The antisemitic terror attack at Bondi Beach underscores a painful truth that was revealed in full force on October 7: the attack that began at Israel’s borders was, in fact, directed at the Jewish people as a whole. This reality obliges us, as a nation and as a society, to internalize our moral and national responsibility toward our brothers and sisters in the Diaspora – not only to be supported by them, but also to support them, stand by their side, strengthen them, and act on their behalf when they need us.

In recent days, our hearts have been with Jewish communities in the Diaspora, and especially with the community in Sydney, Australia. The difficult images of those murdered and wounded, alongside the deep sense of shaken security, are not distant events. For us at Keren Hayesod, Australia has never been “just another community,” but a close, warm, committed, and active partner in supporting the State of Israel and its citizens.

Since the days of the sages of the Jerusalem and Babylonian Talmuds, a clear hierarchy has been embedded in Jewish consciousness between the status of the Land of Israel and that of the Diaspora. With the establishment of the State of Israel, this hierarchy only grew stronger. This was natural: the Zionist project, which in its early years faced economic hardship and........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)