Like many college campuses across the country, we haven’t been immune to loud, anti-Israel demonstrations. With an overwhelmingly large Jewish population, it’s been much less dramatic than those staged at Columbia and Harvard, and the administration has taken a peaceable, neutral stance.
In the wake of the horrific attack on October 7th, we saw a surge of Jewish pride and yearning to connect. People who never wanted to put on tefillin before were suddenly volunteering their arms, and we got many calls of support.
We had an idea to take our students on a Shabbaton and give them a true Shabbos experience. However, many students were wary of going away for the weekend and giving up their phones and devices for a whole 25 hours. Only a few brave souls signed up.
We debated whether it was worthwhile to arrange such a massive event for just a couple of students, but we drew inspiration from everyone around us. If they could step outside their comfort zones to do something positive for the sake of Israel’s safety, how could we not do the same?
The Shabbaton was a massive success. The students experienced a real Shabbos for the first time in their lives, and it impressed them tremendously. It was so successful, we’ve decided to make it a recurring event every semester!
Jewish Pride in Action
After the Shabbaton, we gave out Sinai Scholar T-shirts, emblazoned with the message I love being Jewish! We had a long, emotional talk about what it meant to have Jewish pride, and how to combat the fear of anti-Semitism and not let it hold us back. Many of the students resolved to wear their T-shirts on campus the next day.
Sharon* was extremely reluctant. She’d seen so many hateful messages and heard too many stories to become a walking target. Cornell, just a stone’s throw away, had its fair share of anti-Semitism against Jewish students. Her mother advised her to remove her magen David necklace. But when she thought more about our discussion, she overcame her fear and joined the other students, wearing her t-shirt to class. She even snapped a selfie and sent it to her mother.
Sharon’s mother, Mattie*, was set to run the New York City Marathon a few days later. She’d been suffering the same cycle of fear and anxiety as her daughter. Seeing her daughter overcome her fear and wearing her I love being Jewish shirt inspired Mattie too. When she ran the marathon, she ran with the names of every hostage displayed on her back, and the name of a fallen soldier pinned over her heart. She ran, unafraid, through crowds waving the Palestinian flag and shouting hateful chants. She crossed the finish line with tears running down her face, and a heart beating fiercely with pride and love for her people.
