Tragic Awakening: A New Look at the Oldest Hatred

By Rabbi Debra Smith

A few weeks back I had the pleasure of meeting with Audrey Lichter, Chai Mitzvah‘s founding executive director. Audrey was on a Chai Mitzvah “road trip”  in the South which included Florida, where I make my home.

Although I have been a part of the Chai Mitzvah’s  professional staff for a long while, this was only the second time I’ve met Audrey in person.

Audrey was our guest speaker at the newly formed Aberdeen Lakes Shalom Club in Boynton Beach. This is a new club that my husband and I started last March and now boasts 125 members.

We sponsored a program that featured the film
Tragic Awakening: A New  Look at the Oldest Hatred 
which delves deeply into the roots of antisemitism.

We sponsored Film & Forum, a program that featured the film, Tragic Awakening: A New  Look at the Oldest Hatred, which delves deeply into the roots of antisemitism.

Seventy members of our club attended the video screening and discussion that followed. The film is quite riveting.  We learned, surprisingly to most of us, that the roots of antisemitism can be traced back to Sinai. The film explores this surprising fact and follows the lifespan of antisemitism throughout history.

In the Q&A and discussion that followed the video Audrey addressed many interesting questions raised by attendees. She also explored the #10XSTRONGER curriculum (Click here for a sample of the workbook.) that accompanies this video.  The video exposes antisemitism as opposition to what the Jewish people stand for.  The accompanying curriculum of integrates our world since October 7 into a discussion around the 10 Commandments, and embraces what it means to be Jewish in the world that often challenges that identity.

I found the film and subsequent discussion to be very moving and meaningful. I learned so much about antisemitism that I never knew before. I highly recommend this program to everyone. We need to learn the roots of antisemitism and educate ourselves about how to move forward and survive in the world post October 7.