August 12, 2024 — Philadelphia
The following column originally appeared in the Jewish Exponent.
Tisha B’Av (the ninth day of the month of Av) is a day on which the Jewish people remember and mourn the destruction of the First and Second Temples. Over the years, this somber day has taken on an even larger meaning as we reflect on some of the darkest moments in Jewish history, many of which fall near the 9th of Av.
Among them:
The First Crusade, in which 10,000 Jews were killed within the first month and which led to the destruction of Jewish communities in France and the Rhineland, began on Aug. 15, 1096.
The expulsion of Jews from Spain began on July 31, 1492.
The mass deportation of Jews from the Warsaw Ghetto to Treblinka began on July 23, 1942, and just a few days later, SS chief Heinrich Himmler formally received approval from the Nazi Party for “The Final Solution.”
This Tisha B’Av, the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, — the worst atrocity against Jews since the Holocaust — will also be top of mind as our community continues to process this tragedy.
Ten months after the attack, feelings of vulnerability in our community linger as Israel defends itself on multiple fronts, antisemitism hits record levels across the globe and Jewish college students anticipate another semester of anti-Israel protests that left many afraid and concealing their Jewish identity on campus.
We continue to grapple with these realities while processing and mourning the massacre of 1,200 men, women, children and babies, the more than 3,000 injured and the 115 hostages who remain captive in Gaza.
Tisha B’Av has been called the saddest day in Judaism. It is a day of remembrance and mourning, just as Oct. 7 will always be. But it is also a time when we can look forward and reaffirm the resilience of Israel and the Jewish people. We are faced with many challenges, but we have never been better equipped to confront them.
Toward that end, American Jewish Committee Philadelphia/Southern N.J. will screen “Screams Before Silence,” a documentary about the horrific sexual violence committed by Hamas, in partnership with Congregation Beth Or on Aug. 12.
In addition to this powerful film, AJC Chief Advocacy Officer Belle Yoeli will speak about the power of advocacy and Liz Naftali, a leading advocate for the hostages held by Hamas and other terror groups in Gaza, will share the story of her 4-year-old niece Abigail Edan, who was kidnapped by the terrorists who murdered her parents.
For the 1,200 whose lives were cut short and the thousands more who were scarred by Hamas’ barbarism on Oct. 7, we must all continue to bear witness to what transpired, just as we have done for thousands of years every Tisha B’Av.
Marcia Bronstein is the director of AJC Philadelphia/Southern N.J.
