Three years ago, Baby Moshe, one of the unforgettable faces of the Mumbai attacks, escaped the carnage clinging to his nanny not knowing that his parents- Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his pregnant wife Rivika – were killed. Now a four-year-old, Moshe knows they had fallen victim to terrorists. Orphaned by the terrorists, Moshe is now a carefree child, though he remembers his parents whenever he sees their photographs, saying good morning or goodnight to ‘eema’ (mother) and ‘abba’ (father) each day.

from the news story “Moshe still says goodnight to parents”
The Times of India

As Jacob flees from the promised land, he stops at Bethel where God gives him the dream of the ladder and confirms the covenant promises to him. Though the oracle at Bethel is essentially a repetition of the covenant promises bestowed upon Abraham and Isaac, there is an important variation on the wording in 28:14. The seed of Jacob will not only multiply to be as numerous and uncountable as the dust of the earth, it will also “spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south.” Not only will his seed inherit the land of Canaan, they will also be spread in every direction. This dispersion alludes again to the theme of exile. As Jacob descends into exile, he is warned that his seed will be spread in every direction as the result of such exile.

from “The Dispersion and Return”
Commentary on Torah Portion Vayetze
FFOZ.org

I don’t know what to write about but I do know that I’m angry. Three years ago this month, little Moshe Holtzberg lost his parents in the most horrible way possible. Now four years old, it’s doubtful he fully comprehends what has happened to him or why. But I know what has happened and I’m furious about it. As much as I’m supposed to forgive others for their “transgressions”, remembering the details of the attack that took Moshe’s parents away does not bring thoughts and feelings of forgiveness to me. I’m not alone.

Have you forgiven the terrorists? “No, of course not,” replies Moshe’s grandmother Yudith. His nanny says, “It makes me angry because they could have escaped but they did not do it and I could have done something, which in my cowardness I did not do.”

I have a grandson who’s not quite three years old. If my son and his wife had been killed by monsters and I was raising my grandson under those conditions, I would probably feel just like Moshe’s grandmother. I know that doesn’t say anything good about me, but I cannot get past this kind of murderous injustice.

Welcome to the history of the Jewish people.

I hope you all remember these events from CNN three years ago. I hope you were all shocked and appalled, just as I was, and angry that innocent blood could be shed in such a ghastly manner. Moshe’s parents weren’t just killed, they were tortured and mutilated by their attackers. Now with all that in mind, apply those same images to what has been happening to the Jewish people throughout history, not just the past 2,000 years of inquisitions, persecutions, and pogroms, but during every trial and exile that has befallen the Jewish people since the days of Jacob.

Although the Jewish people have a modern state of Israel, in many ways, they are still in exile. The very legitimacy of Israel is constantly being brought into question by nations from around the world including the U.S. and there is a continual struggle over what is “Israel” and what (if anything) is “Palestine”.

Faith and composure are very difficult for me when considering such manners (I’m making an understatement). And yet there are promises.

Remember, I am with you: I will protect you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” –Genesis 28:15 (JPS Tanakh)

It is true that the plain meaning of the text suggests that God is speaking just to Jacob’s sojourn in Haran but, as the FFOZ commentary states, we can also apply this scripture both as prophesy and promise, that God will be with Jacob and his children in whatever exile they might find themselves and will remain with them until they return to their Land, to Israel.

This is not the only such promise to the Jewish people from God.

Do not be afraid, for I am with you;
I will bring your children from the east
and gather you from the west.
I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’
and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’
Bring my sons from afar
and my daughters from the ends of the earth—
everyone who is called by my name,
whom I created for my glory,
whom I formed and made.” –Isaiah 43:5-7

And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other. –Matthew 24:31 (ESV)

The quote from the Book of Matthew is probably interpreted by Christianity as applying exclusively to the church, but put back into the larger panorama of the entire Bible and refactored into its original context (Matthew was writing to a primarily Jewish audience), we can see it has more specific implications.

I periodically rant on the topic of Christian supersessionism and how it has been used as a platform to justify crimes by the church against the Jewish people. I hope that recalling God’s promises to the Jews will serve as a reminder that they have been and always will be God’s chosen people. That God was gracious enough to give “his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16), does not mean that we Christian Gentiles have “bumped” the Jews from their seats on the flight, so to speak, in order to make room for us (read Romans 11:17-20 again if you don’t believe me).

In our nice, peaceful, reasonably safe American homes, we like to think that the persecution and murder of Jews are a thing of the past and that an ugly chapter in the history of the church has now been closed, but if you are tempted to be comforted by those thoughts, remember four-year old Moshe Holtzberg as he kisses the photos of his parents every morning and night. True, this isn’t a crime that can be laid at the feet of the church, but it’s a delusion to believe that men and women of the past who also called themselves “Christian” didn’t perform the same, horrible terrorist acts and worse. How many Jewish children have we orphaned in the name of Christ?

George Santayana made the often misquoted comment, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” I could change that slightly to say, “Those who are not outraged by the atrocities of the past will continue to commit them in the present.” That includes committing atrocities by apathy, lack of concern, and the unwillingness to act.

We should mourn the loss of Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife Rivika along with Moshe and his grandparents. It’s tragic that Christianity doesn’t understand the significance of yahrzeit for we should all kindle of the yahrzeit candle for Gavriel and Rivika Holtzberg in solemn memory. By inference, we can also mourn all the Jewish victims of terrorism who came before them, particularly those who were murdered by the church, for in remembering and grieving, we can assure the Jewish people and ourselves that we will never participate in such a nightmare again. We cry out against the injustice of the Nazi Holocaust and the murder of six million but we must never forget that countless Jews have their blood spilled across the pages of thousands of years of history.

Jews believe that tikkun olam, acts of repairing the world, will hasten the coming of the Messiah. However, even in Jewish tradition it is understood that anyone, Jew or Gentile, can perform tikkun olam. Gandhi was once supposed to have said, “Be the change you want to see in the world.” If the fact that Moshe Holtzberg will never again see his parents this side of Heaven makes you sad and angry, you can stand up and do something about it. You can make sure that through action or inaction, you are never a part of such an injustice. You don’t have to change the whole world. You only have to change yourself. Remember God’s promises to the Jewish people and to all people. If you are devoted to the God of Israel, perform one act of justice and mercy today. Perform another one tomorrow. Let your voice be heard. Light a candle in remembrance. Never let the light of mercy go dark in your heart.

The bridegroom is coming. The Prince is returning to his throne. Be ready every day and every night. Tremble at the thought that he will come and you will not be prepared.

Tremble, and sin not; reflect in your hearts while on your beds and be utterly silent. –Psalm 4:5

He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus! –Revelation 22:20 (ESV)