This Is Our Moment! Shabbat Shalom & Chanukah Sameach.

There are no words that can fully capture the devastation, loss, and heartbreak we have lived through this week. A week in which sixteen innocent lives were brutally taken from our community. A week marked by funerals, tears, shattered families, and unbearable pain. And yet, also a week in which we have been held by the compassion of the broader Australian community.

This is not about Jews alone. At this critical juncture, Australia must decide how it will protect its citizens, confront extremism, and recognise warning signs before tragedy strikes. This is a moment to recalibrate our national moral compass and clearly define what is and is not acceptable in our society.

As for our Jewish community, we know what must be done. Am Yisroel is ONE family. Together we will grieve. Together we will heal. Together we will stand proud in our Jewish identity. And together we will continue to be a light unto this nation.

These days feel unbearably dark, but we have been here before. Jewish history is a testament to resilience. In this week’s parsha, Joseph sits abandoned, imprisoned, and forgotten. At his lowest point, he is suddenly remembered and summoned before Pharaoh. From the depths of despair, Joseph rises to become viceroy of Egypt and leads his people toward survival and redemption.

That story is our story. The Jewish people of Sydney. Of Bondi. And this week, I have witnessed that same strength.

Not a single Chanukah candle lighting has been missed at Bondi Beach. Night after night, thousands have stood shoulder to shoulder, shining light in the very place where darkness tried to take hold. That is the message of Chanukah. Light is most powerful precisely when the darkness feels overwhelming.

To members of the non Jewish community who have stood with your Jewish neighbours this week, you cannot know what that has meant to us. I have walked through the streets of Bondi and strangers have approached me with quiet words, gentle gestures, and tears in their eyes, telling me how sorry they are for our loss. People have driven long distances after full days of work, night after night, simply to stand at the memorial. To be present.

This is the grassroots at work. Ordinary people choosing decency and compassion. And ordinary people are exactly what will restore this country to what it is known for. If you are here tonight, it is because you care. Please keep caring. Inspire others to care. People of all faiths stood together and sent a clear message. Hate will not prevail.

The measure of a society is not taken in moments of comfort, but in moments of crisis. This is that moment. Stand for Australian values. Stand for unity. Stand for the triumph of light over darkness. On behalf of our entire community, thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

To my fellow brothers and sisters in the Jewish community, many of you have experienced what I have this week. People stopping you in the street, wishing you strength, telling you they are standing with us. Why do they do this. Why do they assume we are all related.

As Chief Rabbi Mervis, who joined us last night in shule from England, said so beautifully, we may be one of the smallest peoples in the world, but we are the largest family in the world. In the eyes of the world, one Jew represents every Jew.

And so we must play our part. Proudly. Confidently. Without apology. As our beloved Rabbi Eli Schlanger of blessed memory taught us, “let us be more Jewish. Act more Jewish. Appear more Jewish.”

If you have never worn a kippah in public, now is the time. If you own a Magen David but have kept it tucked away, wear it openly. If you have never put on tefillin, begin this week. If you do not yet light Shabbat candles, today is a beautiful time to start.

The only true way to fight antisemitism is with pro-semitism, more Jewish pride, more light.

The Menorah reminds us that after thousands of years, after generations of persecution, we are still standing. Still believing. Still burning.

Now that flame is in our hands. It is up to you and me.

If not now, when.
If not you, who.

With blessings for comfort and strength,
Shabbat Shalom and Chanukah Sameach,
Rabbi Levi and Chanie