by Dr Dennis Augustine
According to reports, an early-morning blaze has reduced the 100-year old synagogue of Congregation Beth El Chabad of the Meadowlands in Rutherford, NJ, to ashes—destroying its seven sacred Torah scrolls and leaving Rabbi Yitzchok Lerman, his wife, and six children without a home or possessions. Miraculously, they escaped unharmed.
For my wife and me, it feels like déjà vu all over again. A few years ago here in San Jose, in the heart of Silicon Valley where Cecile and I live, Chabad Almaden was devastated by a similar fire. But thanks to the determination of our Brooklyn-born Rabbi friend—Mendel Weinfeld—then in his early 20s—who rallied the community, and with early donors like us, they rebuilt. In that case, heroic firefighters saved their Torah scrolls.
Though I’m not Jewish, my wife is—and I’ve grown deeply connected to her traditions and the communities that live them. Rutherford’s loss is personal—it’s close to Hoboken, NJ, where I grew up, and where my sister Josie, my brother Stephen, and their families live. I simply felt compelled to help and we donated to the Beth El Chabad Capitol Fund to help them rise above the ashes and Rebuild.
