A sign of their own solidarity
at Bustleton synagogue

By Jon Campisi
Times Staff Writer

For Jacques Lurie, the huge ribbon hanging outside of his synagogue is meant to bring attention to the huge problems being faced by the city of Sderot.
Lurie, executive director of Congregation Shaare Shamayim, said the southern Israeli city is hit by a barrage of rockets, approximately 400 a month, fired by Palestinian extremists in the neighboring Gaza Strip.
To show support for those in the relatively poor city, volunteers recently hung the 35-foot high red ribbon on the outer wall of the synagogue, located at 9768 Verree Road in Bustleton.
Lurie met Sunday with about 100 religious school students to explain the meaning behind the symbolic gesture.
If the city of Philadelphia was hit by 400 rockets a month, Lurie said, "the whole world would know about it."
"Where’s the world outrage?" Lurie asked. "We’re trying to say the world needs to stand up and hear" what is happening to the people of Sderot.
Lurie said the news media should give more attention to the matter, and it should be discussed in an open forum.
The idea for the ribbon, Lurie said, was sparked by a similar undertaking in Israel, where people have been putting red ribbons on their vehicles as they enter and leave Sderot as a show of solidarity.
Lurie told the Sunday school students that residents of Sderot have a mere 15 to 20 seconds to find safety after sirens warning of incoming rockets sound. And the Kassam rockets, he said, crash into fields, houses, "and anywhere else they happen to land," since they are missing what are known as "fins," which are what guide missiles.
"They don’t even know where it will hit," Rabbi Barry Dov Lerner told the students. "The terrorists hope it will hit somewhere."
Lerner said it’s especially sad because many that live in Sderot do so because they cannot afford to live anywhere else. If a rocket hits an apartment complex, he said, the residents who survive will most likely find themselves homeless.
During the assembly, Lurie placed a call to Cherna Hamady, a former resident of Sderot who now lives in the city of Haifa. Hamady stressed that she moved out of Sderot because of family, and was not driven out of the city because of the rockets. No one should live in fear, she said, especially not a fear of one’s hometown.
"There are many safe places to go to in Sderot," Hamady said by speakerphone, in response to a question by 13-year-old Dan Shahar, who asked how residents cope with the attacks. "You just make sure you’re as safe as you can possibly be. Nobody’s going to tell me where I should live in this country."
Hamady said the roughly 30,000 residents of Sderot have unfortunately learned to live with the barrage of 400 rockets a month, or 10 rockets a day, falling in their city, day or night. The citizens cope by staying strong, she said.
"The people are wonderful people, warm, friendly," she said.
Still, Lurie told Hamady that Jews in America and elsewhere continue to worry about the state of affairs in Sderot, and in Israel in general.
"We can’t tell you how much we’re concerned about you," he said.
Lerner, the rabbi, told the students that Israel is developing a radar system that will be able to "catch the rocket on its way up," and will soon have a defense system that will be able to shoot down incoming rockets.
"They have no choice, they’ve got to develop it," Lerner said.
Lerner said he is proud of the fact that the United States is working with Israel in helping to fund the creation of the defense system.
"We are involved in helping to protect innocent people," he said.
Then, he added, "Let’s hope in a year from now we don’t need to have such an assembly."
After the assembly, the students wrapped the entire synagogue building in red ribbon. The 35-foot support ribbon hanging on the front of the building was hung by volunteers, Lurie said.
Underneath the ribbon are pieces of PVC piping designed to look like the rockets that constantly hit Sderot. They are painted silver with red tails. Also on the front lawn are placards that contain messages such as "2008: 400 missiles have hit Israel each month." ••
Reporter Jon Campisi can be reached at 215-354-3038 or jcampisi@phillynews.com