News

We Are Still Here: Traveling to Poland with Hillel

Author

Jordan Kekst

Date

January 24, 2025

University of Miami student Jordan Kekst recently traveled to Poland with other Jewish students as part of a trip organized by the Hillels of Florida, including University of Miami Hillel, Hillel at Florida International University, University of Florida Hillel, Hillels of the Florida Suncoast, Hillel at Florida State University, Central Florida Hillel, and Hillel of Broward and Palm Beach. This powerful reflection from his trip was originally published on the University of Miami Hillel Instagram page, and we are honored to share it ahead of International Holocaust Remembrance Day. 

I am an architecture student at the University of Miami, originally from Los Angeles. While I do not have a personal family connection to the Holocaust, I have always felt a deep responsibility to remember and honor those who were lost. This trip was an opportunity to witness history firsthand and better understand the impact of the Shoah, the Holocaust, beyond textbooks and museums.

Standing in Auschwitz I, Auschwitz II: Birkenau, Majdanek, and Treblinka, we walked the same paths where millions were forced to endure unspeakable cruelty. We saw the barracks designed as stables where Jews lived in inhumane conditions for years, the gas chambers where they were murdered, and the crematoriums where their remains were discarded without dignity. 

The scale of the Holocaust was incomprehensible, but it was the details, the bales of hair, the piles of glasses worn by Jews just like me, the faint echoes of lives once lived, that was truly shattering. 

One moment that has stayed with me is walking into the Yad Vashem exhibit at Auschwitz I, where videos and photos of Holocaust victims were played, showing them laughing, spending time with loved ones, and simply living their lives. Seeing their faces and joy in a place where they were murdered made the loss feel deeply personal. It was there that I truly grasped the sheer scale of the Holocaust, not just as statistics or numbers, but as unfathomable human tragedies. The weight of that realization has stayed with me every day, serving as a reminder that behind every number were stories, families, and entire worlds violently cut short, never to be fully known.

Bearing witness to their pain felt like both a responsibility and an obligation. I imagined myself in their positions. How would I have felt? What would I have done?

Yet along with this intense mourning, there was also light. As we traveled through Krakow, Lublin, Warsaw, and Kazimierz, our kehilah (community) found moments of connection, joy, and even laughter. We sang together, shared stories, and leaned on each other for support on long bus rides and in group discussions. 

This balance of grief and levity felt profoundly Jewish; tapping into a tradition that intertwines joy and sorrow, honoring the past while finding reasons to celebrate life and our combined strength.

This trip reminded me of the resilience of the Jewish people. For every life taken, there are communities that refuse to let their memory fade. For every moment of despair, there is a spark of hope. Our group left Poland bonded, not only by the weight of history, but by the shared strength of our identity.  

We are still here. We remember. We carry their stories forward. Never again. 

The post We Are Still Here: Traveling to Poland with Hillel appeared first on Hillel International.

News

What Even IS Hanukkah?

Author

Hillel International

Date

December 23, 2024

The Hanukkah Story 101:

In 168–167 BCE, the Greek Empire ruled Jerusalem. In a bid to solidify Greek religion (called Hellenism), culture, and politics, Greek leadership waged a series of violent and humiliating attacks on Jewish citizens. Jewish ritual practice and Jewish land ownership became illegal, Jewish citizens were slaughtered in city streets, and the Temple, the center of Jewish religious life at this time, was desecrated partly destroyed. In response, in 166 BCE a Jewish resistance group called the Maccabees rose up and drove the Greeks from the land.

A note on oil and light: Oil was a critical element of worship and ritual in the Temple. In an effort to desecrate everything that was important and holy to the Jews, Greek soldiers devastatingly poured out all the oil they looted from The Great Temple.

The story goes that after the Maccabees miraculously overthrew the Greeks, they found one jar of remaining oil, which was enough to provide light for only one day. The Maccabees lit it anyway, and a miracle happened: The oil lasted for eight days! This defining moment restored the Maccabees’ faith in God, and strengthened them enough to re-dedicate the Temple.

During Hanukkah, our homes become microcosms of the Temple. For each of the 8 nights, we gather together, light candles, and eat foods fried in oil to remember this miracle. These acts of community and ritual strengthen our resolve to bring light into the world, and to celebrate our collective resilience and unity.

Pro tip: Hanukkah is considered a “minor” Jewish holiday, not a “major” one. Unlike the holidays of Yom Kippur or Passover, for example, the source for the celebration of Hanukkah is not found in Jewish scripture. Rather, it’s a holiday observed out of tradition. Many people mistakenly believe Hanukkah is a major Jewish holiday, mostly because of its proximity to Christmas.

The core message of Hanukkah: Even when things look bad, miracles can still occur. If you fight for what you believe in, you can find strength and light in miraculous, unexpected places.

The Blessings:

Night 1: Say the blessing over the Hanukkah candles, the blessing for Hanukkah, and the Shehecheyanu

Nights 2–8: Say only the blessing over the Hanukkah candles and the blessing for Hanukkah

Blessing over Hanukkah candles:

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה, ה’ אֱלֹקינוּ, מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ בְּמִצְותָיו וְצִוָּֽנוּ לְהַדְלִיק נֵר שֶׁל חֲנֻכָּה

Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha’olam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tsivanu l’hadlik ner shel Hanukkah.

Praised are You, Ruler of the world, Who made us holy through Your commandments and commanded us to kindle the Hanukkah lights.

Blessing for Hanukkah:

.בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה, ה’ אֱלֹקינוּ, מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, שֶׁעָשָׂה נִסִּים לַאֲבוֹתֵֽינוּ בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם בַּזְּמַן הַזֶּה

Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha’olam, she-asah nisim la’avoteinu bayamim hahem bazman hazeh.

Praised are You, Ruler of the world, Who performed wondrous deeds for our ancestors in those ancient days at this season.

Shehecheyanu:

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה‚ ה’ אֱלֹקינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם‚ שֶׁהֶחֱיָֽנוּ וְקִיְּמָֽנוּ וְהִגִּיעָֽנוּ לַזְּמַן הַזֶּה.

Baruch atah Adonai, Eloheinu melech haolam, shehecheyanu v’kiy’manu v’higianu laz’man hazeh.

Praised are You, Ruler of the World, for giving us life, upholding the life within us, and bringing us to this time.

Created in partnership with Hillel International’s Meyerhoff Center for Jewish and Israel Education.

The post What Even IS Hanukkah? appeared first on Hillel International.

Hillel International Scholarships

Jewish History

Jewish Identity

Carrying a Family Name and Legacy – and Building a New Future

Author

Oscar Seltzer

Date

November 26, 2024

Editor’s note: An aspect of the Thanksgiving story that strongly resonates with many people in the Jewish community is the experience of immigrants trying to create a home in a new place. This Thanksgiving, we spoke to a student whose story shows the lasting impact of seeking a new home and a new future.

I never met my grandfather, but he’s always with me.

I mean that literally — I’m named for him, and I carry that name with me everywhere I go. But I also feel his legacy in everything I do, because his choices and his bravery made it possible for me to live the life I have today.

My great-grandparents, my grandfather Oscar’s parents, fled pogroms in Ukraine in the early 20th century. They came to the Americas, looking for a safe place to raise their Jewish family. At that time, because of quotas on Jewish immigrants, they were only able to enter Argentina, Cuba, or Mexico. They ended up in Mexico City, where my grandfather was born. 

As a teenager, my grandfather left Mexico to make a new life in the United States. When my dad tells the story, he always shares that my grandfather’s only belongings when he entered the country were the watch he got for his bar mitzvah, the clothes on his back, and one stick of salami. Once he arrived in the United States, he found a lawyer who was willing to trade his services for my grandfather’s one valuable possession: his bar mitzvah watch. So he gave it to the lawyer, and the lawyer helped him get his citizenship.

That watch became a symbol in our family, and ended up starting a tradition. My father received a watch for his bar mitzvah, and eventually, so did I. In fact, the one I received has my grandfather’s original watch band, which he was allowed to keep, and the watch face is the one he eventually replaced for himself almost 70 years ago. I wore it proudly at my bar mitzvah, along with my grandfather’s tzitzit, a ritual garment. That day is still one of my most powerful memories: I was reading the Torah, wearing my grandfather’s watch and tzitzit, and bearing his name. It was like he was there in the room with me, watching his legacy take shape. 

When I finished reading the Torah portion, I hugged my dad, and cried at that feeling of connection. That moment opened my eyes to the element of my Jewish identity that I treasure the most: no matter how tough any day gets, thanks to the sacrifices of my great-grandparents and my grandfather Oscar, I have a deep connection to a Jewish community that has my back, no matter what.

My grandfather died when my dad was in his early twenties, but I don’t think he could have imagined the life I live today. He never went to college, though my father did. Today, my sister attends Harvard University, and I’m studying mathematical data, science, and economics modified with computer science at Dartmouth College. 

Jewish student life at Dartmouth is amazing, with a large Hillel community and so much programming that’s available to Jewish students. One of my favorite things to do is to stop by the Hillel offices to talk to Rabbi Seth, the Hillel director — he’s a great resource, but also just asks such wonderful questions. I love the way he makes me think about Judaism and life.

 As a Hillel scholarship recipient, I feel a sense of gratitude to the organization — and knowing that Hillel is part of what makes my life at Dartmouth possible makes me feel like I really have the support of the Jewish community, like they came together to help me achieve my dreams.

When I think about my grandfather today, I sometimes wonder what he would think of his legacy. Not just what he built, through his own successful businesses, or what my dad built through his career, but what my sister and I are building through our education and our commitment to Jewish life. 

If I could talk to him today, I’d ask if he was proud of me. I think he would be. I’m certainly proud of him — and even prouder to carry his name, each and every day.

Oscar is a 2024 recipient of the Lilly E. Reiser Undergraduate Student Award, which awards eight incoming college students with up to $10,000 for every year for their undergraduate degree up to four years. Find out more about Hillel International scholarships today.

The post Carrying a Family Name and Legacy – and Building a New Future appeared first on Hillel International.

News

What is Tisha B’Av?

Author

Hillel International

Date

August 9, 2024

What is Tisha B’Av?

Tisha B’Av, the ninth day of the Jewish month of Av, is recognized as the saddest day on the Jewish calendar. It is a day of mourning for tragedies across Jewish history, most particularly the destruction and loss of the first and second Temple and Jerusalem nearly 2,000 years ago. Over the last 100 years, Tisha B’Av has also become a day of mourning for the lives lost in the massacres of Jewish communities in the Middle East and North Africa, the pogroms of Eastern Europe, and the Holocaust.

This year, Tisha B’av feels more relevant than ever as Jewish people across the world are still mourning the lives of those people slaughtered on October 7 and are fearful for the lives of the remaining hostages in Gaza.

Traditional ways to observe Tisha B’Av

Throughout history, the Jewish people have mourned the loss of Jerusalem as a symbol of the loss of Jewish sovereignty and religious freedom. The traditional practices observed on Tisha B’av reflect that loss and make space for mourning, reflection, and a communal expression of grief. Here are some ways Jewish communities have traditionally observed Tisha B’Av:

• Refraining from eating, drinking, listening to music, studying Torah, sitting on chairs, and wearing leather shoes. These are all drawn from traditional mourning practices that a person might observe when they lose a close family member. 
• Reading the book of Eicha, or Lamentations, as a community. Lamentations expresses the anguish the Jewish people experience during the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. 
• Spending the day in study and reflection of tragedies in Jewish history, such as October 7 and the Holocaust. 

Ways to think about observing Tisha B’Av this year:

Looking for a way to connect with Tisha B’Av this year? Check out the suggestions below:

• Jewish families often carry years of stories and traditions that survive, despite tragedy and upheaval. Think about speaking with relatives, family friends, or community members about their experiences over the last year or your family history as a way to connect with the historical aspect of Tisha B’Av.
• What are you hopeful about for the coming year? Are there steps you can take or practices you can commit to in order to make that hope a reality?

As Tisha B’Av ends and the calendar moves towards Rosh Hashanah, may the year ahead bring more hope than darkness, and may our communities across the world find safety and joy in their Jewish stories. 

The post What is Tisha B’Av? appeared first on Hillel International.

News

Anne Frank tree takes root at University of Iowa

Author

Rachel Bernstein

Date

June 9, 2022

The post Anne Frank tree takes root at University of Iowa appeared first on Hillel International.