become a Discerning People
This is where I believe the deepest challenge lies.
If Israel and the Jewish people are surrounded by competing narratives, the answer cannot simply be louder narratives.
It must be deeper truth.
The answer is not merely more content.
It is greater discernment.
Not merely more talking.
More listening.
Not merely more outrage.
More wisdom.
Not merely more reaction.
More prayer.
Not merely more historical memory.
More truthful historical memory.
Not merely defending identity.
But understanding identity before HaShem.
What This Means for Us Today
The cognitive war surrounding Israel should drive us neither into panic nor into passivity.
It should drive us toward maturity.
Today, we can begin with five commitments:
1. We will not knowingly spread falsehood.
Even when the falsehood helps our side.
2. We will verify before amplifying.
A dramatic story deserves more investigation, not less.
3. We will refuse dehumanization.
Human beings are not disposable because they belong to another nation, religion, ethnicity, or political camp.
4. We will study Scripture and history.
Ignorance makes manipulation easier.
5. We will pray before we react.
Because the battle for the mind ultimately requires a guarded heart.
The Final Battle Is Not for the Algorithm
Perhaps this is the revelation we most desperately need.
The ultimate battle is not about who controls the news cycle.
It is not about who has the cleverest slogan.
It is not about who produces the most compelling video.
It is not about who can make the world angriest.
The deepest battle is over truth and faithfulness.
Will we believe HaShem when circumstances frighten us?
Will we pursue truth when falsehood is more emotionally satisfying?
Will we remain compassionate when hatred is easier?
Will we remember history without becoming prisoners of it?
Will we defend the vulnerable without becoming blind to the vulnerable on the other side?
Will we confront antisemitism without allowing hatred to consume our hearts?
Will we stand for Israel without making an idol of Israel?
Will we follow Yeshua without allowing political passions to become our master?
These are spiritual questions.
And perhaps the most important question of all is this:
When the noise becomes deafening, will we still recognize the voice of HaShem?
A Prophetic Reflection
I believe there is a generation being trained to discern.
A generation that will have to learn the difference between information and wisdom.
Between outrage and righteousness.
Between propaganda and truth.
Between fear and faith.
Between historical memory and historical manipulation.
Between legitimate criticism and hatred.
Between courageous defense and blind tribalism.
The world may become noisier.
The narratives may become more sophisticated.
Artificial intelligence may make fabricated images, voices, videos, and stories increasingly difficult to distinguish from reality.
The pressure will increase.
But HaShem has not changed.
His Word has not changed.
Truth has not changed.
And the ancient command remains remarkably relevant:
“You shall pursue justice, only justice...”
— Deuteronomy 16:20
Not convenient justice.
Not tribal justice.
Not selective justice.
Justice.
And the Psalmist gives us the posture with which we should enter this turbulent hour:
“I have set HaShem always before me;
because He is at my right hand, I will not be moved.”
— Psalm 16:8
That is how we win.
Not by becoming louder than everyone else.
Not by becoming crueler than our enemies.
Not by becoming addicted to fear.
But by becoming so deeply rooted in HaShem's truth that the storms of competing narratives cannot uproot us.
The world may fight over the story of Israel.
But we belong to the One who knows every story completely.
And when we do not know what to believe, we can return to Him.
When we are frightened, we can return to Him.
When we are angry, we can return to Him.
When we discover that something we believed was wrong, we can return to Him.
When we encounter hatred, we can return to Him.
When we encounter injustice, we can return to Him.
When the headlines scream, we can return to Him.
And when the future seems uncertain, we can still say:
HaShem is faithful.
A Messianic Jewish Prayer for Israel, Truth, and Discernment
Avinu Malkeinu, our Father and our King,
We come before You in a generation overflowing with information but desperately hungry for wisdom.
Guard our minds.
Guard our eyes.
Guard our ears.
Guard our mouths.
And guard our hearts.
Give us discernment when we encounter frightening images, accusations, rumors, propaganda, misinformation, and conflicting accounts.
Teach us not to believe something merely because it confirms what we already think.
Teach us not to reject truth merely because it challenges us.
Give us courage to say, “I was wrong,” when we discover that we were wrong.
Give us courage to say, “This is true,” when truth is unpopular.
Give us courage to say, “I do not know,” when the evidence is insufficient.
Teach us to remember Israel's history truthfully.
Protect the Jewish people from antisemitism and hatred.
Protect Israel from violence and terror.
Protect innocent people everywhere from the horrors of war.
Comfort those who mourn.
Strengthen those who are afraid.
Heal those who are wounded.
Watch over children who have seen things no child should ever have to see.
Give wisdom to those who lead.
Give courage to those who protect.
Give compassion to those who serve.
And give righteousness to those who judge.
Above all, do not allow us to become so consumed with defending ourselves that we forget who You have called us to be.
Keep us from hatred.
Keep us from vengeance.
Keep us from deception.
Keep us from pride.
Keep us from fear.
Keep us from believing that our own understanding is infallible.
Let the words of Your Torah become a lamp before our feet and a light upon our path.
And let us look continually to Yeshua, the Messiah, whose teachings call us toward truth, courage, mercy, righteousness, humility, and faithfulness.
Give us the wisdom to recognize deception.
Give us the courage to resist it.
Give us the humility to learn.
Give us the strength to stand.
And give us the peace that does not depend upon the news cycle.
As the Psalmist declared:
“I will not fear the tens of thousands of people
who have set themselves against me all around.”
— Psalm 3:6
Avinu Malkeinu, teach us to be a people who cannot be manipulated by fear because we have learned to trust You.
Let our words bring truth.
Let our actions bring justice.
Let our memories produce wisdom.
Let our suffering produce compassion.
Let our courage produce righteousness.
And let everything we do ultimately point beyond ourselves to You.
Baruch atah, HaShem.
Blessed are You, our King.
Keep Israel.
Keep Jerusalem.
Keep Your people.
Keep the innocent.
Keep our minds.
Keep our hearts.
And keep us faithful until the day when truth is no longer obscured by competing voices, because the knowledge of Your glory fills the earth.
Amen.
