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Entertainment industry rabbis say that in the eight weeks since October 7 – a horrific chapter in Jewish history spanning the Hamas massacre, Israel’s subsequent invasion of Gaza and the global response to it all – their congregations have been disrupted by identity and security crises, not only experienced in the United States since the Holocaust.
These religious leaders say The Hollywood Reporter that, on the eve of Hanukkah (for many a holiday of gift-giving adjacent to Christmas, but also, more importantly, the commemoration of a biblical battle over Judaism in the land now known as Israel), members of their temples once again face ancient traditions. questions about assimilation, anti-Semitism, and the fraught notion of Jewish power itself.
“This has been the most difficult period for the Jewish people since the Shoah,” says Rabbi Joshua Aaronson of Temple Judea in Tarzana, using the Hebrew word for Holocaust. He observes that for many Jews, especially those who identify as liberals and progressives, whose faith may be felt most through the social justice concept of tikkun olam, or repair the world, there has been a sense of shock at what they see as a lack of solidarity among their circles in their own time of need. “It’s like they’ve been hit with a two-by-four.”
This Hollywood rabbinate explains that local synagogues have required visible, often armed, security for decades. (Before the 2018 Pittsburgh Tree of Life hate crime, which killed 11 people, there was the 1999 Los Angeles Jewish Community Center shooting, in which a white supremacist fired 70 bullets from an Uzi, wounding five before killing a postman).
Even before October 7, anti-Semitism had spiked to unprecedented levels in recent years, according to the Los Angeles chapter of the Anti-Defamation League. However, Jews now wonder if they are putting themselves at personal risk with outward displays of their identity, whether it be a mezuzah on their front door, a menorah in their window during Hanukkah or a Star of David pendant. hung around his neck. “This is the first time I’ve seen people really scared,” says Rabbi Keara Stein of Temple Beth Hillel in Valley Village.
But for Rabbi Adam Kligfield of downtown’s Temple Beth Am, it has never been more important to defiantly celebrate one’s Jewish identity, while being aware of the risks. “It’s like that Groucho Marx quote: ‘Just because I’m paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not out to get me.’ “My message to the congregation is that this is not a time to be brazen or stupid, but a time to redouble Jewish pride.”
Many Jews in the creative community are caught between polarized extremes. On the one hand, hyper-patriotic Zionism. On the other, pro-Palestinism that excuses everything. His own sentiments often encompass fierce criticism of the Israeli government’s actions, hatred of Hamas, and sympathy for the plight of innocents on all sides of the conflict.
There is no doubt that the moment, with all its devastations and complexities, has been galvanizing for Hollywood Jews. “We’re seeing that people want to connect with the Jewish community, the synagogue and Jewish life,” says Rabbi Amy Bernstein of Kehillat Israel of Pacific Palisades. “We are seeing an increase in the number of people who want to convert to Judaism, even people who have lived a Jewish life for 15 years and have decided that ‘now I want to make it official.’”
Amid the ongoing conflict, these rabbis intend to focus on the central meaning of Hanukkah during this year’s celebration, which begins December 7. The holiday is about “keeping hope alive, a promise for a better future,” explains Barry Lutz, interim rabbi of the Congregation. Kol Ami, a Reform synagogue in West Hollywood focused on the LGBTQ community. “It’s about the miracle of the human spirit that prevails even in the darkest of times.”
Rabbi David Baron of the Beverly Hills Temple to the Arts at the Saban Theatre, a congregation that serves the creative community of Los Angeles and offered free High Holiday services to striking members of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA, notes that this Hanukkah will be more sombre. one “mixed with joy and sadness, as we pray for (the remaining) hostages and mourn the souls of the innocents murdered on October 7.”
Baron says a reckoning has come through social media and the realization that longtime friends may have views on the conflict that are personally untenable. “Can you condemn rape, murder and torture? That is my litmus test,” he says. “If you cannot make that statement, you have lost a very important point of humanity, which is compassion. If you don’t recognize it, I can’t have a relationship with you. Unfortunately, I block people.”
Ultimately, this Hanukkah will offer a time to step away from the headlines, social media posts, and reflect and communicate with family about what it means to be Jewish. “I feel like no one has had a chance to sit or breathe for two months,” says Rabbi Daniel Sher, who works alongside Rabbi Bernstein at Kehillat Israel. “I think Hanukkah will be a very welcome time for many people. There is something special about lighting the candles and being in the room. “I hope it gives people a chance to exhale before they go back to their phones and keep scrolling.”