Sometimes I get the feeling, a kind of holy anger, that this shouting minority (or is it becoming the majority?) with their lies is winning. Do you know this feeling?
It’s fair to feel righteous anger when evil is rewarded, when wrong decisions are made, and when innocent people suffer while it appears that evil is winning. In a world that is becoming darker, colder, and worse, the Word of God is clearer than ever: Do not grow weary of doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not lose heart.
Fortunately, we have the prophetic Word that has been given to us, not to make us passive but to prepare us, to make us stronger, and to keep our eyes focused on Him, who will fulfil His promises. Knowing the Bible means understanding where history is heading. More than ever, we see God’s promises coming true, and they’re never meant to fill us with fear, but rather to make us look forward with anticipation. To what? Our salvation is approaching!
Through one of the children we help, who lives near the Gaza border and was receiving therapy aided by Yad L’Ami, I had contact with Safta (Grandma) Helen, and her comment was: “The circle is complete. I was saved by the Dutch, and now my great-grandchild is too.” I have been given permission to share the story of these precious people. Some stories are about survival. Other stories are about what we choose to do with the life we’ve been given.
The story of Helen and Avraham Hoffman is about both:
They came, like lonely children from hell in Europe to Israel and built a family in Jerusalem, in honour of the State of Israel. Now, with 34 great-grandchildren and 20 family members serving in the military, Helen and Abraham Hoffman say: “This is our generation’s answer.”
Helen was only four years old when, from necessity, she was placed in the care of a brave Dutch family who hid and protected her during the Holocaust. Her parents and brother were murdered in Sobibor, but Helen survived the war along with her little sister, who was hidden with another family. At the end of the war, she was found by a cousin of her mother who brought Helen to Israel.
Avraham fled Nazi Germany with his family and eventually settled in Jerusalem. He related: “After Hitler came to power, Jews were expelled from all influential positions and new regulations were introduced every month. My father was the head of an underground organization that managed to smuggle over 100,000 books into Israel. These books formed the foundation of the scientific library in Jerusalem and its treasures, which can still be seen today in the Israel Museum.” Later, he served many years in the Israeli armoured corps.
These two survivors found each other in Jerusalem. They married in 1959 and started a family: five children, 22 grandchildren, and 34 great-grandchildren. And perhaps the most impressive part of their story is who and what that family represents today. “Our kids learned that you should serve the land and people of Israel, and they do it with heart and soul,” said Abraham. “We came to Israel, we cherish the fact that we were saved, and we follow the path of our ancestors.” I find this very moving.
The Nazis tried to wipe out Jewish families.
Abraham and Helen responded by starting one of their own.
The Nazis tried to destroy Jewish life.
They responded by creating generations.
The Nazis wanted the Jewish people to disappear from the land of their ancestors.
They responded by making Jerusalem their home.
Their 34 great-grandchildren are not just a number; they are 34 reminders that life continued.
That’s why Abraham’s words are so powerful! “We survived. We came home. We built. We raised children. We created a future. And we’re still here.” And I add: “They will always continue to exist!”
One day, Safta Helen wrote on Yad L’Ami’s Facebook page: “You are the successors of the family who hid me, who saved me. With every birth of a grandchild and great-grandchild, I thank our heavenly Father. I also thank all of you who are now assisting my grandchildren and great-grandchildren in Kibbutz Alumim on the Gaza border who are receiving therapy. God bless all of you.”
With sadness in my heart, I say that today it doesn’t look any better than in World War II and we hear more and more news of antisemitism all over the world.
House visits for the holidays
This time I’m only going to talk about our elderly, but I can’t mention them all.
I have taken again a cheque to all our Holocaust survivors, your adopted grandpa or grandma, with a small treat for the upcoming holidays. It is amazing how strong these people are! On behalf of them all, I must sincerely thank each one of you.
At Alexander and his sister Raisa’s, there are always poffertjes (tiny pancakes) awaiting me. Tatiana always turns the food into a work of art, and I can’t leave without eating. Sabina, Yefgeni’s wife, aged 93 and 95, always produces delicious ice cream. Ha ha! I’ve now learned that if I want to watch my waistline, I shouldn’t visit these three lovely families all in the same morning. Leonit has turned 95. “How can he be so healthy?” I ask his daughter Olga, with whom I communicate via Google Translate. “This is because,” she says, “he does a lot of exercises every morning. He even starts in bed. Later, he walks a lot.” I hear the same from Kim, who is 90 years old. No matter how strong they are, they are really getting old. We can’t make good what has happened, but we can make their final years a little more comfortable.
Besides this group who we help on your behalf, there are plenty of other elderly people who have built up the country and are struggling with poverty. Our list keeps growing and we’re receiving more calls for help. Thanks to you, we can help more and more people. Everything is becoming shockingly expensive, and with the NIS 300 a month (85 Euros; $99) they receive in food vouchers, they can just about buy a little extra.
We also help a group of young people from Moshav Shikma, who visit Holocaust survivors in the south. This is a beautiful project bringing young and old together led by the youth institute we have been involved with for years.
Israel is so small, a tiny dot of biblical land on the map. Why is the whole world being shaken to its foundations? It is a battle of light and darkness! Nothing escapes God! Daniel 2:22: He reveals deep and hidden things. He knows what is in the darkness, for the light dwells with Him.
The light overcomes the darkness: 1 John 5. Light stands for God, truth, and life. Darkness stands for fear, hatred, pain, and death. To overcome means that the light can never be extinguished. May we be overcomers!
God’s blessing from Israel. Shana Tova and Happy Succot. Ria Doekes-Flier
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