Dear Rabbi Marcus Berkman,
After more than two painful years, today we witnessed 20 hostages who have been captive in Gaza return home at last. We still await the bodies of the remaining hostages who are no longer alive.
Over the past two years, we have personally sat with hostage families – those awaiting news of their sons and daughters, parents and grandparents, and those blessed to have been reunited. We have seen the unspeakable grief of those who know their loved ones will never return. Today, together with our brothers and sisters in Israel and with Jews and friends around the world, we feel relief, gratitude, and joy. It feels like a miracle that we weren’t sure we would ever see. It is also a significant step toward reaching the end of the war and beginning a process of healing and rebuilding. We are grateful to the Trump administration for its ongoing leadership to make this moment possible.
This moment is also fraught with mixed emotions. Not all the hostages returning this week are alive — some families’ only relief is to be able to bury and grieve their loved ones. Those who survived and returned today have been through hell and have a long road of healing ahead.
Tonight, the festivals of Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah begin. They are days of celebration and joy, amplified by the return of the hostages. On the Jewish calendar, this is also the yahrzeit, the anniversary of the deaths of the nearly 1,200 people who were brutally murdered on October 7, 2023.
On this day that we hope for the end of this conflict, we mourn all those civilians — from so many faiths, backgrounds, and nationalities — killed that day, the IDF soldiers who have given their lives defending Israel and the Jewish People, and the hostages who did not live to return today. We also acknowledge with compassion the suffering and loss of so many Gazan civilians.
As we hold both joy and grief, we continue to be inspired by the spirit and resilience of the Israeli people and by the compassion and generosity of our Greater Boston Jewish community. The ways we have responded and the relationships we have built have been bright spots in this dark time.
CJP’s Israel Emergency Fund raised nearly $60 million which has been distributed to those most affected by the war. Looking ahead, CJP remains steadfast in our commitment to Israel’s resilience and rebuilding, to strengthening our community’s connections to our homeland, and to our collective responsibilities for the Jewish people. We will continue to support Israel and work to build a better future, together. We invite you to join us this Friday at 8 a.m. for a discussion of what lies ahead with CNN analyst and former diplomat Brett McGurk.
As we take a long-awaited, collective breath today and head into the holiday tonight, we are so grateful for the strength of our community. You give our Israeli brothers and sisters hope, and you give us hope too. Thank you.
With prayers for peace and Chag Sameach,
