Oct 8, 2023

A message for the community of The 92nd Street Y, New York from 92NY’s Senior Director of Jewish Life and the Senior Director of 92NY’s Bronfman Center for Jewish Life, Rabbi David Ingber:

“A time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.”

Ecclesiastes, 3, 7-8

I am still in shock. I am sure we all are.

This past Shabbat, I, like so many, prepared to celebrate the joyous end to the high holiday season. The last days of the holiday of Sukkot are, after all, the most celebratory days in the sacred Jewish calendar. Everything changed yesterday morning when family and friends in Israel broke the news. Israel was under attack and at war.

Almost 50 years to the day of the Yom Kippur war, yesterday’s attack is unlike anything since, in scale and scope. We are witnessing images of carnage and terror in real time. Women, children, and the elderly have been taken hostage. Gunmen drove through Israeli towns and villages indiscriminately murdering and maiming innocent civilians. The stories of Israelis, young and old, being brutally targeted is unspeakable. Terrorists continue to rain down rockets on Israeli cities, aiming to kill indiscriminately. The number of Israelis murdered and injured by Hamas terrorists is a staggering 700 killed, thousands wounded, and the numbers are still growing. Many innocent lives will be lost in the coming days.

The reprehensible, abhorrent, premeditated and unprovoked attack by the terrorist organization Hamas shows a blatant disregard for human life and is an act of pure immorality.

Hamas continues to demonstrate a complete disregard for international norms, choosing violence and terrorism over diplomacy and peaceful coexistence. It is imperative for the international community to stand united in unequivocally condemning this terrorist organization and holding them accountable for their heinous actions.

This past Shabbat will now live forever in Jewish memory as Israel’s 9/11. These are dark days, and they will get darker. Even as I write this, a new front may be opening in Northern Israel. Family and friends are in bomb shelters or are on their way to fight and we, as a Jewish institution and community, must stand today with our brothers and sisters. We must come together as one unified Jewish community. Our courageous family in Israel is facing something unprecedented and we must communicate in every way that we are with them: they are not alone.

As always, please stay tuned for further programming relating to this fast-developing situation. And as always, please know that if you are in need of care or comfort or would like to speak to me for any reason at this difficult moment, you can reach out to me through our Bronfman Center for Jewish Life.

Current Reflections