President's Message
Jewish Strength
The Jewish people are living in the most tense times since World War II; what we took for granted has now changed in a radical way. Who would have thought a year ago that Jews in almost every country would be attacked and that we don’t feel safe showing that we are Jewish? Even our synagogues are routinely threatened, either physically or by vicious threats.
Who would have thought a year ago that Israel would be facing an existential threat from seven different fronts? Well, history teaches us that you cannot take anything for granted. From climate change to earthquakes to wars, anything can happen without a warning.
Just as we build our homes and our cities to protect us and minimize dangers, we should build our families, our congregations, and our people to withstand these evil forces that threaten our survival and our way of life.
This is not the first time that Jews have faced these types of threats, and unfortunately, it will not be the last. Our people have survived all these times through our faith in God and our beliefs in our Torah. Our religion is based on these strong foundations, and our communities are strong because of that.
We are fortunate to live in one of the best countries in the world, where law and order exist, and we are protected by our government.
We are also fortunate to belong to a synagogue as beautiful as ours, with multicultural backgrounds and five different services during the High Holidays. It has been almost a year since I became the president of our synagogue, and like every president who served before me, we have to deal with financial and operational challenges.
I was very much touched by the generous response of our congregants when we asked for donations through multiple campaigns. The donations came from across the board—small, medium, or large—almost every family contributed. This showed the strength and depth of our members' commitment to our synagogue. In these challenging times, as we approach the High Holidays, let us have strong faith in our God, who has saved us time and again throughout our history.
I would like to wish all of you and all our Jewish people in Israel and in the diaspora a year of peace and good health, and may we see our dear hostages free and reunited with their loved ones very soon.
Shana Tova and Hatima Tova
Am Israel Chai
David Gabbay,
President