As I’m writing this, it’s the eighth and final night of Hanukkah. And this Hanukkah has been different from all other Hanukkahs before.
If you weren’t aware, on Sunday, December 14, a menorah lighting ceremony was held at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, only to be interrupted by two gunmen, a father and son. They killed eighteen people before the father was taken down by a nearby bystander and then shot by police. The father is now dead, and the son is now in critical condition and under arrest.
I first found out when I woke up that Sunday morning. I turned on my phone, and there was a message in the family group chat from my dad. He and my stepmom have been in Australia since before Hanukkah, and they were just in Sydney a couple of days before. They assured us they were fine, and that they were in a different part of the country when it happened. I went and looked up what happened. My first reaction was horror, followed by relief that my dad and stepmom were okay, and then more horror.
I spent the rest of the day in something of a slump.
Within a day, however, my feelings had changed. I was angry, but also, I was defiant. Because I remembered something important about the holiday of Hanukkah: why we celebrate it in the first place.
For those unaware, the events that inspired Hanukkah occurred about one or two centuries before Jesus walked the Earth. The land of Judea was ruled over by Seleucid Empire, and the Seleucid ruler suddenly decided the Jews had to leave their religion and worship the Greek gods. Instead of complying, the Jews started a guerilla rebellion so that their religion and way of life wouldn’t be erased.
A war against erasure.
The attack on August 14th was an act of erasure. The attackers were terrorists seeking to cow Jews and drive us into hiding, or make us too afraid to practice our religion. And while the only thing that’s been confirmed about their motives is that they pledged allegiance to the Islamic State, there’s a strong possibility they were also motivated by antisemitism masquerading as anti-Zionism. Just like the Seleucid Empire years ago, they were trying to destroy who we are by destroying lives and shedding blood.
They won’t succeed. Over the past week, I’ve heard from many Jews who won’t let themselves to be erased. I’ve seen posts about celebrating Hanukkah, Jewish identity, and explaining what Zionism is go viral online, including a few of mine.* I’ve read of world leaders and normal people issuing their condolences and support for the Jewish people and even the State of Israel (though they still criticize Netanyahu’s government, which I totally agree with). I’ve heard from so many non-Jewish friends who have checked in on me and let me know they’re thinking of me.
And I’ve felt a renewed pride in Jewish identity and culture. Not just from myself, but from others. Like this incident, as horrible as it is, has galvanized us. Made us think, “No, we don’t care how loud the anti-Semites and those who want Israel destroyed are! We will continue to exist! We will be Jewish! And if people want to destroy us or the country that was created for us, they can try. We’ll fight back.”
It’s the last night of Hanukkah. Tomorrow at sunset, the holiday will end. But the holiday which started with such tragedy is ending with Jews embracing who they are and shouting it loudly to the world. And we will go forward not being afraid. We will stay vigilant and we will still keep security at our institutions, but we will not be afraid.
Like the Maccabees who fought against the Seleucid Empire, we will fight to keep from being erased. And next year, we will light the menorah with renewed pride, love, and determination. Maybe even on Bondi Beach, just to show how not scared we are. And if anyone tries to stop us?
Well, screw them. We fought a war to keep from being erased once. And while I doubt we’ll need to fight another one, we’re more than willing to fight if we need too. Have no doubt about that!
*I may talk about what Zionism is in a future post, but to put the philosophy simply, it’s the belief that the Jews should have a nation of their own where they can exist, defend themselves, and determine their own fate. Preferably, that land should be in the Holy Land of Israel, also called Zion, where the Jews have had a continuing presence since centuries before Jesus existed, and continue to have a presence today.
It’s not a genocidal neo-Nazi death cult, which makes absolutely no sense (Nazis hate Jews!). That’s all, and I’m not taking and questions or criticism at this time, thank you very much. Like I said, that might be another post.
Rami Ungar The Writer 