Dear friends,
Over the last two weeks, we have watched with horror as Russia launched an unprompted and unjustifiable invasion of Ukraine, attacking and besieging major cities, resulting in 2 million people fleeing their homes. Many of us worry about family, friends, and acquaintances there. For those of us with roots in the region, the terrifying images remind us of our own families’ desperate escapes, or the fatal consequences for too many who remained. We have wept at attacks on Babyn Yar, and on the building that housed the Hillel in Kyiv, a symbol of the vibrant and multifaceted Jewish life that Ukrainian Jews have miraculously rebuilt following the Soviet Era.
It’s easy to feel helpless as we watch this suffering unfold. But Jewish tradition demands, over and over, that we refuse to despair. The Book of Esther, which we will read on Purim this month, tells the story of Mordechai and Esther who, improbably, manage to save the Jewish people by taking action even when destruction is all but guaranteed.
Just this past week, we read about the completion of the construction of the mishkan — an act of rebuilding following the tragic sin of the golden calf, and one that leads to closer connection with God, as detailed in this week’s Torah reading. In the last century, establishing international human rights protections — including the UN’s adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), written in direct response to the Shoah and other atrocities of World War II — also represented an act of hopeful rebuilding in a dark moment.
As Rene Cassin, a French Jew and one of the primary authors of the UDHR wrote:
…if Jews do not support Human Rights for all [people], they themselves have no chance of escaping fresh persecution in the future. The solidarity which exists between the Jews and the rest of the oppressed, or simply under-privileged, world is plain to see. We know that building for the future is a very difficult thing to do; we cannot hope to complete the work in one generation; all the more reason to begin at once.
As Jews, we must ensure that these sacred and inalienable rights are protected today — including every Ukrainian’s right to safety and freedom of movement and every Russian’s right to freedom of thought and expression — rights that have been violated by Putin’s government.
Here are a few ways to take action now:
- Give to reputable organizations. Our partners at HIAS are increasing their efforts to resettle refugees from Ukraine. Give here to support their emergency efforts. Timothy Snyder, a Yale historian who specializes in this region, offers the following suggestions for donations. (T’ruah has not independently vetted his list.)
- Take the opportunity to learn more about the region. I very much recommend Snyder’s book, The Road to Unfreedom, for understanding Putin’s goals, as well as Masha Gessen’s The Man Without a Face and Surviving Autocracy for understanding Putin.
- Call or email your members of Congress and urge them to support expedited processing for Ukranian refugees with family in the United States, so they can reunite with loved ones rather than wait in limbo with temporary protection in Europe. Now is the time to live up to our value of welcoming people in their moment of need.
- Find comfort in this prayer for peace written by Rabbi Nathan Sternhartz of Nemirov in the spirit of his teacher, Rabbi Nahman of Breslov, both of whom lived in a region that is now part of Ukraine.
May we follow in the footsteps of those courageous enough to have hope and seek justice in every generation.
With prayers for peace,
Rabbi Jill Jacobs
CEO
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