Let Us Be Like Esther and Elena

Connections are everything.

In June 2018, twenty-three women converged in Jerusalem. We came from Argentina, Australia, Belarus, Brazil, Canada, England, Israel, Italy, Russia, South Africa, Ukraine, and the United States. What brought us together was the Wilkenfeld International Women's Leadership Seminar, an opportunity for women from Progressive Jewish communities around the world to learn together, grow leadership skills, and create a network that spans borders. Both of us had the privilege of attending and representing Women of Reform Judaism North America, which sponsors this program with the generous support of Dolores Wilkenfeld.

When the seminar ended, before we dispersed to every corner of the globe, we created a WhatsApp group. And for almost four years, this group of women has kept in touch. Every Shabbat and every holiday, we send messages to each other. We have shared simchas - celebrating births, b'nai mitzvah, and weddings - and we have comforted each other in times of sorrow. Sometimes, we see each other on the Zoom screen at international programs. But it is the WhatsApp group that keeps us connected week in and week out.

Then in the last week of February, messages began flooding in.

"I hope our friends in central Europe are well. Let us know what [is happening] in your places. Shabbat Shalom to all of you."

"Shabbat Shalom to all. Praying for Peace in Ukraine." 

"💛💙Our thoughts and prayers are with you." 

"I don't have words for this, but I hope for peace and safety. 💛💙"

And so many more. 

This is what sisterhood is. No matter how much time has passed, how far across the globe we are, when one of us is hurting, or in danger, or needing our help, we are there. We are stronger together. 

Elena Izmailova attended the WRJ Wilkenfeld Leadership Seminar in 2018, bringing a project to help strengthen her home community of Shirat HaYam in Odesa, Ukraine. Her goal was to enliven young Jewish life, particularly through a pluralistic feminist lens. She is now the Chairwoman of Shirat Hayam and one of around ten Jewish families from her community currently in Odessa. 

She has agreed to share her story with us. 

When reaching out to Elena to ask where she was and if she needed help finding a place to go, she answered that her husband cannot leave due to Ukraine's ban on men ages 18-60 leaving the country, and she will not leave him. She has stayed in Odessa to continue serving her community and volunteering to help her friends who have been asked to defend their people.

Elena shares, "Now my friend, who I grew up with in the Reform Movement, Netzer, took up arms without any military experience and went to the territorial defense to defend his city. And so did many of my friends. These units do not have enough protection. They do not have helmets or bulletproof vests. I pray every day that they are alive." 

Elena has been spending her days weaving a canopy of camouflage for protection (shown in the picture above), volunteering for humanitarian aid, and using her network to secure more support. 

"This is actually happening in the 21st century. I still can't quite believe it." She said, "I try to stay optimistic, but it's not always easy. We are learning to live in this reality." 

It seems all too fitting that just this week on Purim, we read the story of our heroine Queen Esther, who used her power to speak up in a dangerous situation to save her people. As it is written in Midrash Esther Rabbah 8:6, "'For if you are silent – if you [Esther] are silent now and refrain from advocating on behalf of your nation, ultimately you will be silent in the future."

Let us be like Esther. Let us be like Elena. We must not refrain from advocating on behalf of our people. Near or far. 
 

In response to the immediate situation in Ukraine, WRJ has decided, for the first time, to open its YES Fund to designated gifts to support relief efforts for those who would like to contribute through WRJ. The people of Ukraine need emergency assistance today to survive, and there will be long-term needs as they struggle to reclaim their lives either in Ukraine or as refugees elsewhere in the world. To make a designated gift, please visit our donation page and select "YES Fund - Ukrainian Support Donation" or send a check indicating "Ukrainian Relief" in the memo to WRJ, 633 Third Ave. 7th Floor, New York, NY 10017.