At services tomorrow night we will mark International Holocaust Shabbat. We will do this as America, a nation we love and choose to call home, challenges the many tenants we take away from that most gruesome episode of our history. Think of the enduring messages of the Holocaust. We say ‘never again,’ but do we mean it? We pledge: Never again will we allow tyranny to overwhelm us or hate to firmly grip our communities. These days, I’m not sure we’re living up to such credos. We say we must call out hate and call out ignorance whenever we can. These days, I see so much hate and ignorance. We say we must teach our children to be proud of their Judaism and proud to be part of this people. These days, I know there are many who are somewhat hesitant to tell the world they are Jewish. I get it. We say we must align ourselves with the mistreated and persecuted. These days, I see so many who are apologizing for and explaining away attacks on the innocent. 

What a moment to be living in – as Jews, as Americans, as people of conscience. 

Please, I pray, give yourself some grace these days. Take care of yourself. Take deep breaths. Spend time with those you love. 

So many of us are grieving. So many of us are reeling. What we have seen in Minnesota is just unthinkable. The loss of innocent souls cannot be normalized or tolerated. I said this when Charlie Kirk was shot and I say it again now. We cannot normalize murder and certainly not at the hands of so-called government officials. We cannot normalize hate. We know too well what becomes of a society in which hate is deemed acceptable. Six million times over we know what becomes of a society in which hate is allowed. 

Our Torah portion this week will share the story of our exodus from Egypt. Following ten plagues, and years of hardship, we will at last leave servitude behind us for a new life. Moses will famously lead our people through the parted Red Sea. On the far shore we will sing and dance, celebrating our liberation. On Friday nights we recall this moment when we sing Mi Chamocha. We imagine that feeling of newfound freedom. 

The truth is that we are free as Americans: Free to protest. Free to fight for equity. Free to challenge our government to live up to the ideals of the Constitution. We are also free to sit on the sidelines and watch from afar, but this is not the time for that. The stakes are too high. Use your power – your freedom – for the good: Join our social justice group. Come to a house meeting. Visit the Holocaust Museum housed at KI, HAMEC. Tutor the less fortunate. Feed the food insecure. Join us in our social action, our learning and our advocacy. 

I believe that we best honor the victims of the Holocaust when we push back against intolerance and bigotry in our own time. I believe that we honor them when we lean into our Jewish identity without hesitation and thus welcome the stranger, tend to the fallen, align ourselves with the mistreated and – like Moses did – speak truth to power.

I would love to see you at our very special service tomorrow night. We will hear from HAMEC CEO, Fabulous Flores. We will hear the music and recite the prayers that urge us once more to a place of memory. 

Here’s to holding onto hope and always aligning ourselves with justice.

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Benjamin David