An evening of solidarity and prayer for Israel
The Jewish community of St Albans was heartened by the presence of both the city’s Mayor and MP as well as several local councillors at an evening of Solidarity and Prayers for Israel held last Sunday, (October 14th, 2023) at the St Albans United Synagogue in the city centre. They were touched, too, by the unprecedented wave of sympathy demonstrated by so many non-Jewish friends, some of whom left condolence cards and even flowers on the steps of the synagogue over the weekend to express their horror at the events of the previous weekend, when so many innocent men, women and children were massacred by Hamas terrorists.
St Albans Synagogue’s Rabbi Daniel Sturgess opened the proceedings by calling for a one- minute silence followed by the lighting of a memorial candle by his 15-year-old daughter, Leah-Ora, in memory of all the victims of the current crisis. “I would normally have been delighted to see so many people in synagogue,” he said, “but there is no joy in the reason that brings us all together this evening,” adding that this was nevertheless a time to come together to pray for and support all those suffering in Israel and all those putting their own lives on the line in order to save the lives of family and friends.
Addressing the gathering of synagogue members and friends, Mayor Cllr Anthony Rowlands said he was representing the City and District “at a time of acute bewilderment, fear and anxiety for you all, and as an expression of support and solidarity in the face of shocking and unfathomable terrorist evil. Mindless carnage has no place in a civilised world.” Cllr Rowlands went on to speak of his own personal engagement: his late wife’s father, an eminent virologist, was Jewish, and her uncle’s family live in Israel. “We are in contact with them, as you have been with your relations and friends.” Barely disguising the catch in his own voice, he declared that “they and you are very much in our thoughts as you all grieve and search for hope.”
MP Daisy Cooper also spoke of her shock and horror, as well as her profound sense of sadness, fear and foreboding. “Seeing images of young people dancing in the desert and then fleeing for their lives, hearing personal stories of those whose loved ones have been kidnapped….seeing the placards with the faces of the missing or murdered – it’s a tragedy so grave, I can barely find the words.
“As the constituency MP, my team and I have been supporting local families still trying to locate or contact loved ones in Israel,” she told the audience. “I know from emails I’ve received and conversations I’ve had with local residents that many local Jews are in a state of shock – experiencing varying degrees of fear, anger, sorrow and grief. My Liberal Democrat colleagues and I utterly condemn the anti-semitic incidents in the UK which have tragically already increased in the last few days,” she added.
Highlight of the evening was a live link to Rabbi Baruch Davis, former minister of Chigwell and Hainault United Synagogue, now living in Israel, whose son is currently among those fighting in the Israel Defence Forces. Rabbi Davis spoke movingly of his and his family’s experiences in dealing with the constant threat of rockets and other attacks, his attempts to maintain contact with his son, and also how British Jews could help.
