“They confronted me in the day of my disaster, but the Lord was my support. He brought me out into a spacious place; He rescued me because He delighted in me.” (2 Samuel 22:19–20)
Last Tuesday, yet another anti-Semitic attack occurred, this time in Marseille, France.
Two Jewish teens were attacked after leaving their synagogue. The teens said a pair of “African-origin” youth robbed and beat them to the point they needed medical aid.
The attackers reportedly said, “Dirty Jews, we will exterminate all of you,” before unleashing what seems to be a crime motivated by religious hatred.
One victim told French National Bureau of Vigilance Against Anti-Semitism (BNVCA) that he recognized the attackers. (Times of Israel)
The BNVCA urged French municipal police to “do everything possible to identify and question the attackers.”
“Jewish citizens have become increasingly vulnerable targets,” the BNVCA told reporters. “This gives rise to insecurity, despite the significant steps taken by the government to try to protect its Jewish citizens, and their places of worship.” (Israel National News)
French patrons and tourists relax in an outdoor cafe in Marseille, France.
These attacks are not partial to social status. Actor Michael Douglas wrote an op-ed in the Los Angeles Times last week about his son Dylan’s encounter with a man who verbally insulted him at a European hotel pool last summer.
Douglas, whose father, Kirk Douglas, is Jewish, began reconnecting to his faith when Dylan, who is now 14, started attending Hebrew school to prepare for his Bar Mitzvah. Wearing a Star of David at poolside made him a visible target for this attack.
Douglas approached the attacker, but wrote, “It was not a pleasant discussion. Afterward, I sat down with my son and said: ‘Dylan, you just had your first taste of anti-Semitism.’”
In January, Douglas learned he would receive Israel’s 2015 Genesis Prize, which honors “exceptional people whose values and achievements will inspire the next generation of Jews.”
Douglas is now passionate about opposing rising anti-Semitism.
“If we confront anti-Semitism whenever we see it, if we combat it individually and as a society, and use whatever platform we have to denounce it, we can stop the spread of this madness,” he wrote.
Michael Douglas in 2012 at a Vanity Fair party with his wife, Catherine Zeta-Jones. (Photo by David Shankbone)
Hopefully, Douglas’ platform as international superstar can reduce the insults and the killings, such as 12-year old Hannah Bentow experienced in Denmark.
Last month, Bentow escaped a traumatic shootout at the Copenhagen synagogue where she was having her Bat Mitzvah party, ending happiness with horror.
During the late-night party on February 15, 2015, a so-called “lone wolf” Islamic gunman opened fire at the synagogue, killing 38-year-old community guard Dan Uzan, who was watching over the doors.
Hannah’s speech before the shooting contrasted with the spirit of the shooter.
“Almost everybody in our congregation has at some time experienced being a stranger. … As a stranger in a new country, you have the responsibility and duty to become part of that society and contribute what you can. In turn, society has an important duty to accept and support strangers,” Hannah said.
“I’m grateful that Denmark was the country my family arrived in more than a hundred years ago. And that Sweden greeted them with open arms when they needed it most. Because my great-grandparents escaped and were welcomed in Sweden, and because my grandmother was born in Sweden, I’m alive today. …
“My parents raised me according to the rules and laws of Denmark and of Judaism. It’s crucial for me to have both elements in my life—the Danish and the Jewish. And it makes me very proud.” (TabletMag)
An Israeli girl addresses family and friends at her Bat Mitzvah party.
Bentow shared her grief about Uzan’s death with reporters, telling them that she wished she had not had a Bat Mitzvah so that he would still be alive.
After 33-year-old Toronto activist Josh Salmon read about Bentow’s grief, he arranged for her and her parents Mette (Miriam) and Claus, and her brothers Jacob and Elias, to fly to Israel for a week to celebrate another Bat Mitzvah.
“The trip was truly something positive to look forward to and help us with our state of mind,” Mette Bentow said, emphasizing the emotional aftermath of the shooting. (Times of Israel)
The coming of age party arranged by Salmon was hosted by the Matan Women’s Institute for Torah Studies in Jerusalem, whose Copenhagen branch was involved with the 12-year-old’s Bat Mitzvah preparations.
Many of the girls who gathered for Hannah’s party had recently participated in the institute’s Bat Mitzvah program.
“It’s hard to believe that something so good started with something so bad,” said Mette Bentow as she stood in front of the many guests at Thursday’s party.
“Sometimes you do get a second chance,” she said. (Times of Israel)
Bar and Bat Mitzvahs call for a big celebratory party. In the above photo, tweens dance together at a friend’s Bat Mitzvah party. The tall hats, which say “mazel tov” (good luck or congratulations), express their well wishes.
