Although Judaism never embraced pacifism and nonviolence as absolute principles, there are certain examples of non violence in the Bible, and pacifism was employed on occasion in response to particular situations.
In addition, the Torah lists several types of people who are exempt from military service. This list includes men who are engaged to be married and those who are ‘fearful’ and ‘gentle-hearted.’ Contemporary thinkers like Arthur Waskow have invoked the exemption for the "gentle-hearted" to raise the possibility of excusing conscientious objectors.
In summary, although Judaism may not be fundamentally pacifistic, the hope for peace, the pursuit of peace, and the expectation of a universally peaceful time at the end of history are among its most basic tenets.
“They shall beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more”. (The Old Testament: Isaiah 2:4)
Peace is the central teaching of rabbinical Judaism (teachings based on the writings of early Jewish scholars). However, Judaism is not a pacifist religion. The idea of Holy War occurs in the Hebrew Bible, but it was not about converting other people to Judaism, but was about survival and in self defense. .
The idea of 'Just War' is clearly expressed both in the Old Testament (see Deuteronomy 20:10-15, 19-20) and in the later rabbinical tradition. So while revenge and unprovoked aggression are condemned, self defense is justified. Jews have been victims of dreadful persecution, usually at the hands of Christians, for nearly two thousand years, culminating in the Holocaust during the Second World War (1939-1945) at the hands of Nazis. On the other hand, defending modern Israel and dealing justly with the Palestinians places thoughtful Jews in difficult dilemmas.
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