How Should We Commemorate October 7?

by Rabbi Micah Peltz
Our Jewish tradition hardwires times throughout the year to help us remember individual and communal losses. We mark the yahrzeit, the anniversary of the death of a loved one, each year by saying kaddish, lighting a candle and giving tzedakah. We also have Yizkor. Four times a year, on Yom Kippur, Shemini Atzeret, Pesah, and Shavuot we come together to recall our loved ones. As a community, we have days like Tisha B’Av to remember tragic times throughout history, Yom HaShoah, and in Israel there is Yom HaZikaron, Israel’s memorial day for fallen soldiers and victims of terror. Over the course of the year, we have many opportunities to remember.

So, as we approach the one year anniversary of Hamas’ brutal terror attack on Israel, we prepare to commemorate another difficult day for our people. But when should it be? The answer is not so simple. On the secular calendar, it happened on October 7, and this has become how we refer to it. But in the Hebrew calendar, the date was the 22nd of Tishrei, a Jewish holiday. But here it gets even more complicated. In Israel, the 22nd of Tishrei is the combined holiday of Shemini Atzeret and Simhat Torah. But outside of Israel, where we have two holy days instead of one, the 22nd of Tishrei was Shemini Atzeret, and the following day, the 23rd of Tishrei, was Simhat Torah. Make sense? 

In short, the question is whether to commemorate what happened on the secular date of October 7 or the Hebrew date of the 22nd of Tishrei. The policy of the government of Israel is to mark important days by the Hebrew calendar. But those days cannot fall on holidays. That’s why back in March the Knessset voted to establish a National Day of Remembrance to commemorate the October 7 massacre each year on the 24th of Tishrei, the first day after all of the holidays have ended. This year, however, the 24th of Tishrei falls on October 26, which also happens to be Shabbat. So, the Knesset decided that this year the first anniversary of October 7, 2023 will be marked on the secular date October 7, 2024.

That’s why our South Jersey Jewish community will be holding a commemoration on October 7 this year. I hope that you will attend that, which I am sure will be a very moving evening. Still, the holidays of Shemini Atzeret and Simhat Torah will also feel different this year. I will never forget walking into shul on the morning of Shemini Atzeret and hearing the first details of what was happening in Israel. Then, as we moved into Simhat Torah that night and the next day, we had to decide how to modify our celebration of the holiday given what was going on. It is one of those moments our community will never forget, and that also deserves commemoration.

So this year, on Shemini Atzeret, when we recite Yizkor, we will have the opportunity to make space to remember and to celebrate the strength and resilience of our people in shul together. That evening we will gather for a our congregational services beginning at 6:30pm, with the Ceremony for the Yahrzeit of October 7, which will be followed by Ma'ariv, and then we will transition into our Simhat Torah Celebration.

I hope that you will join us for these final days of the High Holy Day season. May they, like all of our holy days this year, bring us closer to God, to Israel, and to each other, and may they inspire us to keep working towards a more peaceful world.  

Israel Solidarity Day in Recognition of October 7

Sunday, October 6 from 12-3pm
Katz JCC, Cherry Hill

Join us for an afternoon of mitzvot in solidarity with Israel

• Blood Drive with Magen David Adom (separate registration required here)
• Make cards for Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers
• Wrap Tefillin
• and more mitzvot opportunities

Register here

Gathering in Recognition of October 7

Monday, October 7 at 7pm
Location: Congregation Beth El

Stand shoulder to shoulder together with strength.

We are coming together as a community to unite in solace and hope through prayer and reflection on the past year. We are collecting photos from the community with 1-2 sentence captions telling us how you helped show love, solidarity and support to Israel this past year.

Please send your photos to Ronit Boyd at rboyd@jfedsnj.org by Friday, September 20.

Register here