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Bruchim Haba'im

On February 19, eighteen members of the South Bay Jewish community arrived in Israel for a mission of solidarity. Rabbis and professionals, past and current lay leaders from synagogues, schools, Unexeptable, and Jewish Silicon Valley joined together to bear witness, visit the sick and comfort the mourners. This blog will feature posts from participants to document and share what we have witnessed and experienced.

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Kikar HaChatufim - Hostages Square

By Josh Berkenwald, Rabbi of Congregation Sinai in San Jose, CA Our last stop for today, Tuesday, February 20, was at   Kikar HaChatufim , Hostages Square, in front of the Tel Aviv Art Museum.     What a powerful and heavy place it is. Filled with signs, posters, artwork, personal messages, and protesters.   The long, empty Shabbat table is still arranged for the hostages who are still missing. A digital billboard counts the seconds since they were taken on October 7. One art installation,  The Tunnel , by Roni Levevi, “simulates the terrible reality into which our hostages have been thrown, while a light at the end of the tunnel is a beacon of hope.” It is covered, inside and out, with messages demanding their return and prayers for their protection. A group of women from the organization  Women Wage Peace  stand with signs. They gather every day from 5 – 6:30 pm to demand the return of the hostages at any cost. As we arrived, one older woman carried ...

Standing Under the Stretcher

By Susan Levin, Member of Congregation Shir Hadash and Congregation Sinai My reasons for joining this trip were completely emotional: I wanted to experience what Israeli Jews were living through first hand. I wanted to smell, feel, see, touch and hear what was going on with them. I didn’t want their truths to be mediated by reporters from the NYTimes or CNN. There are times in our lives when we are taught about the power of presence...We ALL stood at Sinai; We ALL were delivered from Egypt. I felt that this was one of these moments. As soon as I got off the plane, I felt “at home”. This was not a time when every expression of pain for what we were going through had to be countered by an expression of sympathy for Palestinians. It was enough to just take in the experiences of my people and to sit with what they were feeling. Blessings and gratitude for the organizers of the trip for trying to open us to the stories of people with divergent backgrounds and opinions. From my good friend w...

The Battle of Sderot: October 7, 2023 – a.k.a. The Fall of the Sderot Police Station

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