1500 attend Chabad Gala Dinner in Sydney

SYDNEY, Australia [CHI] — In a celebration tempered by the recent Victoria bushfire tragedy and last year’s Mumbai terror attacks, the Yeshiva Centre in Sydney’s annual gala dinner adopted a reflective tone on Tuesday night, promoting a message of unity and self-sacrifice for the greater good.

More pictures in the Extended Article!

Coinciding with the seven-year cycle of Hakhel – a biblical practice of assembling Jewish people to promote solidarity – Yeshiva’s spiritual leader Rabbi Pinchus Feldman led the 1,500 strong crowd in a prayer and candlelighting ceremony in memory of the bushfire victims.

Unlike years past, there was no appeal for funds on the night. Instead, guests were encouraged to learn from recent events and commit to doing good deeds.

Rabbi Nachman Holzberg and his wife Freida, whose son and daughter in-law Rabbi Gavriel and Rivkah Holzberg were murdered in the November Mumbai terrorist attacks, travelled from New York to be in attendance.

Speaking in Hebrew, he told of his son’s outreach work and recounted the story of how Gavriel chose to spend his last Purim celebration visiting a man in prison.

“The focus of Gaby and Rivky’s lives was to do mitzvahs and make this world a better place, and I encourage each and every one of you to continue in their path and take on additional mitzvahs,” he told those gathered at the Sydney Convention Exhibition Centre.“If each of you can take on just one additional good deed, then we will be able to transform a world of terror and darkness into one of kindness and light.”

Rabbi Holtzberg’s words were translated into English by Rabbi Avraham Berkowitz from Moscow, who travelled to Australia for this event in his capacity as Director of the Chabad Mumbai Relief Fund.

Federal Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull also addressed the gathering, peppering his speech with Hebrew and Yiddish words, which lightened the mood and stirred the audience into occasional applause.

With recent reports that Israel could be considering action against Iran’s nuclear facilities, Turnbull weighed in on the delicate situation, declaring his unwavering support for Israel. “What the world desperately needs is for Iran to renounce its support of terrorism, recant its belligerent threats against Israel and abandon its campaign to develop nuclear capabilities,” he said.

“It must be recognised that there can be no viable solution or even durable ceasefire until Iran, Syria, Hamas and Hezbollah are ready to acknowledge and accept the State of Israel’s right to exist within secure borders.”

Turnbull also helped present barrister and community identity Robert Kaye with Yeshiva’s community service award.

The evening’s hosts included well known philanthropists Harry Triguboff and Kevin Bermeister.
In an inspiring speech, Rebbetzin Pnina Feldman called on the audience to increase in Mitzvahs to memorialize the Holtzbergs and to make this world a better place. She presented Rebbetzin Freda Holtzberg with thousands of cards containing Mitzvah pledges that had been committed by Sydney Jewry in the wake of the Mumbai attacks.

Rebbetzin Feldman also welcomed her brother Rabbi Joseph Gutnick to the event, who was a major sponsor of the function.

Festivities included letters of support from both Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Governor-General Quentin Bryce, which were read aloud.

Other noted guests were US Consul General Judith Fergin, NSW Opposition Leader Barry O’Farrell and Member for Vaucluse Peter Debnam.

Seven-year-old child prodigy Ethan Bortnick from the United States and Perth-based teenage singer Troye Sivan entertained the company with music.

Ethan has a repertoire of more than 200 songs and has composed more than 30.
Never mind that he can’t reach the piano peddle, when the American child prodigy took to the stage, the 1500-strong audience’s anticipation was palpable.

Within minutes Ethan, who sported a pristine suit and spoke with a small lisp, had the audience laughing with his wit and sense of timing.

“He has a unique mix of charisma, talent and good sense of humour, and therefore it was phenomenal to see someone of that age able to play piano with such skill and also entertain the crowd,” Rabbi Eli Feldman said.

Ethan played several songs from his repertoire, all of which he played from memory. He impressed the crowd by relaying stories of how he learnt, by accident, to read music upside down and how he fell asleep during an Andrea Bocelli concert and was able to play the last song he heard from memory, having only listened to it once.

Thirteen-year-old Perth singer Troye Sivan entertained the audience throughout the evening with his lyrical treble. He sang with heart, emotion and poise. He recently performed in Celebration 60 concerts in Sydney and Melbourne, and starred as the Young Logan in the soon-to-be-released blockbuster X-Men Originals: Wolverine.

With children at the forefront, the evening’s focus on nurturing future generations was clear.

“Having Ethan and Troye perform goes to the core of what Yeshiva and Chabad stands for: our focus is ultimately on Jewish education and the future generations,” Rabbi Feldman said. “Both Troye and Ethan have excelled in the wider community and both are still proud Jews – that’s the message we’d like to encourage.”