In light of the tragedy in Toulouse this past week I feature here the
words I will be speaking from my pulpit tomorrow morning:
My thoughts are from the Sedra and starting the new
book of Vayikra;
Rashi says that the expression of Vayikra-“and He
called” denotes a calling from Hashem to Moshe as one of closeness, as
opposed to Vayikar without the alef which speaks of “just happened to meet”.
There are two ways of looking at things that happen
in life: From a perspective of Moshe, as a calling. Everything that happens in
life is God’s call to man, it all has significance and is a message to man.
Or it is Vayikar lashon mikreh- just happened- a
string of coincidences- but there is no higher meaning. (as in vayikar Elokim
el Bilaam-God happened to meet Bilaam)
This week once again tragedy has hit the Jewish
family. It reminds us of the events of Itamar last year and the tragedy of
Mumbai- each of which we must never forget.
Senseless tragedies that defy our reasoning.
Ultimately we can never fully comprehend why this
happened. G-d is beyond our understanding. We can never truly understand His
ways and how tragedy strikes good people. In this case, Rabbi Yonatan Sandler
and his dear family were there on Shlichut for a year or two to strengthen the
Jewish lives of the community in Toulouse.
The little girl Miriam; her father was the Director of the school. There is
even a greater question; why should Hashem allow the taking of such precious
and innocent lives?
My sister in law lives in Toulouse, indeed three of her children go to
that school, and they have been deeply affected by what has happened. The
youngest boy, until Monday used to sit next to the little eight year old girl
Miriam in class, so this tragedy hits very close to home. The oldest boy was in
the Beth HaMedrash at the time, just next to the front gate of the school, laying
his Tefillin. He walked out, hours after the tragedy, in a state of shock with his
Tallit and Tefillin Shel Yad still on. This tragedy will stay with them forever.
We send our children and grandchildren to our
wonderful Jewish schools knowing that they will be alright and in a safe
environment. They will be spiritually and physically protected. The last thing
on our mind will be that they will be attacked by terrorists God forbid.
Schools are safe places, they always have been.
I will not mention the name of the murderer
from my pulpit. We should not aggrandize these people in front of the Aron, the
Shul is a holy place – we must not bring it down by association with the wicked.
We must not defile our makom kedushah. But his whole aim was to destroy, to
murder and maim, to do everything in his power to perpetrate evil.
But whereas we cannot find the answers we- as
religious Jews- who hear the call of Vayikra daily from Hashem need to
reconstruct meaning out of such a negative event.
Shortly after the attack, the Jewish community in France came out with the statement that the response to this act of terrorism is to build more schools and strengthen our own individual attachment to Judaism. Eva Sandler; the widow of Rabbi Yonatan who has been hurt most by this tragedy, after having lost her husband and two of her children made a statement about how we must strengthen our commitment to Judaism, that we need to take on a little more in light of what has happened.
These are her words:
My heart is broken. I am unable to speak. There are no ways for me
to be able to express the great and all-consuming pain resulting from the
murder of my dear husband Rabbi Jonathan and our sons, Aryeh and Gavriel, and
of Miriam Monsonego, daughter of the dedicated principal of Ozar Hatorah and
his wife, Rabbi Yaakov and Mrs. Monsonego.
May no one ever have to endure such pain and suffering.
The spirit of the
Jewish people can never be extinguished
Because so many of you, my cherished brothers and sisters in France
and around the world, are asking what you can do on my behalf, on behalf of my
daughter Liora and on behalf of the souls of my dear husband and children, I
feel that, difficult though it may be, it is incumbent upon me to answer your
entreaties.
My husband’s life was dedicated to teaching Torah. We moved back to
the country of his birth to help young people learn about the beauty of Torah.
He was truly a good man, loving, giving, and selfless. He was sensitive to all
of G-d’s creatures, always searching for ways to reveal the goodness in others.
He and I raised Aryeh and Gavriel to live the ways of Torah. Who
would have known how short would be their time on this Earth, how short would
be the time I would be with them as their mother?
I don’t know how I and my husband’s parents and sister will find
the consolation and strength to carry on, but I know that the ways of G-d are
good, and He will reveal the path and give us the strength to continue. I know
that their holy souls will remain with us forever, and I know that very soon
the time will come when we will be together again with the coming of Mashiach.
Please invite another
person into your homes so that all have a place at a Seder to celebrate the
holiday of our freedom.
I wholeheartedly believe in the words of the verse: “The L-ord has
given, and the L-ord has taken away; blessed be the Name of the L-ord.” I thank
the Almighty for the privilege, short though it was, of raising my children
together with my husband. Now the Almighty wants them back with Him.
To all those who wish to bring consolation to our family and
contentment to the souls of the departed: Let’s continue their lives on this
Earth.
Parents, please kiss your children. Tell them how much you love
them, and how dear it is to your heart that they be living examples of our
Torah, imbued with the fear of Heaven and with love of their fellow man.
Please increase your study of Torah, whether on your own or with
your family and friends. Help others who may find study difficult to achieve
alone.
Please bring more light into the world by kindling the Shabbat
candles this and every Friday night. (Please do so a bit earlier than the
published times as a way to add holiness to our world.)
The holiday of Passover is approaching. Please invite another
person into your homes so that all have a place at the Seder to celebrate the holiday of our
freedom.
Along with our tearful remembrance of our trials in Egypt so many
years ago, we still tell over how “in each and every generation, they have
stood against us to destroy us.” We all will announce in a loud and clear
voice: “G-d saves us from their hands.”
The spirit of the Jewish people can never be extinguished; its
connection with Torah and its commandments can never be destroyed.
May it be G-d’s will that from this moment on, we will all only
know happiness.
I send my heartfelt condolences to the Monsonego family for the
loss of their daughter Miriam, and I pray for the speedy recovery of Aharon ben
Leah, who was injured in the attack.
Thank you for your support and love. Eva Sandler
This, my friends, I believe is the Jewish response
to tragedy. The terrorist wanted to annihilate and destroy through terror and
evil; we need to respond through goodness and kindness and genuinely striving
to make this world a better place.
So it is the Vayikra – the call of Hashem to Moshe
that reverberates in our ears. We need to find the meaning in light of this
tragedy.
My friends, I suggest that we take on something
good to counteract the bad that has happened in the world in this past week.
Please take the words of Eva Sandler to
heart…
May their memory be for a blessing………
