09/10/2024
Cleveland Jewish Community Shows Support for Hostages
Ruchi Koval, co-founder and associate director of Jewish Family Experience in University Heights, reads a poem from her book "Conversations with God: Prayers for Jewish Women." A 15-by-10-foot-tall ribbon displaying the faces of the 240 hostages originally taken in the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack in Israel is at right. CJN Photos / Lydia Kacala
LYDIA KACALA | CJN
Article reprinted with permission from Cleveland Jewish News
About 100 community members showed their support for the hostages taken by Hamas during a gathering held by the Jewish Federation of Cleveland on Sept. 6 on its front lawn near the hostage ribbon display at 25701 Science Park Drive in Beachwood.
On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas killed 1,200 Israelis and captured about 250 hostages.
The Federation wanted to hold an event for the hostages before Shabbat and its Super Sunday event began, which was on Sept. 8, Dan Zelman, board chair of the Federation, told the Cleveland Jewish News Sept. 6.
“The whole community has been grieving really since Oct. 7, but also since the six hostages were brutally shot on Saturday, (Aug. 31),” Zelman said. “I thought it was important, and we at the Federation thought it was important to come together as a community to pray for the remaining hostages and to grieve the hostages that were slaughtered.”
The vigil began with opening remarks from Zelman, followed by a speech about the hostages from Rabbi Hal Rudin-Luria, senior rabbi of B’nai Jeshurun Congregation in Pepper Pike.
“Our Torah portion this week says the words that are imperative tzedek, tzedek, tirdof – justice, justice shall you pursue,” Rudin-Luria said. “Is there justice? What justice is there? We each have been praying so hard for their return home, alive. These six aren’t just names, not just faces on this incredible artistic ribbon, which declares to our larger community our pain, our suffering and, of course, those of our Israeli brothers and sisters. Those six aren’t even just stories – they’re real people.”
Brian and Devorah Freedman followed Rudin-Luria’s speech with a poem. A moment of silence was also held for the hostages shortly after the poem was read, led by Zelman.
Ella Caspi, an Israeli emissary spending the year in Cleveland, read the names of hostages and asked attendees to share the names of those that they’re holding close to their hearts.
A second poem highlighting peace was read by Ruchi Koval, co-founder and associate director of Jewish Family Experience in University Heights.
Rabbi Scott Roland of Congregation Shaarey Tikvah in Beachwood, sang “Acheinu.”
Michal Soclof, a member of the executive committee at the Federation, led a prayer for the state of Israel following the song.
Shlichim, young adults from Israel who, following military service, choose to serve a year or more in Jewish agencies around the world, and shinshinim, Israeli teens taking a gap year after graduating from high school, led the singing of “Hatikvah.”
Alee Abraham, organizer of Run for Their Lives and a runner from Nice Jewish Runners, led attendees in a prayer for the hostages.
After listening to speakers, attendees were asked to help Aviva Roland, managing director of the Jewish Volunteer Network at the Federation, plant fake Kalaniot flowers, which represent rebirth, vitality and renewal, in the mulch beds surrounding a 15-by-10-foot tall hostage ribbon in front of the Federation building.
The gathering showed that the community cares about the hostages and Israel, Zelman said.
“It was great to see such a large turnout with very little notice,” he said. “We know how much the community cares about Israel and we want to get the hostages released as soon as we can.”
