By Rabbi Eli Garfinkel of Temple Beth-El.

Here is what I have to say about October 7th:

October 7th is a grim day and will always be one. Speaking only for myself, my emotions are a strange chili of anger, fear, hope, and pride.

I am angry at Hamas for starting a needless war that has resulted in mass death. 
I am angry at Hamas for taking and murdering innocent hostages. 
I am angry at Hamas for refusing to coexist with a Jewish state in the region. 
I am angry at the Iranian government for making October 7th possible and for firing hundreds of missiles at Israel.
I am angry at Hezbollah for firing so many rockets that the north of Israel is currently uninhabitable.
I am angry at the protestors who yell, “Go back to Poland!” and “Globalize the Intifada!” 
I am angry at the protestors who celebrate the massacre of October 7.
I am angry at the professors who have the unmitigated gall to say that Jews are non-indigenous colonists on Arab land, as if 3,000 years of archeology, genetics, and history mean nothing. 
I am angry at the feckless and utterly pointless United Nations.

I am afraid of the terrorists who have made it clear that all Jews are their enemy.
I am afraid of their next horrific attack, which is inevitable.
I am afraid of the growing anti-Jewish hatred here in America and around the world. 

Despite all of the above, I am hopeful and proud.
I hope that ordinary Palestinians will realize that the terror mafias are not their friends and do not care about them at all.
I hope that Israel’s Iron Dome will continue to block the constant volleys of rockets from Gaza, Yemen, and Iran.
I hope that America and Israel will remain close allies not despite October 7th but because of it.

I am proud of American Jews who have stood up to the challenge of hatred and have not chickened out.
I am proud of the many American non-Jews who have publicly supported Israel.
I am proud of Israel for defending itself. 
I am proud of the American government for helping Israel to shoot down incoming bombs.
I am proud of Franklin Township for being a calm island of peace in very rough waters.