We Remember Them

The days following Pesach mark a demonstration of civil religion within Israel, and perhaps could be thought of, according to Rabbi Ben Hollander, who has recently passed away, as the second Yamim Noraim (Days of Awe) in the Jewish tradition.

This past Thursday marked Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Rememberance Day. One of the many things I regret not doing at College of Charleston is not participating in the Holocaust walk, memorializing the six million that perished. Therefore, Thursday marked my first true observance of this somber day.

We had a beautiful tefillah led by some of our classmates - and to distinguish it from others - no nusach (melodies to prayer) were used. Some of the prayers were modified to reflect upon the day, and there was no Hakafah - precessional of the Torah. I found it quite difficult, even with these changes, to praise God throughout the service. How can our conception of an all knowing, all powerful and all good God allow such an event like the Holocaust happen? I am one to share Elie Wiesel's response to the Holocaust: "God behaved badly." Wiesel nevered did or has turned his back on God -- he just holds God to same standards God holds us. The covenant is a dynamic contract that holds both the Jewish people and God accountable for their actions. Once of things I have learned this year is that this relationship is not perfect - and in fact it continues to evolve. Our struggle for Jewish identity is centered on our relationship to the tradition itself, including our relationship with God. In the book of Job, we find that all the classical explanations for the suffering of Job is refuted by God except that of protest. For Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, this protest is called Spiritual Audacity - our ability to question our faith and reconcile with its problems and inconsistencies in our own, individual way.

At 10:00 am a three minute siren was heard throughout all of Israel. In the minutes leading up to it, no one would notice that silence was about to emerge within the state. As the siren blew loudly, cars immediately stopped - and were turned off. Drivers stood outside their cars and looked up into the sky, paying homage to all those that passed away. Even all the construction workers paused for this minutes. For three minutes Israel stood still - but once these minutes ended, people got back in their cars, the construction resumed, and life continued on.

Life goes on - an important concept that Israelis understand. Despite turmoil, despite all the drama that occurs within our lives, life does not stop. Israelis have accepted this concept and constantly displays it. Even when many died in the Mercaz HaRav shootings a month ago, and everyone mourned for their loss, people lived their day as if nothing happened. However, it isn't as if nothing happened - it is as if something happened. Perhaps the greatest response to suffering, then, is despite the challenges that come our way, we must prevail and continue with our lives.

We Remember Them. We Honor Them. We continue to try and grapple this horrific event. And how do we honor them?

We live.