Hurt people hurt people: Isaac teaches us how to break the cycle - opinion

An opinion piece uses the biblical figure Isaac to argue that hurt people can break the cycle of passing on pain. It references Abdul El-Sayed's use of the phrase 'hurt people hurt people' after a failed terror attack on a Detroit synagogue, and Haley Stevens' endorsement of his Republican opponent. The author draws a parallel to Isaac's response to his mother's death in the Torah portion Chayei Sarah.

An opinion piece by Areyah Kaltmann, director of Chabad Columbus, uses the biblical figure Isaac to argue that people can break the cycle of passing on pain. The article references a failed terror attack on a synagogue outside Detroit in March 2026, during which Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed said 'hurt people hurt people,' a remark critics said excused the attacker. It then notes that El-Sayed's former primary rival, Democrat Haley Stevens, endorsed his Republican opponent Mike Rogers after being asked to stay away from his events. The author draws a parallel to Isaac's response to his mother Sarah's death in the Torah portion Chayei Sarah, where Isaac rebuilt the environment of love and blessing she created, rather than becoming bitter. The piece concludes that leaders should transform pain into compassion rather than perpetuate cycles of hurt.