Congregants from Temple Beth Sholom of Roslyn Heights will be joining members of two other Long Island synagogues on a solidarity mission to Israel on Feb. 4-9, 2024, which is open to people beyond the congregation.
TBS’s Senior Rabbi Joshua Ben-Gideon will be one of the three rabbis leading the mission. He participated in a rabbinical mission to Israel just a few weeks after Hamas’s horrific attack on Oct. 7 and said that Israelis were very grateful that the U.S. rabbis came during such a traumatic time.
“Our purpose on the February mission will be to bring love and support to the Israeli people,” he said. “We’ll visit families impacted by the massacre and contribute to the rebuilding of damaged areas by volunteering.” He added that he expects the trip to be fast paced and intense both physically and emotionally.
TBS’s Cantor Ofer Barnoy also recently returned from a cantors’ mission, where the group visited Israelis who were traumatized by the attack and toured devastated communities. They listened and empathized with heartbroken families whose loved ones were killed, injured, or taken hostage, and tried to lift their spirits through music.
Temple Beth Sholom has engaged its congregants in writing hundreds of supportive letters to members of the Israel Defense Forces and encouraged donations to the temple’s Israel Emergency Fund.
Members have raised $400,000 to help displaced Israelis and communities decimated by the massacre. Congregants also participated in the March for Israel in Washington, D.C., on November 14, which drew a crowd of 300,000.
For more information about the February solidarity mission to Israel, please contact Temple Beth Sholom at 516-621-2288.
