|
Dear RTFH Family,
This Saturday evening is Tisha B’Av, the saddest day in the Jewish calendar. It marks the destruction of the First and Second Temples, and all subsequent disasters that have befallen the Jewish people, including this most recent one. And precisely at this time, as American Jews and American Jewish clergy, deeply connected to the land of Israel, we are all struggling to deal with one of the most profound moral crises of our time. To me, this statement from the Academy of Jewish Religion shows us a path forward.
“We have mourned the loss of life and yearned for peace, while also clearly remembering Hamas' horrific attacks of October 7, which precipitated, and whose perpetrators bear moral responsibility, for so much of the subsequent suffering throughout the region. We stand as a Zionist institution, recognizing the role of Israel in our history, our sacred literature, and in our hearts. At the same time, we cannot turn a blind eye to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and we know that it is our responsibility as Jews and as human beings to care for those in need and to provide food for the hungry. Despite Hamas' culpability in causing this crisis, we urge all parties, countries, and international organizations to work to alleviate the food crisis in Gaza. We urge all those same parties to work equally hard to release the hostages held in Gaza and to work toward a sustained and just peace for Israel and its neighbors.”
Witnessing the devastation in Gaza and calling out for solutions from both the international community and Israel does not conflict with our own communal and spiritual identification with the State and Land of Israel. At this moment in the Jewish year especially, we do not forget you, O, Jerusalem.
On this eve of Tisha B’Av, this is how I choose to be a Jew.
L’shalom,
Cantor Emily Wigod Pincus
| 
