Jewish Life at Harvard: Doing Our Part
Dear fellow members of Harvard’s Jewish community,
I hope my message finds you, and those you love, well.
The release of the university task force’s report on antisemitism marked not the end of this chapter, and not the beginning of the end – but the end of the beginning.
Already by the afternoon of 10/7, when 30+ student groups released the infamous statement blaming Israel for Hamas’s slaughter of Israelis – it was clear that something was deeply amiss at Harvard. This sense only grew in the subsequent months of turmoil.
The taskforce’s report is a systematic and thorough diagnosis of the symptoms we saw, heard, and felt last year. It should set the terms of debate, and the framework for our ongoing work, for the months and years to come. And in this moment of transition, as we emerge from the acute phase of a crisis into the ongoing, chronic work of investigation, understanding, and advocacy – on behalf of Jewish students and Jewish life – our community has two key responsibilities.
First, it is our responsibility, and no one else’s, to become and stay informed, cohesive, and effective. Thank you to the 750+ of you who joined last night’s call – devoting an hour to hear from Professor Jared Elias, Co-chair of the Antisemitism and Anti-Israeli Bias Task Force; Rabbi David Wolpe, Former Visiting Scholar at Harvard Divinity School and Emeritus Rabbi of Temple Sinai of Los Angeles; Professor David Schizer, Former Dean of Columbia Law School and co-chair of Columbia’s Antisemitism task force; and Allison Wu, HBS Alumna (MBA ‘22) and Co-founder of the 1636 Forum. For those unable to attend — or for those who wish to revisit the conversation or share it with others — you can find the recording here.
We will continue to work with you all, and the community of Jewish students and professors on-campus, who are doing the day-to-day work of organizing, advocating, and teaching – as we work together to again make Harvard a hospitable home to a flourishing Judaism.
Second – and ultimately more important – is that we create a flourishing Jewish life meal by meal, class by class, Shabbat by Shabbat, trip by trip. The greater part of the quality of Jewish students’ lives as Jews is the result of whether we make good on the duty and opportunity to create a Jewish life of surpassing beauty and power, which no one can or will take away from us.
This work isn’t in the headlines, and will never make the news – it’s encouraging students to take on leadership roles, designing classes that will challenge and inspire their minds and spirits, listening to them with sympathy and sharing wisdom over walks, celebrating their triumphs and grieving their losses with them – and making sure that our staff have the resources to do this again and again, for thousands of students.
None of this is ever simple – and it’s a much greater (and worthier) challenge in a place where the opportunities are as varied and compelling as they are at Harvard. So I am asking you not only to attend to, and contribute to, the work we are doing in advocacy with the university, but to also attend to and contribute to the work of building a community of Jewish meaning with and for students.
This is a particularly opportune moment to support Jewish life – not because of the taskforce report, but because next week, all gifts to Harvard Hillel up to $25,000 will be doubled. For this week – Hillel Global Giving Week – you’ll receive more emails than usual, sharing student stories and highlighting the daily dynamism of Harvard Hillel.
As we travel together to these turbulent times, I cannot properly convey what an honor it is to be building this community with and for each of us, and all of us. Next week, you’ll get a window into the growing edge of our community, and the heart of everything we do – today’s Jewish students, who are tomorrow’s Jewish leaders.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Jason Rubenstein
Executive Director
As an independent 501(c)(3), Harvard Hillel does not receive any financial support from the University. We rely on the generosity of our alumni, parents, and community to support Jewish life at Harvard.