As Oct. 7 anniversary nears, Jewish leaders look to educate

As Rabbi Philip Weintraub prepared his Rosh Hashanah sermons for the Jewish New Year, he wondered how to deliver a message on the holiday that fell just days before the anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack in Israel in which Hamas killed about 1,200 people and took hundreds hostage.

"This time of year is a time of consideration," Weintraub said. "It's also a time of great joy, where we have meals together and have family together and have friends together and imagine what next year can be like. How do we find hope and blessing in a world that's complicated?"

In the year since the Hamas attack, protracted fighting in the Middle East has led to the deaths of around 1,500 Israelis and more than 40,000 Palestinians. Meanwhile, tension has been heightened in communities across the world.

Antisemitism has skyrocketed in the U.S. The Anti-Defamation League has reported a rise in antisemitic harassment, vandalism and assault. Anti-Jewish hate crimes in 20 cities jumped by 48% last year, according to the Center for Study of Hate and Extremism. Reported discrimination against Muslims and Palestinians also rose in 2023 .

Across the country, pro-Palestine supporters have held protests on college campuses, including at the University of South Florida and the University of Florida. Organizers say these demonstrations are aimed at actions taken by Israel and aren't antisemitic. Some have said the protests have crossed a line and targeted Jewish people and heritage.

Jewish residents in Tampa Bay say the past year has been one filled with grief — and worry for their safety.

Mike Igel, chairperson of the Florida Holocaust Museum, said the rise of antisemitism has been frightening, but he sees it as an opportunity.

"We see that as very scary, very frustrating," he said. "But it's also an opportunity. This is an opportunity for all of us, Jewish and non-Jewish, to change that narrative."

Igel urged people to educate themselves on what antisemitism looks and sounds like.

"Your heart can be in the right place and you might think you're on the right side of things, but it's important to have facts," he said.

Weintraub said he's heard from Jewish college students locally that they heard "horrific language towards Jewish people" on their campuses.

He said there is a difference between antisemitism, which is aimed at Jewish people and their faith, and anti-Zionism, which is aimed at Israel.

"Jews are certainly not monolithic," he said. "Our entire culture and history is about debate and trying to refine ideas through conversation and through the partnership of conversation. But I think through the vast majority of Jewish history and Jewish tradition, the idea that Israel is a holy and sacred place is central."

Weintraub said the language used when talking about the war is important.

"It's concerning in a world where everything seems to need to be a binary, where you're on this side or on that side," he said. "And how do we restore a world where we can have dialogue and say, 'You know there's things we agree on, let's work together on those issues. There are things we disagree with, how do we ask questions out of curiosity and not fear?'"

Fear, he said, has spread throughout the Jewish community over the past year.

Weintraub said he has had to increase the security presence at the Congregation B'Nai Israel synagogue in St. Petersburg.

"As much as I would love a message, 'Everyone come in, we can't wait to see you,' which is the message of our community, we have to keep the doors locked and they're only unlocked if there's a police officer standing there, because of the fear of violence," he said.

Still, he said, St. Petersburg has seen tremendous progress in combating antisemitism. When the Gandy Bridge was first built, a sign read "No Jews Wanted Here." Weintraub has buried doctors who were told when they arrived that their services were not needed at major hospitals.

"Some of the blatant antisemitism that we saw, 100 or even 60 years ago, seemed to be in remission for much of my life and I think for many Jews in this country it had felt like it was in remission for a long time," he said. "Over the last decade, it's reared its ugly head and has been restored partly and a socially acceptable hatred of Israel."

The Pinellas County Board of Rabbis and the Jewish Federation of Florida's Gulf Coast and Jewish Federations of North America plan to host an event in Largo on Monday to remember the victims in the Oct. 7 attack. The event will include music and dance performances.

"It's been a year of worry," Liz Wagner with the Jewish Federation of Florida's Gulf Coast said. "It's been a year of horror, sometimes disbelief. ... The community needed an event like this. The past year has been so emotional and trying and scary. ... We needed a way to process the one year after that terrible day and to come together and process it as a community."

Igel, the museum chairperson, said the one-year anniversary was a time to remember the importance of speaking out.

"Your neighbors are going through some of the worst times in their lives," he said. "Help them."

In his Rosh Hashanah sermon, Weintraub planned to share the prophet Jeremiah's reminder that candles are not needed when the sun is shining.

"You don't need hope when everything's going your way," he said. "You need hope when things are more challenging. It's challenging because it really is this time that we're trying to be joyful, and this interaction of joy and mourning and blessing and sorrow is very present. But at the same time that's life."