''The shock is great. The pain is immense. But from this terrible pain we will only grow and become stronger''

May 18, 2021   

The elves danced with excitement and rejoiced with all their might, and suddenly the world stopped. It turned into mourning from our sickness. What are your chances of winning a duplex? And why is your dream closer than ever? What do you say about white chocolate with cookie crumbs? And what about a tasty snack? The shock is still great. In these hours of the holiday, we have not yet been able to digest. The tears do not stop flowing. My community, the source of my life and that of my family, has received such a hard blow - and even more so at a time when there was supposed to be great and historic joy of the inauguration of a place that we had been waiting for so many years to complete. And now it has turned into mourning from our illnesses. From soaring emotions of joy we have come to so much pain and sorrow. But everyone who knows Karlin knows: in Karlin Hasidism we were raised on concern for human life. Karlin and human life were one and the same, and the preservation of human life is ingrained in our blood. In general, respect for others in Karlin is something priceless. One of the highest values ​​that we were raised and are raised on from a young age. The respect of someone else, the place of someone else. Everyone who has been to Karlin knows that there is no such thing as not giving up, but only caring for others, only helping each other. And here we received such a hard and unimaginable blow. And this terrible blow comes after such a terrible disaster as the Meron disaster, from which we have not yet recovered. The Meron disaster exacerbated the problem, and here too we will have to examine what happened on a case-by-case basis. But it is already clear that it is impossible to explain the dedication we saw here, the mobilization of everyone immediately in the split seconds after the disaster, to help each other and save what is possible. Let it be clear: this event will still require answers, and we will not hesitate to ask the questions and receive the answers. There is no doubt that what happened here needs to be examined and it is imperative to examine, but I know one thing: in Karlin we were taught to act responsibly. Responsibly, this also means before events, but mainly after events. What is important now is to examine what happened here, so that we can know how to protect human life from every possible angle, starting now, so that this disaster will be, in God's eyes, the last disaster. And at the same time, the families who are so grieving at this time know that they are part of one big, grieving family. They know that no one will leave them for a moment. They are part of one big, warm family that grieves together, and learns together what needs to be done so that such a disaster will never happen again, God forbid. And most importantly, the Karlin Hasidic community has responsible leadership. We were blessed to have the late Maran Rebbe, Shlita, whom we all know how much he is grieving these days, and on the other hand, how devoted he is to the entire community. Especially with us, we know how courageous the bond that exists between him and each Hasidic, and we feel what a father is who cares for his children, what responsibility he has. How he cares for each of the families personally. The Rebbe Shlita was present at the scene during all the evacuations, during all those difficult hours, and all of us, the entire community, feel that there is someone who feels the pain and will do everything to ensure that no one from Israel will suffer any more harm, God forbid. This is undoubtedly a point of pride that every Karlin Hasid is proud of, sees in it a unique pride, and everyone knows that from this place, from this terrible pain, we will only grow in God, we will only become stronger.

Written and printed by: Israel Hershkowitz