In pogroms, our mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, sons and daughters often become numbers. But we are more than numbers. Over 1400 died on the October 7 pogrom in Southern Israel. That is an unseemly number. That is more than 1400 families affected. More than 1400 friendship circles forever changed. More than 1400 stories cruelly ended.
We often find the numbers hard to grasp, impossible to contextualize. This past ten or so days, we have all been met with far too many stories of friends who have lost their loved ones. We are a small community. Everyone knows someone affected, if not themselves. I have spent time with people I didn’t know before, learning about the dead, or the missing. There are still 199 hostages missing. Bring them home.
Every soul who was taken must be in our memories, and their memories shall forever be a blessing.
Meet Ben.
Ben Shimoni was 31-years-old.
Ben’s family wrote some words for me to share with you all tonight:
Ben was the kind of person who always looked out for everyone around him. He always wanted to make sure they were happy and comfortable. He was always just a quick call away, ready to drop whatever he was doing to lend a hand. While being so helpful and caring, he was quiet, unassuming, modest, never wanting recognition or attention for his good deeds. A gentle soul with a sweet, shy, half-smile that was so contagious, you couldn’t help but shyly smile back at him.
On October 7th, Ben attended the SuperNova music festival in southern Israel when the Hamas massacre began. As terrorists stormed into the festival site, Ben filled his car with four women, all strangers, and drove them almost an hour away to safety. The women have since described that not only did Ben remain calm and focused, he helped calm them down, too. They begged Ben not to go back to the festival site but he, as always, felt called to help. He went back to the area and picked up another car load of people. He saved them too. Again, they begged Ben not to go back, but he returned a third time, despite the risk to himself. He had another carload of people to rescue, and that is when the terrorists found him. Hamas murdered Ben. He was killed while saving as many lives as possible. Ben was a hero.
Before the family knew that Ben was killed, they spent a week desperately searching for him. Holding onto every glimmer of hope. There were grassroots efforts to find him, people on the ground surveying the scene. His car was found smashed up, with bullet holes and blood stains. Still, they held onto hope. His phone was found and returned to the family. They tried to use it to gather clues. They did not give up hope not even for one second, until the moment the unimaginable news was broken: Ben was confirmed dead.
He leaves behind a heartbroken and devastated family, and his girlfriend Jessica.
They were madly in love.
I wanted to help Ben’s family share his story. Ben is but one of so many innocent Israeli civilians whose lives have been callously taken by bloodthirsty, monstrous terrorists.
Not freedom fighters.
Terrorists.
Yesterday, at Cornell University, Professor Russell Rickford speaking about the Hamas terror attacks on October 7th, said he found these barbaric acts of murder “exhilarating” and “energizing.” These are sentiments that are being echoed throughout the top universities and colleges of the United States. The deaths of gorgeous, brave, soulful, generous, harmless innocents like Ben are being celebrated, while the crimes against humanity that took them from us are being erased by so-called progressives.
If this is not the straw that breaks the camel’s back. If this is not the reset that the West needs to save itself from falling into the depths of hell, then what will be?
While war rages in the Middle East tonight, synagogues are burning all over the world. In Tunisia. In Germany. In Spain. Firebombs have been thrown engulfing our temples in flames. Scenes that remind of the night of broken glass. Scenes that remind us that there will always be an evil that attacks the beauty of our culture with violence.
What they can never destroy, however, is the light of a human soul that burns eternal.
If you would like to say the mourner’s prayer for Ben, and all the other souls lost, I have included the text for Kaddish here.
Every life taken that you highlight, every atrocity you recount, every act of violence you show, every disgusting rejoicing at the deaths and dying only cuts deeper into our souls. Those of us who care, who realize that this was an attack against humanity, not a freedom fight, a hideous searing of our the universe feel more pain each day. Your courage to speak out is appreciated. Thank you Eve! Thank you!
When I see Cornell University “professors” salivating over the anti-Jewish pogroms, I weep for the future of western universities.