Reader's letter

Last month, Beit Yaacov School received a visit from New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The mayor leads the most international city in the world, is a conscientious Jew and one of the most successful men in the United States. In addition to dedicating himself to philanthropy and protecting the environment, Bloomberg decided to enter politics to use his talent for the benefit of others. In the lecture he gave during the visit, before an audience of 700 people, the mayor told his story, talking about his home, where the values ​​of Judaism were transmitted to him. His parents maintained Jewish traditions and respected the laws of Kashrut.

The central themes addressed in this lecture – education, tradition and the collective responsibility of the Jewish People – are echoed in the following message, of great importance and relevance for all Jews, recently delivered by the Grand Rabbi of the United Kingdom, Jonathan Sacks: “ There are cultures that forget the past and there are cultures that are imprisoned by the past. We do neither this nor that. We carry with us G-d's laws and also all the fragments of our ancient history. This is how it has been throughout Jewish history. These fragments of memory make us define our identity, giving us the strength to remain united and refuse to be intimidated by anti-Semitism, which has returned to Europe, or by the constant attacks against Israel, the only place on Earth where Jews are capable of defending themselves. We cannot be fooled, because the new anti-Semitism is different from the old only in that it does not focus on the Jews as individuals, but as a nation in their land.”

Despite all forms of anti-Semitism and the hardships suffered by Jews in the Diaspora, we have survived as a people because we have always lived in accordance with Divine laws, ancient traditions and ideals that are above any obstacles. For more than 3.000 years, the Jewish People have valued not only education – constant study and learning – but also the use of acquired knowledge for the benefit of society and humanity as a whole.

Our mission as a nation is not just to spread monotheism – to teach the world that there is only one G-d – but to be, as the prophet Isaiah declared, “a light among the nations.”

May we continue to disseminate Jewish and universal culture and transmit G-d's laws and fragments of our ancient history from generation to generation.