Jews with Views – Purim 5786
We asked three Torah MiTzion shlichim: How have you seen your community strengthen since October 7th?
BY RACHEL ZIKERMAN
October 7th was a shocking and surreal turning point. Its impact was not limited to the burned fields near Gaza – it reached all the way to the streets of Moscow. In our community, it revealed a new and complex sense of identity: not just distant nostalgia or cultural connection, but a real, tangible, and painful sense of responsibility.
Aviva, a member of the community, expressed this change well: “Before October 7th, Israel was for me about the sun and Tnuva dairy products. Since then, Israel has become a place where people show resilience, faith, and unity.” Her words reflect the shift from passivity to active involvement, from memory to engagement.
This concern quickly turned into action. Posters and letters of support were sent to the front. Community members called to check on friends and relatives. Messages like “We are the People of Israel” appeared on shirts and in hearts. A quiet but determined sense of shared responsibility grew, focused on organized fundraising, special prayers, and the uplifting feeling of being one big family.
For us, October 7th became a moment to reassess our loyalty. It showed that the Jewish community in Moscow, despite the distance, is not isolated. Through concern, action, and prayer, we are connected and share in the fate of our brothers and sisters in Israel.
Rachel Zikerman is a wife and mother who served for over a decade as a Torah MiTzion emissary in Moscow. She is now a Rabbanit in the Moscow community, where she leads projects, teaches Torah, and supports Jewish community life.
BY AVI PALEY
The October 7th massacre took all of us by surprise. If someone had told me, while walking to shul on that Simchat Torah morning, that later I would be on a helicopter heading south to serve in the war, I would have found it hard to believe. Yet that is what happened, and that day marked the start of an ongoing conflict that has required everyone in Israel and abroad to do whatever they can for our nation.
After leaving Gaza for the first time, following more than a month-and-a-half on a very intense battlefield, I was often asked what gave me the strength to keep going. The truth is, I never felt that those asking were doing any less than I was. They were the same people who volunteered whenever they could – making barbecues, donating blood, visiting the injured, organizing packages for those in need, and helping those forced from their homes. Like me, they were giving their all for Am Yisrael.
In the Megillah, we read how Esther was willing to face Achashveirosh, even at the risk of her life, because of the words: “Who knows whether you were placed in the kingdom for such a time as this?”
Esther may not have known why Hashem placed her in that position, but she understood that her mission was to do everything she could for the Jewish people from where she was.
The same is true for all of us. We must seize the opportunities Hashem gives us to do all we can for Am Yisrael – whether as a soldier on the battlefield, a nurse in a hospital, or someone who takes the time to check in on a neighbor. “Who knows whether you were placed in this situation for such a time as this?”
Avi Paley, 24, lives in Nof Ayalon and studied at Yeshivot Har Etzion and Yerucham. He is currently serving on shlichut in Sydney, Australia.
BY SARIT GRUNWALD
October 7, 2023, Shemini Atzeret. Everyone was in shul when war broke out in Israel. At first, it was hard to believe. Slowly, the scale of the trauma became clear. As Torah MiTzion shlichim, we quickly became a source of reliable information. People came to us for updates and emotional support. Our own sons, along with other shlichim, were drafted to Gaza and Lebanon, and many children of community members were called up as well. This shared experience deeply united us, especially as parents of lone soldiers, and brought the whole community – adults and children alike – closer, constantly following the situation in Israel.
Individuals and organizations across Memphis both gave and received support: prayers, Tehillim, care packages, and financial contributions, all for the welfare of Israel and the Jewish people. There was a strong desire to create personal connections with people and organizations in Israel, to feel part of it.
Community members asked us to stay in Memphis, even though our children were serving in Israel. They saw us as a living connection to Israel, which they needed during the first year of the war.
In the second year, support for the hostages’ release continued, financial assistance grew, and interest in Aliyah increased – a development we had not seen before the war. Families approached us privately to discuss their plans to move to Israel, often asking us to keep their conversations confidential.
Two-and-a-half years later, it is clear that every Memphis family, regardless of community, feels a stronger connection to the Jewish people in Eretz Yisrael.
Sarit Grunwald is in her fourth year of shlichut in Memphis, Tennessee, teaching Torah and Zionism and organizing community programs. She is married to Rabbi Ilai Grunwald, Co-Head of the Torah MiTzion Kollel. Sarit is also a personal coach.