In 2004, Chani and I had the privilege of visiting the Jewish community in Toulouse, France, when we attended the wedding of Chani's brother who married the daughter of the Chabad Rabbi there, Rabbi Yosef Matusof. These past few days, memories from that visit have been flooding my mind.
Though I’d been to France before - that was the first time I got to experience the Jewish community from within. It was very interesting and unique. Thinking in particular about my experience in Toulouse - two things stand out in the life of that community.
First was unity. There were a few synagogues, organizations, and Rabbis and they all worked together with mutual respect. The deep connection between the members of the communities was apparent. I remember the joy they expressed at the wedding, the shining faces of the participants appearing as though they were marring their own child.
The other feeling displayed so beautifully by the community was their great warmth. The feeling of family and great care wasn’t only toward their own community members, but was, perhaps even more so, toward the guests. Guests who had been there for only a few hours were treated with charm like they had been there forever.
The tragedy that hit the community at the beginning of this week is beyond words. The pain of the families of the young children is unbearable. I can just imagine the great shock the community finds itself in right now, and the broken hearts of children who saw evil in its ugliest form.
Let’s pray for the young injured child, Aaron Ben Leah, who is still fighting for his life, for a complete and speedy recovery. Let's send our blessings from the depth of our hearts to all our brothers and sisters of the Toulouse Jewish community. May the All-mighty give you the strength to overcome these horrific days, may He bring healing to each one of you and to the collective community, and may you see very soon, together with all of us, the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah, "God shall wipe the tears off every face, and the shame of His people He shall remove from upon the entire earth." Amen!

Inna wrote...
Uttam wrote...
MichaelTum wrote...
mri ruggenmerg ms wrote...