They Could Not Take Our Pride
Prep for the Session
At-a-Glance
This resource gives a space for learners to navigate their Jewish identity in a climate of antisemitism, and particularly in light of new realities after the horrific attacks by Hamas on Israel on October 7. Using the symbol of the menorah, the resource invites learners to think about ways they express their Jewish pride. It prompts them to consider how acts of overt antisemitism, like the many we’re experiencing today, may shift how much we reveal or hide about ourselves. It ends with an opportunity to make commitments towards expressing Jewish pride in unique and individualized ways.
- Digital device to listen to “Pride” and for image activity
- For teens and young adults navigating their Jewish identity
- For moments when acts of
antisemitism are in the news - For small or large groups
Let’s Get Started
Frame the Issue
On October 8th, the day after the horrific Hamas attack on Israeli civilians, U2 and Bono opened their performance at The Sphere in Las Vegas with a special version of their song Pride (In The Name Of Love) dedicated to the Israeli lives lost at the music festival.
Let’s have a listen.
| Scan the QR code or click here to watch “They could not take our pride” video together. |  |
Facilitator prompts the group:
- As you listen, think about what pride means in this context. How would you define pride?
- Think about your own sense of Jewish pride. What makes you feel proud to be Jewish?
If in person, share your answers together as a group.
If online, put your answers in the chat box, or on a shared Jamboard/google document.
EXPLORE THE VALUE
Facilitator reads for framing:
Each and every day we make decisions about how to show up in the public sphere. Sometimes, we may be confident with a decision about public displays of our Jewish identities. Acts of overt antisemitism, like the many we’re experiencing today, may shift how much we reveal or hide about ourselves, with the stakes feeling even higher about making choices about which parts of our Jewish pride we want to be on display for others to see.
Facilitator prompts the group:
- Think about the extent to which you display your Jewish identity in the public sphere.
- Has it changed in recent weeks?
- Use the spectrum below to plot your response to the question above.
- Consider where you plotted yourself.
- If you are concealing more, why? If you are revealing more, why? Does it change depending on the setting you’re in?
Facilitator asks a few people to share out their responses, representing different points on the spectrum.
ANCHOR IN JEWISH WISDOM
| Facilitator reads, frames and prompts:
To deepen our exploration, we’re going to explore a powerful Jewish symbol: the Chanukah menorah. Spend a moment and list your associations with the Chanukah menorah.
|
 |
Facilitator note:
Depending on context and timing, you may want to add what was not surfaced in the conversation: The miraculous nature of the Maccabees victory, light in the darkness, the fact that many Jews can identify it – it’s a well-known symbol of Judaism, etc.
Let’s continue our use of the Menorah as a symbol by analyzing the following Rabbinic text:
Facilitator reads or has a volunteer read:
The Talmud (Shabbat 21b) states,
תָּנוּ רַבָנַן: נֵר חֲנוּכָּה מִצְוָה לְהָנִיחַ עַל פֶּתַח בֵּיתו מִבַּחוּץ. אִם הָיָה דָּר בַּעֲלִיָיה — מַנִיחָה בַּחַלּוֹן הַסְּמוּכָה לִרְשׁוּת הָרַבִּים. וּבִשְׁעַת הַסַּכָּנָה — מַנִיחָה עַל שֻׁלְחָנו ודַיּוֹ
The Sages taught in a Baraita [a Jewish legal text supplementing the core Mishnaic text]:
It is a mitzvah to place the Hanukkah lamp [menorah] at the entrance to one’s house on the outside, so that all can see it. If one lives upstairs, one should place it at the window adjacent to the public domain. And in a time of danger, one places it on the table and that is sufficient to fulfill the mitzvah.
Facilitator prompts the group:
- Can someone in their own words explain what the teaching here is?
- Using the text above as a model, is there anything that you have generally expressed internally that you feel is important to make more public and visible?What do need to be able to do so?
- Is there anything about your external display of pride you want to bring in closer to you? Are there other places you can share those parts of yourself?
Discuss as a group and compare responses.
ACTIVITY
Facilitator explains and prompts:
| Scan the QR code or use the gallery of images at this link. |  |
- Take a look at the images in the gallery.
- Consider for yourself: Which captures how you display your Judaism right now? How?
- Is that where you want to be? If not, select an image you’d aspire to reach.
Facilitator creates breakout groups for learners to share their responses with one another. (10 minutes)
Prompt action
Facilitator reads for framing:
On the Shabbat after the attack, Rabbi Rachel Timoner, an American Rabbi based in Brooklyn NY, encouraged congregants to remember their parts in the Jewish and Israeli story:
“But please, please do not take your mezuzah off your door. Please do not stop coming here to be together. Please do not take your star from around your neck. Please do not stop living as proud Jews. Please do not stop standing as steadfast supporters of our Israeli family, who feel more alone in the world now than ever. Please do not stop calling for the return of the hostages. Please do not stop giving to aid funds. Please do not stop calling Israeli friends and family, here and there. Please do not stop doing all of the Jewish things you do. Every one of them, every Jewish thing you do, matters.”
Facilitator prompts the group:
- Think of one act of Jewish pride that feels important to you right now.
- Commit to finding a place/space where you can express it with a full sense of pride.
- Take a moment to write it down or share it with another.
Close with intention
This conversation gave the opportunity to think more carefully about how and when we express our Jewish pride, particularly in moments when global Jewry is in crisis and facing increased antisemitism. Drawing on the imagery of the menorah, it gave a chance to assess our own revealing and concealing of symbols and markers of Jewish pride and identity, prompting us to always be aspirational.
Facilitator prompts the group:
- Fill in the blank: Expressing Jewish Pride at this moment for me feels like
Back to They Could Not Take Our Pride 
