9 January 2026
Question
My non-Jewish colleagues have expressed condolences for the terrorist attack at Bondi, but largely view it as an isolated Jewish problem. How do I explain that this is their problem too?
Answer
History is clear about one thing. It never ends with the Jews.
Hatred starts with an easy target, a group that can be isolated, blamed, and dehumanised. Once that line is crossed, the boundary moves, again and again. What begins as “them” eventually becomes “you.”
Australians should be very worried. In a way, non-Jews are more vulnerable than we are. I’ll explain with a story.
After the attack, the Prime Minister of Australia visited Rabbi Eli Schlanger’s siblings. He was trying to offer some comfort and say the right words.
At one point, Eli’s sister looked at him and said, “I feel sorry for you.”
The Prime Minister was taken aback. He was there to feel sorry for her, not the other way around.
She explained. “When they come for us, we know we have somewhere to run. We have Israel. When they come for you, where will you run? You have nowhere to hide. So I feel sorry for you.”
Jews have learned, through bitter experience, how hatred works. When it is tolerated, it spreads. When violence is excused, it escalates. When people say, “It’s not my problem,” it very quickly becomes their problem.
This is not a Jewish issue. It is a human one.
The ideology behind the Bondi Beach attack does not distinguish between Jews and bystanders. It hates all who do not belong to its narrow world. That includes people who look away, people who don’t care, and even those who sympathise with the attackers. Silence does not protect you. It only puts you next in line.
Because hatred never stops at the first victim. It can only be stopped when decent people decide it is their problem too.
