Hope, Resilience, and a Determination to Survive

Views of an October 7 remembrance by the Jewish community

Last night, on the first anniversary of the October 7 horrors, I attended an event sponsored by the Jewish Community Federation of Richmond at the local Jewish community center. I say “event” because at first, I was not sure what to call it. It was not just a memorial service. It was much more. To me, the message and atmosphere projected hope, resilience and a determination to survive. It also was remarkable that I never heard a hateful word.

The thoughts below are my own. I cannot say that they are the official position or philosophy of any Jewish organization. But they are based on and formed by what I, a non-Jew, saw and heard last evening. I believe that they are accurate

Although, or perhaps because anti-Semitic hatred is still alive and, indeed, blooming in many U.S. universities and some communities, I saw last evening that the determination embodied in the oft-repeated mantra of “Never again” is alive and viable. I felt it throughout the service and from my perspective as a non-Jew, it is central to Jewish identity and determination.

We see the ugly face of anti-Semitism from the Middle East to Morningside Heights in Manhattan. It is a fool’s errand to think that it can be totally eradicated from the face of the earth. But despite that reality, “Never again” is not just a feel-good slogan. It is a core commitment that guides everyday life and Israel’s national strategy for its survival.

“Never again” does not mean that haters and horrorists¹ will stop attempting to persecute and kill Jews. But the Jews I know and those I saw last evening are determined that they will never again succumb to the genocidal horrors that have taken place over the centuries, most famously by the Nazis in 1933 - 1945.

Those genocidal horrors are embodied in the mindless repetition of “from the river to the sea” by college buffoons, many of whom don’t have a clue about which river and which sea they are chanting about. But the horrorists behind the “demonstrations” and riots know what they are advocating — the destruction of the State of Israel and the murder of the Jews who live there. That goal is indeed genocidal–level murder. The “never again” philosophy is both central and essential to resisting it.

“Never again” is not just a feel-good slogan. Today it steels the determination of Israel and the Jews to resist the efforts to eradicate them from the face of the earth. The physical embodiment of that phrase is the State of Israel.

Understandably, the families of the hostages understandably would do almost anything to get their loved ones back. But opinion in Israel appears to be divided on how best to do that and what conditions should attach. It is equally understandable that, looking out from the center of the bullseye in which the Israelis live, many of them understand what Biden, Blinken, and Harris apparently do not, at least judging from their public announcements: They cannot afford to make a strategic decision that would give their mortal enemies time to regroup, rebuild, re-arm, and renew their efforts to destroy the State of Israel and kill the Jews. It would be to commit national suicide. They are determined to never again let that happen.

But the evening was about much more than “Never again.” Speakers from Israel spoke optimistically about hope for the future, about their love for their community and religion. Even though I am not Jewish, they did so in a way that I could relate to.

There were a variety of speakers. Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin gave an inspiring address that included his official Proclamation that yesterday was “A Day of Remembrance for the Victims of the October 7th Hamas Attack on Israel.”

Other speakers included local rabbis, a man who served as an IDF commander, and a woman who had come here from Israel. I did not attempt to take notes, and it would be impossible for me to describe in detail the inspiring points they all made. But when I tried to take a mental step back and look at the “big picture,” it was the image of hope, resilience and determination that I heard and saw. And, it bears emphasizing, not a word that even implied hatred towards those who would murder them.

I will close with the opening remarks by Maya Eckstein, my former law partner and a friend of many years, who organized the service.

Hersch Goldberg Polin; Eden Yerushalmi; Ori Danino; Carmel Gat; Noam Douek; Narya Belete; Adi Baruch; Yosef Dassa.

These are the names of just a few of the many innocent souls lost on October 7, and since then.

It has been one year since the attack that changed Jewish history. One year since 1185 innocents were murdered in a single day. One year since another 251 were taken hostage. One year since our sense of security was shattered, and our world broken.

My name is Maya Eckstein, and I am chair of the Israel Advocacy Committee of the Jewish Community Relations Committee of the Jewish Community Federation of Richmond.

I am Israeli-born and, like all of you, I was deeply affected by the events of October 7. So much so that, in the days and months after, it was difficult to work, to concentrate, to think about anything other than what happened that day, and has happened since.

To think about anything other than what my family in Israel — both my actual family and the larger Jewish community that we all call ‘family’ — were going through.

In March, I traveled to Israel along with some 20 others from our community on a mission focused on bearing witness. And we did just that.

Among other things, we travel to Kibbutz Nir Oz — a kibbutz in which 80% of the homes were demolished on that day, 42 residents murdered, and 75 taken hostage.

We were shown around the kibbutz — what was left of it — by a young woman named Mor who had lived there with her husband and children.

She walked us into her burned-out home and told us how she and her family hid in their safe room for hours, as three waves of terrorists ransacked her home, set it on fire, and tried to enter the safe room.

She explained that they survived only because they were able to slightly open a window in the safe room so that they could get fresh air as the rest of the house around them burned.

The sheer resilience she displayed as she told us this and many other stories was almost as breath-catching as what she told us about that day.

And so, out of our deep depth of despair, an abiding truth has emerged: that in the fight, for our very survival, the Jewish people will rise up, will unite, and will persevere.

And that is why we’re here today: to reflect on the awful events of that day; to honor our people’s resilience and to focus on renewal.

So, we thank everyone for being here tonight, standing together, including our non-Jewish allies – you have no idea how much we need you and appreciate you.

1. I have struggled to find the right word to describe the depraved persons who perpetrated the horrors of October 7, including burning babies alive, raping women in front of their families, killing children as their parents watched, necrophilia, and the other sub-human atrocities. “Terrorists” isn’t nearly strong enough. There are terrorists of all sorts all over the world and most don’t engage in such horrifically brutal behavior. “Barbarians” also doesn’t convey enough — Hollywood has made popular movies featuring barbarians. I have settled on “horrorists” because their actions, unprecedented in our time, were intended to instill true horror both in their victims and worldwide. I will use it henceforth.