One of the first things I ever got published as a rabbi was a letter to the New York Times Magazine in 2003. A German scholar had urged readers not to worry about the rise of antisemitism in Europe because it was not the violent, worrisome kind but "mostly verbal" and symbolic (read his article). My letter argued that we can not allow ourselves or others to dismiss antisemitism by rationalizing acts of hatred into categories of decreasing severity (read the full letter). When my letter was published, I felt a bit of the "I-sure-told-that-guy" hubris at having the last word.
But life has a way of bringing things back around on us. This past Sunday, one of our younger students informed me that there was a swastika on a sign in the parking lot. He and his dad had tried to wipe it off but couldn’t. I found a small but clearly visible swastika scratched onto a sign right next to the side entrance.
I know of synagogues and cemeteries that have been desecrated with extensive damage. I know of recent, violent attacks against Jews. I know the swastika represents terror, hate, and violence. But this was just one, tiny, no-comments-attached swastika. Doesn’t that make it a small thing and nothing to worry about?
On the one hand, I don’t worry. I have found our community and its leaders to be supportive, responsive, and protective of our temple. We have a very good relationship with the Town of Tinton Falls and its Fire and Police Departments. We work closely with local churches and the local mosque on many issues. I know that we have many friends and we are a welcome and vital part of the community. On the other hand, I know that antisemitism has always flourished and worsened under tough economic times, protracted overseas conflict, and periods of declining national standing vis-à-vis the rest of the world. This is not Germany in the early 1930s, but it’s not the best of times either.
During our Israel trip, Roni the tour guide shared with me a photo that he felt was an important symbol for all Jews and something he kept on his computer as the desktop background: Israeli fighter bombers in a fly-over above the Auschwitz death camp on the 50th anniversary of its liberation. To see the magen david (star of david) painted on the side of the most powerful weapons in stark contrast to the ruins and emptiness of today’s Auschwitz is the best reminder that we don’t need to worry too much. Not just because Jews today have the ability and will to defend ourselves, but because we are the ones who survived and triumphed while Nazism was ultimately reduced to ashes and fringe elements.
I still think that German scholar was wrong and I would write the same letter today. I also think that the swastika at our temple does not represent a full attack on the Jewish community of Monmouth County. The sign with the swastika will likely be gone before you even read this posting. While I really don't worry too much, I am keeping Roni’s photo as my desktop background for a little while longer.
But life has a way of bringing things back around on us. This past Sunday, one of our younger students informed me that there was a swastika on a sign in the parking lot. He and his dad had tried to wipe it off but couldn’t. I found a small but clearly visible swastika scratched onto a sign right next to the side entrance.
I know of synagogues and cemeteries that have been desecrated with extensive damage. I know of recent, violent attacks against Jews. I know the swastika represents terror, hate, and violence. But this was just one, tiny, no-comments-attached swastika. Doesn’t that make it a small thing and nothing to worry about?
On the one hand, I don’t worry. I have found our community and its leaders to be supportive, responsive, and protective of our temple. We have a very good relationship with the Town of Tinton Falls and its Fire and Police Departments. We work closely with local churches and the local mosque on many issues. I know that we have many friends and we are a welcome and vital part of the community. On the other hand, I know that antisemitism has always flourished and worsened under tough economic times, protracted overseas conflict, and periods of declining national standing vis-à-vis the rest of the world. This is not Germany in the early 1930s, but it’s not the best of times either.
During our Israel trip, Roni the tour guide shared with me a photo that he felt was an important symbol for all Jews and something he kept on his computer as the desktop background: Israeli fighter bombers in a fly-over above the Auschwitz death camp on the 50th anniversary of its liberation. To see the magen david (star of david) painted on the side of the most powerful weapons in stark contrast to the ruins and emptiness of today’s Auschwitz is the best reminder that we don’t need to worry too much. Not just because Jews today have the ability and will to defend ourselves, but because we are the ones who survived and triumphed while Nazism was ultimately reduced to ashes and fringe elements.
I still think that German scholar was wrong and I would write the same letter today. I also think that the swastika at our temple does not represent a full attack on the Jewish community of Monmouth County. The sign with the swastika will likely be gone before you even read this posting. While I really don't worry too much, I am keeping Roni’s photo as my desktop background for a little while longer.
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