Posted on 10/28/24
Of all the amazing, joyful and meaningful events on Sukkot, two powerful moments stand out in my mind. One was on the morning of Simchat Torah at the Ramada Hotel in Jerusalem. Over 100 survivors of the Nova festival-turned-massacre had gathered to celebrate the holiday together with the Kesher Yehudi organization. On the walls hung photos of those killed and kidnapped on that tragic day—friends close to their hearts.
One of the participants held a Torah scroll in his arms and danced with it, his face glowing. He said to me: “Last year, look where we danced. And today, look where we are dancing…”
Then came the Torah reading. Each person stood before the open Torah and recited a blessing. Many did so with tears in their eyes. At the conclusion of the Torah reading, everyone declared together: “Chazak, Chazak, Ve’nitchazek” ("Be strong, be strong, and let us be strengthened"). It felt like a prayer, a declaration of choosing life: Out of brokenness, we will be strong.
The second moment occurred half an hour later, in a large tent that had been set up for bereaved families. A large prayer gathering was held, centered around families who had lost their loved ones. After completing the Torah reading on Simchat Torah, the Torah is immediately begun again from the beginning. And so, verses resonated in the air, bringing order to the world and to the heart: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” – the world is not an abandoned jungle; it has a purpose. Chaos cannot reign forever. And even if, at first, “the earth was unformed and void, and darkness was over the surface,” we await the proclamation: “And God said: Let there be light—and there was light.”
In the Torah portion, we read how from the darkness, light breaks forth. May it also break forth in our lives.
Starting Again from Bereshit
Shiri Vidan is a tour guide from Kibbutz Na’an. Last year, she heard me explain how we complete the reading of the entire Torah on Simchat Torah and then immediately begin to read it again, starting from Bereshit.
“I was very taken by this idea,” she wrote, “and I decided that I too would start to read the weekly parasha, starting from Simchat Torah. But we all know what happened that day…”
Despite the shock and horror, Shiri resolved to continue with her Torah study. “Throughout the turbulent year, the weekly parasha became my anchor,” she said.
Each week, she searched for an idea that resonated with her. “In the parasha of Ki Teitzei, for example, we learn about returning a lost object. I told my students, young counselors from the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, about this mitzvah, adding that I had recently discovered a lost object in my car—a flashlight — and had yet to find its owner.
“One of my students asked, ‘Is it a large, black flashlight?’ and I replied that indeed it was. Then she said, ‘I’m so happy that you found it- I’ve been looking for it, it’s mine!’”
She went on to say how gratifying it was to return a lost object to its owner specifically during the week when we read about this mitzvah in the Torah.
Shiri continued: “In a deeper sense, it seems that many of us have ‘lost’ our flashlight - the weekly parasha - which helps to light our way. We need to return this precious ‘object’ to ourselves. Looking back on this challenging year, I feel so fortunate to have been able to begin reading the weekly parasha and I recommend it strongly to everyone. This past Shabbat, I started again from Bereshit [the beginning]!”
One Quote from One Remembrance Ceremony
This Sunday was marked nationally as the remembrance day for Simchat Torah — the day last year when so many dear members of our nation lost their lives. On such a painful day, when we remember so many wonderful, precious souls, here is a quote from Miriam, widow of the soldier Ori Shani, who heroically engaged the terrorists in battle, saving the lives of many others:
“It’s exactly one year since Ori fell. Our baby, Ro’i, is just starting to walk. I watch him as he tries to take steps—falling, getting up, taking a few more steps, falling again, and rising once more. I look at him—and I think about myself. This is a message for me, a message for all of us: We must fall and get up again, stubbornly persevering, so that we can walk and grow.”
Words of Parting from the Father of a Terror Victim
Betzalel Carmi, 72, was murdered in Sunday’s terror attack at the Gelilot Junction outside of Tel Aviv. His father, Avraham, a 96-year-old Holocaust survivor, eulogized him: “You merited 26 grandchildren at your funeral, this is a great thing. That evil man wanted to destroy the Jewish People but we continue to live.”
Our Tears Are Powerful
I received so many stories about the many soldiers who fell recently – it’s impossible to cover them all or to do justice to the unique character of each one. In times of such indescribable sadness, it’s worth focusing on a powerful statement from the Talmud: “Anyone who sheds tears over the loss of a righteous person, God counts and stores those tears in His treasury.”
When we cry over these terrible, painful losses, we must bear in mind that every single tear is counted and preserved in Heaven. Rav Kook explains that there is significance to our grief and sorrow. The tears we shed now are not in vain. This is not just sadness over something trivial or frustrating; it is sacred sorrow, connected to eternity and to the deepest part of our soul and of our people.
When we mourn the right things, God counts each tear. These tears are not a sign of weakness — to the contrary, they testify to the depth of our connection to all that is good and holy. Each tear is a commitment to continue bringing light into the world. That is why these tears don’t fall to the ground, they rise Above.
May we merit the fulfillment of the verse “You turned my mourning into dancing.” May all these eulogies and tears be transformed into joy and celebration.
Miriam, widow of Ori shani, and son Ro'i
Simchat Torah celebration for Nova survivors
Carmi eulogy
