Proud JEWS

Right before Sukkot began, I was bringing my garbage cans in from the side of the road when I noticed something carved into my sidewalk. As I looked closer, I realized it was the word "JEW," spelled in all caps. Shocked, I filed a report with the police, and my family and I began to discuss what to do about it. At first, I followed the advice of a friend and began grinding it out. The carving was a couple of centimeters deep; while it took some effort, I made progress. But after a few minutes, I paused and stared at it, questioning whether this was something I should erase.

I went back inside and discussed it with my family. They suggested we reclaim the space by adding something like "I Love JEWs" or "Proud JEWs" to the sidewalk.

That Sunday, I had my congregation's 12th graders over for our monthly religious school class and showed it to them. I wanted to hear their thoughts. After a meaningful conversation about antisemitism, they offered this insight: we can't let acts like this diminish our pride in being Jewish or change how we live. I couldn't have been prouder of these teens, and I wholeheartedly agreed. From that moment, my family and I committed to decorating the graffiti every week, turning it into a message of resilience and pride.

I had hoped that would be the end of my need to talk about antisemitism. But then came the attacks on Jews in Amsterdam and a Neo-Nazi march in Columbus, Ohio. Hearing about a "Jew hunt" in 2024 Amsterdam was deeply unsettling. Like many of you, I felt the pull to dwell in despair-to get lost in the fear and frustration over the rise in antisemitism around us. But we must resist that urge.

Hanukkah, which begins in just a few weeks, offers us a powerful message about adding light to a dark world. It would be easy to focus solely on the darkness, allowing it to consume us. But doing so would be like lighting the candles of the hanukkiyahhanukkiyahחֲנֻכִּיָּהNine-branched candelabra used during Hanukkah – eight branches for each night of the holiday, plus another branch (often taller, central, or more prominently displayed) for the shamash (helper) candle, which is used to light the others. only to stare into the shadows around them. Instead, we are called to embrace the light-the warmth, beauty, and resilience of Judaism itself.

Judaism provides us with a path to a meaningful life, guiding us as we wrestle with challenges and uncertainties. Confronting antisemitism is necessary, we must take this threat seriously. But if we focus all our energy on the hate we face, we risk losing sight of the richness and beauty of who we are as a people.

Judaism is more than something we do in synagogues-it's who we are and a lens through which we see the world. Through Jewish teachings, we recognize the brokenness in our world and find the drive to create an equitable future for all. Judaism gives us the framework to overcome hardship and encourages us to look beyond the question of, "Why is this happening to me?" to ask the deeper question, "Now that this is happening, what do I do next?" This mindset brings deeper meaning to our lives and helps us enrich the lives of others.

Throughout our lives, we will experience moments of great joy and gratitude alongside moments of uncertainty and hardship. Our faith, tradition, and community are there for us in all these moments. Hatred and bigotry should never dictate how we live as Jews. Instead, let us turn to our heritage to find meaning as we wrestle with the world around us.

When we light the candles of Hanukkah and place the hanukkiyah in our windows, we send a strong, defiant message to the world: we are proud of who we are, and we will not let darkness define us. We define our faith, our traditions, and our place in the world-not those who hate us. We refuse to cower in the shadows; instead, we step boldly into the light of our identity and all that we can become.

Placing the hanukkiyah in your window is no different from us decorating our vandalized curb with "Proud JEWs!" It's an act of defiance, pride, and love for who we are.

This Hanukkah, as the flames of the hanukkiyah grow brighter each night, may we find warmth and strength in what it means to be Jewish today. Let us carry that light forward into the new year, bringing hope and resilience to ourselves, our communities, and the world. Let us never let antisemitism define us or alter how we live our lives.