Question: I am upset at my work colleagues. Ever since the atrocities on October 7, they have not said a word to me about it. They know I'm Jewish, and yet not one of them has reached out to acknowledge my pain. The silence hurts more than anything. How do I cope with this? Confront them or let it go?
Response: Silence can have many meanings. It may be malicious. But more likely it's coming from cluelessness.
Your colleagues may genuinely have no idea what you are going through now. How can anyone else understand how personally we take events happening so far away? No other nation is interconnected the way Jews are.
If someone's grandparents were Irish, they don't necessarily feel a profound connection with events going on in Ireland. But a Jew who never lived in Israel will nevertheless feel the pain of events happening now in Israel, as if it's happening to your own family. Because it is.
The Jewish people are one family. Even deeper than that, the Jewish people are one soul. When one part hurts, the whole body feels it. This is one of the unique elements to being Jewish.
Another uniqueness of being Jewish is that we were born to lead. Israel is fighting a war against an evil ideology that aims to take over the world. Their hatred is aimed at Israel, but their sights are on global domination. Whether the world sees it or not, Israel is leading the fight for all good people.
Maybe you need to take the lead too. Don't wait for your work colleagues to come to you, rather you approach them. Their silence is an opportunity. The world is looking to the Jews for direction, not the other way around.
You are Israel's voice. Speak up. Share the truth. This is our moment.
