Rabbi Boruch Chazanow of Western Monmouth County was among the participants at a Dec. 4 memorial for the victims of the Mumbai attacks.
Photo courtesy Chabad of Western Monmouth County
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December 16, 2008
Residents of Monmouth County joined the worldwide community in mourning the deaths of Chabad emissaries Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife, Rivkah, and the other victims of the Thanksgiving weekend terrorist attacks in Mumbai.
More than 500 members of the general community attended a memorial and solidarity gathering on Dec. 4 at the Radisson Hotel in Freehold. The tribute, sponsored by the Jewish Federation of Monmouth County and the Chabad of Western Monmouth County, honored the Holtzbergs and the others who perished during the violence in India.
“We are shocked by the brutal attacks in Mumbai that deliberately targeted innocent men, women, and children,” Rabbi Boruch Chazanow, director of the Western Monmouth Chabad in Manalapan, told NJ Jewish News. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to each and every one of the victims and their families, and we especially remember and honor Rabbi Holtzberg and his wife, Rivkah, who perished while devotedly serving the Mumbai Jewish community at the Chabad House.
“Our task now is to offer comfort and support to the survivors and to take action in memory of the victims,” he said.
The attacks have left a trail of grief throughout the world, said Howard Gases, federation executive director.
“We mourn the loss of all the victims, especially Rabbi Holtzberg and his wife, who were serving as Chabad emissaries,” said Gases. “Loss of life in such a violent way is always hard to comprehend, and when members of the Jewish community are targeted, we find ourselves even more shocked. We join the world in prayers for peace.”
‘Spreading of light’
Although the question of why the Holtzbergs lost their lives can never be adequately answered, their good works can be celebrated by performing charitable acts, Chazanow said.
“Add light to the world. Perform mitzvot and acts of kindness,” he said. “Rabbi Holtzberg had a moral vision, and his leadership sparked the light of Jewish renewal wherever he went. His memory will live on through the good deeds done in his name.”
The Holtzbergs, who left New York for Mumbai in 2003, left behind the comforts of a familiar environment to devote their lives to bringing their warmth and kindness to far corners of the world, Chazanow said.
“It is imperative upon each of us to continue their sacred calling and renew our own commitment to embrace that spirit of giving,” he said. “We must remember them, along with the other victims, to eternalize their important work and to continue the spreading of light and goodness in the world.”
However, the sense of loss remains.
“But if we continue to build our Jewish faith, we will find comfort,” Chazanow said. “We must try and make this tragedy into an inspiration for greater outreach and goodness. Ultimately, goodness will prevail over the forces of destruction.”
‘Messenger of light’
Rabbi Laibel Schapiro of the Chabad of the Shore talked to students at Hillel Yeshiva in Ocean about the Mumbai tragedy, from left, Sol Galapo, David Kassin, Morris Sitt, David Rahmey, and Michael Vaknin.
Photo courtesy Hillel Yeshiva
FOR RABBI LAIBEL Schapiro, director of the Chabad of the Shore in Long Branch, Rabbi Holtzberg’s death assumed an extra dimension: They had known each other since childhood and were classmates at the Ohelei Torah Educational Institute in Brooklyn.
“He was a good friend and a special person,” Schapiro told NJJN. “He was brilliant and he took his studies very seriously, but he was a friend to everyone. He was a gentle person, and he would really listen to you. His death is a tremendous loss for the Chabad community and the entire world.”
The late rabbi brought joy, meaning, and a sense of purpose to the Mumbai Jewish community and to the thousands of Israelis who visit India each year, said Schapiro, who continued to maintain contact with Holtzberg until his death.
“He tried to help people rediscover their faith, and he provided comfort, whether it involved listening or the offer of a Sabbath meal,” said Schapiro. “He inspired anyone who came his way, and when he went to India, he had faith that he was on a lifelong mission. He never really worried about the danger; he was on a peaceful mission.”
Holtzberg, Schapiro said, was a “messenger of light.” “The attackers were tyrants of darkness. But light overcomes darkness. The light we add to the world is a weapon against the darkness.”
— JILL HUBER
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