Across Oceans, United in Grief: Our Hearts Are with Bondi Beach

In the aftermath of the deadly attack on the Chanukah celebration at Bondi Beach,

We stand with the Australian Jewish Community.
We mourn the fifteen whose lives were cut short.
We pray for the more than forty wounded.
We thank the first responders and the Muslim civilian who risked his life to stop one of the gunmen.
We call on our own elected officials to provide additional protections for our own Jewish communities of Canada.

בָּאנוּ חוֹשֶׁךְ לְגָרֵשׁ
בְּיָדֵינוּ אוֹר וָאֵשׁ
כָּל אֶחָד הוּא אוֹר קָטָן
וְכֻלָנוּ אוֹר אֵיתָן

We have come to banish the darkness. In our hands, a light. Everyone is a small flame and together, a great source of light!

Donate to the Bondi Community Relief Appeal, where resources will go straight to front-line responders on behalf of the Sydney Jewish community. Donate here

We are comforted to have seen so many of our members and guests visit Temple this week to be able to come together. It is meaningful to be able to share in our collective grief and also to be certain that we provide Jewish Joy for our children in celebrating Chanukah. You will notice that this week there has been additional security at Temple – some is visible, some not visible (by design), and increased Toronto Police Patrols in the Holy Blossom Temple neighbourhood. Please note that we are in direct touch with and have significant support from both our Police Division (13) and Police across the city, and intelligence, the Jewish Security Network (JSN), and other local and national authorities. We are blessed to have a knowledgeable Security Committee Chair, Andrew Kirsch, and as well a very supportive Security Committee. Thank you to security committee member Bob Cooper for arranging additional JSN support for our IGNITE program last night and to all who volunteered in that capacity. In addition to our usual security measures, you may encounter more uniformed security representatives, who may check bags (including purses and tallit bags) for specific events. Unless you have small children with you, please avoid bringing larger bags. HBT team members are on-site for all services and programs. Security will continue to be assessed and adjusted constantly. Please cooperate fully with our security and facilities teams and be patient. We are all partners in ensuring our Temple is safe and secure. So please: if you see something, say something.