As Catholics and Jews gathered for a time of prayer and friendship at Congregation Beth Israel, two things were clear for Rabbi Jonathan Infeld.
First, no one in the Vancouver Jewish community had been left untouched by the Oct. 7 attack on Israel that left more than 1,400 people dead and 236 Israelis kidnapped.
Among the victims was 22-year-old Ben Mizrachi, a 2018 graduate of Vancouver’s King David High School.
Second, the Catholic community in Vancouver had shown greatly appreciated support in the wake of the tragedy.
“Today we are grateful for the moral clarity of our brothers and sisters in the Catholic Church, for speaking out about antisemitism,” Rabbi Infeld told the gathering as he reflected on “the worst pogrom since the holocaust.”
In the wake of the attack, Archbishop J. Michael Miller was outspoken in his support for the Jewish community.
The Nov. 25 Shabbat Service preceded a Kiddush lunch provided by parishioners from Immaculate Conception in Delta as an offering of support to the Vancouver Jewish community.
Archdiocese of Vancouver Vicar General Msgr. Gregory Smith read an English translation of a blessing of safety for the Jewish people, for captives, and for the success and safety of the Israeli Defence Force.
“We are family today,” said Msgr. Smith, “standing together against an onslaught of hatred that has erupted from some unseen depths in Canadian society and threatens not only Jews but basic elements of Canada’s civil society.”
He reaffirmed the Church’s rejection of hatred against the Jews, a lesson that “one would have thought the Shoah had inculcated Canadians,” he said.
“Let this not be a mere ‘co-existence,’ … interspersed with limited and occasional meetings, but let it animate fraternal love,” he said.
Rabbi Infeld offered his heartfelt thanks to the Catholics joining the community for the Shabbat service, saying the Archdiocese has gone out of its way to provide support. “Your words, your actions, speak love. It has absolutely been noticed,” he said. “Thank you.”
Msgr. Smith told The B.C. Catholic he has received many expressions of appreciation from different faith communities, but this one was the most genuine and heartfelt he has experienced.
Rabbi Infeld reflected on the outburst of antisemitism that has followed the October attack, saying the Jewish community has been shocked to find relationships they had built “torn asunder.” The only reason the Catholic/Jewish gathering could take place was because Vancouver Police were present, he said.
The Congregation Beth Israel event was the first of two Catholic and Jewish gatherings within days. On Nov. 30, Archbishop Miller joined Rabbi Dan Moskovitz at Temple Sholom in Vancouver for an evening of fellowship and a conversation about their respective paths toward religious leadership.
Rabbi Moskovitz was appreciative of the Archbishop’s support, saying, “The very first communication I received [after the Hamas attack] was from [Archbishop Miller] reaching out to our community.”
His was “a voice in the wilderness because we didn’t hear from people we have allied with on many other things,” he said.
Rabbi Moskovitz reminded everyone at Temple Shalom of the need to build faith, regardless of creed, on a foundation of authentic love “based on life, tolerance, and acceptance.”
“We can’t be strangers to each other,” he said. “Part of the way we combat antisemitism, or anti – Catholic hate, or hate of any kind is to know each other.”
Rabbi Moskovitz told the gathering the horror of Oct. 7 was pulling the Jewish community together. People aren’t just showing up at temple, he said. “Jewishness is showing up in their lives.”
“I hope the lesson we take from this is that we are stronger together,” he mused.
Archbishop Miller weighed in on the question of antisemitism in Canada, saying it can be difficult for those raised in the Judaeo-Christian tradition to readjust their understanding of the world to realize there are people who don’t only not understand those values but who truly reject them.
“It’s been shoved in our face in a very brutal way,” said the archbishop. “It’s not just ‘a matter of time’ until people will just come along. There is such a thing as a rejection of deep values that we hold. I find that disturbing truth.”
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