Jewish tradition teaches us that there is no greater mitzvah than redeeming the captives, and so today, I join with the whole Jewish people - and with all of humanity - in expressing our joy and gratitude in welcoming home the Israeli hostages who have been released after 738 days in captivity. I am humbled by the enormity of emotion that those who are being reunited with their loved ones today must be feeling, may they only know joy and healing!, and, of course, deeply saddened by the memory of all those who did not get to come home.
This is a moment that feels like everything, everywhere, all at once, and, perhaps, like one whose meaning we will not be able to parse just yet. At the same time, it is a moment we have waited and prayed for for more than two years. These have been years of hardship, strife, and painful reckonings with realities that are different than they might have seemed. They have also been years in which we have connected to our Jewish identities and Jewish life in novel, meaningful, and deep ways. At the JCC, we have spent this time holding our doors and our hearts as wide open as possible, remembering that sparking and sustaining Jewish joy, valuing each individual’s contribution to our community, and building the connections that strengthen our social fabric are our core promise to the shared project of Jewish thriving. That commitment to our community has been an act of hope and of faith that one day the hostages would come home, peace would be on the horizon, and we would be ready to hold our beloved community through the rebuilding and healing that I hope will come next for all of us.
Since October 7, and for generations, Jews around the world have turned to Psalms as a source of comfort during trying times. Today, I am struck by the beauty and promise of Psalm 122, which reads:
Let there be peace within your walls,
and flourishing within your palaces.
For the sake of my brothers and my fellows
I will speak peace through You.
This is my most sincere wish. May this moment bring about a deep and lasting peace. May it enable both Jewish and human flourishing. May we be in it together, and may we have the opportunity to speak peace.
