Re-posted from the Rabbi's words 8/23/2024
Like many of you, I suspect, as I’ve watched portions of the Democratic National Convention this week, I was waiting to hear something about the Israel/Hamas War and the more than 100 hostages still being held by the terrorists. I was gratified to hear of ongoing efforts to reach a deal between the parties to release the hostages and establish a ceasefire, though so far that has not come to fruition. The President mentioned it on the first night during his valedictory speech and other speakers did as well, though some commentators have noted that nobody was mentioning Israel per se and U.S. support for the Jewish State. On Tuesday night, several people were counting to see if we could gather a minyan of Jewish speakers on the podium when the roster included Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, Senators Chuck Schumer and Bernie Sanders, Governor JB Pritzker, among others. Both Schumer and Emhoff notably spoke of their efforts to combat antisemitism and that is certainly a vital issue for us.
Meanwhile, out on the streets of Chicago, pro-Palestinian demonstrators, supposedly exercising their right to free speech, found it difficult if not impossible to avoid going beyond speech to violent action and blatant anti-semitism masked as anti-Zionism. Clearly the organizers of the convention were doing their best to distance themselves from these protestors, without at the same time alienating delegates who might sympathize with elements of the protest. I noticed that during the ceremonial roll-call for nominating the presidential candidate, several of the state representatives announced the number of delegates voting “present” in an embarrassed undertone after proudly proclaiming the number for the Vice President.
On Wednesday night, however, I missed seeing a most moving speech by the parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin who is still being held by Hamas. This talk reportedly left the entire convention in tears. The video is available on several sites, and it is nine minutes well worth viewing.
Rachel Goldberg and Jon Polin have been speaking out for months about the plight of the more than 100 individuals including their son who are still in Hamas hands for more than 320 days now after the brutal attack on Israel on October 7th. The reaction of the crowd at the United Center, standing throughout the speech, applauding the couple and shouting out “bring them home,” overwhelmed Rachel Goldberg and she temporarily was unable to speak until she could regain her composure. Photos taken during the talk focused on the delegates in the hall, including some who were wearing the Kaffiyeh, the Arab headdress as shawls, who were moved to tears as they listened to the Goldberg-Polins tell their story.
Rachel talked about their son Hersh and described him as “a happy-go-lucky, laid-back, good humored, respectful and curious person,” and noted that he was a civilian. He loves music and has a fascination with maps and atlases among other interests. He had gone with a friend to the Nova Music Festival. His friend was among the more than 360 young people killed at the festival as he tried to save others sheltering from Hamas. As for Hersh, part of his left arm was blown off as he was loaded onto a truck with other people taken hostage by the terrorists. Many of those hostages are still in captivity. She reminded people that the victims at the music festival were only a portion of the 1200 individuals murdered on that day which included some 45 American citizens.
Rachel reminded the crowd that “109 treasured human beings are being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza. They are Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, and Buddhists. They are from 23 different countries” Of these hostages, eight are American citizens including the Goldberg-Polins’ only son. Jon Polin made the strong point that bringing the hostages home was not a political issue; it is a humanitarian issue. It is one area where both Democrats and Republicans have offered bipartisan support. Certainly the response of the crowd Wednesday night, the tears, the shouts of support, the applause for their courage, indicated the feelings of the vast majority of Democrats. When another hostage family, Ronen and Orna Neutra, spoke at the Republican convention last month of their son Omer, they too received a similar response from the delegates of that convention. Release of these innocent victims is something we all agree on and all must continue to work toward the release of all those who are still being held.
The Goldberg-Polins in their presentation avoided getting into political and military arguments over the war. Jon recognized that “there is a surplus of agony on all sides of the tragic conflict in the Middle East. In a competition of pain,” he noted, “there are no winners.” He acknowledged the suffering of innocents in Gaza along with those in Israel. He added, citing Jewish tradition, first in Hebrew and then in English, “Every person is an entire universe, we must save all of these universes.” The couple ended their presentation as Rachel cried out to her son directly, “Hersh, Hersh, if you can hear us, we love you. Stay strong, survive.”
Our prayers join those of the Goldberg-Polins and of all of the other families still awaiting the return of their loved ones. If one message has been driven home by the convention in Chicago this week, it has been the importance of joining together as one nation to work for the benefit of all people whether in this country or abroad. We pray for peace in the Middle East and around the world and, in particular, for our brothers and sisters in Israel.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Edward Friedman
You can view the talk here:
Addendum: This piece was written on Thursday afternoon, however, I wanted to add
something after hearing Vice President Harris’s acceptance speech last night. Like
many supporters of Israel, I kept listening for some indication of the proposed policies of a Harris/Walz administration regarding Israel. Most of the speakers seemed reluctant to speak up about Israel on previous nights. That statement finally came in the major address given at the conclusion of the convention by the Vice President herself. Not only did she speak about her support for Israel’s right to exist, but she added “and I will always ensure that Israel has the ability to defend itself, because the people of Israel must never again face the horror that a terrorist organization called Hamas caused on October 7, including unspeakable sexual violence at a massacre of young people at a music festival.” She emphasized that “President Biden and I are working around the clock, because now is the time to get a hostage deal and a cease-fire deal done.”
She went on to add words about the situation in Gaza, which she described as
“devastating. So many innocent lives lost. Desperate, hungry people fleeing for safety
over and over again. The scale of suffering is heartbreaking. President Biden and I are
working to end this war such that Israel is secure, the hostages are released, the
suffering in Gaza ends and the Palestinian people can realize their right to dignity,
security, freedom and self-determination.”
I think that most of us can agree with these sentiments, and I am glad that she voiced
them in such a prominent and forceful manner. It was also gratifying to hear the
delegates responding with applause. Considering the vocal minority in the party who
are less supportive of Israel – even anti-Israel - it was reassuring to hear this message
from the party’s candidate for President.
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