Known as 鈥淭he Days of Awe,鈥� Judaism鈥檚 High Holy Days 鈥� which begin on Wednesday 鈥� annually provide an emotional mix of celebration, introspection and atonement for Jews around the world.
This year, for many, the emotions will be extraordinarily powerful, given that the midpoint of the 10 days spanning is Oct. 7 鈥� the one-year anniversary of the Hamas attack that killed 1,200 Israelis and triggered .
For Jews in the U.S. 鈥� the world鈥檚 second-largest Jewish community after Israel 鈥� the past 12 months have been challenging in many ways linked to Oct. 7. There鈥檚 been a surge in , and many college campuses were wracked by . Jews grieved for Israelis killed or taken hostage by Hamas; many also are grieving for the tens of thousands of Palestinians subsequently killed during Israeli's military offensive in Gaza.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a very difficult time, the most difficult time for a Jew in America that I鈥檝e been alive,鈥� said Gayle Pomerantz, senior rabbi at Miami Beach鈥檚 Temple Beth Sholom. 鈥淚鈥檓 hoping that the holidays will help to contextualize our suffering and not let it overtake us.鈥�
Another Miami Beach rabbi, Eliot Pearlson of Temple Menorah, took note of the civilian losses on all sides.
"It鈥檚 painful to us because we know how much it hurts when we lose a child, when we lose a mother. And just because it鈥檚 on the other side doesn鈥檛 mean it鈥檚 less painful to us,鈥� he said.
Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the , said the confluence of the Holy Days and the Oct. 7 anniversary created 鈥渁n impossible moment鈥� for rabbis ministering to their congregations.
He noted that liturgy for Rosh Hashana 鈥� the Jewish New Year 鈥� includes posing the question, 鈥淲ho will live and who will die (in the coming year)?鈥�
鈥淭hat鈥檚 going to resonate in a different way this year, for certain,鈥� Jacobs said, evoking Oct. 7 as 鈥渁 day of unbelievable grief in a war that is not only not ending, but maybe expanding.鈥�
Reasons for hope 鈥� and apprehension 鈥� amid High Holy Days
Pomerantz and Jacobs each said they had seen signs of a resurgence of Jewish pride and solidarity. In Miami Beach, Pomerantz said, there have been higher enrollments in her synagogue鈥檚 religious school and 鈥渋ntro to Judaism鈥� classes, as well as in attendance at worship services.
鈥淭his is a moment where we need one another. We need community,鈥� said Jacobs, whose organization represents more than 800 Reform synagogues in North America.
At the same time, there is pervasive anxiety about a rise in antisemitic incidents over the past year.
Major Jewish groups have been tracking this trend, which was confirmed last week in the FBI鈥檚 2023 Hate Crime Report.
It found that the Jewish community was the most-targeted religious group, with accounting for 67% of all religiously motivated hate crimes recorded by the FBI. That was up from up 1,124 incidents the prior year. The incidents include vandalism, harassment, assault, and false bomb threats.
One consequence: A mood of vigilance. Ahead of the High Holy Days, for example, there have been online training sessions offered by the Secure Community Network, which describes itself as the official safety and security organization of Jewish communities in North America.
Topics have included how to stop severe bleeding and how to respond to an 鈥渁ctive threat鈥� alert.
CSS, another Jewish security organization, has offered classes in Krav Maga, a self-defense system developed for the Israeli military that uses techniques derived from boxing, judo, karate and other disciplines.
The CEO and executive director of the Anti-Defamation League, Jonathan Greenblatt, provided a stark overview of the security situation in a recent interview with The Associated Press.
鈥淚 travel around the country all the time,鈥� he said. 鈥淎ny synagogue, any Jewish community center, any Jewish home for the elderly has armed guards in it -- people with firearms, in uniforms.鈥�
鈥淭hat is not normal,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou cannot find other elderly homes or YMCAs with armed guards.鈥�
鈥楾he Days of Awe鈥�: a time for soul-searching and existential questions
鈥淚n these 10 days, between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, it鈥檚 going to be a lot of soul-searching in the Jewish community about where we are and where are we going,鈥� Greenblatt said. "If we鈥檙e not safe on the campuses where we learn, in the places where we work, in the synagogues where we pray, where are we actually safe?"
Noah Farkas, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles, agreed that this is a difficult time, appropriate for asking existential questions.
鈥淲e are checking in with our higher selves to try to be better, asking, 鈥榃hat do we do with our lives?鈥欌��
鈥淭he thing to do is to choose and to act,鈥� he said. 鈥淭o choose righteous things to do ... to be caring about others.鈥�
Rabbi Moshe Hauer, executive vice president of the Orthodox Union, counseled anxious Jews to take a long view.
鈥淚f we鈥檙e going to look at this narrow frame of what happened on Oct. 7 and subsequently, we can become very discouraged,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e have the ability to step back and see it in the context of a long history ... being misunderstood, being attacked, being hated, and then finding a way to be part of having justice prevail.鈥�
On Rosh Hashana, Hauer said, Jews 鈥減ray for a better world, where the presence of God and goodness will be clear and where evil will wither.鈥�
鈥淚t seems right now we鈥檙e actually as far away from that as we can be,鈥� he added. 鈥淪o there isn鈥檛 a better time ... Our prayers are most powerful when they come from very deep feelings.鈥�
Among the planned events: a service for anti-Zionists
In many Jewish communities across the U.S., special services are planned in conjunction with the Oct. 7 anniversary.
One distinctive example is in New York City, where Jews who oppose Zionism and support pro-Palestinian causes will convene for an evening service as Rosh Hashana begins on Wednesday.
Leading the service will be Rabbi Andy Kahn, executive director of the American Council for Judaism 鈥� an 82-year-old organization focused on Judaism as a religion as opposed to a nationality.
鈥淚鈥檝e felt a big part of my calling is creating spaces for people who want a Jewish life, but don鈥檛 identify with Zionism,鈥� said Kahn. 鈥淚 know a lot of people 鈥� Jews, non-Jews, Palestinians 鈥� who want Palestinian liberation and who are not antisemitic.鈥�
In Florida, Pomerantz鈥檚 Temple Beth Sholom will host a commemoration service for the Miami metro area in conjunction with other synagogues and institutions on Oct. 7.
Among the participants will be Rabbi Pearlson of Temple Menorah, a Conservative synagogue in Miami Beach, where he has lived since the 1960s.
For the High Holy Days, his message will be of unity and perseverance despite the 鈥渢remendous trauma,鈥� highlighting that Jewish people repeatedly have endured and risen stronger from attacks throughout history.
鈥淲e thought we lived in a new modern world where 鈥� we were hoping that things had changed,鈥� he told the AP. 鈥淚n reality, the players might have changed, but the game hasn鈥檛. And unfortunately, their motivation is to destroy the Jewish consciousness, the Jewish people, and heritage and culture.鈥�
At Temple Beth Sholom, Pomerantz plans do something new for Yom Kippur 鈥� the Day of Atonement. In the morning service, all six clergy at the temple will give short reflections about Israel, instead of one rabbi delivering a single message.
Pomerantz plans to focus on 鈥渁 framework of hope.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 easy now to not feel hope. It鈥檚 easy to feel despair, discouraged, frustrated, betrayed, anguish,鈥� she said. 鈥淢y message is, we cannot see ourselves as victims. 鈥� We have to see ourselves as people who have agency, in some way. And with that comes hope.鈥�
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Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP鈥檚 with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
David Crary And Giovanna Dell'orto, The Associated Press
