Memory as a Sacred Obligation

Memory as a Sacred Obligation

The silence left behind by the stopped hostage clock is not the joyous quiet of a struggle won, but the heavy stillness of a cycle closed. In Parashat Beshallach, we read that Moses took the bones of Joseph with him out of Egypt. Even in a life or death escape, the leader of our people stopped to ensure no one was left behind. We do not leave our dead in the narrow places. This Shabbat, we hold space for the silence, honouring the persistence of a people who insist on the dignity of every soul and the sanctity of every name.

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How Can We Rejoice? A Sukkot Message Two Years After October 7th

How Can We Rejoice? A Sukkot Message Two Years After October 7th

My sermon for Erev Sukkot addresses a direct and painful collision in the Jewish calendar: the beginning of 'z’man simchateinu', the season of our joy, falls on the exact second anniversary of the October 7th atrocities. It explores how the sukkah itself, with its flimsy walls and lesson in vulnerability, will not let us hide from this echo. This year, those walls are a stark reminder of the vulnerability imposed on so many. The sermon grapples with how we can possibly celebrate in the face of this memory, the ongoing hostage crisis, and the fresh grief from the recent antisemitic attack in Manchester. The message redefines Sukkot's joy not as a distraction, but as an act of defiance, resilience, and sacred memory—a way to honour those who no longer can, by choosing to build, gather, and sing because we remember.

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