Mitzvah House commemorates lives lost at Bondi

To mark the six-month Hebrew anniversary this week of the Bondi terror attack, the Jewish community gathered in strength and unity at the Menorah memorial on Bondi beach in an initiative led by Mitzvah House.

Around 50 Jewish community members from across the state gathered to wrap tefillin at sunrise, a moment to remember those who lost their lives and to pray for those affected.

Calling the site where 15 souls lost their lives “hallowed ground”, Rabbi Koncepolski reflected on the remarkable ways in which people have come together in unity and kindness over the past six months.

“We’ve seen strangers helping each other, we’ve seen Torah learning, mitzvahs, prayer, and more concern for one another. Just like Joshua and Caleb, we refuse to allow darkness to define the future… As we stand here at sunrise, we are reminded that darkness never lasts forever,” he said.

Mitzvah House, a project founded by Rabbi Noach Koncepolski in the weeks following the Bondi terror attack, has been operating daily as a centrepoint for connection, kindness and collective care for any and all passers-by. The Chabad initiative called Ohel Eli and Yaakov, was created in memory of the two Chabad emissaries, Rabbi Eli Schlanger and Rabbi Yaakov Levitan, who were tragically amongst the 15 killed in the December 14 attack. In the first week alone after the attack, Rabbi Koncepolski and his team put tefillin on over 1,500 people each day.

“The morning after the attack, myself and two friends went to the morning Shacharit service at Chabad Bondi…and we just decided to do what we can to help. We went to the beach, propped up a table and shortly a marquee followed,” Koncepolski told The AJN. “We were working for the first month, like 14 to 16 hours a day.”

The first initiative of its kind in Australia, Mitzvah House has found a permanent home on Bondi Beach, thanks to the support of the local government, where people can go to wrap tefillin, get Shabbat candles or simply seek some words of advice or consolation from the dedicated staff and volunteers.

In the past six months, Mitzvah House has welcomed numerous notable figures who have travelled locally and internationally to pay their respects to the victims of the December 14 attack. Most recently, Jewish actor and advocate Debra Messing visited the site during her trip to Sydney, offering her support and solidarity with the Australian Jewish community.

Other notable figures to visit include United Hatzollah CEO Eli Beer, Israeli/American actress and advocate Noa Tishby and Royal Commissioner Virginia Bell, as well as Jewish and non-Jewish local and international politicians, community leaders and community members.

While Mitzvah House was intended primarily as a source of support for the Australian Jewish community, its impact has reached far beyond these confines. On social media, Mitzvah House has shared the stories of hundreds of visitors, from those who have recently discovered their Jewish heritage to others who have committed to doing more mitzvot. For some, it is the first time they have wrapped tefillin, for others they use this opportunity to reconnect with the mitzvah.

In May, Mitzvah House shared the story of Michelle, a Muslim woman who decided to volunteer with a Jewish organisation after seeing the “negativity being directed from my faith to your faith”. And of Sue who had not been raised Jewish, but whose grandmother was a child on the Kindertransport. Sue took candles and committed to lighting them for four weeks.

Shortly after the Bondi terror attack, the New South Wales government launched the initiative ‘One Mitzvah for Bondi’, spearheaded by a collective of Chabad Rabbis, encouraging Australians from all faiths and communities to do an act of kindness in memory of the victims of the attack. A list of 15 Mitzvot, one in honour of each victim, was established to bring light, hope and healing into the world.

When speaking to The AJN, Rabbi Koncepolski said that on some days over 50 per cent of visitors to Mitzvah House are not Jewish.

“Because we don’t put on Tefillin or Shabbos candles with them, I share with them the initiative of the government…sometimes I suggest to them to find someone they haven’t talked to in 10 or 20 years and reach out to them,” he said. “Recently I had a guy who came back. He said, I was here three weeks ago, I’m from Canberra and I’m just coming back to tell you that I messaged someone who I hadn’t spoken to for 20 years.”

Currently, Mitzvah House is running a fundraiser to ensure that Mitzvah House and Sydney’s Mobile Jewish Centre, both powered by Hamerkaz Sydney, can continue to grow and support the community.

“For people, the Mitzvah House is a place they can physically lean on when they come here…it’s very confronting so when they come here there’s something you know as a place to go to as a reference point. It’s a huge help for people,” Koncepolski said.

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