It has been a busy time for Ireland’s new chief rabbi Yoni Wieder. His wife Olivia gave birth to a child two weeks ago and last week saw the commemoration of Rosh Hashana, the Jewish new year, which began at sunset on Wednesday and lasted until sunset on Friday.
This week Jewish communities worldwide are marking the first anniversary of the October 7th massacre, the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.
When Wieder was inaugurated in May, the first time that Ireland had a chief rabbi since 2008, he spoke of the “deep hurt and isolation” many in the community felt as a result of the backlash against Israel’s actions in Gaza.
On Sunday the rabbi will lead members of the Jewish and Israeli community and their supporters in Ireland at a memorial vigil outside the Israeli embassy in Ballsbridge, Dublin. Representatives from the Israeli community here will read and give testimony of their experiences of that day and its continuing aftermath.
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Weiner was born into London’s Orthodox Jewish community. He moved as a teenager with his parents to Israel. While studying in Kollel (the rabbinic training programme), he was approached to head Dublin’s Jewish community. At 28 he is the youngest chief rabbi of Ireland.
He has seen a “noticeable renaissance in Jewish communal life” since his arrival bolstered by the many hundreds of Israeli immigrants working in the tech sector.
“It’s also clear that the horrors of October 7th and the challenges of the past year have spurred some people to seek more affiliation than they might have otherwise. Whatever the catalysts, there’s a strong sense that things are happening in the community, and people want to be a part of it,” he says.
Since coming to Ireland, he has noticed that Jews here “strongly agree with the necessity of the war and its aims”, but he stresses that not all of them agree with every action Israel has taken.
“What I can say is that the community is united by a longing to see lasting peace, and for everyone, Israelis and Palestinians, to be able to live and thrive in prosperity and harmony.”
How does the community feel about the estimated 40,000 Palestinians who have been killed — as calculated by Gaza’s health ministry — among them thousands of innocent children?
“There is immense sadness at the suffering of innocent Palestinians, but most attribute that to the tactic of Hamas,” he says. “Hamas are a terrorist organisation, not only intent on murdering Jews and destroying Israel but also on intentionally placing civilians in harm’s way. They have openly stated that this is their strategy.”
There has been no physical violence against the Jewish community in Ireland, he stresses, but there have been instances of Swastikas being daubed on walls and anti-Semitic graffiti and “endless, vile expressions of hatred” towards Jews on social media.
“All of this is causing increasing concern among a growing number of Jewish people in Ireland. Generations of Irish Jews have thrived here and have contributed so much to so many parts of Irish society.
“They have long been so proud to live in this country, and that will not change, but currently many are feeling very let down. I sincerely hope that the trends we’ve seen here since October 7th will not be tolerated any more and that Ireland continues to be a place where Jews can thrive.”
Jewish Representative Council of Ireland chairman Maurice Cohen says the community is particularly hurt by the motion being brought forward on October 7th this year at Dublin City Council by Sinn Féin Cllr Daithí Doolan seeking support for the Occupied Territories Bill. “Could they not have done it on any other date rather than October 7th?” he asks.
Responding on X this week to criticism of the timing, Doolan says: “I won’t distracted or bullied into silence. I stand with Palestine.” He adds that the date of the council meeting was “agreed in line with standing orders”.
Cohen says the last year has been “very traumatic” for Jews in Ireland. “It’s been compounded by the fact that the Irish Government is seemingly victim-blaming Israel.
“All these things could stop straight away if Hamas stopped with the rockets and handed back the hostages. There would be a ceasefire immediately. It’s very traumatic for us that the stance of the Irish Government has been so one-sided. What really galls us is that the Israeli narrative is not given a chance whatsoever.”
However, there is no consensus in the Jewish community, he acknowledges, about Israel’s reaction which now includes attacks on Hizbullah positions in Lebanon that have left more than 2,000 people dead.
“Everybody is horrified by civilian deaths but there was no war on October 6th. How would any government react if 1,200 of its citizens were murdered? Jewish people are no different from anybody else and they all have different views on the Israeli government. There isn’t one view from any Jewish community that I am aware of.”
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