* Translated by Janine Muller Sherr
I just spent Shabbat with 150 Chabad shluchos (women emissaries) from university campuses throughout the world. This year, they decided to hold their annual conference in Israel. Needless to say, it has been a very challenging year for them.
I heard about the antisemitism they are facing and their struggle against all the lies, but mainly heard about their proud Jewish and pro-Israel response to the belligerent atmosphere on their campuses.
The words of one shlucha from a particularly hostile college campus in the U.S. have stayed with me:
"Not long ago, an 'Israeli Apartheid Week' was advertised on campus. My husband said to me: 'Great! Now I’ll need to get more mezuzot and tefillin for the students. I’m also sure that many students whom we’ve never seen before will join us this Shabbat meal'. We have seen with our own eyes, how the darkness increases the light".
In the picture: Shluchos from campuses around the world in front of the Kotel. They are here to rejuvenate themselves before the coming academic year. Welcome home!
