Chag Chanukah Samei'ach Amid Tragedy in Australia
As we celebrate the great festival of lights, we mourn with the Australian Jewish community over the murder of 15 people celebrating Hanukkah on Bondi Beach in Sydney. At a time when we commemorate the ancient Hasmonean victory for religious freedom against brutal persecution, we know that there are those who seek to deprive us of the right to live our lives as Jews. This terrible event in far-away Australia is not merely a tragedy: it is emblematic of the antisemitic efforts to attack and destroy Jews and Jewish life everywhere in the world.
Our hearts are torn by scenes from the perpetration of this crime: 15 dead, ranging in age from 10 to 87 years old, 42 people wounded, 27 of them hospitalized, simply because they had attended a Hanukkah event on the famous beach in midsummer Sydney. Two Chabad rabbis, one the organizer of the event, were murdered, as was a Holocaust survivor, Alexander Kleytman, killed while shielding his wife. At least four children were shot.
The murderers were Pakistani immigrants to Australia who were radicalized by Islamic State propaganda: an Islamic State flag was found in their car, as well as explosives. One of the murderers was eventually stopped by a fruit shop owner named Ahmed al Ahmed, who tackled the killer and turned his own gun on him. Two police officers were critically injured.
Antisemitic acts, especially including violent ones, have been rising all around the world over the last several years. This is not accidental, nor is it because of the actions the State of Israel has taken to defend itself from Islamists who seek to destroy it. Jews have been physically attacked for being Jewish in New York, London, France, Los Angeles, Toronto, Melbourne, Manchester, Boulder, Switzerland, Harrisburg, Milan, and Athens, among other places. Nearly every synagogue in the world now has armed security each Shabbat, as we do.
Tragically, Australia has seen a rising tide of antisemitic incidents over the past several years, and unfortunately its political leadership has consistently failed to aggressively counter the movements that are promoting them. I had the privilege of serving as a rabbinic intern and cantor in Sydney, not far from Bondi Beach, for several months 30 years ago. It is a lovely part of the world, and the Jewish community there is quite wonderful. It is a wonderful place to live and work, and Jews have been part of Australian society since the First Fleet landed in the late 18th century. And now that extraordinary Jewish community is attacked and endangered by the failure of the authorities to take seriously the rising danger of an ideological hatred of Jews that has taken root in society.
Hanukkah celebrates the victory of the few over the many, the weak over the strong, the believers over the idolaters. It is a holiday of true religious freedom, of the victory over the first documented religious persecution in human history, but of course not the last. At this time of gathering darkness, we must affirm the glow of the light of courage and commitment, of dedication to our people, by proclaiming our devotion to our heritage, our values and our religion.
We mourn the latest victims of antisemitic violence. Our most powerful response must be to more deeply affirm our Judaism at this Hanukkah season.
May it still be a Chag Urim Samei'ach, a festival of true light.